Updated: 2:46 PM- An earthquake of 6.0 magnitude shook down the walls in one northeastern Nevada town and had buildings some 152
 miles away in downtown Salt Lake City swaying.

    Wells, Nev., appeared to be the hardest hit. Two historical buildings there suffered major structural damage, the roof of a 24-hour casino collapsed and several small fires erupted throughout the city, said Elko County Commissioner Charlie Myers. Throughout Wells, residents
 reported cracked sidewalks cracked and burst windows after the 7:16 a.m. quake, he said.

    "We're just all very blessed that there was nobody hurt," Myers said.
    The county commission met this morning and declared a state of emergency, according to Commissioner Mike Nannini.

    Sheriff's deputies are going door-to-door checking on the city's roughly 1,500 residents and asking anyone needing help to put a white
cloth on their car's dashboard or antenna, said Elko County sheriff's Sgt. Kevin McKinney. Sheriff's deputies, firefighters, ambulances
and road crews from throughout the county, along with Red Cross workers in Nevada and Utah, are heading to Wells to help.

    Tom Turk, northern region forester for the Nevada Division of Forestry, was acting as the joint public service agency command's
spokesman. He said there had been some minor injuries, but none were life-threatening.

    "Most of the businesses have closed due to gas leaks or damage to building infrastructure or stock," Turk said, noting damage to
homes mostly ranged from crumbled brick chimneys and cracked sheetrock.

    The Greater Salt Lake Area Chapter of the Red Cross sent an emergency response vehicle with snacks and drinks. The chapter will
also send a disaster services trailer with cots and blankets, according to the chapter.

    Water and gas lines throughout the city were shut off, and the city has set up two evacuation centers, at the city's fire department and
LDS Church, where they can get water and heat, McKinney said. 

   Temperatures in the city were in the 20's this morning.

    As many as 20 aftershocks reported to be as high as magnitude 4 have occurred in the Wells, Nev., area since the earthquake.

    Most were in the 3 to 4 magnitude range, but at least two were over 4, said Relu Burlacu of the University of Utah Seismograph stations.

    "I don't think we have any damage at all to report," said West Wendover Mayor Josephine Thaut, who felt the shake at her house 60
miles away from Wells. "I think [damage] was pretty concentrated in Wells."

    Two historic buildings in Wells suffered some of the biggest damage: El Rancho, a former restaurant and nightclub that is now used to
 host weddings; and the Bull's Head, an old hardware store that was undergoing renovation.

    Myers lives 54 miles west of Wells in the town of Elko and said he felt the shock in his house.

    "It seemed like we had a train coming through the center of our house," Myers said. "It was a great shock."

    Wells Mayor Rusty Tybo confirmed that "We lost some of the older historic buildings that weren't structurally sound. We've had a
water main break. Nearly every resident in town has experienced some kind of property damage - things off the walls, everything
tipped over."

    Tybo said that the quake "felt like somebody grabbed one end of my house, picked it up and just started shaking it. It was pretty
intense for 35 or 40 seconds."
 The force completely overturned a TV so large that two people could not lift it. "It just picked it up and tipped it upside down," he said.

    Nannini, the Elko County commissioner, also is the owner of the Fourway Bar Cafe and Casino.

    He was sitting at a black jack table in his casino when the quake struck. He said he told the few customers to get under the tables.

    "We heard a big explosion and the lights went out and the whole building started shaking," Nannini said.

    After a few moments under the tables, he said, "To hell with this. Let's get out of here."

    At 11 a.m. local time, Nannini gave a tour of this still-evacuated casino. In the kitchen, stoves and tables were out of place in the
center of the room. Plates were broken and food supplies were on the floor below shelves.

    On the casino floor, some slot machines were overturned, but other gaming machines were still flashing and filling the casino with music.
 
    Gene and Peg Kaplan own several buildings in Wells - including the El Rancho hotel and the town's first bar, the Bullshead - that were
damaged in the quake.

    "I think several of them are beyond repair," Peg Kaplan said.

    The front of the Bullshead collapsed, the brick facade tumbling to sidewalk. Still, Gene Kaplan said he would try to save it.

    "It's a building with tremendous history, but also with tremendous damage," he said.

    Detective Sgt. Donald Burnum of the West Wendover, Nev., Police Department said there had been numerous calls from concerned
area residents. No damage had immediately been reported in his city, but heavily damaged buildings, fires and propane leaks were being
reported in nearby Wells, Nev.

    The seismic event, reportedly with an epicenter 42 miles west of Wendover and 11 miles east-southeast of Wells, had buildings in
Salt Lake City swaying for several minutes. The Salt Lake Tribune's seven-story building in the Gateway Mall shook in an east-to-
west fashion; light fixtures swayed about six inches to a foot.

    The quake was felt as far away at Twin Falls, Idaho and in 225 different zip codes, Burlacu said. Other reports of the quake being felt
extended as far south through the Salt Lake Valley into Utah County.

    In Salt Lake City, Deanna Taylor was at her desk at City Academy, 555 E. 200 South, when the quake rolled through the area.

    "I was sitting at my desk . . . and all of a sudden the floor under me started shaking and things on my desk started rattling and all the
 hanging plants in my office - and throughout the building, were swaying," Taylor said.

