Helmer Mine

Helmer mine tour

           

Helmer is east of Moscow, Idaho on state highway 8. The sign above welcomes you to town.

      

Above is a closeup of the clay layers in the deposit. The photo on the right shows the clay bank as it is mined. The mined clay is piled on top of the prepped surface to dry before it is hauled to Lewiston.

Reclamation is being done as soon as an area is mined. Compare the open pit on the left that is still being worked to the reclaimed feature on the right which has had the top soil replaced and has been seeded to grass. Trees are already volunteering into the area. Rather than simply covering over the mined areas, Jack Hammond is restoring the rolling hills features that were present before mining. He wants the land to be as beautiful after it is mined as it was before, and because the reclamation is being done as the clay is being mined, there are no future unfunded liabilities. This is why the pit appears to be so small… only the areas being worked are open, the rest of the deposit is left undisturbed until it is needed. As an added bonus, many wetland areas have been created that help waterfowl. These wetlands settle the runoff to assure compliance with stormwater runoff regulations.

Once the clay arrives in Lewiston, our work begins. Although the clay has been air dried at the mine until no further weight loss occurs, usually about 7-8% by weight when compared to clay dried in an oven at 180 degrees F, it is stored outside due to the size of the dump trucks. To maintain this moisture level, the clay is covered with tarps if rain is expected . This is the moisture level of the clay we market as milled Helmer clay.

Since I am moving the clay inside and piling it as high as possible with a Bobcat loader, it takes quite a lot of time to do this. This picture shows the progress made on the 1.1 million pounds of clay in just one short month. This time of year we work at it seven days a week until the inside shed is full.

This view shows the 10 foot high clay pile inside the building in dry storage. Currently, 300 tons are inside and protected from the weather.