ECONOMIC; POLITICAL - MINING, ORGANIZATION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600140196-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 13, 2011
• Sequence Number: 196
• Publication Date: November 14, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

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. 1 CLASSIFICATION_S-8-0-R-9-T.-or
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NO. OF PAGES 11
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
50X1-HUM
50X1-HUM
ORGANIZATION AND MI14IliG ACTZFITIES OF PAL'STROY
CONTROL/JS OFFICIALS ONLY
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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE, 0dtN rr REPORT 50X1-HUM
Economic; Political - Mining, organization
In August 1932, the Soviet government, by a special ukase, directed the
Collegium of the NKVD to organize prospecting and production of gold in the
Kolyma River basin in the far :northeastern part of the USSR. In compliance
with the government ukase, the NKVD organized the State Trust of Construction
of the Far North (Dal'stroy or DS, NKVD). In 1938, it was renamed the Main
Administration of Construction of the Far North (glavnoye upravleniye stroitel'??
-4- Aial'.aen ARWPYa'. The labor for this purpose was to be supplied by the
Main Administration for Labor Camps NKVD (GULAG, NKV1)); in oilier ralauc, cam.
rective labor camps were to be established in the Kolyma area.
The ukase had two objectives: (1) to exploit the rich mineral resources
of the territory, using cheap forced labor and (2) to establish a number of
new concentration camps, inmates of which would be completxly isolated from the
rest of the population, with little chance for escape because of the remoteness
of the camps.
As a result of the expeditions of Boriakin, a noted gold prospector, itwas
well known as far back as before World War I that there were rich gold deposits
along the tributaries of the Kolyma River, especiaU.y along the lower stretch
of the Srednihan, a right tributary of the Kolyma. The remote territory and
its riches were forgotten during the war and revolution, but in 1928 two or-
ganizations, Glavzoloto (Main Administration of Gold Mining) and the TsNIGRI
(Central Scientific-Researcu Geological Prospecting Institute), simultaneously
sent prospecting expeditions to the Far North. As no geulc.gicts were included
among the prospectors of Glavzoloto, the results of this expedition were ne-
gligible. The TsWIGRI expedition was, however, organized much better, since it
had among its members well-educated specialists like geologists, geodesists, and
topographers. The expedition was headed by Bilibin, a mining engineer and ge-
ologist, who was assisted by Tsaregradskiy, a geologist-panteologist. The pros-
pecting group was headed by Vosnesenakiy, a geologist.
CLASSIFICATION
-- ---__.
STATE IU1W R!M
ARMY IJR ill
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This expedition was to make geological and topographical surveys of the
Kol.yma basin on a 1:1,000,000 scale, and to search for useful minerals, es-
pecially gold. The expedition was given 5 years to complete the field work
and another year for making a final report, which was to be submitted by the
end of 1934 or early in.1935. However, enough material was accumulated by
1932 to prove the existence of rich gold deposits in the Kolyma basin and
the expeditions submitted its preliminary report. At about the same time,
Tsaregradskiy and his group, who had been prospecting for coal near Verkhne-
Kolymek, a small village, reported that they found coal deposits which could
be profitably exploited.
The August 1932 ukase was based on the findings of these preliminary
reports. In addition to the proposed mining activities in the ,Kolyma area,
the ukase also decreed the beginning of road building and civilian and in-
dustrial construction. Resides its importance for the new mining industry,
the building of roads in the Kolyma area was also important frcm a strategic
viewpoint, as the highway would connect the shores of the N'ogayevo Bay in
the Sea of Okhotsk with the Transsiberian railroad at Irkutsk, via Yakutsk.
Administrative Structure of Dal'stroy
The administration of Dal'stroy is broken down as follows:
1. Main Administration of Pal'stroy; located in Magadan.
2. Administration of Road Construction; located in Magadan.
3. Administration of Automobile Transport; located in Magadan.
4. Administration of Municipal and Civilian Construction; located in
Magadan.
5. Administration of Water Transport and Ports; located in Magadan.
6. Southern Mining Administration (YuGPU); located in Opotukan village,
40O kilometers from Magadan; carries on mining and prospecting of gold.
I - NorLnern minzng RlIIfIIlnln L2'611VU yuvru), -- + --,uw^u -oaf
(00 kilometers from Magadan; carries on mining and prospecting of gold.