   
Taylor says she first learned it had actually been an earthquake when she quickly accessed The Salt Lake Tribune's Web site, "after
I calmed myself, and saw your post."
    Spencer Johnson of Preston in southeastern Idaho told the Tribune that he "distinctly felt the earthquake this morning at my home.
The cords on my blinds were swaying lazily about an inch to either side.
    "It was gentle enough that I wasn't sure whether I was feeling an earthquake or whether I was just going dizzy for some reason. But my suspicions were confirmed when I checked your Web site 15 minutes later," he added.

    Don Nash of Wendover, Utah, said the quake "Wigged out our dog. We received rattling and some shaking but, mostly minor stuff. "

    The seismically retrofitted Utah capitol emerged from the quake unscathed. And unmoved, apparently.

    Allyson Gamble, spokeswoman for the Capitol Preservation Board said the new seismic base isolators that underpin the Capitol -
allowing the building to move in an earthquake - didn't move.

    "They didn't feel a thing. They didn't register anything. Those in the sub-basement didn't know it had happened," Gamble said.


Nevada Earthquake Felt Across Idaho
 

Posted: Feb 21, 2008 06:50 AM PST

Damage to the Overland Building in historic Old Town Wells, Nev.  (Photo taken by the Elko Daily Free Press)
Damage to the Overland Building in historic Old Town Wells, Nev. (Photo taken by the Elko Daily Free Press)
 
A roof collapsed at this abandoned building in Wells, Nev.  (Photo taken by the Elko Daily Free Press)
A roof collapsed at this abandoned building in Wells, Nev. (Photo taken by the Elko Daily Free Press)
 
Damage to the vacant Bullshead Saloon in Wells, Nev. (Photo taken by the Elko Daily Free Press)
Damage to the vacant Bullshead Saloon in Wells, Nev. (Photo taken by the Elko Daily Free Press)
 
By the Associated Press & KTRV FOX 12 Staff

Wells, Nev. -- A 6.0 magnitude earthquake shook in the northeast corner of Nevada 11 miles east
southeast of Wells at 7:16 a.m Thursday.

The quake started at a depth of more than six miles underground.

Locally, there have been no reports of damagein Ada and Canyon Counties. Elko County Undersheriff
Rocky Gonzalez told Fox 12 News there were unconfirmed reports of some damage to buildings in
the Wells area.

The temblor was felt across eastern Nevada, southwestern Idaho, Utah and as far away as southern California with reports of minor damage, falling dishes and cracked house foundations from Boise
to Twin Falls.

Twin Falls Sheriff Department official Susan Donat says there are no injuries or reports of major
damage in the county. She says the department received a flood of calls moments after the initial
temblors were felt, but reports have tapered off.

FOX 12 has a crew headed to Wells for the latest news. Watch Fox 12 News at Nine for more
information.

No Disruption at Great Basin Gold's Hollister Project in Nevada February 21, 2008: 04:36 PM EST

Great Basin Gold Ltd. ("Great Basin" or the "Company") (TSX: GBG)(AMEX: GBN)(JSE: GBG) announces that the earthquake in
Nevada has caused no disruptions at the Company's Hollister mine development project. Staff has inspected the site and there appears
 to be no damage.

According to the US Geological Survey, an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.3 occurred at 6:16 am PST this morning. The
 earthquake was centred in northeastern Nevada, on the border with the state of Utah, and approximately 94 miles or 152 kilometres
from the Hollister Project.

For additional details on Great Basin and its gold properties, please visit the Company's website at www.grtbasin.com or contact Investor
Services:

Tsholo Serunye in South Africa                  27 11 301 1800
Melanee Henderson in North America              1 800 667-2114
Barbara Cano at Breakstone Group in the USA     (646) 452-2334

Ferdi Dippenaar, President and CEO

Cautionary and Forward Looking Statement Information

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than
statements of historical facts, that address preliminary evaluations of conditions or future events or developments that Great Basin
("the Company") expects to occur are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such
 forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual
results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company,
Investors should review the Company's annual Form 20-F filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and its
 home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedar.com.
No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained in this news release.

Contacts:
Great Basin Gold Ltd. - South Africa
Tsholo Serunye
Investor Services
27 11 301 1800
Great Basin Gold Ltd. - North America
Melanee Henderson
Investor Services
Toll Free: 1-800-667-2114
Website: www.grtbasin.com
Breakstone Group - USA
Barbara Cano
Investor Services
(646) 452-2334

Posted: 12:16 PM- Consider the Wells earthquake a wake-up call.

    The 6.0 magnitude quake that hit the Nevada city early Thursday morning left it strewn with the wreckage of older buildings - and
that's the kind of damage to expect from a Wasatch fault earthquake, a University of Utah seismologist said Thursday.

    Geophysics professor Robert B. Smith, former director of the university's seismograph station, said the Wasatch fault that runs between Brigham City and Levan stretches the Earth's crust four inches every year.

    That constant elasticity is "pulling the West apart," he said. "It's a rubber band being loaded."

    And it will snap.

    Mathematical calculations based on regional earthquake history shows a one-in-four chance of a big quake of magnitude 6.5 to 7.5
will happen here in the next 50 years.

    Or maybe tomorrow.

    The Wells quake is considered moderate. But even a moderate earthquake of 5.5 to 6.5 magnitude, if its epicenter were in a Wasatch
Front city, would be devastating, Smith said.

