One of the largest zinc deposits in the world—Red Dog Mine—is located 170 kilometres north of the Article Circle in northwest Alaska. Discovered by a Local Bush pilot and prospector Bob Baker, he named Red Dog Creek in the mid-1950s after his faithful companion, a red-coloured Irish terrier, O’Malley. Bob and O’Malley were on one of their many exploration flights when Bob noticed the area’s red-stained creeks as they explored from above.
Red Dog is located on land owned by NANA Regional Corporation (NANA), one of the 12 original for-profit Alaska Native Regional Corporations created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act passed by Congress in 1971. NANA is owned by the more than 14,500 Iñupiat shareholders, or descendants, who live in or have roots in northwest Alaska.
The NANA region encompasses about 61,200-square kilometres (38,000-square miles) and has 11 regional Iñupiat communities. No roads connect the communities, so barges and flights deliver goods. Travel between communities happens via boat, plane and snowmobile. The communities of Kivalina and Noatak are the nearest communities to the mine.
Teck employees who work at our Red Dog operation work rotational shifts and can live anywhere in the world. The shifts are two-weeks-on, two-weeks-off, providing an excellent work-life balance. On-site living accommodations have many amenities to make life at the mine very comfortable. These include a gymnasium, indoor track, weightlifting rooms, a library/media room, craft and music rooms, and a cafeteria where you are served three home-cooked meals a day.
