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-« 3. Examples of some output options for MILS 10
'^^ A-1 . MILS entry form 1 12
c^^ A-2. MILS entry form 2 13
3^ B-1. Clustered MILS locations for the Wallace 1:250,000 quadrangle 14
^^ B-2. Wallace 1:250, 000-scale quadrangle 15
11
ILLUSTRATIONS—Continued
Page
B-3. MILS printout page for Wallace l:250,000-scale quadrangle 16
B-4. Clustered MILS locations for Idaho reduced from 1:500,000 scale... 17
B-5 . MILS printout page for Idaho 18
B-6. Clustered MILS lead and zinc locations reduced from 1:1,750,000
scale 19
B-7. Printout page of lead and zinc occurrences in six Western States.. 20
C-1. Density plot of MILS locations reduced from 1:7,500,000 scale 21
C-2. Density plot of gold occurrences reduced from 1:1,750,000 scale... 22
D-1. Page of State alphabetic index of Idaho MILS locations 23
D-2. Page of county alphabetic index for Shoshone County MILS locations 24
MILS: THE MINERAL INDUSTRY LOCATION SYSTEM
OF THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF MINES
by
Andrew W. Berg ^ and Fred V. Carrillo2
ABSTRACT
The Bureau of Mines Mineral Industry Location System (MILS) is part of
the computerized Minerals Availability System (MAS) , a comprehensive data base
of known mineral deposits. MILS, the location subsystem of MAS, has become
widely used by the minerals industry and organizations with land -use planning
and land management responsibilities.
Information on more than 135,000 mineral locations and processing plants
in the United States is contained in the data base. This information includes
the name, location, mineral commodity, type of operation, bibliography, and
cross-references for each property or prospect.
Computer-drawn map overlays at various scales showing clustered MILS
locations and computer printouts keyed to those overlays are available for
inspection and reproduction at the Bureau's Field Operations Centers at Juneau,
Alaska, Denver, Colo., Pittsburgh, Pa., and Spokane, Wash.
INTRODUCTION
The Mineral Industry Location System (MILS) is the location subsystem of
the Federal Bureau of Mines Minerals Availability System (MAS). The objective
of the MAS program is systematic measurement and classification of domestic
and foreign mineral deposits according to their respective extraction technolo-
gies, economics, and commercial availability. MAS deals with complete mineral
deposit evaluations and provides a rapid and systematic procedure to monitor
the present and potential availability of mineral supplies to the United States
Within MAS, the Mineral Industry Location System (MILS) locates and pro-
vides related information on mineral industry sites throughout the world. A
"mineral industry location" is defined as metallic or nonmetallic occurrences,
prospects, mines (both past and present producers), geothermal wells, and
mineral processing plants such as mills, smelters, and refineries.
^Geologist.
^Supervisory physical scientist.
Both authors are with the Western Field Operations Center, Bureau of Mines,
Spokane, Wash.
Responsibility for development of MAS-MILS data for California, Idaho,
Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii, as well as offshore sites and
deep-seabed deposits, resides with the Bureau's Western Field Operations
Center (WFOC) at Spokane. Responsibility for the remaining States west of the
Mississippi River resides with the Intermountain Field Operations Center
(IFOC) at Denver. Responsibility for all States east of the Mississippi River
resides with the Eastern Field Operations Center (EFOC) at Pittsburgh. Alaskan
locations are the responsibility of the Alaska Field Operations Center (AFOC)
at Juneau (fig. 1).
Because of differing startup dates. Field Operations Centers are at dif-
ferent levels of development regarding MAS-MILS input from their areas. To
date, the MILS data base in Denver contains more than 4,500 locations for the
AFOC area, 30,000 locations for the IFOC area, 39,000 locations for the EFOC
area, and 58,000 locations for the WFOC area. Examples discussed in the fol-
lowing pages are from the WFOC area.
For Bureau use and open file availability, a comprehensive library of
MILS data is maintained at WFOC for California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon,
Washington, and* Hawaii. Map overlays of MILS locations and their related com-
puter printouts provide a rapid means of identifying mineral properties in
various geographic areas. These often provide a convenient starting point for
a wide variety of mineral-related projects.
Principal users of MILS data include mining or minerals exploration com-
panies as well as public and private organizations with land-use planning and
land management responsibilities.
INPUT
Sources of Data
MILS data, for entry into the system, are derived from a variety of
sources. Publications of the Bureau of Mines (USBM) , the U.S. Geological
Survey (USGS), and State geology departments are reviewed for mineral loca-
tions and related data. Unpublished data from the USBM and location informa-
tion from mining companies comprise important additional sources of information.