8. Northwestern Mining Administration (S7,GPU); to-rated near the tin
mines on the Seyruchan River 10i kilometers from Magadan; carries on prospect-
ing and-mining of tin.
9. Western Mining Ad::'lnistration (ZGPU); located in a small village on
the upper Kolyma River, 800-900 kilometers from Magadan; was established in
1939; carries on gold mining.
10, Geological Prospecting Administration; located in Magadan; organizes
expeditions into remote districts; carries on geological surveys and prospect-
ing for useful minerals.
11. Agricultural Administration; located in the village of Seymchan;
supervises two sorkhozes: (a) the Tauyakiy Sovkhoz, located on the Tauy
River; has fisheries, pig-raising farm, dairy; carries on truck gardening.
(b) The Seymchanskiy Sovkhoz, located on the Seymchan River; has a pig-
raising farm, dairy; carries on truck gardening.
12. Supply Administration; located in Magadan; is responsible for plan-
ning and procuring technical equipment for Dal'stroy enterprises and the labor
camps; procures food and clothing for the convicts; organizes storage and
transportation.
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13. Moscow Office of Dal'stroy; was established for purpose of hiring
needed technical personnel; procures and purchases equipment and food for
the Supply Administration of Dal.'stroy.
14. Vladivostok Office of Dal'stroy; transshipment base and storage of
technical equipment and food.
In the past, one of the members of the Collegium of NKVD was usually
appointed as head of Dal'stroy. He was responsible only to the Collegium.
He was given unlimited rights and was .the ruler of the region. The prose-
cutor, the court, the social and party organizations, and the labor unions
were placed under his jurisdiction. Dal'stroy was a state within the state.
In 1932, Eduard Berzin, of Latvian origin, became the head of Dal'stroy. At
the time of his appointment he was the commandant of the Kremlin and a per-
sonal friend of Genrikh Yagoda, the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs.
In 1938, Yezhov, the new people's Commissar of Internal Affairs, removed
Berzin from his post and had him arrested for being an "enemy of the people."
Berzin's successor in his turn was arrested also as an "enemy of the people"
in 1939 by Beriya, who took over the NKVD from Yezhov.
The head of Dal'stroy has four assistants: deputy head, assistant for
political affairs, assistant for camp operation, and assistant for personnel.
The deputy head is appointed by the Collegium of NKVD with the consent
of the head of Dal'stroy and he represents the head during his absence. The
assistant for political matters is "the eyes and ears" of the party. He seeps
to it that the party directives are faithfully carried out and directs other
party work, such as propaganda, Stakhanovite movement, etc., within the
region and jurisdiction of Dal'stroy. His rights are rather limited, since
he is not allowed to take any measures without first consulting the head of
Dal'stroy.
The assistant in charge of the labor camps is the head of the Dal'stroy
labor camps (Dal'lag) and is appointed by GULAG, NKVD. Besides his general
administrative duties, he controls the maintenance of the statistical records
of the inmates and is in charge of their food and clothing. He also controls
the utilization of forced labor and directs the education of the inmates.
The assistant for personnel, who is also the chief of the Special Depart-
ment of Dal'stroy, is appointed by the Collegium of the NKVD from the NKVD
staff. The duties of his office Include investigating and screening applicants
for jobs, hiring and discharging employees, and keeping records of all employees,
including former employment.
Employees occupying responsible positions in various departmental admin-
istrations are usually appointed by the head of Dal'stroy or his assistants.
The heads of the production or economic administrations are appointed by
the head of Dal'stroy. As a rule, the appointee has to be a member of the Com-
munist Party or an employee of the NKVD. He-may even be appointed from the in-
mates; in such a case, the appointee has to be a former party worker or a former
NKVD man of high standing. For instance, in 1935 the post of the director of
the Southern Mining Administration vent to Medved', former head of the NKVD of
Leningrad Oblast, who was arrested and banis'Led to Siberia for 3 years bscanne
of carelessness after the assassination of Kirov. Zaposozhets, Medved's former
deputy, was appointed head of the Administration of Load Construction. Since
1932, Rappaport, another convict, and former customs director in Leningrad and
a member of the Leningrad Oblast Communist Party, has been head of the Supply
Administration.
