Container for individual provincial mineral collections. -129.5,56.6 -129.6,56.7 BC 1985-07-24 entry GSB EMBC 1996-08-30 revision GO EMBC inapplicable false EMPR AR 1932-A61; 1933-A61; *1934-B30; 1935-B9,B27; 1939-A65; 1946-A85; *1953-87,Fig.4; 1963-10; 1964-20; 1965-44; 1967-30 Times Colonist Sept.6, 1989 104B 008 1989 entry Person who created this name Affiliated company or organization Banner Banner (L. 1199) Platinum Blonde Franklin Camp Showing BC Greenwood 21 zone, approximately 84 kilometres north-northwest of Stewart and 4 kilometres east of Tom Mackay Lake on the Prout Plateau between the Unuk and Iskut rivers. -129.55,56.63333333333333,1600 092B05 092B06 Within 500 m unknown Pyrite Galena Sphalerite Chalcopyrite Quartz Silica Silification Okanagan Highland Okanagan Highland http://www.em.gov.bc.ca/mining/Geolsurv/EconomicGeology/metallicminerals/mdp/PROFILES/H01.htm Polymetallic veins Ag-Pb-Zn±Au Hydrothermal Epigenetic Vein Breccia Zeolite Contact It is possible to record a reference for the age data. Eocene 48.7 Lead/Lead fossil +/- 1.2Ma Tabular Faulted Sheared 270 45 missing missing 1400 250 5 The Eskay Creek deposits lie in the centre of the Iskut-Sulphurets gold camp in the Unuk River valley. Bedrock in the Unuk map area consists of a thick (more than 5000 metres) succession of Upper Triassic to Middle Jurassic volcano-sedimentary arc-complex lithologies (Stuhini and Hazelton groups) underlain by Permian and older arc and shelf sequences (Stikine Assemblage) and overlain by Middle and Upper Jurassic marine-basin sediments (Bowser Lake Group). Rocks have been folded, faulted and weakly metamorphosed, mainly during Cretaceous time. Dioritic to granitic rocks that crop out east and west of the Prout Plateau represent at least four intrusive episodes spanning Triassic to Tertiary time. Remnants of Pleistocene to Recent basaltic eruptions are preserved locally (Exploration in British Columbia 1989). The Eskay Creek deposits area is underlain by a northwest-facing sequence of interbedded volcaniclastic rocks, flows and sediments of the Lower-Middle Jurassic Hazelton Group. Strata strike north- northeasterly and dip moderately to the northwest. The presence of fossils, pillow lavas and hyaloclastites suggests that many of the rocks were deposited in a subaqueous environment. An 1100-metre section straddling Eskay Creek is divided into 6 lithostratigraphic sequences, from oldest to youngest: (1) lower volcano-sedimentary unit: inferred basement to the footwall dacite unit including the oldest rocks on the property; (2) footwall dacite unit: dacite lapilli, crystal and lithic tuffs interbedded with black mudstone and waterlain tuff (includes the "datum dacite" member; (3) rhyolite unit: rhyolite breccia and tuff; minor mudstone; (4) contact unit: basal rhyolite-mudstone breccia ("transition zone") grading upwards into carbonaceous mudstone; (5) hanging. wall andesite unit: pillowed andesite flows and breccias with thin carbonaceous mudstone interbeds; and (6) upper sedimentary unit: thin-bedded siltstone and fine sandstone with minor arenite-conglomerate beds. The lower volcano-sedimentary unit is of unknown thickness and consists of mixed andesitic to dacitic volcaniclastic rocks and immature fine to medium grained sedimentary rocks. This unit is correlated with the Lower Jurassic Betty Creek Formation (Hazelton Group). The footwall dacite unit comprises in excess of 100 metres of drab grey to white dacite tuff, tuffaceous wacke and mudstone. Dacitic volcanics are predominantly tuff and ash-flow tuff, with lesser volumes of lithic tuff and breccia. An important marker, the datum dacite member, comprises pink to green, fine grained, feldspar phyric tuff and lapilli breccia; it occurs near the top of the unit. The footwall dacite unit was assigned to the Lower Jurassic Mount Dilworth Formation (Hazelton Group) but recent interpretations suggest that it is a member of the Lower Jurassic Betty Creek Formation (Hazelton Group). The rhyolite unit ranges from 30 to 110 metres thick and consists of grey to white aphyric breccia, tuff breccia, lapilli tuff, tuff and subordinate massive rhyolite. Thin intercalations of mudstone and waterlain tuff occur locally and provide markers. This unit is correlated with the Lower Jurassic Mount Dilworth Formation (Hazelton Group). The contact unit consists of an areally restricted basal member of rhyolite-mudstone breccia (the "transition zone") that grades into a widespread upper member of carbonaceous mudstone. The entire contact unit ranges from less than 1 to more than 60 metres thick. The upper member is carbonaceous, pyritic and locally tuffaceous, laminated black mudstone. The contact unit can be correlated with the unnamed lower member of the Lower-Middle Jurassic Salmon River Formation (Hazelton Group). It is the host to most of the mineralization in the 21 zone (21A and 21B deposits) (Exploration in British Columbia 1989). The hangingwall andesite unit is a flow and sill complex in excess of 150 metres thick. It consists of rusty brown weathering, light grey to dark green pillow breccias with subordinate massive flows, dikes or sills, and hyaloclastite horizons. Thin mudstone units occur as interflow sediments. The upper sedimentary unit consists of a thick sequence of thin-bedded (turbiditic) siltstone, shale and fine sandstone. It includes strata of the lithologically similar Salmon River Formation (Hazelton Group) and Middle-Upper Jurassic Ashman Formation (Bowser Lake Group). The Salmon River Formation sediments are distinguished by the presence of volcanic material. The major structure on the property is interpreted to be an asymmetric anticline which plunges gently to the northeast. The anticline is broken by a series of high-angle faults. Major faults strike north-northeast; minor ones north-northwest. Several