investment the gold in Sudan

The possibility of  investment the gold in Sudan

Sudan issues 50 more gold exploration licenses
Sudan's govt. has issued 50 licenses to 73 firms to explore gold and other minerals, as it tries to grow its small gold production to compensate for the loss of most of its oil reserves to newly independent South Sudan.

Posted: Monday , 31 Oct 2011
KHARTOUM (Reuters) -
African gold producer Sudan has handed out 50 more licenses to 73 firms to explore gold and other minerals, state news agency SUNA said on Sunday.

Sudan is trying to expand its small gold production to compensate for the loss of most of its oil reserves to South Sudan which became independent in July.

The new licenses allow gold exploration in around eleven states, Minerals Minister Abdelbagi Gailani Ahmed told SUNA, adding that now seven firms were producing gold. The rest is still at the exploration stage.
To date, Sudan has handed out around 200 gold exploration licenses.
Ahmed reiterated Sudan would build at the start of next year a refinery with capacity of 150 tonnes of gold and 30 tonnes of silver.
In total, Sudan expects to produce about 70 tonnes of gold in 2011, he said. Only an estimated 6 to 7 tonnes gold will come from regular mines. The rest is being produced by more than 200,000 local Sudanese attracted by a gold rush whose exact output is hard to verify

PHOSPHATE ROCK

PHOSPHATE ROCK

(Data in thousand metric tons unless otherwise noted)

Domestic Production and Use: Phosphate rock ore was mined by 6 firms at 12 mines in 4 States and upgraded to an estimated 26.1 million tons of marketable product valued at $1.3 billion, f.o.b. mine. Florida and North Carolina accounted for more than 85% of total domestic output; the remainder was produced in Idaho and Utah. Marketable product refers to beneficiated phosphate rock with phosphorus pentoxide (P2O5) content suitable for phosphoric acid or elemental phosphorus production. More than 95% of the U.S. phosphate rock mined was used to manufacture wet-process phosphoric acid and superphosphoric acid, which were used as intermediate feedstocks in the manufacture of granular and liquid ammonium phosphate fertilizers and animal feed supplements. Approximately 45% of the wet-process phosphoric acid produced was exported in the form of upgraded granular diammonium and monoammonium phosphate (DAP and MAP, respectively) fertilizer, and merchant-grade phosphoric acid. The balance of the phosphate rock mined was for the manufacture of elemental phosphorus, which was used to produce phosphorus compounds for a variety of food-additive and industrial applications.

Salient Statistics—United States: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010e

Production, marketable 30,100 29,700 30,200 26,400 26,100

Sold or used by producers 30,200 31,100 28,900 25,500 28,300

Imports for consumption 2,420 2,670 2,750 2,000 2,100

Consumption1 32,600 33,800 31,600 27,500 30,400

Price, average value, dollars per ton, f.o.b. mine2 30.49 51.10 76.76 127.19 50.00

Stocks, producer, yearend 7,070 4,970 6,340 8,120 5,800

Employment, mine and beneficiation plant, numbere 2,500 2,500 2,600 2,550 2,300

Net import reliance3 as a percentage of

apparent consumption 7 14 4 1 15

Recycling: None.

Import Sources (2006–09): Morocco, 100%.

Tariff: Item Number Normal Trade Relations

12-31-10

Natural calcium phosphates:

Unground 2510.10.0000 Free.

Ground 2510.20.0000 Free.

Depletion Allowance: 14% (Domestic and foreign).

Government Stockpile: None.

Prepared by Stephen M. Jasinski [(703) 648-7711, sjasinsk@usgs.gov, fax: (703) 648-7757]

119

PHOSPHATE ROCK

Events, Trends, and Issues: In 2010, phosphate rock consumption and trade increased worldwide after depressed market conditions in 2008 and 2009. U.S. production was about the same as in 2009, as companies attempted to lower stocks of phosphate rock that had accumulated over the previous year. Domestic phosphoric acid and phosphate fertilizer production increased over that of 2009. The world spot price of phosphate rock began 2010 around $90 per ton and increased in the third quarter to around $150 per ton.

A new 3.9-million-ton-per-year phosphate rock mine in northern Peru began operation in July. The leading U.S. phosphate rock producer acquired a 35% share of the joint venture between the Brazilian and Japanese owners of the mine. The U.S. company will have the right to purchase up to 35% of the annual phosphate rock output to supplement its domestic phosphate rock production.