~ C-R-B-T
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On the other hand, Prof Anatolly $apitonovich Boldyrev, the world-renowned
crystallographer, and one of the greatest specialists in the study of piezoelec-
tric crystals and the structvre of the atom, had to perform physical work, cut-
ting timber at the age of 60. He was convicted for a ,pseudopolitical crime de-
spite the fact that he had never participated in politics, being exclusively
interested in scientific research. He was arrested in 1935 and banished for 15
years to Kolyma for belonging, during his college years, to the Constitutional
Democratic Party of prerevolutionary Russia. Petitions and requests by a Pal '-
stray geologist to have A. Boldyrev transferred to the research laboratory
under the Geological Prospecting Administration were of no avail.
Of course, it was unconstitutional and against the laws to appoint a con-
victed former NKVD or party member to the top administrative poets in Dal'stroy,
as it was clearly stated in the constitution that all the "temporarily isolated"
have no right to participate in the country's political, social, or business
activities. However, Dal'stroy has its own laws and, constitution, established by
the head of Dal'stroy.
Each chief of the administrations of Dal'stroy has three assistants: an
assistant for political affairs, one for production (chief engineer), and another
for camp operation.
The administration assistant for political affairs is appointed by the as-
sistant for political affairs under the head of Dal'stroy. He is appointed from
among the party workers allotted to Dal.'stroy by the TeX VKP(b). Although these
administration assistants for political affairs axe often semi-illiterate per-
sons, they are trusted Communists.
The administration assistant for production is appointed by w he assistant
for production under the head of Dal'stroy.
The administration assistant for camp operation is appointed by the assist-
ant for camp operation under the head of Dal'stroy. He is appointed from among
the NKVD men, including convicts.
The production chiefs (mines, road-building sections, motor pool, etc-) are
appointed by the heads of the administrations after the final approval by the heod
or deputy head of Dal'stroy. The majority of the production chiefs are hired
engineer specialists. They do not have to De party memoers.
The production chiefs have one or two assistants, depending on the amount cf
work assigned. one of these posts, also called the chief engineer is not always
filled, whereas that known as the assistant of camp operation is always designated.
This chief engineer, i.e., under the production chiefs, is appointed by the head
of the personnel department of the Main Administration of Dal'stroy on request of
the chief of the administration concerned and is taken from the hired staff. the
production chief's assistant for camp operation is appointed by the departmental
assistant for camp operation. In some cases, the appointment is made by the Main
Administration of Dal'stroy. Usually he is a convict and former NKVD man, having
served his time or still serving it.
Geographical Data; Transportation
The Kolyma territory includes the sections of the Sea of Okhotsk shore be-
tween the city of Okhotsk and the Gi.zhiga River and the Kolyma and Indigirka river
basins. The area occupies approximately 7.2 million square kilometers. The ter-
rain is mountainous with an abundance of waterways.. The hilts, which are com-
paratively low, form a well defined mountain range which is the continuation of
the Stanovoy or Yablonovoy ranges and extends from the southwest to the northeast.
O.nother branch range, the Kolymakiy Range, runs almost from south to north and
S-B-C-R-E-T
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 ~i~~~i ~e '~~Mtleg~,??Y,? ,mom i 7 r~ w$~,'~?"Sd"'~' '-'et~`~ '"'-'?r"t'k es,
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is the watershed which divides the tributaries of the Kolyma and the rivers flow-
direction into the Arctic Sea. Among the many rivers discharging into the Seaof
meters.--All the river valleys in the Kmlyma region, including the Y-shaped val-
leys of the smaller streams, have the same peculiar structure of terraced val-
leys, sometimes called "suspended valleys." Dense forests of larch trees,
which produce excellent lumber for construction, and the northern-type creeping
cedars cover the valleys and slopes.
At present, the Kolyma region can be reached only by sea either from Vladi-
vostokts Magadan or from Murmansk to the Ambarchik Bay (the mouth of the Kolyma
River). The Vladivostok-Magadan route has its disadvantages because of the end-
less number of reefs in the Tatarskiy Strait andbecwu.?.e of the prevailing
storms and fog, which make navigation very hazardous. The port Magadan in the
Nogayevo Bay was built in 1934 and takes its name from the city located nearby.
The port has been assigned five steamers with a total capacity of 60,000 tons.
The port and the steamers were under the jurisdiction of the RKVD? The Murmansk-
/umbarchik sea lane in the Arctic Ocean is used for shipments of bulky mining
equipment and other unperishable goods. From the Ambarchik Bay the goods are
transferred onto bargee, which are towed up the Kolyma River.
