Reno-based mining company donates 2,500 gallons of hand sanitizer, $250,000 to pandemic efforts

RENO, Nev. — Elko Mining Group is donating 2,500 gallons of hand sanitizer to the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services.

Spokesman Tim Crowley said the gold mining company — which operates under the umbrella of Toronto-based Waterton Global Resource Management — teamed up with an independent whiskey distillery in Kentucky that made the sanitizer.

Crowley said the sanitizer was shipped in bulk to Nevada, where inmates in the prison industries program can rebottle it into consumer-sized containers so it can be distributed to healthcare providers and first responders.

Crowley said the company — which is now based in Reno — is also contributing $250,000 to several causes dealing with the pandemic including food banks, homeless shelters, healthcare workers and a small PPE mask manufacturer in Sparks.

According to the Elko Daily Free Press, Elko Mining Group's current projects in Nevada include the Ruby Hill Mine at Eureka, the Gemfield Project in Esmeralda County near the town of Goldfield, the Borealis Mine in Mineral County, the Spring Valley Project in Pershing County, the Reward Project in Nye County and the closed Pinson Mine in Humboldt County.

Jeff Haag of the Nevada Health and Human Services Department said donations like those from Elko Mining Group are coming in from all sides.

“It's really been remarkable to see Nevadans and companies who do business in Nevada pull together,” he said.

Crowley said Haag deserves a lot of credit too since he's helping manage the flow of donations.

Haag said the casino industry has provided, “a tremendous amount of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) and food items to help a broad section of Nevadans.”

Major donations began shortly after the casinos were shut down as operators began turning large amounts of food they could no longer sell over to senior centers, food banks, homeless kitchens and other operations helping those out of work or homeless.

In addition, Haag said numerous businesses were making monetary donations to the state to pay for PPEs and other needed equipment such as ventilators.

The COVID-19 task force has received some 30,000 face shields from Fusion Face Shields, 50,000 safety glasses from Nevada Gold, 79,000 pairs of gloves from LED Connection and 50,000 goggles from LED Connection, as well as 537 cases of hand sanitizer from NV Energy and Damon Industries.

Haag also gave credit to Prison Industries where inmates are making face masks, gowns and other materials.

And there's the collaboration between UNR and UNLV as well as the Carson City Library, where 3-D printers are being used to make the nasal swabs necessary for testing people to see if they have the virus.

Haag said Paradise Valley out of Winnemucca is offering to make face shields for the state since they're not available on the open market.

The task force and Governor's Office of Economic Development are working to coordinate large and small dollar donations and Haag said GOED is organizing volunteers to make sure those donations go to the places where they're most needed such as your local doctor.

Major monetary donations have come from Bank of America, Southwest Gas, U.S. Bank, Southern Nevada Home Builders Association, Howard Hughes Corp., the Nevada Franchise Auto Dealers and the Car and Truck dealers association as well as Phillip Peckman on behalf of Thrive Cannabis and Terry Miller on behalf of Miller Project Management.

Those wishing to donate or volunteer can do so at http://www.nvc19.org.

NNBW Editor Kevin MacMillan contributed to this report.