Download Mining in British Columbia

Mining in British Columbia
Industrial Mineral, Metal and Coal Operations in British Columbia
ST
NORTHWE
IES
TERRITOR
Y U K O N
Industrial Mineral and Metal Symbols
Fireside (Ba)
Cassiar (Jd)
Fort Nelson (S)
O
A
E
C
S
E
B
A
Kutcho Creek (Jd)
L
L
IN
Serpentine Lake (Jd)
A
M
Dease Lake
R
T
FO
A
A
K
Shasta (Au)+
A
Genesis (S)
R
E
LA
IN
R
N
Mt. Milligan (Cu, Au)
TA
Smithers
N
P
Terrace
E
A
C
I
Endako (Mo)
F
Huckleberry (Cu, Mo)
River
Metal Mine
City/Town
Province, Territory or
State Border
Morphogeological
Belt Boundary
Aluminum Smelter
Zinc Smelter
Coal Mine
Wolverine
+
Tumbler Ridge
Seasonal Production
Trend
Scale
Giscome (Ls)
Prince George
100
0
Dome Creek (Sl, Fs)
Dahl Lake (Ls)
I
Nazko (Sc, Bs)At
100
Kilometres
Mount Polley (Cu, Ag, Au)
C
O
IN
O
A
TA
R
N
Benson Lake (Ls)
Decor (Sh)
N
Myra Falls (Cu, Zn, Ag, Au)
BC
Texada Island
CANADA
Blubber Bay (Ls, Do)
Gillies Bay (Ls)
Van Anda (Imperial) (Ls)
USA
Burnaby (S)
Vancouver
Hardy Island (Gr)
New Afton
(Cu, Au, Ag)
Klinker (Op)
Kelowna
Greenhills
Canyon [Kettle Valley] (Gn)
Ginty (Sl, Fs)
Shadow Ridge (Bs)
Crawford Bay (Do)
Nipple Mountain (Fs)
Trail (Sg, S)
Copper
Mountain (Cu)
Victoria
British Columbia lies in the Cordilleran Orogen (kord-(y)er-uhn or-uh-jen), a mountain belt that runs along the western edge of the Western Hemisphere continents from Alaska to Antarctica. These
mountains formed over tens of millions of years as a result of tectonic collisions between the continents and crustal plates located in what is now the Pacific Ocean basin. The crustal plates included slivers
(terranes) of volcanic islands, ocean floor and other small continents that collided with and remained stuck onto (accreted) the margins of the continents. These mountain-building collisions were marked by
igneous intrusions and volcanism, deformation (folding, faulting, and metamorphism) and uplift.
In British Columbia the Canadian Cordillera is made up of five, northwest-trending morphogeological belts: Foreland, Omineca, Intermontane, Coastal and Insular. They are defined by their distinct geology
and the mountain-building processes that formed them, and are separated from each other by faults. Geoscientists have determined that the rocks in the Foreland belt formed along the edge of ancient
North America. However, rocks forming the belts further west formed elsewhere and were accreted to the continent between 185 and 50 million years ago. The unique geological characteristics and
mountain-building history of each belt determine the mineral resources each one contains.
Line Creek
Fernie
Elkview
Cranbrook
Coal Mountain
Swansea
Sirdar (Gr) Ridge (Ga)
Kootenay Stone (Gr, Fs)
For more information on supplementary activities and to explore the
interactive BC’s Mineral Resources map, developed by MineralsEd,
visit: www.MineralsEd.ca/s/CurrentOperations.asp
This poster shows all currentoperating metal and coal mines and all major and some minor
industrial mineral operations. It does not show gemstone locations or the numerous sand and
gravel aggregate operations around the province. Alternate names for select operations are
denoted in italicized square brackets. This poster was produced by the MineralsEd using map
data supplied by the BC Geological Survey branch
(www.empr.gov.bc.ca/MINING/GEOSCIENCE/Pages/default.aspx) of the Ministry of Energy and
Mines (www.gov.bc.ca/ener/index.html).
For additional information on industrial mineral, metal and coal operations in B.C., visit the
MineralsEd Web site at: www.MineralsEd.ca.
Bibliography:
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Foreland Belt, represented by the Rocky Mountains, is made up mostly of a great thickness (>15 km) of ancient sedimentary rocks.
