For mining operations that have been in production for extensive periods of time, it might be necessary to refine searches to recent time so that the information is reflective of current mine operations. Ownership changes occur over time which complicates using a company website to find information. Many of those websites are useful for accessing information about health and safety, awards, tonnages produced, and social policies.

The checklists of Figure 5 and Figure 6 were created to represent the type of activities required to facilitate the production of a commodity, in and around a mine site. The mine checklist is divided as follows:

• • Background information to describe the ownership, location, life of mine, production rate and schedule, and the number of employees
  • Type of commodity (industrial, fuel or metallic mineral)
  • History of the deposit because it can span many years between the discovery of the deposit through to its development. It is common for a deposit to go through many different owners.
  • Safety practices and Environment because protecting the health and safety of employees and the environment is engrained in the mining culture in Canada.
  • Engineering to describe the mine design, ventilation, rock mechanics procedures and software used
  • Orebody information that describes the rock types, depth, and size of the orebody
  • The mining methods which includes whether the ore is extracted as an open pit or underground operation. Additional considerations include sequencing, whether backfill is used, types of rock support, and so on.
  • Plant which considers key infrastructure required including power, air water, and communication systems
  • Milling to extract the valuable minerals for waste materials
  • Miscellaneous activities are to highlight that this list is by no means complete

A similar checklist is provided for oil and gas deposits as these are listed on the 900A maps (Figure 7). Oil sands extraction is more similar to mining and the mining checklist would apply. Liquid hydrocarbons and dry gas are extracted through wellbores and the type of information is modified to reflect this. The checklist includes:

• • Background information to describe the number of wells drilled and the type of land impacted
  • Type of commodity whether liquid hydrocarbon or gas
  • The history of discovery and ownership
  • Environmental and social issues involved with the reservoir
  • Reservoir information including depth, rock types, and rock structure. Challenges in extracting the fluids are considered such as whether enhanced recovery techniques are required to improve production
  • Engineering to describe the type of wells, monitoring, refining requirements and distribution network for the product

Beneteau, Bogdan and Cortolezzis (2016) created the mining checklist as a way of teaching students about the technical information required about a mining operation. Unfortunately there is a lack of up-to-date, publicly available information about mining operations to draw upon to learn and practice these valuable skills. If the industry wants to ensure the quality of the engineers that enter their ranks upon graduation, mining companies would do well to help fill this practical knowledge gap by publishing generalized information about each of their mining operations.

The Mining Sourcebook (Canadian Mining Journal, 2007 and 2010 are examples), where most of this information had historically been published, has been discontinued due to lack of participation by the mining industry. We can all appreciate how one more survey could easily be buried in a pile on the desk in the effort to meet production. However, the information the publication contained was vital to the preparation of students for their mining careers. We urge mining companies to consider providing more information as part of their standard procedures or updating detailed Wikipedia pages about their operations, or adding more technical content to company websites. By bolstering publicly available technical information about mining operations, companies can strengthen the knowledge base of future mining professionals. Help teachers and librarians help you by making important information contributions about your company and its projects.

The Mining Sourcebook was so valuable because it contained lists of the following:

• • Minerals recovered
  • Tonnages mined
  •  Reserves
  •  Grades
  •  Orebody type and host rock types
  •  Mining method
  •  Stope dimensions
  •  Percent dilution
  • Drift size, ramp grades, advance rates, drill hole diameter
  • Explosives and Powder Factor
  •  Mucking Machines
  • Haulage Machines
  • Raise types, dimensions, daily advance rates, equipment, explosives, and mucking equipment
  •  Shaft sinking methods, advance rates, drills and hole diameter, mucking machines and hoist details
  •  Stope drilling equipment, scaling and equipment, mucking equipment and service equipment
  •  Backfill method, type of fill, amount of binder, placement method, tonnages
  •  Ground support locations, rock bolts and patterns, screening and shotcrete
  •  Haulage methods including loaders and trucks, locomotives, chutes and tonnages hauled
  •  Underground crushers
  •  Shafts and hoists, underground pumps and main ventilation fans
  •  Open pit drilling including drills, hole diameter and pattern, blasting, tonnages, and equipment
  •  Open pit crushers and pit drainage pumps
  •  Mineral processing information including grinding, flotation, leaching and reagents
  •  Water supply, tailings disposal and effluent treatment, power and personnel