A new 5- million-ton-per-year phosphate rock mine began operation in Saudi Arabia late in 2010. The associated phosphate fertilizer plant was to open in 2011. World mine production capacity was projected to increase to 228 million tons by 2015 through mine expansion projects in Algeria, Brazil, China, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Tunisia, and development of new mines in Australia, Kazakhstan, Namibia, and Russia.

World Mine Production and Reserves: Significant revisions were made to reserves data for Morocco, using information from the Moroccan producer and a report by the International Fertilizer Development Center. Reserves information for Russia was revised using official Government data and may not be comparable to the reserves definition in Appendix C. Reserves data for Algeria, Senegal, and Syria were revised based on individual company information.

Mine production Reserves4

2009 2010e

United States 26,400 26,100 1,400,000

Algeria 1,800 2,000 2,200,000

Australia 2,800 2,800 82,000

Brazil 6,350 5,500 340,000

Canada 700 700 5,000

China5 60,200 65,000 3,700,000

Egypt 5,000 5,000 100,000

Israel 2,700 3,000 180,000

Jordan 5,280 6,000 1,500,000

Morocco and Western Sahara 23,000 26,000 50,000,000

Russia 10,000 10,000 1,300,000

Senegal 650 650 180,000

South Africa 2,240 2,300 1,500,000

Syria 2,470 2,800 1,800,000

Togo 850 800 60,000

Tunisia 7,400 7,600 100,000

Other countries 8,620 9,500 620,000

World total (rounded) 166,000 176,000 65,000,000

World Resources: Domestic reserves data were based on U.S. Geological Survey and individual company information. Phosphate rock resources occur principally as sedimentary marine phosphorites. The largest sedimentary deposits are found in northern Africa, China, the Middle East, and the United States. Significant igneous occurrences are found in Brazil, Canada, Russia, and South Africa. Large phosphate resources have been identified on the continental shelves and on seamounts in the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.

Substitutes: There are no substitutes for phosphorus in agriculture.

eEstimated.

1Defined as phosphate rock sold or used + imports.

2Marketable phosphate rock, weighted value, all grades.

3Defined as imports – exports + adjustments for Government and industry stock changes.

4See Appendix C for resource/reserve definitions and information concerning data sources.

5Production data for China do not include small artisanal mines.

U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries, January 2011

http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/phosphate_rock/mcs-2011-phosp.pdf

Reservoirs of Ancient Lava Shaped Earth

Geological history has periodically featured giant lava eruptions that coat large swaths of land or ocean floor with basaltic lava, which hardens into rock formations called flood basalt. New research from Matthew Jackson and Richard Carlson proposes that the remnants of six of the largest volcanic events of the past 250 million years contain traces of the ancient Earth's primitive mantle -- which existed before the largely differentiated mantle of today -- offering clues to the geochemical history of the planet.

Scientists recently discovered that an area in northern Canada and Greenland composed of flood basalt contains traces of ancient Earth's primitive mantle. Carlson and Jackson's research expanded these findings, in order to determine if other large volcanic rock deposits also derive from primitive sources.

Information about the primitive mantle reservoir -- which came into existence after Earth's core formed but before Earth's outer rocky shell differentiated into crust and depleted mantle -- would teach scientists about the geochemistry of early Earth and how our planet arrived at its present state.

Until recently, scientists believed that Earth's primitive mantle, such as the remnants found in northern Canada and Greenland, originated from a type of meteorite called carbonaceous chondrites. But comparisons of isotopes of the element neodymium between samples from Earth and samples from chondrites didn't produce the expected results, which suggested that modern mantle reservoirs may have evolved from something different.

Carlson, of Carnegie's Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, and Jackson, a former Carnegie fellow now at Boston University, examined the isotopic characteristics of flood basalts to determine whether they were created by a primitive mantle source, even if it wasn't a chondritic one.

They used geochemical techniques based on isotopes of neodymium and lead to compare basalts from the previously discovered 62-million-year-old primitive mantle source in northern Canada's Baffin Island and West Greenland to basalts from the South Pacific's Ontong-Java Plateau, which formed in the largest volcanic event in geologic history. They discovered minor differences in the isotopic compositions of the two basaltic provinces, but not beyond what could be expected in a primitive reservoir.

They compared these findings to basalts from four other large accumulations of lava-formed rocks in Botswana, Russia, India, and the Indian Ocean, and determined that lavas that have interacted with continental crust the least (and are thus less contaminated) have neodymium and lead isotopic compositions similar to an early-formed primitive mantle composition.

