Flambeau Copper-Gold Mine, Ladysmith, WI

The 181-acre mining site located about one mile south of Ladysmith, Wisconsin, is bounded on the east by State Highway 27 and on the west by the Flambeau River. The Flambeau deposit existed at very shallow depth. Depth to bedrock at the mining site ranged from about 15-40 feet. Mining of this shallow ore body was accomplished through a 32-acre open pit. The pit trended in a northeast-southwest direction and was 2,600 feet long, about 550 feet in width, and reached an ultimate depth of about 220 feet. Over the course of the mining operation, about 1.9 million tons of ore containing about 8.9% copper and 0.10 ounces of gold per ton were mined and shipped from the site. The mine, that began operation in 1991, produced about 178,000 tons of marketable copper and 328,000 ounces of gold. The approved Reclamation Plan for the Flambeau Project specified that the open pit, upon completion of mining, would be completely backfilled with original rock material that was separated from the ore. Reclamation of the pit began in early 1997 and was completed in late 1998.