385The Mineral Industry of Maine 
 
This chapter has been prepared under a cooperative agreement between the
Bureau of Mines, U.S. Department of the Interior, and the Geological Survey
of Maine, for collecting information on all minerals except fuels. 
 
 
By Robert E. Eta1 
 
 
 The value of Maine mineral production totaled $14.9 million in 1967, 11
percent below the total for 1966. Gains resulting from greater sales of finished
portland cement were not sufficient to offset the losses recorded for sand
and gravel and stone, which were caused by the lower demand for aggregate
used in highway construction. Output of clay and feldspar changed only slightly
from the previous year. Domestic and foreign mining companies continued exploration
for copper, lead, zinc, nickel, gold, and silver ore deposits. 
 1MG Chlor—Alkali, Inc., a joint venture in which International Minerals
& Chemical Corp. is the principal partner, constructed a $9.5 million
chlorine and caustic soda plant on a 15-acre site in Orrington. The plant
was completed and placed in full production in December. High purity salt
was imported to produce 60,000 tons of chlorine and 60,000 tons of sodium
hydroxide annually. 
 
 
 1 Statistical assistant, Bureau of Mines, Pittsburgh, Pa. 
 
Table 1.—Mineral production in Maine 1 
 
 
1966 
 
1967 
Mineral 
———— 
 
 
 
Quantity Value (thousands) 
 
Quantity Value (thousands) 
Clays thousand short tons~Gemstones                                     
  
45 
NA 
$58 
35 
 42 $54 
NA 35 
Peat shorttons~Sand and gravel thousand short tons~Stone do~Value of items
that cannot be disclosed: 
1,600 
15,036 
1,092 
 60 
7,027 
3,622 
 W W 11,627 5,368 1,159 2,999 
Cement (portland and masonry), feldspar, and values indicatedby symbol W
                             
XX 
5,932 
XX 6,426 
Total                                       Total 1957—S9constantdollars
                   
XX 
XX 
16,734 
16,210 
XX 14,882 
XX P 14,511 
 P Preliminary. NA Not available. XX Not applicable. 
 W Withheld to avoid disclosing individual company confidential data. 
 1 Production as measured by mine shipments, sales, or marketable production
(including consumption by producers).