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The Rackla gold belt in the central-eastern Yukon could house decades worth of gold, people attending the Mineral Exploration Roundup in Vancouver say.
The belt — which is owned by ATAC Resources Ltd. and being explored by Archer, Cathro and Associates — looks a lot like the so-called Carlin discovery in Nevada, which was discovered 40 years ago and is still producing ore.
"A lot of people are very excited," said Archer geologist Bill Wengzynowski. "All kinds of people coming around to take a look at it, people that have Nevada experience...A lot of people have said, 'Yep, looks just like what we've seen in Nevada.' "
The 1,600-square-kilometre area is about 55 kilometres northeast of Keno City, Yukon, near the border between Yukon and Northwest Territories.
ATAC Resources is investing $20-million in the site, and Wengzynowski says it's planning to drill over 40,000 feet (about 12,200 metres) of holes to map out the discovery.
If the deposit is as large as they hope, it could mean decades of gold production, Wengzynowski said.
Social responsibility talk not popular
The Rackla gold belt and Yukon generally have drawn a lot of attention at the conference, which started Monday and wraps up Thursday.
But discussions about corporate responsibility Wednesday played to half empty rooms.
Teslin Tlingit chief Peter Johnston says it's essential Yukon First Nations be at mining conferences, so that companies know there are self-governing entities in the territory with wide-ranging powers and interests.
Johnston said his nation has a mining policy that companies should be aware of.
"Basically on the first handshake we deliver that document to ensure that they're aware of the things that we have in place," he said.