    The Wasatch fault is is 350 kilometers long - about 217 miles - and divided in segments, Smith said. Those segments in a large
earthquake would act as if the loaded rubber band shot a rock into a windshield: break lines speed outward from the ding until the
whole thing shatters.

    "The crack propagates and has a velocity of roughly the speed of sound," Smith said.

    That means a fracture would travel a 20-mile fault segment in six seconds, collapsing unreinforced brick buildings and homes in an
instant and possibly shearing underground water, electric, sewer and natural gas lines along the way and causing billions of dollars in
damages.
 
    That doesn't mean post-earthquake cities would be smoldering ruins, as newer buildings are engineered to withstand seismic activity,
Smith said.

    Still, the Wells quake, moderate as it was, "is going to be remembered as something that caused a lot of damage," Smith said.

    Unfortunately, he added, memories are short.

    "We all say we're going to make preparations, but we don't. People have the tendency with earthquakes [to remember] for about a
week," he said.

    There's not much individuals can do to defend themselves in a 7.5 magnitude quake, but they can allay damage by retrofitting masonry
homes to make them safer. Smith said people also should pull together the standard, basic emergency 72-hour kits of food, water and
batteries and make plans for how to contact families and friends - the sorts of advice available from multitudes of public-safety and
 church Web sites.
 
    But the best preparedness comes from land-use planning and government. Officials understand they have a huge responsibility, but
tend to treat earthquakes as a problem far in the future they won't have to deal with, Smith said.

    "They want to know what's going to happen in the next year or so, not the next 100 years," he said.

Earthquake fault creeping up on Fish Spring Flat

Record Courier Staff Reports
March 2, 2008


It's been a very interesting week with the moon's total eclipse, the Navy's shooting down the spy satellite, the big snowstorm here and
the 6.0 earthquake near Wells, Nevada. That might not sound like a very powerful earthquake but it was big enough to severely damage
many of the old historic buildings from the 1860s.

We didn't feel the shaking here in Fish Springs but it was reported to be felt even in Southern California. The little town of Wells has
a population of 2,300 and apparently only a few residents were injured. Lucky for that with all the old brick buildings falling down.
There's probably some after-shocks still happening around that area of I-80.

Over the yeyears there have been a lot of major earthquakes in Nevada. Alaska and California are the most active states for earthquakes
and Nevada is the third most seismically active. Our beautiful alternating mountains and valleys were, and continue to be, formed by the
process of faulting and sometimes it seems like Nevada is pulling apart.

Back in 1989, I was hiking up the hill behind our house when I first saw it. A large crack that was 2 inches wide and a whole lot deeper
than my walking stick had torn open the earth's surface. I followed the mysterious crack for half a mile. It ran horizontally about one-
third up the hillside on the northwest edge of Fish Spring Flat. I called various agencies to report the unusual phenomenon and a
geologist from the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology came out to investigate. He directed a large backhoe to dig a trench 30
feet long, 5 feet wide, and 15 feet deep into the hill. The crack was directly on top of a previously unknown earthquake fault.

The fault goes deep - miles deep - into the earth. It is a creeping scarp-type fault and curiously, there was no earth shaking when it
opened back in 1989. As it creeps, the east side, which is the lower part of the fissure, has moved down and it stretched the dirt on
the surface, pulling it apart. The deep trench that was dug through the fissure showed a dramatic difference in soil color exactly where
the fault line runs. One side was a light tan-white color, and the other side was a reddish-brown. They are totally different geological
features. Some kind of tectonic stress may have caused this fault to quietly open up.

Creep is very common on earthquake faults of this particular type. There are two schools of thought about a creeping fault. One is
that the energy is gradually released and thereby relieving the built-up pressure slowly as opposed to a sudden, violent movement.
The other is that creeping indicates an active fault, with a larger earthquake in its future.

My belief is that the energy is gradually being released, but to play it safe, we are planning for a possible earthquake, just in case.
Think positive - but store water.


-- Linda Monohan may be reached at 782-5802.


 



HERE IS AN AD PROMOTION ELKO TO STRIKE IT RICH

Nevada’s Best Destination to Strike-it-Rich…
is ELKO COUNTY!

Investment Opportunities
Investment opportunities are available to investors looking to strike-it-rich! Northeastern Nevada is still affordable compared to the Reno
and Las Vegas areas. Call ECEDA for information on Elko County’s strong economy and bright future.

Industrial Development Opportunities
Plentiful affordable land and resources make Elko County a great location for new industry. Call ECEDA for demographic and site information.

Housing Development Opportunities
Elko County’s growing population is in need of new workforce housing and multi-family dwellings. The tight rental market is a testament to that fact. Call ECEDA for the latest information on northeastern Nevada’s housing market.

Commercial Development Opportunities
As the hub for northeastern Nevada, the City of Elko is an area of opportunity for new retail or service businesses. Call ECEDA for information on the purchase power of this underserved market.

Business Expansion Opportunities
A strong mining economy offers expansion opportunities to current mining support companies and relocation opportunities for those mining support companies looking for a local competitive advantage. Call ECEDA for site information.


