Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-08-10
Geological Survey Makes Import
ant Discoveries in North
ern Possessions.
MANY THOUSANDS OF MILES
Carbon Fields OF North Contain Vast
Quantities Of Excellent Coal--Un-
explored Area is Great,

The question of the conservation OF
Americas natural resources is not .,
new subject. The drain upon the re-
sources and the necessity for their
economical utilization were recognized
| by many who made q study OF them
long before their probable exhaustion
had been reduced to terms of decades
and years. 1t needed however tho
| energetic action of just such an over
shadowing personality aS that OF Pres
ident Roosevelt to bring the whole
question into the national prominence
which 1t has lately attained. In u
recent statement the u S. geological
survey estimates the total exhaustion
of easily mined coal, at the present
rate of increase in production ana
consumption, as likely TO occur In the
century following the present ono, pro-
viding new large coal fields are not
in the meantime discovered. At the
same time the survey Is doing its best
to make just such discoveries as will
upset these figures. Outside of the
Investigations of the coal deposits OF
the United States the survey has for
some years been making a study of the
coal supply of the world and over six
years ago began a definite examina-
ton of coal In Alaska The result of
the latter investigation has been an ex-
cellent showing of coal in that terri
tory, u score or more of large coal
fields being shown on the coal map
just published In Survey Bulletin $50
The combined area Of these fields Is
very great although small In comparl-
son with the immense area. of the ter
ritory. Furthermore 1t is not posi-
ble,ev with the large amount of work
accomplished. that all Of the coal areas
of Alaska should be known by this time.
Additional exploration and investlga-
ton may be rich in results.
EXPLORATION REQUIRED,
Fully one fourth of Alaska, or APP |
proximately 10000 square miles is
little more than an unopened book to |
us, so far as its precious and useful |
minerals are concerned" said Alfred |
H. Brooks, the chief geologist of the |
Alaskan division of the U. S. geoogical |
survey, just before leaving Washing |
ton for his annual Swing round the |
circle" in the big northwestern terri
Tory we hDuM IHdl tlltIt Is Soul
in this little explored area. Possibly |
there are large coal fields which will
form an important part of the ulti-
mate coal reserve of Alaska, The Cape |
Iisburne coal field represents the
western end of what is probably
large coal area not yet determined. |
1t Is not impossible that the area of |
Ignite and low grade bituminous coal
may be double the present known coal |
area in the territory, which is over
IL. 900 square miles. The coal of Alas
ka ranges in quality from Ignite to
coal that compares favorably with the
famous Pocahontas coal of West Vir-
gina. Some of the btuminous Goals |
make good coke. Coking is the Sc
verest test OF soft coal and gives
II especial value in n metalliferous
region Some of the coal seams of
the territory are of great thickness,
] have observed 'swells' In seams that
were 60 feet of solid coal"
Prof w A. Atwood, a geologist OF |
the survey, is this year finishing UP |
of Alaska coal prepare
tory to writing a summary of the |
present knowledge of the coal reserve
Of the territory, based upon his and
other previous survey Investigations.
INVESTIGATIONS MADE.
"As far back as 1902" said Mr. Brooks,
the geological survey began a sys-
tematic study of Alaska coal fields,
commencing with a geologic recon
Nuisance of the low grade bitumin-
Gus and Ignite Goals of the Yukon re-
gion IN 1902, 1903, 1904, and 1905 in
were made OF the Nenana
fields near Fairbanks In 1908, work
was begun on the coal fields of the
Controller Bay region and in 1905 the
field was studied In geo
logic detail. In these two fields there
are 100 square miles of lands under
lain by workable Goals containing an
.hracite and bituminous fuels Of the
highest grade. In 1902 the He-endeen
Bay btumnous coal region was stud
cd by survey biologists. In 1903 coal
were made of the south
eastern Alaska coal fields, which have
not, however proved Of economic Inn
portance. In 904 the geologic study
Of the Cape IAsburne coal region was
commenced. This Is a bltuminous
coal field containing soft coal that
ranges from low to high grade and at
present its boundaries are ony partial
y known. In 1904 survey work wal
commenced In the large Ignite fields
IF the Kenai peninsula"
WORK OF IMPORTANCE.
The work OF the geological survey
l.. In