Willow Creek Mine
WILLOW CREEK MINE - Active Operation, Permit ACT/007/038
The Willow Creek Mine is located approximately five miles north of the town of Helper, Utah, where the Price River and Willow Creek have cut canyons through the western Book Cliffs Coal Field. Mining has occurred in this area since the late 1800's. Following initial settlement of this area, development occurred fairly rapidly with the discovery of extensive coal reserves in the late 1870's, and construction of the railroad in the late 1870's and early 1880's. Active underground mining operations continued from the 1870's through the 1940's when coal demand and production began to decline, due to reduced postwar demand of industrial production, and the shift to diesel railroad engines. The Castle Gate Mine #1, #2, and #4, which are encompassed by the Willow Creek Mine permit boundary, were developed and operated from 1888 through 1972, when the last of the mines closed. Cyprus Plateau Mining Corporation (CPMC) acquired the right to the coal in the eastern reserves in 1991, and received a mining and reclamation permit from the Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining in April 1996.
The underground mining operation will target recovery of remaining recoverable coal reserves contained in the "A", "C", "D", and "K" coal seams, including mining of recoverable reserves in areas with less than approximately 2,500 feet of overburden cover. Reserves are extensive and the annual production is expected to be about 5 million tons.
Most of the initial and future mine development work will involve methods using continuous miners and electric shuttle cars. Utilization of high productivity longwall mining systems for actual coal production is planned. Coal will be hauled from the mine using a high speed main conveyor system fed by several face conveyors located at each of the active development areas, both continuous miner sections and longwall panels.