SOME EXAMPLES OF MINING VENTURES IN NORTHEASTERN NEVADA WHERE THE QUAKE WAS

AuEx Ventures, Inc. ("AuEx" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:XAU) is pleased to report new gold intercepts that extend shallow, oxide gold mineralization in the Main Zone of Long Canyon. Hole LC066C intersected 107 feet of 0.092 ounce per ton ("opt") gold and Hole LC067C intersected 90 feet of 0.12 opt gold both about 250 feet northeastward from core hole LC063C that intersected 0.39 opt gold over 75 feet. The Long Canyon gold exploration project is located in Elko County, Nevada. Fronteer Development Group Inc. ("Fronteer") provided these results from three of six core holes completed in late 2007 under an exploration earn-in agreement with the Company. The core drilling program tested the northeast extension of gold mineralization discovered in the Main Zone. Results of two of the core holes were reported in the Company's news release on January 7, 2008 and results of the last core hole are pending.

Ron Parratt, President and CEO of AuEx,stated: "AuEx is delighted that the success of the 2007 Long Canyon drill program encouraged Fronteer to announce a budget of US$3 million in 2008 to extend and further define Long Canyon's high-grade mineralization with the goal of producing the project's first resource estimate by year end."

The new drill data indicate that the Main Zone of gold mineralization at Long Canyon is at least 3,700 feet in length and still remains open to the northeast 600 feet beyond the limits of the soil gold anomaly. In addition, the Main Zone is still open to the southwest where approximately 1,600 feet of the soil gold anomaly remains undrilled. An aggressive program consisting of over 50,000 feet of core and reverse circulation drilling is planned by Fronteer to commence in late spring 2008 and will test the northeast, southwest, and depth extensions of the Main Zone, the West Zone, and other targets. Fronteer completed 11,500 feet of reverse circulation drilling and 2,055 feet of core drilling at Long Canyon during 2007.

As reported to AuEx by Fronteer, all drill samples were collected following standard industry practice and were assayed by American Assay Laboratories, Inc. of Sparks, Nevada. Gold results were determined using standard fire assay techniques on a 30 gram sample with an atomic absorption finish. QA/QC included the insertion of numerous standards and blanks into the sample stream. Check assays and preliminary cyanide amenability testing is underway. All intercepts are reported as drilled and are estimated to be near true thickness. All data, as reported to the Company by Fronteer and disclosed in this press release including sampling, analytical and test data have been reviewed by the Company's qualified person Mr. Eric M. Struhsacker, M.Sc., and Certified Professional Geologist. Further details concerning the Long Canyon property are described in the Company's National Instrument 43-101 report filed on Sedar and are on the Company's website.

AuEx Ventures, Inc. is a Tier 1 TSX.V listed precious metals exploration company that has a current portfolio of seventeen exploration projects in Nevada, one project in Spain and a generative exploration program in Argentina. The Company controls over 80,000 acres of unpatented mining claims and fee land. Eleven of the projects are in joint venture agreements with eight companies who provide exploration funding. The Company applies the extensive Nevada exploration experience and high-end technical skills of its founders to search for and acquire new precious metal exploration projects that are then offered for joint venture.

AuEx Ventures, Inc.

Ronald L. Parratt, President and CEO

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future production, reserve potential, exploration and development activities and events or developments that the Company expects, are forward-looking statements. Although the management of AuEx believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploration and development successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Please see our public filings at www.sedar.com for further information.

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.


Tuesday, Feb. 12 2008

RSM Gold-Silver Exploration Plans for 2008 in Nevada

by CCNMathews
Comtex

MANHATTAN, NEVADA, Feb 12, 2008 (Marketwire via COMTEX) -- ROYAL STANDARD MINERALS INC. (TSX VENTURE:RSM)(OTCBB:RYSMF) -

The Company has completed exploration plans for the 2008 field season. During the month of January both drills were set up on the Railroad Cu-Mo-Au project. Due to heavy unseasonal snowfall the drills were moved off the property with one drill moved to the Dixie-Comstock gold-silver property, the second drill will be set up on the Fondaway gold property both projects are located in Churchill County, Nevada as indicated by Qualified Person, Roland M. Larsen.

The Dixie-Comstock property core drilling program is directed toward testing selected target areas that have been previously drilled (and extension drilling into untested) zones, an epithermal system, indicating bonanza gold-silver grades. This program will acquire confirmation data for the completion of a NI-43-101 resource report. This property has been intensively drill tested by Santa Fe, Asarco, Horizon Gold Corp. and others over the past 30 years. The property has experienced some limited underground mining in the 1930's.

RSM will drill test areas within a zone of mineralization that currently has a strike length of more than 1,000 feet and a drill tested width of approximately 400 feet that is apparently open at depth. The system has been tested with approximately 200 drill holes indicating very promising near surface mineralization that appears to deepen in a stair step manner toward the northeast that is proximal to the north-trending range front faulting.

The Fondaway Canyon gold property drilling program is designed to expand the gold resource base within a 3,700' strike segment that is part of a more than 12,000' strike length gold mineralized trend that has been drill tested with more than 500 drill holes and approximately 200,000 feet of drilling. Within this more intensively drilled 3,700' strike length interval RSM will concentrate upon infill drilling for additional on strike drill data and down dip extension drilling in this area. A portion of this interval was included within the current NI-43-101 resource report by Strachan, 2003, contains an estimated measured resource of 390,000 tons of 0.428 opt gold and inferred resource of 372,000 tons of 0.408 opt gold. The current effort will focus upon improving upon the resource base for the bulk of the 3,700' strike length that has been previously tested and proposed for potential underground development by Tenneco Minerals Inc. The second company drill will be installed to carry out this testing as soon as the drilling permits are received.