Most are between 700-50 million years old, but some are up to 1.5 billion years old. They are composed of sediment that was eroded from
and deposited along the western edge of the ancient continent. During mountain building they were thrust eastwards for at least 150 km onto
the continent.
Fording River
Invermere
W.R.P. (Gr)
The Five Belt Framework of the Canadian Cordillera
•
Four J (Gy)
Lime Creek (Ls)
Grand Forks (Sg)
Skagit Valley (Gr)
Winner (Di)
ANA
T
N
O
Greenwood (Sg)
M
Sumas Fireclay (Fc, Sh, Ss)
O
Sumas Mountain (Cy)
Rock Creek (Do)
IDAH
At
Cox Station (Gr)
N
N G T O
I
H
S
W A
Nanaimo
Gordon River (Mr)
Elkhorn (Gy)
Falkland (Gy)
Kamloops
East Anderson River (Gr)
Bud (Bn)/
Sechelt [CAL] (At)
Zeo (Ze)
Hisnet (Mr)
Mount Brussilof (Mt)
MAX (Mo)
Ash (Bs)
Highland Valley Copper (Cu, Mo)
Craigmont (Ma)
Spumoni (Bs)
Campbell River
Tahsis (Mr)
Golden
Revelstoke (Fs)
Pavilion (Ls)
Quinsam
Monteith Bay (Si)
Brisco (Tu)
Buse Lake (Si)
Bralorne (Au)
Mount Meager/
Garibaldi Pumice (Pu)At
Apple Bay
Port Hardy
[PEM 100] (Si, Cy)
Harper Ranch (Ls)
Ranchlands [Ze-2] (Ze)
L
A
LA
E
U
S
S
C
USA
Williams Lake
Red Lake (Fr)
Haddington Island (An)
GREENLAND
(DENMARK)
Moberly (Si)
Golden (Sl, Fs)
Gibraltar (Cu, Mo)
Orca (At)
200
QR (Au)
Quesnel
C
Bella Coola
Lake
Sulphur Producer
Brule
Fort St. James
Fraser Lake
Kitimat
Jade
Limestone
Magnetite
Molybdenum
Marble
Magnesite
Opal
Pumice
Sulphur
Scoria
Slag
Shale
Silica
Slate
Sandstone
Tufa
Zeolite
Zinc
Operation and Geographic Symbols
Pine River (S)
Mackenzie
O
ALASKA
indicates mineral resource also used as aggregate
Jd
Ls
Ma
Mo
Mr
Mt
Op
Pu
S
Sc
Sg
Sh
Si
Sl
Ss
Tu
Ze
Zn
Industrial Mineral Mine/Quarry
Willow Creek
M
Anyox (Sg)
()At
McMahon - Taylor (S)
D
E
North
Silver
Andesite
Aggregate (sand and gravel)
Gold
Barite
Bentonite
Basalt
Clay
Copper
Diorite
Dolomite
Fireclay
Fuller's Earth
Flagstone
Gabbro
Gneiss
Granite
Gypsum
Fort St John
N
T
Swamp Point (At)
Boundary Lake (S)
Ag
An
At
Au
Ba
Bn
Bs
Cy
Cu
Di
Do
Fc
Fr
Fs
Ga
Gn
Gr
Gy
A
Omineca Belt, represented by several northwest-trending mountain ranges, is made up mostly of folded and faulted metamorphic rocks with
lesser amounts of granitic rock. Most of these metamorphic rocks formed from pre-existing sedimentary rocks. Some of these are similar in
composition to sedimentary rocks in the Foreland, while others are more similar to those in the Intermontane. This complexly deformed belt
represents the exposed roots of a deeply-eroded mountain chain. It marks a collision zone that formed when the Intermontane was accreted to North
America.
•
Intermontane Belt, a region of high plateaus and rolling uplands, is made of ancient to Recent volcanic and sedimentary rocks that are intruded in
many areas by granitic rocks. The oldest of the volcanic and sedimentary sequence (370-180 million years) represents ocean floor and volcanic island
arc terranes that formed offshore and were accreted during middle Jurassic time (165-172 million years ago). The granitic rocks are related to ancient
island arc volcanism and to later accretion of Insular belt rocks.
