Sometime firefighter and welder Sam Naillon looks forward to landing a good job with great pay in a field he never really considered until recently: mining.

Having scored an interview before completing a training program at Butte, the 25-year-old sees a light -- and bright future for himself -- at the end the jobs tunnel.

''I don't think it will ever be a problem finding a job," said Naillon, who would be willing to leave Montana for work. ''I don't think I will ever be out of a job. I think everyone will wind up happily."

From January 2001 to 2004, jobs in the mining and natural resource industry grew 6.7 percent in Montana, one of three Western states -- along with Colorado and Wyoming -- to see growth in that sector, according to figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Mining jobs offer some of the best pay in the state, with an average annual salary of $55,481 in 2002, according to the state Department of Labor and Industry. That's twice the statewide average.

The 6.7 percent increase translates to about 400 jobs in the state. But it doesn't really excite some industry leaders, who see it more as a blip owed largely to the reopening of a mine at Butte and expansion of another near Whitehall than a turnaround in the industry.

Not that there isn't potential for increased activity and growth, officials like Angie Janacaro say. They point to higher metals prices and a push by industry supporters to reverse Montana's ban on the use of cyanide in certain mining operations.

''Hopefully, we're seeing factors occur in the metals market, and politically, that will bring mining back in greater force in the state," said Janacaro, executive director of the Montana Mining Association.

For some companies, business isn't all that bad now. Ralph Green, manager of corporate lands at Stillwater Mining Co. at Columbus, said sales are picking up for the company, which he said had slowed operations because of a sluggish economy after the 2001 terror attacks. Stillwater Mining is the only U.S. producer of platinum and palladium.

''Right now, it's a good time to be in the industry," he said, adding that the economy has ''kind of been rejuvenated."

''We're at a time when the metal pricing cycle and supply and demand are working in our favor," Green said.

Steve Walsh, vice president with Montana Resources LLP, called this is an ''excellent" time for the Butte operation to be starting back up. The company suspended operations from late June 2000 until late last year because of electricity costs. Its getting-going again, with a full staff of 350 workers, coincides with a time at which prices for copper and molybdenum also are high, he said.

Mark Isto, mine general manager at Golden Sunlight Mines Inc., near Whitehall, said higher prices have allowed the firm, which counts gold as its primary product, to develop another phase of its operation. Between November and February, the company hired about 50 people, bringing its workforce to about 160 employees, including some contractors, he said.

Strangely enough, the mine had been near closure last year because prices were low, he said. Now, he said, gold prices are around a fantastic $420 an ounce.

Golden Sunlight has not been affected by the state's ban on the use of cyanide in new open-pit gold and silver mines, Isto said. But he is among those who believe the ban helps prevent companies from doing exploration work in Montana and that its repeal -- should the question even appear on the ballot, and be approved -- could have a big effect on the industry.

However, there is also a competing push to have the ban put in the state Constitution.

Walsh said that while metal prices are good and the state has ''significant potential resources" to develop, it remains to be seen whether there will be renewed interest or activity in the industry in Montana.

''Montana needs to realize it can have natural resource jobs and a healthy environment," he said, noting such jobs tend to pay higher wages. ''The jobs are typically very secure, and I think if the political climate would change a little bit, ... the state would benefit greatly."

Naillon, who is nearing completion of Montana Tech's Underground Miner Training Program, said he could make a starting wage of about $40,000. But he says there's also room for advancement in the field.

''I'm more excited to get to work and to start making big bucks," he said.

Program director Rob Cronoble said there is a shortfall of underground miners in the West and that the program aims to train miners to fill those roles. It is retraining displaced workers from Montana, and it still has room for students, he said.

While the industry is affected by such things as prices, he said he believes there will be a need for trained miners in parts of the West for some time.

''With what (prices) are now, I see an upswing for several years," he said.