When the access can be achieved, hopefully in April, 2007, the company plans to return to the Railroad Cu-Mo-Au property. Another drill may be required to get this drilling program underway again when weather conditions permit. The focus of this effort will to acquire sufficient drill data to complete an updated NI-43-101 resource report.

At Goldwedge we will continue with the operation of the plant and processing of the lower grade gold stockpiled material. Additionally, underground drifting to include the construction of cross cuts and extending the decline will be completed. The permit renewal process with the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection to include the amendment for the waste storage expansion, the rapid (water) infiltration basin construction and the flotation circuit installation will continue toward completion.

On the Pinon gold-silver project RSM has completed the necessary drilling last year for the environmental program on the deposit and the proposed heap leach pads. The environmental consultants expect to have a second draft of the Water Pollution Control permit completed in March, 2008.

RSM is an exploration and development company with advanced gold projects in Nevada. For further information about this release contact Mr. Rich Kaiser, Investor Relations, 800-631-8127.

Royal Standard Minerals cautions that the statements made in this press release and other forward looking statements made on behalf of the Company may be affected by such other factors including, but not limited to, volatility of mineral prices, product demand, market competition, imprecision of mineral estimates, and other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the Securities and Exchange Commission filings of the Company.

C.U.S.I.P. #

LISTED: STANDARD & POORS

SOURCE: Royal Standard Minerals Inc.

Royal Standard Minerals
Roland Larsen
Qualified Person NI-43-101775-487-2454
775-775-2460 (FAX: 6.02, -0.01, -0.16%)
Royal-Standard.com
Copyright © 2008 Marketwire.

Monte Cristo Property in Nevada - gold exploration

Mexivada currently holds eight projects in Nevada, which is home to many world-class gold, silver, and molybdenum deposits. Nevada has had several recent large gold discoveries in the Carlin, Cortez-Eureka, and Round Mountain Trends, each of which contains giant, +10,000,000 ounce gold deposits. The most recent world-class discovery is Barrick Gold's Cortez Hills - Pediment gold discovery, now under development. General Moly Inc. is now developing the world's largest porphyry molybdenum deposit at Mt. Hope, along the Nevada-Idaho Molybdenum Trend. Mexivada is now drill-exploring the Moly Dome porphyry molybdenum-rhenium-gold prospect, which is situated in northern Nevada within the main molybdenum belt and within the Carlin - Jerritt Canyon gold belts area.

Mexivada has just discovered a porphyry molybdenum-rhenium-gold-silver system at its large Moly Dome property, and has completed an initial, 3-hole Phase 1 core drilling test. Molybdenum-rhenium-gold-silver mineralization is exposed at the surface, along with "float rock" indications of local high-grade oxide copper mineralization. Mexivada previously completed Self Potential and Induced Polarization geophysical surveys at Moly Dome. Certain rock chip samples taken by Mexivada and its consultants at Moly Dome contained anomalous values of rhenium, a very rare and valuable by-product at certain molybdenum mines. Rhenium sold for approximately US$8,000 per kilogram in August 2007, and would be a very valuable by-product if found in recoverable amounts. In addition, the property hold excellent potential for a large gold deposit, with Carlin age volcanics and gold-mineralized feeder zones present on the property and Lower Plate limestones likely present at favourable depths, beneath gold-mineralized upper plate rocks of the Valmy Formation.

Mexivada is actively exploring, staking, and acquiring properties in the big three Nevada gold trends, and has executed a joint venture with StoneShield Capital on its large scale Jefferson gold-silver-indium property, which is situated immediately east of Barrick/Kinross' 14 million ounce Round Mountain open pit gold mine on a major, regional gold feeder fault structure. Jefferson has substantial drill-indicated gold and silver resources that were delineated prior to the advent of NI 43-101 and thus are not compliant with it. Mexivada also controls the nearby Ziggurat and Gold Junction gold properties, located just north of the Gold Hill Mine at Round Mountain. Mexivada also is fully permitted to drill Carlin-style sediment-hosted gold targets near Carlin at Poker Flats, located on strike adjacent to Newmont's Emigrant Springs project that is now undergoing mine development. Staccato Gold presently is drilling adjacent to our Poker Flats property. Mexivada also controls the Opal Spring gold-uranium-molybdenum prospect in northeastern Nevada, adjoining the Prince Mine property controlled by Gold Reef International, who expects to conduct drilling there in 2008. Mexivada also staked and holds mining claims along a gold-mineralized possible southern extension of the Cortez Trend in southern Nevada.
From: http://www.mexivada.com/s/Home.asp

 


Nevada quake destroys historic brothel

By Doug Mcmurdo in Wells, Nevada

February 22, 2008 09:02am

Article from: Reuters

 
A STRONG earthquake in northeastern Nevada has badly damaged the historic centre of a remote town and injured several people, but
 nearby mining operations were only briefly disrupted.
 
The 6.0 magnitude quake near the town of Wells sparked small fires and cracked pipes, cutting off running water for a time, residents and
officials said.

The town's 140-year-old brothel suffered major damage.

The main street dating from the late 1800s suffered the most damage as ceilings collapsed, windows broke and bricks fell. Although many
of its saloons, markets and banks are no longer used, officials had talked about reviving the area.

"The historic district is pretty much done for,'' said City Manager Jolene Supp.

