Mining site geologists work on different sites, including coal and metals.
Mining site geologists work in the oil, coal, minerals, metals and building materials extraction industries. They are responsible for locating the deposits and determining whether they can be extracted, taking samples to analyze what kind of material and how much of it is deposited, and conducting geological surveys about the mining sites. These geologists also determine the best way for mining depending on whether it is oil or coal that is being extracted, and they consider the depth and size of the deposits. The average salary depends on the industry and location.
Average Salary
Mining site geologists made an annual mean wage of $82,080 in 2009, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The salaries ranged from $48,400 or less to $119,300 or more per year. The median salary was $79,440 a year.
Largest Employers
Firms offering engineering services employed 1,800 mining site geologists in 2009, making them the biggest employers that year, according to the bureau. The average salary paid to these specialists was $77,210 a year. Coal and metal ore mining industries followed with 840 and 810 geologists, and paid them $76,580 and $78,780 per year, respectively. The oil and gas extraction industry was the fourth largest with an average salary of $97,140, the highest among other employers. State governments rounded out this list with $83,120 a year.
Highest-Paying Employers
Companies providing management of companies and enterprises paid the second-highest salary to mining site geologists in 2009, $91,890 a year, according to the bureau. The federal government was next with $87,340 a year average. Scientific and technical consulting companies paid the geologists an average of $86,550 per year, while support for mining activities industry paid $84,410.
Locations
The bureau reports that California in 2009 paid mining site geologists the highest average salary among states, $97,760 per year, followed by Texas at $96,130. Alaska and Colorado had No. 3 and No. 4 salaries on the top-five-paying states list, $95,200 and $92,190 per year, respectively. Alabama was last with $92,010 a year average. The top-paying metro area was Chicago, where the geologists earned an average of $133,180 per year. Dallas and Los Angeles paid geologists $106,940 and $104,390 per year, respectively, while Anchorage, Alaska, and Houston paid $101,570 and $101,360.
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