The construction of Magadan, which is the administrative center of the re-
gion, was begun in 1933 on the site of a little village inhabited by a local
Yukashr tribe. A 700-kilometer-long highway connecting all the mining enter-
prises of this region with Magadan was completed in 1940. It was planned to ex-
tend the highway eventually as far as Yakutsk. A survey for the road's exten-
sion to the Indigirka River began in 1939 and was expected to continue through
1941. In 1940, the motor pool of Dal'stroy already had 2,500 motor vehicles in
croeration.
higa Bay in the northern corner of the Sea of Okhotsk, ana tnertan anu 1?auy a4.VCI
Available Minerals
Disregarding the expedition headed by Cberskiy in 1910, the expedition of
1928, headed by Bilibin, was the first well organized one, particularly from a
scientific standpoint. Besides confirming the existence of rich gold deposits
at certain points, it discovered a number of new regions with exceedingly rich
gold deposits. While prior to Bilibin's expedition only one gold-bearing region,
the Srednikanskiy (Srednikan is a right tributary of the Kolyma River) was known,
Bilibin discovered gold deposits on the Orotukan and Winaz-a rivers (right tribu-
taries of the Kolyma), on the Khatynakh, Partizan, and Seymchan rivers (left
tributaries of the Kolyma), on a large number of the tributaries of the Seymchan
River, on the upper Ttolyma River, and on some tributaries of the Indigirka River.
The Indigirka River itself was not investigate] by B111bin's expedition,
1. Placer-Gold Deposits
The gold-bearing regions newest to Magadan are located 400 kilometers
Lorth of that city. Roads are completely lacking and the gold regions can be
reached only in winter with dogs and reindeer.
In 1933, Dal'stroy received its first government assignment for gold
production and was to obtain 800 kilograms of gold. This gold was to be produced
only in the Srednikan gold-bearing region, and the Srednikan Mining Administration
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was formed for this purpose. Because of lack of ]mbar, only 300 kilograms
were produced. TheOrotukan,Mining Administration was organized in 1935,
and was renamed the Southern Mining Administration in 1936, while, in addi-
er
1
b
36
9
,
Administration was formed. On 1 Septem
i
i
The following table gi;vos the planned and actual production figures
in the Kolyma area for the period from 1933 to 1940:
ng
n
the Northern M
tion,,
the Srednikan Mining Administration was closed temporarily; from that date
on, no gold was extracted froze that region.
Year
Administration
Al
Planned productioa (k
1933
Srednikan
800
1934
Sredni3.an
800
1935
Orotukan
4,000
Sred+nikan
1,292
Total
5,000
1936
Southern
5,000
Sredniksn
1,000
Northern
2,
Total
8,000
10.000
Northern
54
Total
15, 000
1938
Southern
10,000
Northern
20,000
Total
30,000
1939
Southern
15,000
Northern
30,000
Total
45,E
1940
Southern
15,000
Northern
4J,000
Western
--
Total
55,000
Total up to 1 Jan 1940
159,600
Actual Production (ks)
7,000
R 2000
8,000
4 3300
00
1
20,000
10,000
20,E
15,000
35,E
17,0
40,000
600
55,600
177, 4oo
In 1941 the government assignments for all three administrations
amounted to 60,000 kilograms; hoverer, according to unofficial information
years
available, this assignment was exceeded. Thus, during 9 _
i.e.. un to 1 January 1942, Dal'stroy gave the USSR treasury 237 tons of, -
gold. With the opening of the Western Mining Administration, gold extraction
should be not less than 75 tons of gold yearly for approximately 10 years.
With the opening of the Indigirka area, gold extraction will maintain this
level for approximately 15--20 years, while extraction in the Kolyma area
will decrease.
Placer-gold reserves in the Kolyma area are estimated at 4,000-5,000
tons, with the ore having an average content of from 15 to 50 grams of gold
per cubic meter, i.e., from 7 to 24 grams per ton.
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As of 1 January 1941, these reserves were distributed among the ore
administrations as follows:
Average Gold Content
Administration Reserves (tons) per Cubic Meter (gr)
Srednikan
Southern
Northern
Western
Indigirka
25
8-15
400
8-20
800
15-60
1,500
50
2,000
30-40
Some mines have an unbelievable average gold content. For instance,
the Northern Mining Administration's Partizan mine, located on the Partizan
River, has an average content of from 150 to 250 grams per cubic meter of ore.