About 613km north of the gambling centre of Las Vegas, Wells came to life in the late 19th century as deep, clear springs attracted
travellers going west to California.

The Chamber of Commerce touts the town of around 1600 people as a "perfect setting'' for western and road movies.

Sparsely populated northwest Nevada is home to the most prolific gold mining region in the Western hemisphere. Mines quickly
resumed their round -the-clock operations, even as dozens of aftershocks hit throughout the day.

About 50 miners were underground some 160km from the epicentre when the quake hit, but they evacuated without incident, said Mary
Korpi, a spokeswoman for Newmont Mining Corp.

In Wells, one person broke an arm, another had cuts to the head and a third had trouble breathing, said Kevin McKinney in the Elko
County Sheriff's Department.

All commercial establishments in Wells were closed. The ceiling fell in the only grocery store, leaving a smell of alcohol from broken
bottles. Paint spilled across the floor in the hardware store next door.

The quake struck at 6.16am PST (1416 GMT), with a shallow epicentre 10km deep.

Randy Bowers said he was working the overnight bartending shift at Donna's Ranch, Wells' 140-year-old brothel, when he felt two
powerful jolts and a lighter one. Nevada is the only US state with legal prostitution.

"The building is here but everything else is demolished, everything inside is trashed,'' Bowers said.

"Stuff didn't fall off, it flew off,'' he added, noting there were no customers in the brothel at the time and that the "working girls were
in their rooms''.
 

YELLOWSTONE QUAKES ON THE SAME DAY

YELLOWSTONE REGION QUAKES
Mag. 1.8 Feb. 21 00:42:43 47.721 -114.846 0.0 16 km ( 10 mi) WNW of Lonepine, MT
Mag. 2.3 Feb. 18 19:19:25 47.924 -114.800 0.0 20 km ( 12 mi) WNW of Niarada, MT
Mag. 1.0 Feb. 18 11:34:18 42.044 -111.910 6.2 5 km ( 3 mi) E of Weston, ID
 

YELLOWSTONE MINING-DRILLING CONNECTIONS


Established in 1872, Yellowstone National Park is America's first national park. Located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, it is home to
a large variety of wildlife including grizzly bears, wolves, bison, and elk. Preserved within Yellowstone National Park are Old Faithful
and a collection of the world's most extraordinary geysers and hot springs, and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

 

FULL SIZE MAP FOR EASY READING

Cooke City, Montana

Established in 1870 as the result of a gold strike, Cooke City got is name as an attempt to persuade the president of the Northern
Pacific Railroad, Jay Cooke, to build a rail line to this hard to reach area. The plan failed and ended the mining days of Cooke City
because the cost of transporting ore became too costly. Today Cooke City is still rich with untapped resources of gold and other
valued minerals. Mining companies desire the wealth hidden in these mountains, but environmentalists fear that the effects of
mining will contaminate the lush rivers and ecosystems of nearby Yellowstone.

Nestled in the heart of the Beartooth Mountains, Cooke City sits at an elevation of 7,651 feet. Tourists sustain this quaint town in the
 winters and summers. Snowmobilers are attracted to the area with its 200,000 acres of playland and over 100 miles of groomed trails.
The winter season lasts from Thanksgiving to mid-April.


Silvergate, Montana

Slivergate lies 4 miles west of Cooke City. Like its neighboring town, Silvergate offers a taste of the Old West with ranches, cabins, and
horseback riding. It is a smaller town than Cooke City and is considered the last outpost before entering the park. The northeast
entrance to Yellowstone is two miles away.

 


 

Oil & Gas Development Around Yellowstone-
A Pervasive Threat

The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem—Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks and the lands and waters that surround them—is simply like no other place on earth. The vast landscapes and pristine rivers accommodate more wildlife than any other place except Alaska. People flock to the area to both live and play. Hunting and fishing are not just activities, but ways of life.

Incongruently, however, the region also harbors oil and gas—and everyone wants a piece of it. This pressure for drilling is becoming overwhelming across the area. Near Pinedale, Wyoming, unbridled oil and gas development is having negative affects on the traditional rural lifestyle. Southeast Idaho is suffering from land and wildlife disruption, and Montana’s migration corridors are threatened.

The Bureau of Land Management, the federal agency that grants the rights for energy extraction, has actually accelerated the rate of leasing Forest Service lands. Recently it proposed over 4,000 new wells in the Pinedale Anticline, an area 60 miles southeast of Jackson, WY.

Given the current status of thousands of wells in the Upper Green River Valley near Pinedale, GYC encourages petroleum operators to drill responsibly. Possible solutions are:

1) no winter drilling;
2) directional drilling to minimize the number of well pads present;
3) bussing workers to sites to minimize traffic, which distrubs wildlife
4) staying completely out of areas which form critical habitat for species such as mule deer and antelope, or seasonal migration corridors.

The Wyoming Range- Completely Inappropriate for Oil & Gas Exploration

The Wyoming Range is a relatively undiscovered gem southeast of Jackson, WY. Visitors, more attracted to the Teton Range, will likely never visit this range just to the south, but it is well known and loved by locals.

Unfortunately, oil and gas companies recently discovered the Wyoming Range! Preliminary estimates have shown that natural gas may lie under the forested valleys and bald rounded peaks, home for now to grizzlies, mountain goats, elk, and mule deer, with rivers and streams filled with cutthroat trout. The nation's drive for domestic energy is causing pressure to be put on the federal agencies in charge of granting access to the subsurface reserves.