Various periodicals dealing with the mining industry, along with inspection
reports of the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) on currently oper-
ating properties, are a constant source of current information to be incorpo-
rated into the MILS system.
Categories of Information
Each MILS property is assigned a numeric code which indicates the State,
county, and a numeric sequence number within that county. For example, the
Coeur Project property in Idaho is identified by the number 016-079-0040.
This indicates the State of Idaho (016), county of Shoshone (079), and numeric
sequence number (0040) in that county.
The Information collected for each MILS property, when complete, consists
of 12 categories or groups, as described in the following paragraphs.
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Identification
The identification group contains the primary property name, type of
operation, and current operational status.
Location
Data entered in the location category include latitude, longitude,
point of reference, elevation, and the year in which the property was last
field-checked .
Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM)
Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinates are produced automati-
cally by computer from the latitude-longitude entry, along with zone and
hemisphere.
Topographic
The topographic group includes the name of the 1 :250,000-scale quadrangle
map that includes the MILS location. Name and scale of the largest scale
USGS topographic quadrangle map on which the location was plotted for entry
into MILS are also entered.
Basin
Under the basin category, the name of the drainage basin in which the
mineral property is located and its corresponding USGS River Basin Code are
entered.
Holdings
Holdings indicate the type of ownership or control of the mineral deposit
or processing plant. Examples are fee ownership, private lease, or located
claim. Three types can be entered in order of importance.
Reference
The MILS subsystem is cross-referenced to MSHA identification numbers,
USBM mineral property files, USBM mine map repository, USGS Computerized
Resources Information Bank (CRIB) system, and the soon-to-be-implemented USBM
drill core library at Reno. The cross-references provide access to a wide
variety of additional data.
Commodity
Mineral commodities are identified in order of decreasing importance.
Public Land Survey (PLS)
The PLS group provides for entry of the meridian, township, range, sec-
tion, and section subdivision.
Names
Often a mineral property has had more than one official name. If several
names are encountered in studying a property's literature, the "names" group
permits their entry.
Bibliography
The bibliography group allows a user of MILS data to consult sources for
additional information. The system can accommodate as many as 999 lines of
bibliographic citations.
Owners
The name of the owner or operator and the home office location are
entered in this group .
Completed computer input forms for the Coeur Project example are illus-
trated in appendix A. The completed forms can be mailed to the Minerals
Availability Field Office in Denver for entry into the system or entered at
the Field Operations Centers on remote computer terminals.
Precision
The system provides for an entry reflecting the degree of accuracy by
which the location selected by the evaluator represents the actual location of
the property. Location information from published sources is sometimes vague.
Alternatives to entering such vague locations are either to leave properties
out of the system or to apply a low degree of precision. The latter course is
usually followed. When better location information becomes available from
additional sources or field investigations, the entry is changed to a higher
degree of precision.
Updating Procedures
Additions and corrections to the data base are made as new or additional
information becomes available. This permits the data base to reflect, on a
current basis, the latest and best information. Entry by remote terminal at
Field Operations Centers permits daily updating.
OUTPUT AVAILABLE
Open File at the Western Field Operations Center
1:250,000-Scale Topographic Quadrangles
Standard base maps used for clear plastic overlays in MILS are USGS
l:250,000-scale quadrangles. The conterminous United States are covered by
473 of these quadrangles. The WFOC area is covered by 107 l:250,000-scale
quadrangles (fig. 2). Computer-generated MILS data supply cluster point
locations, 2 which are plotted on the overlays. The computer printout keyed
3See definition of cluster point locations, page 7.
222
FIGURE 2. - Index for 1:250, 000-scale quadrangle maps covering six Western States.
to these cluster numbers contains the corresponding data for each property
represented on the overlay. Appendix B (fig. B-2) shows a reduced reproduc-
tion of the l:250,000-scale map for the Wallace, Idaho, quadrangle. Figure B-1
shows the location symbols that appear on the corresponding computer-drawn
MILS overlay. Appendix B also Includes a typical page from the corresponding
computer printout for the Wallace quadrangle (fig. B-3) . The 1 :250,000-scale
overlays and their corresponding printouts are the most frequently requested
MILS product.
1:500,000-Scale State Overlays
State MILS overlays at a scale of 1:500,000 are available. These over-
lays can be used with USGS State geologic maps as well as land status or other
map types. An example of a State overlay Is shown In figure B-4. Figure B-5
Is a reproduction of a printout page keyed to that overlay. Such overlay and
printout sets may be useful to organizations with land -use planning, explora-
tion, or jurisdictional responsibilities on a statewide basis.
