THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN AND JOURNAL OF THE COAL AND IRON TRADES. \ ul. CXII FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1916. No. 2906. COAL AND SHIPPING. By F. J. WARDEN-STEVENS, M.I.M.E., A.M.I.E.E., &c. regarding Nova Scotia coal supplies. The two promi- nent colliery companies working the Sydney fields each possesses a fleet of colliers, as well as accessory craft, such as tugs and barges, for the distribution of their VI.—Coal and Bunkering Ports of Canada. The coal supplies obtainable from the known and working areas—extending over about 38,000 square miles—in Canada are estimated to exceed 173,000 million tons; and as this figure will doubtless be con- siderably increased by further development, we may therefore look to Canada to become one of the great coal producing countries of the world. The coal fields in course of being developed are distributed over Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in the east, British Columbia and Vancouver in the west, the Mackenzie district (including Yukon) in the north, and the interior terri- tories of Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan. Although the ooal resources of Canada comprise all varieties, bituminous is the only class that is being mined to any considerable extent at present, though a small amount of anthracite is produced in Alberta, and lignite is mined in Saskatchewan. The most important of the Nova Scotia fields is that affected some industries, and doubtless the household demands have been less; but, on the other hand, the requirements for metallurgical purposes have been increased for war supplies. It should perhaps be specially mentioned that the demands for railway use are diminishing through the substitution of oil fuel, the coal consumption on the railways during 1913 having exceeded nine million tons, whilst last year it was less than eight million tons, the supplies chiefly affected being those from the British Columbia coal fields. In considering the imports of coal into Canada, it has to be borne in mind that both the provinces of Quebec and Ontario are without ooal resources, and that their geographical position in relation to the Penn- sylvania, Ohio, and Virginia fields of the United States makes those supplies less costly than from the Canadian fields. The Nova Scotia and British Columbia supplies. The Dominion Coal Company also operate collieries on the Cumberland field as well as the Sydney field, and have a railway there connecting their mines with the Inter-Colonial Railway at a junction five miles off; whilst at Parrsboro’, in the Bay of Fundy, 30 miles distant from the mines, they have piers equipped for shipments from those mines. The Cumberland field has an area of about 305 square miles, and is reputed to contain over 600 million tons in seams from 6 to 14 ft. thick. The combined output from that field at present (from six collieries worked by three companies) is about 650,000 tons per annum, the coal being of a steam class. The two remaining coal fields of Nova Scotia, Inverness and Pictou, it may be added, produce at present about 300,000 and 800,000 tons per annum respectively. On the former field only one colliery is now being worked, whilst the Pictou field is worked by two companies with of Sydney, Cape Breton, the others including the Cumberland, Richmond and Inverness, and Pictou fields. The interior coal fields of Alberta are reputed to have the greatest reserves and largest coal-bearing coal supplies are those of particular interest for shipping, the former being available to the Atlantic coast, and the latter to the Pacific. Fig. 1.—Coal-discharging Equipment and Elevator Bunkering Barge at Halifax (N.S.) area, but the bulk of the output is utilised for the requirements of the country. In British Columbia, the Nanaimo and Cumberland or Comox fields of Vancouver Island are of the greatest interest for export, and the mines in the East Kootenay or Crow’s Nest district have about an equal production, whilst the Nicola district offers considerable prospects. The total production of coal in Canada during 1915 was about 13,210,000 tons, and in the previous year about 13,638,000 tons; the Nova Scotia fields supplied some 7,430,000 tons, Alberta 3,320,000 tons, and British Columbia 2,090,000 tons last year. It is therefore evident that Nova Scotia is the most important coal producing province of Canada, contributing over 50 per cent, of the total. As regards the quantity exported, the total for 1915 amounted to about 1,767,000 tons, which was an increase of .-ome 343,400 tons over the previous year. At present, the largest market for Canada’s coal exports is the United States, whither about four-fifths are consigned, although, so far, the coal production is insufficient to meet the requirement® of the country, the imports from the United States for 1915 totalling about 12,466,000 tons, and the previous year 14,721,000 tons, of which about 4,072,000 tons and 4,435,000 tons, for the respective years, repre- sented anthracite. Thus it appears that, although the production was less last year, the imports wre also less, but nevertheless the exports were increased. These changes may be attributed partly to war conditions, which, by restrictions on oversea commerce, have DOMINION COAL C(T DOMINION COAL Co. Fig. 2.—Discharging Coal at St. John (N B.) Nova Scotia Coal Supplies. Nova Scotia provides the only coal fields of eastern Canada, and, in fact, the only coal fields in America, on the Atlantic coast. The coal produced is a high-class bitumi- nous, the different seams providing supplies of steam, coking, and gas coal respectively. The markets for this coal include the United States, where about half a million tons are supplied, and bunker supplies call for about a quarter of a million tons. Although there are some 12 coal mining companies in Nova Scotia, the Dominion Coal Company, which works 17 collieries, contributes about three-quarters of the total output of the province, and, in fact, is responsible for about two-fifths of the whole coal production of Canada. The above-named company controls the greater por- tion of the Sydney coal fields situated on the eastern shore of Cape Breton Island. The area of this coal field is about 350 square miles, extending along the coast for a distance of about 32 miles, with a width of about six miles inland, and a greater distance u rider the sea—the seams being worked at present five miles from the shore. About a million tons per annum of the Dominion Company’s output are coked for metallurgical requirements. The Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Com- pany operates five collieries on the Sydney coal fields, and has an output of nearly a million tons per annum, of which about one quarter are washed and used in coke ovens for blast furnace requirements. It may be of interest to add the following remarks four and two collieries respectively, which produce coals of the steam and coking classes. Nova Scotia coal has afield as terranean porta, difficulty of obtaining return freights has been an obstacle to the sea shipments, though, in some instances, iron ore has formed the return shipments, for use as a mixture with Canadian ore. It is claimed that the average bitu- minous coal of Nova Scotia is comparable with best Durham, and has a heating value of about 14,000 British thermal units; and it may be mentioned that, as a mixture, it has been used with Welsh in the proportion of 2 to 1, and has shown a saving of 12 per cent, during naval trials. Sydney Harbour affords extensive accommodation for shipping; it has a large water area, easy of access, and well protected. The Dominion Coal Company have piers on the south side of the harbour for the shipment of coal from their mines, these piers providing a depth of water of about 40 ft.—sufficient to allow large colliers of 10,000 to 12,000 tons to come alongside. Three vessels can be loaded at one time by the equipment pro- Norway, f but, found Sweden, , up to its way as far France, and Medi- the present, the development of such over-