northerly to northeasterly trending lineaments also traverse the property. Many zones of mineralization have been recognized at Eskay Creek. These include the 5, 6, 10, 22, 23, 28 and Porphyry zones; Mackay and Emma adit areas; and the #1 to #5 bluffs. The 21 zone has undergone extensive exploration and underground development and represents a major portion of reserves at Eskay Creek. Two new zones, NEX and Hangingwall, were discovered in 1995. The bulk of mineralization in the 21 zone occurs as a stratabound sheet within carbonaceous mudstones of the contact unit and underlying rhyolite breccia, beneath mostly barren andesite flows. In the north, sulphide layers also occur in the hangingwall andesite unit. As traced by diamond drilling the entire zone extends 1400 metres along strike, 250 metres downdip and is from 5 to 45 metres thick. It is open to the northeast and downdip. Mineralization displays both lateral and vertical zoning. Antimony, arsenic and mercury-rich mineral assemblages in the south change to zinc, lead and copper-rich assemblages in the north. Vertical zoning is expressed as a systematic increase in gold, silver and base metal content up- section. Based on mineral associations and continuity of grade, the 21 zone has been divided into two deposits: the 21A (formerly called the South zone) and the 21B (which includes the former Central and North zones, now linked by drilling). The deposits are separated by 140 metres of weak mineralization. Two new mineral zones, the 21C and Pumphouse, have recently been discovered. The 21C is centred about 450 metres due north of the 21A deposit. It is a discrete mineral zone 100 metres downdip from the 21B deposit and subparallel to it. The Pumphouse zone is located immediately northeast of Pumphouse Lake, east of the southern end of the 21B deposit. Drilling in the 21A deposit area has outlined a mineralized zone approximately 280 metres long and up to 100 metres wide. Thickness is variable, averaging about 10 metres. The deposit is contained within the contact unit and underlying rhyolite unit. The deposit can be subdivided into an upper, stratabound zone of disseminated to near-massive stibnite and realgar within the contact unit, and a lower, stockwork zone of disseminated sphalerite, tetrahedrite and pyrite within the rhyolite unit. High-grade (> 15 grams per tonne) gold and silver mineralization occurs in variably sheared, carbonaceous mudstone and mudstone-rhyolite breccia. A diverse suite of metallic minerals has been identified. Zones of nearly massive stibnite, realgar and orpiment pass along strike and downdip into disseminated domains where sulphides occur in veinlets, as feathery masses, or as heavy impregnations along shears or in the mudstone matrix. The breccia matrix is variably pyritic. Both breccia matrix and clasts contain needles of stibnite and arsenopyrite. Gold occurs as native gold, amalgam and possibly in mercurian wurtzite. Silver occurs as native silver, amalgam, tetrahedrite and unnamed silver-lead-arsenic-sulphur minerals. Mineralization is associated with areas of intense alteration. Both members of the contact unit are overprinted with varying amounts of magnesian chlorite, muscovite, chalcedonic silica, calcite and dolomite; pyrobitumen is ubiquitous. Disseminated to microfracture-filling mineralization in the rhyolite unit is characterized by low to moderate tenor gold (1-15 grams per tonne) and locally high silver, associated with base metal sulphides and minor to trace antimony, arsenic and mercury minerals. Tetrahedrite, pyrite, sphalerite and galena predominate, with minor aktashite and chalcopyrite. Realgar and orpiment are rare to nonexistent. Carbon and graphite are absent. Beneath stratabound mineralization of the contact unit, the rhyolite unit is highly fractured and intensely altered. Fracturing, alteration intensity and metal tenor appear to increase toward the upper contact. Within 3 to 4 metres of the upper contact, rhyolite-hosted mineralization is characterized either by massive chlorite-gypsum-barite rock or by quartz-muscovite-sulphide breccia. Mineralization in the footwall dacite unit commonly occurs in the datum dacite member. It consists of semimassive to disseminated, crystalline pyrite, sphalerite, tetrahedrite, galena and chalcopyrite. The 21B deposit is approximately 900 metres long, from 60 to 200 metres wide and locally in excess of 40 metres thick. It is displaced on the east by the northeast trending Pumphouse Creek fault and related north trending splays. The deposit is open to the northeast along strike, to the immediate east on fault-offset segments, and is partially open to the west at depth. It displays varied styles of mineralization and alteration. The southernmost 600 metres of the 21B deposit (the former Central zone) is characterized by stratabound and stratiform high-grade gold and silver-bearing base metal sulphide layers. Banded sulphide mineralization occurs in carbonaceous and tuffaceous mudstones of the contact unit. Sulphides form disseminated, semimassive and massive laminae and bands, up to 12 metres thick, that appear to parallel bedding in the mudstones. In approximate order of abundance sulphide minerals include amber sphalerite, tetrahedrite, boulangerite and bournonite with minor pyrite and galena. Gold and silver occur as 5 to 80-micron grains of electrum within fractured sphalerite, commonly in contact with galena. Realgar and stibnite are absent. Gangue minerals include magnesian chlorite, muscovite and quartz with lesser amounts of dolomite and calcite. Peripheral to and beneath banded sulphide mineralization are areas of microfracture veinlets and disseminations of tetrahedrite, pyrite and minor boulangerite. Gangue minerals include magnesian chlorite, muscovite, potassium feldspar and calcite. Footwall, rhyolite-hosted