The presence of these early-earth signatures in the six flood basalts suggests that a significant fraction of the world's largest volcanic events originate from a modern mantle source that is similar to the primitive reservoir discovered in Baffin Island and West Greenland. This primitive mantle is hotter, due to a higher concentration of radioactive elements, and more easily melted than other mantle reservoirs. As a result, it could be more likely to generate the eruptions that form flood basalts.

UK airports flight information: Volcanic ash latest

UK airports flight information: Volcanic ash latest

Tuesday, 24 May 2011

Passengers wait with their luggage at Glasgow Airport (PA)

The European air traffic agency Eurocontrol said that between 200 and 250 flights have been cancelled in Europe.

 The disruption is expected to spread to some northern England airports later today.

The eruption of the Grimsvotn volcano has already led to airlines cancelling a number of flights to and from Irish and Scottish airports.

 Shortly after 9.30am today, air traffic control company Nats said "an area of volcanic ash" was forecast to affect some parts of the UK between 1pm and 7pm today.

 Nats said airports remained open but that services from Londonderry, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Prestwick, Newcastle, Carlisle, Durham Tees Valley and Cumbernauld airports may be affected.

Nats said passengers should check with their airline before travelling to these airports.

The airports listed by Nats could all possibly experience high- level densities of ash.
Earlier Nats had said air services at Aberdeen, Inverness, Benbecula, Barra and Tiree airports could be affected until 1pm. The latest bulletin from the company suggested that these airports might be free of ash later today.

In the meantime, airlines have already axed many flights to and from Scotland, with British Airways not operating any flights between London and Scotland before 2pm.
Scots regional airline Loganair scrapped 38 flights and Irish carrier Aer Lingus said it had cancelled 12 flights to and from Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh.
British Airways announced that it would not operate any flights between London and Scotland before 2pm.
EasyJet also cancelled its flights from Glasgow until lunchtime.
At Glasgow today, most passengers whose flights had already been cancelled did not make their way to the airport.
Passengers with holiday companies Thomson and Thomas Cook were waiting for buses to take them to Manchester to pick up later flights.

The airport's cafes were packed and people sat on their suitcases or tried to catch up on sleep as they waited for news.

Guy McKinven, from the Clyde Valley area, was travelling with easyJet to Stansted to spend a week with his grandmother.
He said: "You see people shouting and getting upset, but there's nothing you can do.
"It is frustrating, but that's just the situation. EasyJet have been helpful and have told me I can have a refund for my flight.
Despite the flight cancellations today, there were hopes that the latest crisis would not have the same devastating impact as last year's Icelandic volcanic eruption which saw UK airspace shut down and thousands of air services axed.

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said: "There is some early indication that the scale and power of the eruption might be subsiding a little bit.
"Perhaps it's a little bit too early to be absolutely sure about that, but clearly that's the most important thing. If the ash stops belching out of the volcano then, after a few days, the problem will have cleared, so that's one of the factors.
"The other is the wind speed and direction. At the moment the weather patterns are very volatile which is what is making it quite difficult, unlike last year, to predict where the ash will go."
He added that the public should be assured that airlines would only operate when it was safe to do so.
Ryanair said it carried out a one hour flight 41,000ft over Scotland this morning in the so-called "red zone" of the ash cloud from Glasgow Prestwick to Inverness, on to Aberdeen and then south to Edinburgh.

Aviation chiefs have deemed Scottish airspace "high ash concentration".

Ryanair said there was no visible volcanic ash cloud or any other presence of ash and post flight inspections revealed no evidence of ash on the airframe, wings or engines.

The low-cost carrier claimed the red zone was non-existent, mythical and a misguided invention by the UK Met Office and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Ryanair said it has written confirmation from both its airframe and engine manufacturers that it is safe to operate in the area.

"This morning's verification flight has demonstrated that the UK Met Office's 'red zone' forecasts are totally unreliable and unsupported by any evidence of volcanic ash concentrations whatsoever," Ryanair said.

Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/uk-airports-flight-information-volcanic-ash-latest-16003692.html#ixzz1TAcgSE19

So what is groundwater

Water stored underground: vital and vulnerable

So what is groundwater?

Rainwater percolates into the earth. Soil and rock are like a giant sponge, full of holes - typically tiny pores and cracks just millimetres in size. Below the water table, these holes are full of water. This is groundwater. Groundwater slowly travels through connected pores and cracks just centimetres to metres per year.

Water stored underground in cracks and pores

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Protecting the balance

Groundwater storage is like a bank account. The balance falls when withdrawals exceed deposits. Nature makes deposits through rainfall, and withdrawals through leakage of groundwater to streams and the ocean. Our wells represent further withdrawals. If total withdrawals exceed deposits, we deplete our groundwater storage. Do we know if we are draining our account?

