The Miracle of $5.6 Billion Michigan Mineral Mother Lode

Publisher’s Note: Michigan is the next stop on The American Wealth Tour.

We’ve given you a firsthand account of the natural resource wealth beneath our feet in Alaska in the Pebble Creek and Donlin Gold projects. Now we take a detour to the “Wolverine State,” Michigan.

Michigan holds a treasure trove of natural resources… from the beautiful beaches at Silver Lake Sand Dunes to the below-the-ground mineral wealth that measures in the billions of dollars.

Come with me on this trip…

A mile and a half from the Wisconsin border in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula lies one of the richest undeveloped mineral deposits in the Midwest — if not the entire country.

It’s called the Back Forty mine.

And for over two decades, it’s been locked in a tug-of-war between economic potential and environmental resistance. But the story of Back Forty isn’t just another tale of local pushback. It’s a microcosm of America’s broken mining policy, a case study in bureaucratic purgatory, and possibly the key to unlocking a new Midwestern mining renaissance — if it can ever get out of neutral.

A Discovery That Changed the Map

The Back Forty deposit was first discovered in 2001 and later acquired by Aquila Resources. What was found near the Menominee River — a body of water sacred to the local Menominee Indian Tribe — was nothing short of astonishing.

The site holds an estimated 1.1 million ounces of gold, 1.2 billion pounds of zinc, 12.9 million ounces of silver, 287 million pounds of copper, and 25.4 million pounds of lead. All in all, a treasure chest of critical and precious metals in a nation that desperately needs domestic supply.

And unlike remote Alaskan deposits like Pebble or Donlin, Back Forty is close to highways, rail, and the Great Lakes shipping lanes. In mining terms, it’s a logistical dream.

Regulatory Limbo: A Two-Decade Stalemate

Despite its strategic location and enormous value, Back Forty has yet to produce a single ounce of metal. Since the early 2000s, Aquila Resources has waded through a tangled web of environmental regulations, permitting battles, public hearings, and court rulings.

The biggest flash point? Water.

Back Forty sits just 150 feet from the Menominee River, which feeds into Lake Michigan. Environmental groups and the Menominee Tribe have voiced strong opposition, arguing that an open-pit sulfide mine so close to the watershed risks catastrophic acid mine drainage.

In 2018, Aquila received initial permits from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), but lawsuits and appeals quickly followed. Courts revoked and remanded multiple permits, including those for wetlands, air, and dam safety.

In 2021, the situation took a corporate turn when Canadian company Gold Resource Corporation acquired Aquila in a $30 million deal, taking over the permitting process and mine development plans.

And while Washington has dithered for years, the metals sit idle. No jobs. No revenue. No impact.

Now imagine this…

Unlocking Billions Without Breaking Ground

Instead of waiting another 10 years for regulators to green-light a single ounce, what if you could own the gold in the ground right now?

Enter NatGold — a revolutionary digital platform that lets investors take fractional ownership in certified, unmined gold and other mineral reserves, like those buried beneath the Back Forty mine.

Through blockchain tokenization, NatGold turns stagnant mineral deposits into liquid digital assets.

No pollution. No delay. No permit battles.

Just pure, digitized resource wealth, made accessible through tokens backed by real geological reports and verified in-ground value.

But it’s about to get even better…

Trump’s Plan to Unleash America’s Mineral Wealth

With the Trump administration vowing to unleash a $10 trillion U.S. mining boom, the timing for NatGold couldn’t be better.

Trump’s new executive orders are pressuring agencies to cut red tape and bring America’s hidden wealth to market — and NatGold is leading the charge with a model that gives value to the land before a single shovel hits the dirt.

Back Forty is the proof of concept. A multi-billion-dollar mine, locked away and gathering dust, that could now be monetized digitally and traded globally.

This isn’t some futuristic fantasy.

It’s the new face of 21st-century natural resource investing.

And it’s unfolding right now.

Let me explain…

A Project in Flux

Gold Resource Corporation (NYSE: GORO), better known for its producing assets in Nevada and Mexico, now holds the keys to Back Forty. And it’s retooling the entire plan.

GORO has announced intentions to pivot from an open-pit-only model to a phased operation that starts with underground mining. This could dramatically reduce surface disruption and environmental impact — possibly making the project more palatable to regulators and locals.

But even with a revised plan, the permitting gauntlet remains. As of early 2025, the mine still lacks a crucial Part 632 mining permit and a new wetlands permit. The timeline is hazy, and Michigan regulators have shown no signs of fast-tracking anything.

Why Back Forty Matters Now

Back Forty’s significance goes well beyond Michigan. The mine is a test case for America’s ability to develop its own critical minerals responsibly, on its own soil, and under modern environmental standards.

Zinc, for example, is crucial for galvanizing steel, vital to renewable energy infrastructure, bridges, and EV charging stations. Copper is indispensable for everything from electric vehicles to wind turbines. Gold and silver serve as both monetary hedges and essential components in electronics.

As geopolitical tensions rise and supply chains fracture, the U.S. needs projects like Back Forty — secure, strategic, and domestic.

And here's the twist: If Back Forty were located in Ontario or Quebec, it might already be in production. Canadian mining provinces operate with clearer regulatory frameworks, greater political will, and established permitting timelines.

Instead, GORO and the Back Forty team are stuck in the classic American conundrum: vast resources beneath their feet, but no shovel in the ground.

The Clock Is Ticking

Gold Resource Corporation faces a strategic crossroads. Shareholders are growing impatient. Costs are rising. And the value of gold, silver, and base metals continues to surge.

If Back Forty remains bottled up for another five years, GORO could face pressure to divest, shelve the project, or seek a joint venture partner. But if permitting momentum shifts — and the phased underground approach gains traction — the mine could become a crown jewel for GORO and a case study in 21st-century American mining done right.

The metals are there. The infrastructure is in place. The global demand is screaming.

All that’s missing is a green light.

NatGold: A Digital Unlock for Stranded Assets

What if there was another way to unlock Back Forty’s value without waiting decades for permits and approval? What if the gold — and all the other metals — could begin generating economic activity without a single shovel of dirt being moved?

That’s where NatGold comes in.

By tokenizing certified, unmined gold and other mineral reserves, NatGold offers a revolutionary model for stranded assets like Back Forty. This approach allows for digital ownership and monetization of in-ground resources — turning stagnant assets into dynamic stores of wealth that can be traded, collateralized, or used as a hedge.

With Back Forty’s estimated 1.1 million ounces of gold alone, the tokenization opportunity is massive. NatGold doesn’t bypass environmental concerns; it simply acknowledges that while the regulatory gears grind slowly, investors and nations alike need access to mineral wealth now — not years or decades from now.

Back Forty stands as yet another glaring example of America’s mineral paralysis. A billion-dollar resource, critical to national infrastructure and energy independence, sits idle while the nation imports the same metals from geopolitical rivals.

Tokenization is not a workaround — it’s a wake-up call.

NatGold could give value back to the land without disturbing it. It’s a bold idea whose time has come. And Back Forty might just be the perfect place to prove it works.

The Prophet of Profit,

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