Commodity Overlays
Another useful overlay is one displaying clustered locations for a
specific commodity or commodities in MILS. For this purpose a WFOC area base
map has been prepared at a scale of 1:1,750,000. Figure B-6 illustrates an
overlay and base map for lead and zinc. Figure B-7 is a computer printout
page keyed to that overlay. Overlays and printouts for most major metal
commodities are available at this scale from the WFOC open file library.
Cluster Point Locations
Plotting all individual sites on plastic overlays at most map scales
could result in excessive cluttering of points. To avoid this problem, cluster
points are used. A cluster point represents all MILS locations lying within
1/4 inch (0.63 cm) of the point on the overlay (fig. B-1). Circle radii dis-
tances on the ground represented by the 1/4-inch (0.63-cm) cluster radius at
various map scales follow:
Scale
Cluster radius
Ground distance
1:24,000
1/4 inch
(0.63
cm)
0.10 mile
( 0.16 km)
1:62,500
1/4 inch
( .63
cm)
.25 mile
( .40 km)
1:250,000
1/4 inch
( .63
cm)
1.00 mile
( 1.61 km)
1:500,000
1/4 inch
( .63
cm)
2.00 miles
( 3.22 km)
1:1,750,000
1/4 inch
( .63
cm)
7.00 miles
(11.26 km)
1:2,500,000
1/4 inch
( .63
cm)
10.00 miles
(16.10 km)
1:3,168,000
1/4 inch
( .63
cm)
12.00 miles
(19.31 km)
As the map scale becomes larger, the location density per cluster point
can decrease to a minimum of one site. Even at the small scale of 1:1,750,000,
with a cluster radius distance on the ground of 7 miles (11.26 km), a cluster
point may represent only one site within certain areas or for certain
commodities.
Density Plot Overlays
An additional method of displaying MILS data on an overlay is the density
plot. By this method each MILS location is represented by a single computer-
generated point on the overlay corresponding to its location coordinates.
This point generation can be programed for all locations (fig. C-1) , or for
any selected data category within the system.
A density plot for gold at a scale of 1:1,750,000 is illustrated by a
reduced reproduction (fig. C-2). Future uses for density plots could include
areal geochemical studies and the definition of metallogenic provinces. Den-
sity plots are available on an open file basis for gold, lead, silver, and
zinc, and for all MILS locations in the WFOC area.
Indexes
Indexes have been prepared to provide efficient access to the voluminous
MILS data on open file. Two frequently used indexes are the State Alphabetic
(fig. D-1) and the State/County Alphabetic (fig. D-2) .
If a property name and county are known, reference to the appropriate
alphabetic indexes will quickly tell the investigator if the property is in
the MILS system. If the property name is known, but not the county, then the
State alphabetic listing will quickly determine if the property is in the
system. These listings also provide secondary names, location, 1:250,000-
scale quadrangle name, 7.5- or 15-minute map name, and sequence number.
Reproduction of Open File Data
On receipt of a request for MILS open file data, the open file originals
from the Field Operations Center library are taken to a local reproduction
firm. Payment for reproduction is arranged between the requestor and the firm
selected. In 1979 charges for these services varied somewhat between Field
Operations Centers but were about $0.90 per square foot for plastic overlays
and $0.09 per page for copies of the computer printout.
Special Requests
Magnetic Tape
A magnetic computer tape containing MILS data for the entire United
States is available to organizations that wish to use it with their own com-
puter facilities. This tape can be ordered at cost ($80.00 in late 1979) from
the Office of Minerals Availability, Bureau of Mines, 2401 E. Street NW,
Washington, DC 20241. Payment should be made by check or money order to the
Bureau of Mines. Additional information regarding the MILS computer tape may
be obtained by calling 202-634-1292.
Special Areas or Data
The variety of uses for MILS data has created a demand for overlay con-
figurations that differ from those currently maintained on open file at the
Field Operations Centers. A Bureau of Land Management area, National Forest,
or State land area might be required. Additionally, a need for a different
set of information using overlays over standard map scales could develop for a
specific problem. These kinds of output can be obtained on a special-request
basis through the appropriate Field Operations Center.
Special requests require consideration of some of the output options that
exist for MILS (fig. 3). For example, a special request for "producers"
should specify whether "current producers" as well as "past producers" are
required. In the "type of operation" category, a special request for all
mines must include, at least, all surface, surface-underground, and under-
ground mines to be reasonably inclusive.
Special requests are potentially costly, as programing and computer time
on a custom basis are involved; therefore, quotations are obtained for the
requestor before the work is undertaken.
Special Request Listings
Another type of special request is a list with limited specific data.
The user might, for example, desire an alphabetic list of locations by town-
ship and range, a list with only the property name and commodity, or a wide
variety of combinations limited only by the contents of the data base.
10
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