stockwork mineralization is volumetrically insignificant in comparison with either the 21A deposit or the northern 21B deposit. In contrast, the northern 300 metres of the 21B deposit (the former North zone) exhibits considerable geological and structural complexity. Although hostrock stratigraphy is similar to that found to the south, mineralization occurs at several different stratigraphic levels. Gold, silver and base metal-rich lenses occur in hangingwall unit interflow mudstones as well as in the contact unit mudstone and underlying rhyolite unit breccias. Very high grade mineralization occurs deeper in the rhyolite unit in association with crosscutting zones of fracture-related alteration. The mineralized zone is thick and cut by zones of strong shearing. Hangingwall mineralization is hosted by two mudstone beds near the base of the hangingwall andesite unit and is associated with pervasive chlorite alteration and locally heavy barite. Near-massive dark sphalerite, galena and tetrahedrite with lesser amounts of pyrite and chalcopyrite occur as two partially stacked lenses. Mineralization in the contact unit is dominantly comprised of sphalerite, tetrahedrite and possibly boulangerite with varying amounts of galena and chalcopyrite. Alteration minerals are again chlorite, muscovite, quartz and calcite. Mineralized textures vary from crudely banded massive sulphides to thick and thin sulphide bands intercalated with mudstone. Crosscutting mineralization in the contact and rhyolite units occurs as siliceous (quartz-healed) and carbonate-rich breccias with anastomosing, crustiform veinlets and disseminations of coarse- grained iron-rich sphalerite, fine-grained pyrite, with minor galena, chalcopyrite and tetrahedrite group minerals. Gold occurs as spectacular films, wires or blebs associated with fractured sphalerite. Lead isotope analyses of galena samples collected from Eskay Creek veins and massive sulphide lenses coincide with early Jurassic lead ratios from the Kitsault, Stewart, Sulphurets and Iskut mining camps. Isotopic data are taken to indicate a widespread, early Jurassic mineralizing event. The Eskay Creek deposits are also products of this event (Exploration in British Columbia 1989). The 21 zone mineralization is unusual. There is a close spatial, and apparently temporal relationship between what conventional models describe as low-temperature epithermal and volcanogenic massive sulphide deposit types. Epithermal mineralization, characterized by gold, silver, arsenic, antimony and mercury mineral suites, forms massive and stratabound lodes as well as more usual crosscutting veins and disseminations. Massive sulphide mineralization show typical "syngenetic" ore textures but atypical mineralogy and precious metal enrichment. In 1995 and 1996, drilling and underground exploration on the 21B zone have outlined proven and probable reserves of 1,090,000 tonnes grading 65.14 grams per tonne gold, 2949.0 grams per tonne silver, 5.6 per cent zinc and 0.77 per cent copper (Information Circular 1996-1, page 5). During 1994 the access road to the mine area was completed and construction of minesite facilities was completed by fall. The first shipment of ore started January 1995, two years after application to the provincial government for a Mine Development Certificate. The direct shipping ore was crushed and blended at the mine and then moved by rail from Kitwanga to Noranda's Horne smelter in Quebec, and by sea from Stewart to Dowa Mining's smelter in Japan. At a daily mining rate of 245 tonnes, annual production is estimated at 6220 kilograms of gold and 283,000 kilograms of silver, together with copper and zinc. The operating cost is forecast to be US$187 per ounce gold equivalent. Eskay Creek will become the fourth largest silver producer in the world. Zinc will be recovered using the solvent extraction - electrowinning method (Information Circular 1995-1, pages 9-10). Late in 1995, the NEX zone was calculated to contain 205,911 tonnes grading 30.1 grams per tonne gold and 1926.5 grams per tonne silver (T. Schroeter, personal communication, 1996). Capsule Geology Hazelton Salmon River inapplicable It is possible to record a reference for the age data. Jurassic unknown inapplicable inapplicable Host can have a name. Hazelton Mount Dilworth inapplicable It is possible to record a reference for the age data. Lower Jurassic Carbonaceous Mudstone Rhyolite Mudstone Breccia Rhyolite Breccia Andesite Flow Rhyolite Andesite Tuffaceous Mudstone Pillow Basalt Sedimentary Gold Silver Zinc Copper Lead Prime Resources Group Inc. Press Release, January 22, 1998. 1996 Total Combined 997810 Silver 2858.9 Gold 64.4 Proven and probable reserves at Eskay Creek as of January 1, 1996. inapplicable 1998 27193 27193 Silver 195760000 Gold 4460800 First six months (Prime Resources Press Release, July 24, 1998). 1997 110161 110161 Silver 368498000 Gold 7591065 1996 102395 102395 Silver 369263056 Gold 6793111 1995 100243 97706 Silver 327754000 Gold 6418078 1979 9 9 Silver 25490 Gold 1263 Lead 412 Zinc 1008 1971 2 2 Silver 7435 Gold 9 Lead 29 Zinc 43 Underground -130.4,60.0 -130.5,60.1 YT 1991-03-13 entry KSP YGS 1998-01-09 revision RPD YGS false false ABBOTT, G., 1983. Silver-bearing veins and replacement deposits of the Rancheria District. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology, 1983, Exploration and Geological Services Division, Yukon, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, p. 34-44. BUTLER MOUNTAIN MINERALS LTD, May/83. Vancouver Stock Exchange Open File Report by V. Cukor. 