Niblack Project

The Niblack Project is a copper-zinc-gold-silver prospect in an advanced exploration phase of development. The project is located near Moira Sound on Prince of Wales Island, approximately 30 miles southwest of Ketchikan.

Prior activity included the development of approximately 3,000 feet of underground ramp with a single portal to provide access for exploration drilling to test deep zones of mineralization. The project is supported by a marine access point and camp barge facility on the adjacent State-owned tide and submerged lands. Surface disturbances, including an access road, portal, waste rock storage and disposal areas and a settling pond system, are confined to private property (patented mining claims). The total surface disturbance area requiring post-closure reclamation is approximately 5.5 acres.

The project sat more or less dormant between 2012 and 2020, under the terms of a state approval to temporarily suspend operations. In 2020, Heatherdale Resources Ltd, the parent company of Niblack Project LLC, came under new management. The project resumed activity in late 2020 when a limited surface drilling program was executed with a focus on the historic Niblack Mine zone.

Future work will likely include a combination of surface and underground exploration drilling to continue adding to the known resource and looking for new resources along the Niblack Trend.

Public Notice: Niblack Project - Application and State Draft Decision

Public Notice Start: June 30, 2025, at 8:00 AM
Public Notice End: July 30, 2025, at 5:00 PM

On June 30, 2024, the State of Alaska released application documents for the Niblack Project's exploration activities and the following draft decision for a 30-day public review and comment period.

The Niblack Project is a copper-gold- zinc-silver prospect in the exploration stage. The surface disturbance, current and proposed, in the Niblack Reclamation and Closure Plan (June 6, 2025) is on private lands. The principal purpose of this 2025 Reclamation and Closure Plan Post-Construction Update is to identify and describe the required reclamation tasks that are to be completed, either concurrently with, or at the cessation of the exploration activities and their associated costs. Reclamation activities include: 1) PAG waste rock relocation and site reclamation, 2) adit plug and portal entrance reclamation, 3) NAG waste rock storage area reclamation, 4) reclamation and closure of the settling ponds and water treatment systems, 5) reclaiming stormwater management areas, 6) post-closure monitoring and maintenance of the site. These activities do not deviate from prior approvals.

The overall program is directed at further evaluation of the Niblack Project. The long-term project objective is to continue evaluating the technical and economic viability of developing an underground mine.

The public notice with all posted associated documents can be found in the State of Alaska Online Public Notices.

Documents Associated with the Public Review and Comment Period