Glacial sediments

Mesozoic volcanic rocks and coeval intrusive complexes within the Quesnel geotectonic terrain of central British Columbia host several major porphyry copper-gold mines. Exploration for new deposits in this region has been met with limited success, because prospective bedrock is mantled by Late Pleistocene glacial sediment (e.g.,till) and Late Olig-ocene to Pleistocene plateau basalt. 

Much of the bedrock is covered with up to 3 m of a sandy till deposited during a southeast to northwest ice-flow event. Soil formed on the glacial sediment is typically a well-drained brunisol. 

Base metal exploration using indicator minerals in glacial sediments,... 

Fig. 2. Sphalerite grains recovered from glacial sediments, normalized to 30 kg sample weights, plotted on a Shuttle Radar... 

Plouffe, A., Paulen, R.C. Smith, I.R. 2006. Indicator mineral content and geochemistry of glacial sediments from northwest Alberta (NTS 84L, M) new opportunities for mineral exploration. Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 5121 and Alberta Geological Survey, Special Report 77. 

Although no kimberlite is known of in this second area, kimberlite boulders and elevated kimberlite indicator mineral counts in glacial sediments have been... 

Kimberlite bodies can be identified at ground surface using soil geochemistry where 90 m of glacial sediment overlies a kimberlite. This is based on variations in element concentrations of pathfinder elements such as Ni, Mg, Co, K, and total REEs over versus off a kimberlite. 

KEYWORDS till, geochemistry, indicator mineral, mineral exploration, glacial sediment... 

The Thompson Nickel Belt (TNB), Manitoba, Canada, is host to world class magmatic massive sulfide Ni-Cu-PGE deposits. The deposits subcrop beneath 2 to 30 m of glacial sediments and have been eroded by glaciers flowing SW and then Wduring the Wisconsin glaciation. 

Groundwater in glacial deposits often contains high concentrations of arsenic (more than 10 pgL-1 Table 3.13). The presence of abundant fine-grained materials and organic carbon in glacial sediment... 

Table 3.15 Arsenic in glacial ice, glacial sediments, and loess...

Erickson, M.L. and Barnes, R.J. (2005) Glacial sediment causing regional-scale elevated arsenic in drinking water. Ground Water, 43(6), 796-805. 

Kettles, I.M. and Shilts, W.W. (1994) Composition of glacial sediments in Canadian shield terrane, southeastern Ontario and southwestern Quebec applications to acid rain research and mineral exploration. Geological Survey of Canada Bulletin, 463, Report, 58 pp. 

Klassen, R.A. (2004) Geological factors affecting the distribution of trace metals in glacial sediments of central Newfoundland. Environmental Geology, 33(2-3), 154-69. 

Poutanen, E.L., and Nikkila, K. (2001) Carotenoid pigments as tracers of cyanobac-terial blooms in recent and post-glacial sediments of the Baltic Sea. Ambio 30, 179-183. 

Hemming S. R., Gwiazda R. H., Andrews J. T., Broecker W. S., Jennings A. E., and Onstott T. C. (2000b) Ar-40/Ar-39 and Pb-Pb study of individual hornblende and feldspar grains from southeastern Baffin Island glacial sediments implications for the provenance of the Heinrich layers. Can. J. Earth Sci. 37(6), 879-890. 

Huon S. and Ruch P. (1992) Mineralogical, K-Ar and Sr-87/ Sr-86 isotope studies of Holocene and late glacial sediments in a deep-sea core from the northeast Atlantic Ocean. Mar. Geol. 107(4), 275-282. 

In Byelorussia the early Proterozoic crystalline basement, represented by biotite-granite-gneisses, migmatites, micaceous slates and quartzites with acid intrusions and (gabbro-)diabase dikes, is concealed beneath Quaternary fluvio-glacial sediments 30-150 m thick. Beryllium mineralisation, the product of regional and local metasomatism, occurs in the concealed basement. The Be data of a CHIM survey expressed very well the ore body known from boreholes 1 and 2 and revealed a further anomaly. Drilling of boreholes 3 and 4 on this anomaly confirmed the existence of a previously-unknown ore body (Fig. 2-24). 

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