105B 007 DALE DIME DYMAX HAM L LOLA LION TIGER UNDERGROUND PAST PRODUCER YT WATSON LAKE -130.4772,60.0186 105B01 .5 Kilometres Quartz Carbonate Quartz Quartz Vein gangue. PROPYLITIC CASSIAR BATHOLITH Vein inapplicable inapplicable unknown unknown unknown A strong east-trending fault zone cuts quartz diorite of the Cassiar Batholith. The shear zone is exposed in trenches over a length of 250 m. It is intruded by diabase and contains pockets and stringers of galena and sphalerite in a quartz-carbonate gangue. The veins are surrounded by strong propylitic and weak argillic alteration envelopes. The adit was collared about 200 m vertically below and 300 m east of the trenches and was driven more or less parallel to the projected strike. The underground drilling failed to intersect the mineralized structure. The 1968 shipment graded 3531 g/t Ag and 56% Pb. The 1970 shipment averaged 2139 g/t Ag, 49.9% Pb, 12.5% Zn, 0.3% Cu and 2.4 g/t Au. A typical specimen assayed 1203 g/t Ag, 13.4% Pb, 12.2% Zn and 1.85 g/t Au. The 1981-82 drilling did not intersect mineralization. Power and Lee carried out VLF-EM and total magnetic field surveys over the property in 1994. The VLF-EM survey outlined the Dale Fault while the magnetic survey outlined mafic dykes in the footwall and hanging wall of the Dale Fault. Grab samples collected from waste piles surrounding the main showing assayed up to 3 514 g/t Ag and 1.27 g/t Au. The adit was rehabilitated to allow for future exploration and/or to provide drill stations for underground drilling. Power and Lee dug additional trenches and expanded earlier VLF-EM and total magnetic field surveys to the east in 1995. The geophysics outlined the Dale Fault and mafic dykes in the footwall and hanging wall of the fault and the corresponding occurrence of Pb-Ag mineralization. Trenching based on geophysical results uncovered additional thin discontinuous high grade Pb-Ag veins within the fault zone. The best assay, a grab sample, returned 10 131.3 g/t Ag and 1.68 g/t Au. Power and Lee recommended expanding the geophysical grid to the eastern claim boundary. CASSIAR BATHOLITH PLUTONIC MESOZOIC CRETACEOUS MESOZOIC CRETACEOUS DIORITE QUARTZ DIORITE QUARTZ GOLD LEAD SILVER ZINC COPPER GOLD 1990 - NCMI. HART RIVER Unclassified 524545 SULFIDE ZINC 3.6 COPPER 1 LEAD 1 SILVER 49.71 GOLD 1.4 ZINC 3.6 1990 - NCMI. HART RIVER Unclassified 545454 SULFIDE ZINC 3.6 COPPER 1 LEAD 1 SILVER 49.71 GOLD 1.4 ZINC 3.6 GRADE OF PROBABLE RESERVES SIMILIAR TO PROVEN RESERVES. inapplicable 1916 1920 unknown 1863 unknown 1 INCLUDES 1559 TONNES OF ORE AT $120,000 AND 304 TONNES AT $26,000. 1921 1921 unknown 2455 SILVER 5727815 GOLD 53666 C.E.G. BROWN ESTIMATED TONNAGE SHIPPED FOR SMELTING. 1910 - 1920. 1912 1912 5455 unknown 1 VERY SMALL TONNAGE MILLED ON SITE. REST WAS SORTED AND SHIPPED. 1970 1971 unknown 59024 ZINC 1077188 LEAD 1077188 SILVER 8454437 GOLD 233421 POOR RECOVERY LEAD TO SHUTDOWN. (68% AU, 79% AG, 84% LEAD, 73% ZN) UNDERGROUND 1953 1953 HAND TRENCHING 0 0 1954 1954 HAND TRENCHING 0 0 1954 1954 TRENCHING 0 0 Conducted an EM survey. 1956 1956 DIAMOND DRILLING 69 0 Conducted an EM survey. 1958 1958 UNDERGROUND DEVELOPMENT 180 0 Number of drill holes not reported. Drove a 180m adit. 1995 POWER, M. Staked additional Frostbite claims. 1994 Staked original Frostbite claims. Staked as Tiger & Lion cl (63523) in Sep/52 by J.R. Curry and adjoining Dale cl (66511) in Aug/53 by S.W. Tatlock, which were hand pitted in 1953-55. Restaked as Dale cl (72958) in Oct/56 by Dale Mtn ML and as adjoining Ham cl (73090) in Aug/57 by Cameron Dev L and as Dime, etc cl (75324) in Oct/60 by Dakkon, Inc. Dale Mtn performed trenching and an EM survey in 1956 and drove a 180 m adit in 1958 from which 69 m were drilled. Restaked as Dymax cl (7924) in May/66 by Dymax EL. P. Poggenburg restaked as L cl (Y19983) in Sep/67, bulldozer trenched in 1968, added Lola cl (Y42382) in Jun/70, and shipped 8.2 tonnes of hand cobbed ore in late 1968. His property was optioned to Yukon E & Dev L in Oct/70 and transferred in Nov/70 to Ida Ore ML, which shipped 21.3 tons of cobbed ore to East Helena the same year. It was then transferred in turn to Mineral Hill ML and to Mark V ML, which explored by trenching, geological mapping and grid soil sampling in 1971 and 1973, and was trenched in 1976 and 1980 by H.G. Curlett and C. Wilman. Grant Stewart acquired the property in 1981 and explored with an EM survey and one hole (106.7 m) in 1981 and an EM and mag survey and 5 holes (458 m) in 1982 through a private company, Loann Silver ML. The property was acquired by Butler Mountain Mls L, which performed mapping, EM and geochem surveys in 1983 and 1984 while concentrating exploration on the adjacent Lord occurrence. The claims were allowed to lapse and the occurrence was restaked as Eagle cl (YB34126) by H. Caesar in Jul/91. B. Laursen tied on Bone cl (YB34262) to the south in Sep/91. Fringe staking includes Snowball cl (YA11733) in Oct/76 by J. Johns, who hand trenched in 1977-78; CL cl (YA657) in Aug/76 by C. Wilman; Valley cl (YA34772) in Aug/78; and AB cl (YA46628) in Nov/79 by A. LeBlanc; X cl (YA35592) in Sep/78 by Poggenburg and A. Mercier; and Family, etc cl (YA45540) in Aug/79 by M. Sache. Wilman restaked all the fringe claims as Lola, etc cl (YA66027) in Jul/81 and transferred some of them in 1982 to G. Stewart. Butler Mountain acquired the fringe claims in 1983 and added Garrett cl (YA70074) to the east in June/83 before carrying out road construction. The adjoining Pond cl (YA68761) were transferred from Terra Nova Energy Inc to A. Black in Sep/84. Between Jan/94 and Feb/95 M. Power and G. Lee restaked the property as Frostbite cl 1-40 (YB46377). In 1994 Power and Lee carried out trenching, geophysics and underground rehabilitation of the adit. In the summer of 1995 Power and Lee carried out excavator trenching and further geophysics. Except for Pond claims, Sheep claims and Bone fractional claims all other fringe claims have been allowed to lapse. -55.7,49.8 -55.8, 49.9 NF 1985-07 entry JCP NFGS false false Second year assessment report on