The Coeur d’Alene Mining District, where Hecla was born 119 years ago, is located in North Idaho’s Silver Valley along US-90. Access and infrastructure are excellent. This district has produced 1.2 billion ounces of silver in its history - one of the most prolific silver districts in the world. Hecla has a tremendous land position here… about 25 square miles, which is an area roughly the size of Manhattan. On this land position are many historic mines, which in the aggregate have produced more than 340 million ounces of silver, or about 25% of the entire historic production of the Silver Valley.
Several decades’ worth of geologic information on the past-producing mines on Hecla’s property has now been converted into digital format by the company. From this data, Hecla's geologists developed three-dimensional (3D) computer models of more than ten major mines and mine workings of 60 other underground projects. These models show the spatial relationship between mines and regional structures that control mineral and geologic trends. This information is defining brand-new drill targets, with four large exploration target areas identified so far. Detailed 3D modeling and resource assessment has been completed on the Star mine which closed in 1981 and was operated for a short period in the 1990s.The recent integration of the data has defined previous mine reserves and resources, and identified adjacent subsidiary structures that represent strong exploration targets.
Even though more than 340 million ounces of silver have been mined from Hecla’s land holdings within this valley, very little modern surface exploration has actually taken place. Hecla is looking at this old district in a new way. Successful exploration of old districts usually comes about as a result of people thinking about the geology differently, and that’s what Hecla’s geologists are doing here. They take the historic information and geologic data and reapply it, but without limiting themselves to historic thinking. They have the advantage of new technologies that allow them to take both a more comprehensive and more detailed look at the whole geologic structure of this great mining district. They are already identifying many prospective targets in this long-term exploration effort.