This phototgraph shows the floater dredging plant which we asssembled to mine the submerged placer gravel reserves on the Fortymile River. The trommel, conveyor and pump are powered by an electrical generator mounted onboard the barge.
The photograph at the right shows a floater dredging operation on a frozen bench. By establishing a long (approximately 300 m) pond on a permafrost bench, we are able to get enough natural thaw of gravel at the cut face to sustain a mining operation. Water is pumped from the river a vertical distance of approximately 15 m to fill the pond.