geological, geochemical, geophysical and diamond drilling exploration for the Nugget Pond project for licence 3081 on claim blocks 5127-5128 in the Rocky Pond, Fly Pond and Horseshoe Pond areas, north-central Newfoundland. Baker, C S McBride, D E GSB# 002E/13/0733 1989 Bitech Corporation Unpublished report, 953 pages. location 002E/13/Au 001 Nugget Pond Producer NF Newfoundland -55.7753590557103,49.8450213403332,150 002E13 50m Decline portal. The deposit is located about 2.5 km from tidewater at Bobby Cove, on the east side of the Baie Verte Peninsula. A 5 km access road connects the mine to Highway 416 near the town of Snook's Arm. The area is a rugged plateau with small rounded hills, steep ridges and numerous mall ponds, bounded on the southeast by 150 m cliffs overlooking Notre Dame Bay. Valleys are wooded with spruce, birch and alder. Outcrop exposure is good, however soil development is poor, except in valleys. physiographicSetting Chalcopyrite Hessite Pyrite Calcite Quartz Pyrrhotite Stilpnomelane Biotite Albite Quartz Calcite Chlorite Biotitic Albitic Silica-carbonate Chloritic The mineralization and alteration at Nugget Pond are co-extensive with the network of quartz-albite-carbonate pyrite veins that cut rocks of the Nugget Pond Horizon. The vein-pegmatite textures are variable and can be divided into two principle types of occurrence; veins with sharp to locally diffuse contacts, volumes of rock with irregular impregnation of pegmatitic material, and irregular patches of massive pegmatite. The extensional vein array is composed of quartz-albite-carbonate +/- pyrite veins that strike parallel to the deposit with shallow to moderate dips to the south. They range from one to about 5 m in dip dimension and vary in thickness from a few to 25 cm. As well as the veins, the altered host rock commonly contains material similar to the veins irregularly distributed throughout the altered rock. Texturally, the material occurs as 1 to 10 cm scale clots of pegmatitic material randomly disseminated in altered host rock often forming up to 25 or even 50% of the rock volume. Where this material is abundant it may coalesce into irregular pods of massive pegmatite which are commonly carbonate rich. Spectacular gold "shows" have been found in this material. A single age determination on a single grain of xenotime from the pegmatite veins (Parish and Sangster, unpublished data) gave a Devonian age of 374 +/- 8 Ma. Metallic mineralization in the Nugget Pond gold deposit is dominantly pyrite with very subordinate chalcopyrite, galena, Ag-telluride, and native silver. The pyrite is commonly coarse grained and cubic with average grain size in the range from 0.5 to 2.0 cm though cubic pyrite up to 10 cm has been seen. The pyrite may overgrow pre-existing pyrite within ores hosted by the lower green sedimentary unit and commonly overgrows magnetite in both the lower green unit and the red unit. The amount of magnetite in pyritic rocks of the ore zones is less than that seen in the unmineralized rocks indicating that much of the pyrite may have grown by sulphidation of magnetite. Pyrite is abundant in the quartz-albite-carbonate veins associated with the deposit and as well occurs in narrow QFC veining stratigraphically below and above the deposit in the lower basalt and overlying green turbidite and basalts respectively. The gold occurs as free grains of native gold filling fractures in pyrite, coating pyrite grains or as small irregular-shaped grains within stilpnomelane altered rock. Some spherical gold inclusions are present within pyrite. The spectacular gold-bearing samples are restricted to the coarse carbonate veining. Accessory minerals include ubiquitous but minor (<0.1%) chalcopyrite and rare galena which occurs mainly as small inclusions in pyrite and as aggregates of coarser grains in the carbonate phase of the hydrothermal QFC veins. The silver content of the ores is contained both within the gold (5 to 15% Ag) and as <5 micron sized grains of an Ag-telluride that occurs as inclusions in pyrite. One grain of native silver was observed during SEM examinations of samples. The primary alteration mineral at Nugget Pond is stilpnomelane - the iron-rich, brittle mica - that has developed in preference to biotite because of the iron rich character of the host rocks. The major alteration is in the sedimentary rocks and varies from weak, where most sedimentary features are preserved, to strong where the rock is composed, almost exclusively, of stilpnomelane and pyrite and all vestiges of sedimentary layering and colour have been destroyed. Initial indications of alteration on the fringes of the orebody consist of bleaching of the red and green argillite and the appearance of a "spotted" texture due to the presence of rosettes of stilpnomelane. These are often restricted to particular centimeter scale sedimentary layers. With increasing alteration, the assemblage stilpnomelane, calcite, ilmenite, sphene, pyrite +/- rutile predominates. Biotite is present in minor amounts in the fringes of the alteration zone and is overgrown by stilpnomelane. In areas of most intense alteration, massive stilpnomelane is intimately associated with the hydrothermal pegmatite veins and itself forms veins, which cut the sedimentary lithologies. In these areas the stilpnomelane is accompanied by albite +/- quartz. In the footwall basalt, alteration is locally present but much less extensive than in the sedimentary rocks. The principal alteration mineral is biotite, which overgrows the regional incipient chlorite alteration. In more altered areas an assemblage of stilpnomelane, albite, calcite, quartz, pyrite is present, with stilpnomelane overgrowing the earlier biotite. ORE DISTRIBUTION Within this overall framework there are three individual ore zones in the mine: the hangingwall or "Zone 