Silver in the High Desert lured miners from miles away in the late 1800s, creating jobs and wealth almost overnight.
That scenario could happen again - only this time, it wouldn't be precious metals, but aggregate, and it would take much longer to pull out of the ground.
Sometime in early 2009, the San Bernardino County Economic Development Agency will receive a report from Cal State San Bernardino professors on the economic viability of marketing the county's aggregate - sand and gravel - and mineral deposits to mining companies all over the nation.
"They're studying the feasibility of expanding mining operations in the county, and what kind of jobs that would provide," said Paul Herrera, spokesman for the agency. "The question is, can we create hundreds of jobs, or even thousands? (The study) has got to show that potential exists."
If the county decides to embark on a mining marketing campaign, it would be the first of its kind, Herrera said.
Dozens of minerals, rock deposits and metal deposits lie deep beneath the High Desert, which could bode well for the local industry's employment outlook.
But environmental red tape legislated by California and its counties is a hurdle for mining companies to overcome - although San Bernardino County is easier to navigate regarding those laws than other counties in the state, according to Dinah Shumway.
The owner of Apple Valley-based TerraMins Inc., an economic-geological