Water table ups and downs through the seasons
The amount of water stored underground changes through the seasons. As winter and spring rains infiltrate the ground, stored groundwater increases and the water table rises. When the rains stop, the water table falls as groundwater leaks into streams and the ocean. Well pumping also removes water and lowers the water table. Excessive pumping of groundwater can result in long-term depletion of groundwater storage.

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Underground lakes and rivers?

Not on Bowen Island. Large underground streams and lakes only occur in limestone cave systems. Limestone is unique as it dissolves in water, allowing caves to form. Bowen Island's granitic and volcanic rocks do not dissolve in water and so lack cave systems.

Aquifers yield water via wells

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Tapping into water stored underground

Any body of rock or sediment that yields useful amounts of water is an aquifer. Bowen Island has two types of aquifer: fractured rock, and sand and gravel layers. The amount of water stored in fractured rock is typically limited, and these aquifers can run low during the summer drought. Sand and gravel can store more water and these aquifers are less likely to dry up in the summer. Shallow- dug wells can dry up as the water table falls during the summer.

Groundwater flows from upland recharge areas to valley discharge areas

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Ensuring our aquifers replenish

Most recharging of aquifers occurs in forested uplands and valley slopes, but land clearing, road building, and ditching reduce water infiltration by creating impermeable surfaces and diverting water into ditches and streams. Infiltration ponds along ditches can increase the return of water into the groundwater system.

Excessive pumping can reduce flow in streams

Okay

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Oops! I dried up the stream
Groundwater springs feed streams year-round. They are the only source of stream water during the dry season. A pumped well draws down the nearby water table. Excessive pumping for an extended period of time can lower the water table over a broad area. This can divert groundwater from streams and even cause streams to dry up. Nothing damages a stream like taking away its water!

Overpumping

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Are we depleting our groundwater?
To determine whether we are overpumping our island aquifers, we need a series of groundwater observation wells on Bowen Island. These are unused wells where water table levels can be regularly checked to determine long-term trends. Some groundwater monitoring has started on Bowen Island, but more observation wells are needed.

What is mean groundwater

What is groundwater?

When rain falls to the ground, the water does not stop moving. Some of it flows along the surface to streams or lakes, some of it is used by plants, some evaporates and returns to the atmosphere, and some sinks into the ground. Imagine pouring a glass of water onto a pile of sand. Where does the water go? The water moves into the spaces between the particles of sand.
Groundwater is water that is found underground in the cracks and spaces in soil, sand and rock. Groundwater is stored in--and moves slowly through--layers of soil, sand and rocks called aquifers. Aquifers typically consist of gravel, sand, sandstone, or fractured rock, like limestone. These materials are permeable because they have large connected spaces that allow water to flow through. The speed at which groundwater flows depends on the size of the spaces in the soil or rock and how well the spaces are connected.





The area where water fills the aquifer is called the saturated zone (or saturation zone). The top of this zone is called the water table. The water table may be located only a foot below the ground’s surface or it can sit hundreds of feet down.
Groundwater can be found almost everywhere. The water table may be deep or shallow; and may rise or fall depending on many factors. Heavy rains or melting snow may cause the water table to rise, or heavy pumping of groundwater supplies may cause the water table to fall.
Water in aquifers is brought to the surface naturally through a spring or can be discharged into lakes and streams. Groundwater can also be extracted through a well drilled into the aquifer. A well is a pipe in the ground that fills with groundwater. This water can be brought to the surface by a pump. Shallow wells may go dry if the water table falls below the bottom of the well. Some wells, called artesian wells, do not need a pump because of natural pressures that force the water up and out of the well.
Groundwater supplies are replenished, or recharged, by rain and snow melt. In some areas of the world, people face serious water shortages because groundwater is used faster than it is naturally replenished. In other areas groundwater is polluted by human activities.
In areas where material above the aquifer is permeable, pollutants can readily sink into groundwater supplies. Groundwater can be polluted by landfills, septic tanks, leaky underground gas tanks, and from overuse of fertilizers and pesticides. If groundwater becomes polluted, it will no longer be safe to drink.
Groundwater is used for drinking water by more than 50 percent of the people in the United States, including almost everyone who lives in rural areas. The largest use for groundwater is to irrigate crops.
It is important for all of us to learn to protect our groundwater because of its importance as a source of water for drinking and irrigation.