With the grave importance the Wyoming Range holds ecologically for the ecosystem, GYC specifically addressed the threats by creating a Wyoming Campaign. The threat of industrial development of energy resources in this area could simply be too devastiing. Visit this webpage on our site, of visit the Wyoming Range Campaign website.

More at www.UpperGreen.Org

 
Watch SkyTruth's "Virtual Flyover" of Oil and Gas Leases in the Wyoming Range:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3SEEbesbS8
 

Beartooth Front, Wyoming

The eastern face of the Beartooth Mountains which runs south from the town of Red Lodge into Wyoming just north of Cody is known as the Beartooth Front. The Beartooth Front is prized for its rich wildlife and diverse recreational opportunities and provides winter habitat for elk, pronghorn, mule deer, whitetail deer, mountain goat, and bighorn sheep. Grizzly bears and wolves have also been known to move along the Front. The area, which also contains many Native American sites and paleontology sites, is home for numerous birds ranging from bald eagles to sage grouse.

Windsor Energy Group is interested in drilling for oil and gas in the Beartooth Front. The company has already drilled five wells from two pads near the Shoshone National Forest boundary. Windsor was preparing a third drilling site August 2006 when a major leak from the drilling site forced near by residents to evacuate the area. While drilling has not yet occurred on the Shoshone National Forest portion of the Beartooth Front, thousands of acres on the forest are under lease and could be developed for oil and gas in the future.

A 47-square mile 3-D seismic mapping project that occurred in the area the summer of 2006 included a large swath of the Shoshone National Forest. The 3-D seismic project used explosive charges every 220 feet to create a map of possible oil and gas deposits below the ground.

Under an agreement between the Shoshone National Forest and Wyoming Governor Dave Freudenthal, the roadless portions of the forest are off-limits to new leasing. This agreement, which does not affect the non-roadless portions of the forest, is in effect until the Shoshone National Forest revises its forest plan in 2008.

Large scale oil and gas development would be devastating to both the wildlife and people that rely on the landscape that makes up the Beartooth Front. It is critical that the revised Forest Plan and Cody Area BLM plan prohibits oil and gas activity on the Shoshone National Forest and on BLM lands that provide important wildlife habitat.

More Information on the web:

The Wilderness Society webpage.

Clark Resource Council Website

Coal-bed Methane Drilling Halted on Bozeman Pass

At the northern end of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, a proposal several years ago by J. M. Huber presented a similar threat. Bozeman Pass, 15 miles east of Bozeman, MT, is heavily used by wildlife such as black bear, mountain lion, and elk passing from the Gallatin Range to the south into the Bangtail and Bridger Mountain ranges to the north. Wildlife using this migration corridor already are presented with obstacles such as growing subdivisions and a high-speed freeway--additional stress of industrial trucks, pipelines, roads, and compressor noise could spell the end of this ancient migratory path.

GYC jumped in quickly, building a coalition of local landowners, county politicians, and wildlife enthusiasts who didn't want to see wildlife disappear from this critical corridor. The landowners came through, creating a "bottom-up" zoning district, which halted the industrial uses of the land in this area.


Near Pinedale, Wyoming, unbridled oil & gas development is having negative effects on land, wildlife, and the traditional rural lifestyle.

Demand Industry Drill Responsibly

WATCH THIS VIDEO ABOUT THE DRILLING

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n992EofYEX4

The BLM is presently revising the document that guides drilling and other land uses on the 1.2 million-acre Pinedale Resource Area. The agency is considering authorizing up to 10,000 new wells, triple the current number, in the Upper Green River Valley in the next 15 years. Without environmental and community safeguards, the revised Resource Management Plan (RMP) could merely serve as a road map to ruin. Or it could be a model template for appropriate resource development on public lands across the West.

The region's future is at stake. Energy extraction leaves well-documented impacts on wildlife, on air quality, on our rural quality of life and on the landscape.

Will we allow full-scale development of the Valley for short-term profits or will we work to protect its wild places, free-ranging wildlife, and healthy environment for our children and grandchildren? Will we sacrifice a national treasure of scenic and wildlife resources for the short-term benefit of large energy corporations? The Upper Green River Valley Coalition urges the BLM to use a balanced approach to guide future energy extraction in the Valley. The Coalition's proposed Responsible Energy Development alternative offers reasonable steps and achievable goals that will protect the landscape while allowing for profitable access to publicly owned energy resources. In other words, Let's "do it right"

What will Pinedale be like a generation from now when the inevitable bust arrives? Will it be a vibrant town with a diverse economy, where children grow up and throw down roots? Here is a link to Google Maps, which shows a satellite photo of the Jonah field and the crisscross of roads and well pads there.

Instead, let’s demand that this region not become another busted community, a soulless dusty waste of dilapidated buildings and rusting equipment, a nowhere to pass through on the way between Jackson and Rock Springs.

Join with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition is demanding a better future.

 

 

Feud Over Geothermal Water Rights Pits Yellowstone
Against a Church

By TIMOTHY EGAN,
Published: July 17, 1992
Two of the worst neighbors in the West are at it again, feuding this time over the underground currents of hot water that make up the world's largest geyser system and define the character of Yellowstone National Park.