•
Coast Belt includes the Coast and Cascade mountains and extends up to the Yukon. It is made up mostly of 185 to 50 million year old granitic rocks, plus
scattered remnants of older, deformed sedimentary and volcanic bedrock into which the granitic bodies have intruded. (Similar, undeformed sedimentary and
volcanic rocks occur in both the Intermontane and Insular belts.) Similar to the Omineca, this belt marks a collision zone. It represents the roots of a deeply-eroded
volcanic mountain chain that formed during accretion of Insular belt rocks to North America.
•
Insular Belt includes Vancouver Island, the Queen Charlotte Islands, and the bedrock forming the seafloor out to the toe of the continental slope about 100 km west of Vancouver Island. It is made up
mostly of ancient (350-180 million years) volcanic and sedimentary rocks, which are intruded locally by granitic rocks. Like those in the Intermontane, the volcanic and sedimentary rocks represent
exotic terranes that formed out in the ocean basin and were accreted to the continent by mid-Cretaceous time (100-115 million years ago).
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TA
O
TNE
IMN
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LA
A
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T
L
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LA
The variety and distribution of mineral resources in British Columbia are directly related to the province’s complex and unique geology. Some of these resources, such as limestone, occur and are mined in
many regions around BC. Others occur or predominate in only certain morphogeological belts as dictated by their bedrock geology and the mountain-building processes that overprint them (Dawson, K. M.,
et al., 1991). Major coal deposits, for example, are predominant in the sedimentary sequences of the Foreland and Insular belts, while economic copper-molybdenum porphyry deposits are predominantly
associated with granitic intrusions in the Intermontane. Where BC’s mineral resources are discovered depends on geology. Where they are extracted depends on economic, logistical, and environmental
considerations.
Grieve, D., Madu, B., Northcote B., Wojdak, P., Fredericks, J., Meredith-Jones, S., Desjardins, P. 2011. Operating Mines
and Selected Major Exploration Projects in BC, 2010. Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Mines and
Lands.
Fredericks, J., Grieve, D., Lefebure, D., Madu, B., Northcote, B., Wojdak, P. 2010. British Columbia mining and mineral
exploration overview 2009. Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.
Grieve, D., Madu, B., Northcote, B., Wojdak, P., Fredericks, J., Meredith-Jones, S., Saunders, P. 2010. Operating Mines
and Selected Major Exploration Projects in British Columbia 2009. Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of
Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.
MINFILE mineral inventory. 2010. British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.
http://minfile.gov.bc.ca/
Cordilleran geoscience - the five belt framework of the Canadian Cordillera. 2008. Geological Survey of Canada.
http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/cordgeo/belts_e.php.
The MapPlace. 2008. British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. http://www.mapplace.ca.
Grieve, D., Lane, R., Madu, B., Northcote, D., Schroeter T., Simandl, G. J., Webster, I., Wojdak, P. 2007. Industrial
minerals in British Columbia - 2006 review (Information circular 2007-2). Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of
Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.
Grieve, D., Lane, R., Madu, B., Northcote, B., Schroeter, T., Wojdak, P. 2007. British Columbia mining and mineral
exploration overview 2006. Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.
Cathro, M., Grieve, D., Lane, R., Pardy, J., Schroeter, T., Wojdak, P. 2006. British Columbia mines and mineral
exploration overview 2005. Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.
Cathro, M., Grieve, D., Lane, R., Pardy, J., Ryan, B., Schroeter, T., Simandl, G., Wojdak, P. 2005. British Columbia
mining and mineral exploration overview 2004. Victoria, BC: British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and
Petroleum Resources.
Pardy, J. W., Schroeter, T .G. 2004. Operating mines in British Columbia and major exploration and development
projects in 2004 - preliminary estimates (GeoFile 2004-10) [map]. British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and
Petroleum Resources.
Dawson, K. M., Panteleyev, A., Sutherland Brown, A. and Woodsworth, G. J. 1991.
Regional metallogeny. In Geology of the Cordilleran Orogen in Canada, ed. H.
Gabrielse and C. J. Yorath, The Geology of Canada, 4:707-768. Geological Survey
of Canada.
© 2013 MineralsEd
(Mineral Resources Education Program of BC)
900-808 W. Hastings St., Vancouver, BC V6C 2X4
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W: www.MineralsEd.ca
INTENDED FOR EDUCATIONAL USE ONLY.
6th Edition. Edited Sept 2013.