"The question I pondered about 2 years ago is why would a company NOT go for the easy revenue that is lying around in piles"

Because they do not have a cyanide leach system to get the metals out economically. And they did not know they needed a cyanide leach system when they first started building the mill. Gross negligence if you ask me to overlook something like that. They just basically spun their wheels for a few years at the expense of the shareholders.