Activities that are part of advanced exploration are usually done once significant mineralization is discovered. They may include excavating an exploration shaft, adit (horizontal opening to an underground mine), or decline, the construction of an access road to the site, the diversion, alteration or damming of a natural watercourse for purposes of bulk sampling, or mine development.

The testing of an ore to determine the content of valuable minerals.

A tool, resembling a large corkscrew, that is used for boring holes in the ground (or wood, or ice, etc.)

Naturally occurring metals, such as copper, zinc, lead, that are more readily available and less expensive than precious metals.

Solid rock underlying soil, gravel or loose boulders.

A hole drilled into a material due to be blasted, to contain the explosive charge.

Exploration work that is conducted at or close to existing mines.

A mining right that grants a holder the exclusive right to search and develop minerals in the area of the claim.

Rocks composed of large grains with an average size greater than 5 mm in diameter.

The valuable mineral or metal left after the raw ore has been ground down and most of the waste has been removed.

A cylindrical sample of rock taken from the potential mine area by diamond drilling for research and exploration purposes.

A machine for crushing rock or other materials.

A natural layer or accumulation of minerals. Also an amount of mineral that makes exploitation worthwhile.

All the geological, engineering and economic work necessary to ensure profitable mining and compliance with applicable laws, from confirmation of a mineral deposit to the decision to the decision to build a mine.

A drill, containing a diamond drill bit, that is used to collect core samples from rock.

The knowledge of the presence of valuable minerals within or close enough to a location to justify a reasonable belief in their existence.

An assessment of the impacts on the environment caused by a development activity such as mining. A social and environmental assessment additionally includes the impact on people and their rights.

The whole range of activity from searching for and developing mineral deposits.

The drilling of boreholes from the surface or from underground workings to seek and locate mineral deposits and to establish the geological structure.

The location where ore and waste is removed from solid rock.

Rocks in which the crystals are fine-grained, with an average size smaller than 1 mm in diameter.

An ore of sufficiently high grade to be sent to market without any treatment.

The search for economic mineral deposits by searching for abnormal concentrations of chemicals in the Earth's surface.

The search for minerals or determining the nature of earth materials, by measuring a physical property of the rocks.

A yellow malleable ductile high density metallic element resistant to chemical reaction, occurring naturally in quartz veins and gravel.

A sample taken at random that contains a mineral of interest, so that it can be assayed to examine the mineral quality.

Mining that extracts minerals that are encased in rock, rather than fragments in loose sediment.

A bar of cast metal, especially of gold, silver or steel

Rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be profitably extracted.

A method of extracting minerals from ore using a technique that converts them into soluble salts in a liquid.

The length of time a mine is or could be in production OR a company's plan for how and how long it will operate a mine.

A mineral deposit contained in solid rock.

The art of working metals, especially extracting them from their ores.

A colorless to jet black mineral having flat, thin scales or sheets, found in some granites.

The operations involved in preparing a mine for ore extraction.

The percentage of mined ore that makes it to the processing plant.

A substance that occurs naturally in the Earth and is not formed from animal or vegetable matter and that may be extracted by mining.

Estimating the number of deposits or the tonnage of metal within a specified area.

A mass containing minerals that may be economically valuable, but whose characteristics require more detailed information.

Ownership rights to the minerals located on or below a property

The process in which an applicant requests and, if it meets all requirements, acquires from a regulatory agency a document that authorizes an activity or use of a specific site.

Mining from a deposit of sand or gravel that contains particles of gold, gemstones, or other heavy minerals of value. Gold from such a deposit is placer gold.

A detailed examination of the business case for mining in a particular location.

Naturally occurring, but relatively scarce and valuable metals, such as gold, silver, and the platinum group metals (PGMS).

The restoration of disturbed and/or mined land to its original contour, use, or condition.

The activity of leaving the mine area in its pre-mined condition or the condition agreed with the local community.

An estimate of the valuable metal or mineral content of known deposits that may be produced under current economic conditions and with present technology.

An accumulation of rock gathered or piled in an area.

The amount of waste rock mined relative to the amount of ore rock that is mined.

Surface rights are the rights to use the surface of the land, excluding mineral rights. Subsurface rights are rights to the minerals under the surface of the land.

The act or the output of examining and outlining the physical or chemical characteristics of the Earth's surface, subsurface, or its constitution by topographical, geological, geophysical, or geochemical measurements.

The material or waste left over after the valuable product has been extracted from ore.

A dam used to store the waste byproducts or tailings produced during the process of extracting the valuable product from ore.

Drilling boreholes to search for mineral deposits in an unproved area and obtain core samples of soil or rock.