1" that occurs within the dark green chloritic sediment at the base of the green unit; "Zone 2" that occurs in the magnetite rich portion of the upper part of the red unit; and the footwall or "Zone 3" that occurs in the magnetite-rich basal portion of the red unit. Details of variation in individual zones is provided below. ZONE 1 is located within the dark green sediment at the base of the green turbidite unit. It is black in colour due to the presence of stilpnomelane and contains 12 to 15% pyrite. The fine to medium grain pyrite occurs as semi-laminated to laminated bands with a barren grey-green sandstone layer often located within the zone. The immediate footwall contains 4 to 6% disseminated pyrite <8 mm over a width of 0.5 m. Zone 1 is 3 to 5 m thick and is commonly crosscut by calcite/albite veins <15 cm wide. Locally, the sedimentary rocks exhibit ductile deformation. Immediately above Zone 1 is a hanging wall fault which is comprised of highly fractured grey-green sedimentary rocks or fault breccia/gouge up to 1.5 m wide. ZONE 2 is located within red and green sandstone and siltstone that contains 6 to 8% disseminated, coarse grain euhedral pyrite (<24 mm) with abundant discontinuous irregular pink albite and calcite veins. Stilpnomelane alteration within this zone is commonly less intense than in Zone 1. ZONE 3 is located at the base of the sediments above the footwall contact with the pillow lavas. In the west the sediments are tuffaceous and contain light green chlorite with moderate calcite impregnations and 8 to 10% pyrite. Occasionally the zone may host remnant blocks of a cherty fragmental rock within a magnetite matrix. In the east (known as Zone 3 upper) the sediments are somewhat darker in colour with a finer grained sulphide content occurring right at the contact between the metasedimentary rocks and the pillow lavas. Immediately above the pyrite is a 10 to 30 cm band of fine grain magnetite. ORIGIN OF THE DEPOSIT The bulk of the geological evidence indicates that the deposit is a product of sulphidation of magnetite-rich zones in the sedimentary horizons, by fluids related to the emplacement of the quartz-feldspar carbonate veins 374 +/- 8 Ma ago. The deposit is geometrically coincident with the extent of veining, and occurs where the veining intersects magnetite-rich horizons. Quartz-feldspar-carbonate veins commonly have halos of pyrite and microscopically the pyrite can been seen to replace magnetite or overgrow earlier syngenetic pyrite (Sangster et al., 1994). It is commonly believed that the granitic material accessed the sedimentary horizon by reactivation of a synvolcanic fault that appears on the surface as a strong NNW striking linear. This feature has not yet been clearly identified in the mine. Nature of Mineralization and Genesis Typical Analysis of Nugget Pond Ore Lithology Au As Cu Pb Zn Ag Co Ni gm/t ppm ppm ppm ppm ppm ppm ppm Ore 79 92 135 59 27 11.3 26 103 Ore 22 196 138 153 68 8.6 23 135 Ore 13 65 53 84 44 7.2 35 137 Ore 107 3 4 10 21 5.1 3 79 Metal/Mineral Content Appalachian Dunnage Stratabound undivided volcanogenic sediment-hosted deposits associated with marine volcanic rocks 150 inapplicable inapplicable inapplicable inapplicable Upper Devonian Tabular Faulted 045 45 inapplicable 45 300.00 unknown 50.00 The Nugget Pond deposit is a stratabound gold deposit hosted by sedimentary rocks of the Lower Ordovician Snooks Arm Group. The gold deposit consists of manto-style disseminated pyrite-gold mineralization hosted by a red/green turbidite horizon that lies stratigraphically above pillowed basalt of the Mount Misery Formation and stratigraphically below overlying basalt massive porphyritic basalt of the Scrape Point Formation. The sedimentary sequence is typically 40 to 60 m thick and dips 40 to 60 degrees to the southeast. The underlying Mount Misery basalt is commonly variolitic and vesicular and varies from fresh to moderately altered. Relatively fresh basalt consists primarily of plagioclase, clinopyroxene, chlorite, actinolite and minor to trace amounts of leucoxene, calcite, epidote, and pyrite. A distinctive dark basalt is associated with inter- and intra-pillow metasomatic alterations. This basalt is composed of plagioclase, chlorite and magnetite with the latter forming up to 15 modal percent of the rock. Three types of inter- and intra-pillow alterations have been identified. The first are epidocites and related alterations comprised of quartz-calcite-chlorite-epidote-pyrite that occur as replacements or veining. The second are zones of diffuse replacement of the basalts by aggregates of quartz-calcite-muscovite-albite-chalcopyrite-pyrrhotite. The third alteration consists of quartz-calcite with chlorite, muscovite, magnetite and hematite, and are referred to as inter-pillow chert or jasper zones. They typically lie within 5 m of the upper contact of the basalt. The Nugget Pond Horizon is broadly divisible into a lower red clastic unit and an upper green clastic unit. The red clastic unit is in turn divisible into a lower magnetic unit, a middle brick red clastic unit and an upper interlaminated brick red-green clastic unit that is also magnetic. The upper green clastic unit contains a lower dark green sulphide horizon that is overlain by a medium to light green finely laminated and graded turbiditic unit. The basal unit of the sedimentary sequence is an iron formation, typically 3 to 5 m thick; though in one location it reaches a thickness of 18 m. The unit consists of four subunits that are not universally present or consistent in character. The lowest unit is a chaotic zone containing clasts of Mount Misery pillow basalt and chert that are cemented by chert quartz and magnetite. The second unit is also breccia, however it contains clasts of bedded sedimentary rocks, chert and quartz cemented by chert