ESP are currently involved in a very interesting project with Sarn Helen Gold, a Welsh gold exploration company. Their name was inspired by Sarn Helen which is an ancient path in Wales that follows through the areas they are exploring. Though currently at a very early stage of exploration, their ultimate aim is to locate, permit and build the next gold mine in Wales. Any future mine will be underground with very low surface footprint and their current field activities have a very low environmental impact. If they do find a target that has potential to be mined, their operation will increase in size and will increasingly benefit the community through procurement of local services and potential employment. To find out more about Sarn Helen Gold and their projects, visit their website here.
ESP are looking to use a windowless sampling technique to collect soil from depths of between 3 and 4 m assess. This is to test if a gold anomaly which Sarn Helen Gold has picked up from near surface soil sampling has a geological source, and so would justify further exploration, or if it might be a result of contamination from historic mine working in the area. Sarn Helen Gold’s work to date has been focused in both Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire while the specific site ESP have been asked to work on is near the Dolaucothi mine which is located in Pumsaint. Dolaucothi is the UK’s only known Roman Gold Mine dating back at least 2000 years.