The valley of the river is gold bearing all the way across its width. on the
average, the valley is about 150 meters wide. Naturally, on the edges the gold
content is considerably less, but in general it is sufficiently high, 30-50
grams per cubic meter. This content stretches for almost 5 kilometers. The
thickness of the gold-bearing sands is from 0.3 meter to 2 meters. In working
this deposit, sections with a gold content of up to 30 grams per cubic meter
wez?e not processed, but piled in heaps to one side. Other mines of this type
are the *Pyatiletka" mine of the Southern Mining Administration and several
mines in the Western Mining Administration. Preliminary information indicates
that the Indigirka region also has rather rich mines.
Since the Kolyma region is still so rich in placer-gold deposits, and
since exploitation of these deposits requires a small amount of capital invest-
ment, it is natural that the development of lode deposits is going exceedingly
slowly. The presence of placer gold of the Partizan type shows the indisput-
able presence of rich sources of these placers, i.e., lode deposits. As of
1 January 1941, only four lode formations were known in the Kolyma area: the
Ail? tt+ina u,rnh vri +.ir nn1 hwari na Aikw_
a series of porphyritic dikes and quartz veins on the Fhatynakh river, and a
series of porphyritic dikes on the Partizan River. The first two deposits be-
long to the Southern Mining Administration and the second two to the Northern
Mining Administration.
Tre Srednikan gold-ore porphyritic dike cuts across the Jurassic
clayey shales in a northeast strike. The average thickness of the dike is 15-?
20 meters. This dike has been traced by mine workings for a distance of about
15 kilometers, from the mouth of a,eolo6icheskif spring to the top of the Bor-
iskin spring, at a depth of about 150-200 meters.
Four galleries were built for exploring the dike, along, with deep
bore pits in the valley of the Srednikan River, and trenches in the slopes of
mounds. The extremely fine gold is distributed throughout the whale thickness
of the dike, but dcea not form any significant concentrations or reins. The
average gold content is from 2 to 5 grams per ton and the estimated reserves
to a depth of 150 meters amount to 150 tons of gold. This deposit was con-
sidered as not having any iuduatria,.. significance at the time.
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~`'Yi~,ae D,v-&'ttii; M8 B,da sal~9f,x? W s,6fA4r Q 'v.l:~o n ?~er '4'nd.~ow`a"4a~ n N ?a ,n f4.Y u4
The porphyritic dikes of this deposit are gold bearing, just as
on the Srednikan River. Although the dikes are much thinner and might be
called porphyry veins, in structure they are identical to the Srednikan por-
phyritic dike.
Three such dikes (veins) have been discovered running parallel
to each other, also in a northeast strike. The middle vein is more or less
exposed both along the strike and across the width of the vein. The average
thickness varies from 1 to l~ meters. The other two, less exposed along the
strike, have a beaded formation. They are impregnated with gold and the gold
in them is distributed unevenly, with sections of greater and lesser concen-
tration. Sectors are often encountered where the gold is concentrated in the
form of lenses and veins 2-3 millimeters thick.
Seven galleries and two shafts were built for exploring the
veins. The shafts were located in the water-collecting depression of the
Utina River, one being sunk to a depth of 90 meters and the other to a depth
of 130 meters (data as of 1 January 19J41). Along the strike the veins were
traced by means of trenches and bore holes for 2,500 meters. According to
data of the tests, the gold content varies from 5 to 150 grams per ton of ore
and the average gold content is 20 grams per ton. In calculating the reserves,
both the sections with low and with increased average gold content were taken
into account. It was planned. to begin in 1941 the exploitation of sections
with an average gold content of 50-80 grams per ton.
c. Porphyritic Dikes and Quartz veins on the 14hatynakh and Parti-
zan Rivers
As on the Utina River, the gold-bearing porphyritic dikes of the
Khatznakh and Partizan rivers are of small thickness and therefore can be re-
garded as porphyritic veins.
The porphyritic veins are absolutely identical to those of the
Utina River in structure, formation, and character of mineralization. However,
the gold content is Ligher than in the Altina veirm. According to surface ex-
nioration (made in 1937 - 1938). there were frequent cases where tests yielded
a gold content of up to 2,500 grams per ton of are. However, the majority or
tests showed a content of 50, 60, and 80 grams per ton of ore.
Gold-bearing quartz veins were discovered on the Khatynakh River.