and quartz and locally by magnetite and quartz. Some of these textures may represent hydrothermal breccias related to ore deposition while others are of sedimentary origin. The third subunit is a very fine-grained, very dark red siltstone that contains abundant, very fine-grained, bedded magnetite. The fourth subunit is a brick red to brown-black very fine-grained siltstone that also contains abundant magnetite. The largest part of the red unit is a coarsening upward sequence of mudstone, siltstone, sandstone and pebbly sandstone. The lowest part of the unit consists of an aphanitic, red, massive to very thinly laminated mudstone composed of quartz and chlorite with feldspar and sericite (XRD analysis) and an evenly distributed hematite matrix. Higher in the succession, the proportion of silt-sized particles increases resulting in a fine to medium laminated siltstone-mudstone and near the top of the red succession, a coarser, mainly green, sand sized sediment component results in a unit comprised of banded red siltstone-mudstone and red sandstone. The sandstone may contain mm to cm scale clasts, mainly of basalt. The red-green unit commonly contains laminae of dark red magnetite-rich mudstone. The upper green metasedimentary unit consists of two lithologies. The lower unit directly overlying the red unit is dark green, and is composed of chlorite, muscovite, quartz and carbonate. It is weakly to moderately foliated and contains small-scale deformation structures. It is distinctive in that it has abundant layer parallel bands of sieve-textures pyrite and pyrrhotite that varies from about 15% to locally submassive sulphide. The lower part of the unit is strongly enriched in magnetite. The upper and thickest portion of the green unit is a sequence of thinly laminated and graded, mainly green, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone forming Bouma A or B to E(t) sequences. The colour of individual metasedimentary rocks is a function of grain size with sandstone being darker green, siltstone lighter green with a transition to tan or sometimes red in the finest mudstone. The coarser clasts in the sandy facies indicate derivation from a basaltic protolith. The pyrite content is always << 1%. Near the contact with the overlying basalt, there is an increase in shearing accompanied by alteration and an increase in pyrite, epidote, and magnetite. STRUCTURAL SETTING The Nugget Pond deposit lies in the basal sedimentary unit of the Scrape Point Formation at its intersection with a strong NE-SW air photo linear which occurs in the footwall rocks but does not appear to extend into the hangingwall rocks. The interpreted fault has not been found in the underground mine workings but there is a modest thickening in Scrape Point sedimentary rocks at the appropriate location suggesting the presence of a synvolcanic fault in the Fly Pond Formation and other footwall units. Detailed structural geology has not been done in the deposit area, however a cursory examination at an early stage of the underground development indicates that the deposit is genetically related to an extensional array of hydrothermal quartz-albite-carbonate-pyrite veins within the metasedimentary rocks. The Nugget Pond deposit is not exposed on surface. A mine development road cut some 50 m north of subcrop of the west end of the deposit exposes layer cake geology of red argillite, green argillite, and glomeroporphyritic basalt that are totally unaltered demonstrating that the mineralization and alteration effects on the host rocks is local. Description of Deposit The Baie Verte Peninsula is underlain by two distinct structural and lithic belts which are separated by a major arcuate, structural zone referred to as the Baie Verte Line (Hibbard, 1983). Rocks to the west of the Baie Verte Line belong to the Fleur de Lys Belt. This belt is part of the Humber Tectonostratigraphic Zone. The rocks lying to the east of the Baie Verte Line belong to the Baie Verte Belt which is part of the Dunnage Tectonostratigraphic Zone. This belt is comprised of four main lithic elements: 1) Cambro-Ordovician ophiolitic sequences of the Advocate, Point Rousse and Betts Cove complexes and the Pacquet Harbour Group; 2) Ordovician volcanic cover sequences of the Snooks Arm and Flat Water Pond groups; 3) Silurian terrestrial volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Micmac Lake and Cape St. John groups, which unconformably overlie the Ordovician sequences; and 4) and Siluro-Devonian intrusive rocks (e.g. the Burlington Granodiorite and Cape Brule Porphyry). The Cambro-Ordovician sequences represent vestiges of Iapetus and have been interpreted to have formed in supra-subduction zone ophiolitic and primitive island-arc environments. The Snooks Arm Group is defined as six formations and one intrusive unit, composed of mafic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks that directly overlie the Betts Cove Complex. The group comprises three mainly volcaniclastic formations, the Scrape Point, Bobby Cove and Balsam Bud Cove formations, and three dominantly pillow lava lava formations, the Mount Misery, Venams Bight and Round Harbour formations. Intrusive rocks consist of 150 m thick, fine-grained, composite mafic sills that geochemically resemble rocks of the Snooks Arm Group basalts. The Snooks Arm Group is disposed in an easterly trending and plunging syncline, exhibits slaty cleavage, and is metamorphosed to the lower greenschist facies. The unit conformably overlies the Betts Cove Complex and is unconformably overlain by the Cape St. John Group. Regional Geology and Tectonic Setting Snooks Arm Scrape Point Lower Ordovician green siltstone dark green pyritic argillite red argillaceous siltsone Gold Copper Silver unknown Under Ground In 1996, prior to the commencement of mining, reserves totaled 