COLORADO'S LAST GOLD MINE.

• Author: STEVENS, M. EASTLAKE
• Position: AngloGold North America Inc.

JUST BEFORE THE TURN OF THE 20TH CENTURY, THE SIX-SQUARE-MILE CRIPPLE CREEK-VICTOR MINING DISTRICT WAS THE WORLD'S greatest gold camp. It embraced 475 mines, 120 mills and smelters, three railroads, two trolley lines, two cities, 12 surrounding suburbs and 60,000 people. Then, its operations and technology made it one of the greatest industrial complexes on the face of the earth.

Today, the Cripple Creek Mining District remains the United States' third-largest gold-producing district -- behind Nevada's Carlin and South Dakota's Homestake mines -- yet it plays host to only one gold mine, the only active one left in Colorado.

In 2000, the Cresson Mine in Cripple Creek yielded 242,000 ounces of gold, sold at an average price of $279 per ounce. While gold has lost much of its luster as an investment, and only jumps in value when war threatens the global economy, gold mining remains a viable worldwide industry. The Cresson, today, is 67 percent owned by Denver-based AngloGold North America, a subsidiary of Johannesburg, South Africa-based AngloGold, the world's largest gold producer. The Colorado mine's 2000 yield, worth approximately $68 million, was part of AngloGold's annual worldwide sales of $2.2 billion.

In light of the recent $27.5 million settlement of the Summitville mine disaster, the gold mine that overflowed its leach pits and despoiled the Alamosa River Valley in 1992, it's appropriate to take a look at a mine that contributes to the state's mountain economy rather than depletes it.

The Cresson is the largest employer in Teller County, with 288 workers. Of those, 180 work in production, 40 in metallurgy and engineering, 60 in administration and 10 in regulatory compliance. On average, 37,000 tons of ore are mined per day, along with some 50,000 tons of "overburden" -- non-mineral-bearing rock. The average ton of ore -- a cube of about 2.4 feet per side -- yields .03 ounces of gold. The gold is extracted through a heap leach-pad operation that uses acid washes, high temperatures and high pressure to drain and remove the gold from tons of rock. It is then melted into an 80-pound button, shaped like a large Hershey's Kiss, that is 75 percent gold and 25 percent silver. The dollops of gold are then sent to the eastern United States under heavy security for further refining. The company won't reveal how the gold and silver is transported.

The average cost of producing an ounce of gold at the Cresson -- including direct costs for mining...