These veins are of comparatively small thickness (0.5 - 0.8 meter). The quartz
is of a milky white color vitha slightly dingy tinge. The quartz veins are of
a beaded or lenticular character and were crushed by tectonic phenomena of an
upthrust character. The gold in the quartz veins is concentrated in the form
of a more or less large phenocryst, easily visible to the naked eye, or in the
form of veinlets or streaks.
According to testa, the gold content varies, but most tests showed
a content of 100 or more grams per ton. Barren tests amounted to about 20 per-
cent. The gold-bearing quartz veins were uncovered by surface prospecting;
therefore, no calculation of reserves was made. However, it is estimated that
the veins of the Partizan River, extending to a depth of 200 meters and for
1,000 meters along the strike, could yield 50-60 tons of gold. The veins of
the Khatznakh River, for the same dimensions, could yield 80-90 tons.
3. Cassiterite Deposit (Tin Ore)
In 1935, at the "Tayezhniy" Mine, located on the Tayezhnaya River
(right tributary of the Orotukan River), chief mine engineer Sergey Lapin
(who at that time was a prisoner) discovered, cassiterite in the schlich
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(heavy part of the ore which settles with the gold in washing). A more de-
tailed study of the alluvium of the Tayezhnaya River shoved that it bras ex-
ceedingly rich in cassiterite pebbles and detritus. Additional screens were
built into the washing, drum, and, on the first day the modified drum operated,
Tayezhnaya River was estimated at 2-2.5 kilograms per cubic meter.
Quartz-tourasaline veins of cassiterite were discovered at the very
source of the Tayezhnaya River. The veins were 0.2-0.3 meter thick, with
an average cassiterite content of up to 1.5 percent.
Three other deposits of cassiterite mineralization were discovered.
These deposits were (1) at the source of the Verkhniy Orotukan River, (2) in
the area below the middle course of the Seymchan River, and (3) at the upper
El'gen River, on the divide between the Kolyma basin and the rivers flowing
into the Sea of Okhotsk. The last two cassiterite deposits, which have been
verified, have rather thick quartz veins with cassiterite veinlets from 0.05
to 0.3 meter thick running through them. Prospecting, begun in 1938, un-
covered seven quartz-cassiterite veins and there are many more of them. In
1940, the deposit was supposed to yield 120 tons of pure cassiterite. ac-
cording to mining engineer Draphin, this deposit has cassiterite reserves of
x,000-900,000 tons, or about 650,OC0 tons of tin. (the deposit measures 500
meters along the strike and is 300 meters deep).
Exploration of the Seyncban deposit was supposed to begin in 1940
acid it was to be much richer than the deposit on the El'gen River. Among
other things, it is a rich placer deposit. It was planned to extract 300 tons
of cassiterite from the placer deposit in 1941.
According to investigations by Professor Sergey Smirnov, the E1'gen
and Seymchan deposits, the reserves of which have been verified, should be re-
garded as deposits of world-wide significance; therefore, they should be ex-
plored in the near future and put into operation. For this purpose, the Main
Administration of Dal'stroy organized the Northwestern Mining Administration,
having charge only of tin deposits.
4. Coal Deposits
Even before World War I an expedition discovered outcroppings of coal
seams in the lower course of the Kolyma River, not far from the settlement of
Verkhne-Kolymsk, on the right tributary of the Kolyme. In 1928, another ex-
pedition registered about ten outcroppings of coal. The coal was of good
quality, containing 5,500-6,000 calories. The presence of three coal seams,
with a total productive thickness of 15 meters, was eatabllshri. In 1933, It
was established that the seams increased in thickness, and that seam No 3
reached a thickness of 20 meters. The seams lie almost horizontally, with
a very slight dip. Coal reserves of the deposit were estimated at up to 150
million tpns.
Mining Methods
1. prospecting
If, by taking samples, it has been established that the well or spring
valley has gold deposits, sampling pits are dug at every 20 meters (sometimes
40 meters) along two lines crossing each other at a right angle. Consecutive
holes are dug along the lines parallel to the original once at a distance of
500-or 1,000 meters, depending on the approximate extent of the gold-bearing
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SECRET
area determined b;, preliminary prospecting. This process is continued until
the samples taken from the pits along the last two lines show negative results.