The park and its neighbors to the north, the Church Universal and Triumphant, led by Elizabeth Clare Prophet, have been at odds ever since church leaders moved their headquarters here in 1986 and began installing an elaborate system of underground bomb shelters. But the latest fight, over geothermal water rights, has brought Congress into the act.

Last month, the Senate began considering legislation to prevent landowners from tapping into underground reservoirs of hot water bordering the park; this led church members to untap a geothermal well on its property and fill a swimming pool. Effects on Geysers

Yellowstone officials were infuriated by the opening of this vein of pressurized water about 10 miles north of the park. Church leaders, citing a geological study, said their well would not affect Yellowstone's geysers. But scientists at the park say one hole in the system could lead to other wells that would eventually drain the system.

Ultimately at stake, says Yellowstone's Superintendent, Robert L. Barbee, is no less an icon than Old Faithful, which is to geysers what the Statue of Liberty is to monuments. Old Faithful, which erupts every 78 minutes on average, is Yellowstone's biggest tourist attraction.

"It would be a national tragedy if something were ever to happen to this park's geothermal features," Mr. Barbee said. "We can't afford the risk. If you let one hole be punched into the ground around the park, why not 10, then a hundred?"

With 60 percent of the world's geysers on its 2.2 million acres, Yellowstone National Park is in the largest geothermal basin on earth. The hot springs, gurgling mud ponds, geysers and steam vents that run through Yellowstone provided the initial impetus for the move to protect the area in 1872, when Yellowstone became the first national park.

Last year, the Old Faithful Protection Act was introduced in Congress as a way to assure that Yellowstone's geysers were not weakened by outside development. But that bill, which passed the House in November, has been stalled in the Senate by advocates of property rights.

When church leaders untapped the well on June 30, they said they wanted to establish a property right to the water so they would be compensated if Congress banned geothermal development around Yellowstone. The well was dug in 1986 but had not been used.

The church, which owns more than 28,000 acres in Paradise Valley, just north of the park, will seek a payment of up to $450,000 if it is deprived of the use of the well, said Edward L. Francis, the church's vice president. Mr. Francis is married to Elizabeth Clare Prophet, the spiritual leader of the church, who said she was directed by God to establish her religious headquarters in the valley. Fears of Money Seekers

Yellowstone officials and many environmental groups view the church's action as a provocative stab in a long- running conflict between the park and the church. They worry that other landowners around the park, seeing a potential to make money from the Government, could start drilling into geothermal aquifers with the intention of demanding compensation.

In California, Nevada, New Zealand and other places with active hot springs and geysers, developments have drained the natural features of their energy.

"We know that punching holes into the source of geothermal features will eventually ruin them," said John Varley, the chief naturalist at Yellowstone. "So why take the chance?" Constitution Is Cited

Church leaders say they also want to protect Yellowstone's geysers and hot springs. But they say constitutional guarantees of private-property rights are at issue. They cite a provision of the Fifth Amendment that prohibits a Government from "taking" property without providing just compensation.

Last month, the Supreme Court ruled that the Government must take into account a property owner's economic loss when restrictions are placed on land use. But it is unclear how the decision will apply to the numerous cases of property owners' fighting environmental regulations. The groups battling those restrictions have not rallied to the side of the Church Universal and Triumphant.

It has never been established whether the church even has a right to the hot water that it has pumped from a well 450 feet deep. The church claims that right, but last month Montana state officials said it had no such right in an opinion by the state land use agency.

But the church's critics see other motives.

"This is not a taking," said Represenative Pat Williams, a Montana Democrat who introduced the Yellowstone Protection Act. "The church has no right to such a well. What they have done is place Yellowstone Park in real jeopardy."

Western Republicans on the Senate Energy Commmittee have considerably weakened the bill, Mr. Williams said. The Republicans say they are trying to assure that property rights are not trammeled by the legislation.

The Greater Yellowstone Coalition, the largest environmental group in this area, called the church's untapping of the well "a transparent attempt to pump a geothermal aquifer or the Federal Treasury."

Scientists are not certain exactly how wells drilled into the church land would affect Yellowstone's features. A study by the United States Geological Survey found that the well, if it pumped water at a relativeley small rate, would not hurt the park's geothermal features. But if the pumping were to accelerate and drain the underground reservoir, the Federal scientists said, it "could conceivably cause adverse effects on thermal features in Yellowstone National Park."

The geothermal controversy is the latest in a series of conflicts between the church and its neighbors. Paradise Valley, a high-mountain ribbon of cottonwoods and wild animals, has still not got over an episode three years ago when church members prepared to go into their underground fallout shelters.

Mrs. Prophet has repeatedly raised the prospect of imminent nuclear war. To prepare for such a catastrophe, the church built a shelter for 700 staff and family members and then decreed that all developments on other church-owned land must have fallout shelters.

State officials have held up approval of the shelters ever since April 1990, when 32,500 gallons of fuel leaked from tanks at the shelter complex.

Some Yellowstone officials have also said the church's ranch activities had been detrimental to elk and bison herds, which sometimes roam outside the park in the winter. Church officials say they have gone out of their way to accommodate the animals.

The church headquarters is on a ranch once owned by Malcolm Forbes, the late publisher. The Federal Government had a chance to buy the land in 1980, but turned it down. The church bought the ranch for about $7 million.

 

[Editor's Note:  Mrs. Prophet developed Alzheimer's in the late 1990's and lives in a nursing home. The property/church is now run by a group of church members who hold the authority to do so.]

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