The first step of prospecting Is completed with mapping the borders of the de-
posits and estimating the reserves under category "C'
If the average gold content is considered to be large enough to justify
silts of digging additional pits, thus decreasing the distances between two pit
lines to 50 or 100 meters, and between two pits to 10 meters. The pits are dug
1.2 meters by 1.5 meters, with their wider side parallel to the length of the
valley. The basic and most important part of this work is the correct cutting
of the pits and sampling. The pits are divided into individual workings, each
20 centimeters deep, measured from the surface of the ground. The top workings,
shaft is 1.6 meters deep, there will be eight workings, but only seven of them
A special skill is required to separate the workings in the Kolyma re-
gion because of the muddy and frozen ground. The pits can be effectively worked
and sampled only in winter. In summer, the work involves additional expenses
for pumping out water and for mine supports, and even then there is always a
danger of the gold sinking to the bottom of the pit, thus rendering the sampling
of the workings inaccurate. For this reason, working of the pits &n the river
bed during the summer is quite impossible.
On the other hand, winter mining necessitates the thawing of the
ground. This is done by making a fire inside the pit. When the pits are worked
in a river bed, or quicksand is encountered, the thawing is done by placing
heated rocks on the bottom of the pit.
Sampling begins after the workings of several lines of pits have been
exposed. Two ye:idovas (wooden box with a content of 0.025 cubic meter) of the
rock are taken from each working and the gold is panned out, using hot water.
TV +1.e. -1A ,....++e.,+ nP +ha an n1P to high ennuoh. the entire working is panned
out. The material obtained is packed and marked to indicate the line number,
pit number, working number, and the number of the yendova panned. The samples
are then sent to the geological prospecting bureau where the impurities are
separated from the gold, after which the gold is weighed. This data serves as
a bauis for calculating the average contents of gold in every pit. All the data
is entered on the surveyors' topographical plan, and the surveyed area is turned
over to the exploitation branch of the enterprise.
The exploitation of an alluvial deposit consists of preliminary works
and jigging. The preliminary works consist of stripping open the deposit layer,
providing ditches for draining water from the cuts, diverting rivers if neces-
sary, providing water supply for the Jigging machine, and installation of equip-
ment for panning. Of the above operations, the stripping o+' the deposit of the
barren rock and the top soil is the most expensive, requiring much labor. In
view of the short summer and permanently frozen growid in Kolynaa, this work
mivst be carried out during the winter to allow the gold-bearing sands to thaw
as soon as the warm weather sets in.
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 The stripping is usually carried out by means of blasting. The blast
holes are drilled by means of hollow typ bores. The bores are hammered into
the ground by hand. Steam is supplied into the bores from portable boilers
installed on slides to help boring the frozen ground. Special spoons are used
for removing the thawed material from the bore. The material is then tested
four or five bores simultaneously. Consequently, one man during a 10-hour
shift bores approximately 60-70 linear meters. After it has been established
by testing that the drilled material does not contain gold, the blasting takes
either by hand or by means of the "mechanical ice lane." The latter wanks on
an iced-surface lane and a. moving steel rope to which sledges (each loaded with
It is a rule to leave a 10-20 centimeter thick "Jacket" of "nonbearing"
material on the top while stripping a gold deposit.
Experimental panning begins toward the end of May, at which time com-
paratively warm weather sets in. However, the real production season begins in
June and ends during the first half of September, when the temperature drops
to the free%ing point and it starts to snow. Gold is washed on double trough
type buddies, 20-25 meters long. The tailings are not carried away but are
washed down by water. As the final step, the washed gold is separated from im-
purities.
The Kolymo-Indigirka region is really rich in minerals, but so far it has
been surveyed rather superficially. A more systematic geological survey would
reveal the presence of richer deposits. The gold fever affected the members of
Bilibin's expedition to such an extent that they overlooked the fact that there
are other minerals which sometimes are as important as gold. For instance, they
failed to detect the tin-ore deposits which ware discovered due to the initia-
tive of the chief engineer of the "Tegezhnyy" mine.
A further exploitation of the coal deposits would enable at least a partial
processing of some of the ores on the spot. The Xablonovyy Range morphologically
,. ~.- a.t~ ~..~..~.. r...l?.-~..Lw ..a+1. ?:.m m..w ww7.w..1w7 +-4t-r wnA 1?} oan-
logical similarity of these two regions may suggest the presence of tungsten,
molybdenum, and other metals in the Kolymo-Indigirka basin. Incidentally, a
amall deposit of stibn'te was found in 1934 on the Krokhalinyy River (a right
tributary of the Iolywa) about 15 ;ilometers above its confluence with the
Srednikan River.
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