488,000 tonnes grading 0.357 oz/t Au. The proven and probable mineable reserves on January 1, 1999 were calculated total 351,000 tons at a grade of 0.33 ounces of gold per ton. Production from the known ore zones should continue for more than three years at a rate of 340 tonnes per day. Quarter Tonnes Mill Recovery Mill Feed Gold Ounces Milled Grade(g/t) Produced Design-Actual Design-Actual Reserve- Actual Design-Actual 97-2nd 28,744-28,961 97% -96.7% 12.22 - 13.96 10,954-11,962 97-3rd 28,744-27,778 97% -97.4% 12.22 - 12.69 10,954-11.778 97-4th 28,744-27,984 97% -97.9% 11.51 - 12.71 10,954-11,024 98-1st 28,744-30,167 97% -97.9% 11.51 - 11.84 10,954-11,272 98-2nd 28,744-31,098 97% -98.0% 11.51 - 11.70 10,954-11,545 98-3rd 28,744-32,969 97% -98.3% 11.51 - 10.89 10,954-11,186 98-4th 28,744-32,543 97% -97.9% 10.59 - 10.08 10,954-10,026 99-1st 28,744-31,555 97% -97.9% 10.59 - 10.24 10,954-10,300 99-2nd 28,744-33,442 97% -98.4% 10.59 - 11.83 10,954-12,366 History of Production and/or Reserves Trench inapplicable inapplicable Shaft inapplicable inapplicable Adit inapplicable inapplicable Diamond Drilling 106 inapplicable The Nugget Pond prospect was discovered by personnel of Bitech Corporation in July, 1988. The property had been staked in 1987 and reconnaissance soil geochemistry revealed gold anomalies near Nugget Pond. Follow up work included geological mapping, prospecting, soil sampling, VLF- EM, magnetic and IP surveys. Bedrock mineralization was uncovered by trenching uphill from the pond, and the zone was subsequently outlined by 106 diamond drill holes at 25 m centers, for a total of 19,830 m of drilling (Baker and McBride, 1989). An additional 5-hole infill drilling program was completed in 1993. Richmont Mines Inc. formally approved the construction of the Nugget Pond Mine on June 11, 1996. The construction reached substantial completion in February 1997 and mill start up for testing occurred on March 3, 1997. The first gold was poured on March 27, 1997. The underground mine uses the selective and mechanized cut and fill method of ore extraction; whereby the ore is removed immediately after blasting and the openings created by mining are filled. Production is done by a single boom electric hydraulic drill jumbo. The holes are aligned by an onboard computer system and/or the driller. Broken ore is loaded onto underground haulage trucks by scooptrams (low profile front end loaders) and trucked to the surface. The test results indicated that very high recoveries (more than 97%), could be achieved from treating the ore in a modern but conventional mill circuit. Mill results to date have been above 97.7% for the recovery of gold. Gold bars are produced at the project site in a processing facility which includes crushing, grinding, leaching, gold recovery using CIP technology, and cyanide detoxification using the INCO SO2 destruction process. History of Exploration A glacial dispersion train down ice from the deposit occurs for at least 400 m along strike with values up to 4670 ppb Au (Beckmann, 1989). Much smaller, and relatively minor anomalies in Cu (to 197 ppm) and silver (to 1.4 ppm) occur in the same area. Geochemical Expression VLF-EM 16 surveys show a strong conductor over the Nugget Pond Zone. A magnetic survey shows a general decreasing magnetic response in the area from northwest to southeast. The magnetic pattern is truncated near Nugget Pond and a pronounced low occurs over the trench at Line 0. A strong IP conductor was detected over the Nugget Pond zone and extends for at least 1.2 km (Beckmann, 1989). Geophysical Expression Sample data for Ontario MDI. -77.6, 44.4 -77.7,44.5 ON 1988-02-15 entry unknown ONGS false false AFRO 1981, #2.4110 publication GSC 1927, ECON GEOL REPT 4, P104 publication -77.6, 44.4 -77.7,44.5 MDI31C05NE00018 1988 inapplicable unknown ACKERMAN 1988 inapplicable unknown CAMPBELL-BLOMFIELD DISCRETIONARY OCCURRENCE ON LARDER LAKE SOUTHEASTERN ONTARIO MARMORA 6 8 W E part of Lot 6. -77.6131, 44.4997 031C05NE 031C12SE unknown Overburden drill hole unknown ARSENOPYRITE CALCITE FLUORITE GOLD MAGNETITE PYRITE SIDERITE QUARTZ HEMATITE PYRITE SERICITIC SILICIFICATION HEMATIZATION PYRITIZAION SUPERIOR WESTERN ABITIBI ABITIBI ABINGER MAZINAW inapplicable GREENSCHIST REGIONAL OF 3384E NEOARCHEAN 2700 +/- 3 MA Using 'local scale' data from ON MDI. The name of the geological structure is carried in gml:name. NO. 1 VEIN inapplicable 150 30 unknown unknown inapplicable This is populated from MDI2_GEOL_INFO/ASSEM_GRP. GARNET-TOOMS inapplicable INTERMEDIATE INTRUSIVE SYENITE VEIN SYENITE 1997-02-26 entry NELSON, B ONGS Spence (1922, 1940) described the rock as soft and dark, apparently a pyroxenite, partly altered to talc. Lithology Gold CMH 1994-95 1994 CHEMINIS Proven 272727 Gold 5.14 CMH 1995-96 1995 CHEMINIS Possible 2272727 Gold 5.83 CMH 1994-95 1995 CHEMINIS Proven 2272727 Gold 5.14 PROVEN & PROBABLE unknown OFR 5921 1994 CHEMINIS 57802 unknown Gold 194521 OFR 5943 1995 CHEMINIS 33855 unknown Gold 101833 1995 unknown unknown inapplicable A controlled list could be referenced for validation. (e.g.) Geodetic coordinate reference system in X/Y dimensions. Clarke 1866 reference ellipsoid. Z-dimension (elevation) in meters. (e.g.) Geodetic coordinate reference system in X/Y dimensions. Clarke 1866 reference ellipsoid. (e.g.) Provincial list for OreMinerals. (e.g.) Provincial list for GangueMinerals. (e.g.) A federated list of alteration types is currently under construction. Provincial terminology in use. The BC Stratigraphic Sequence could be referenced as an XML resource, based on the gml:TMOrdinalReferenceSystemType from GML3 temporal.xsd. Well-known identifier for 'Ma' age unit. Well-known identifier for 'gram' metric unit. Well-known identifier for 'tonne' metric unit. Well-known identifier for 'kilogram' metric unit. Well-known identifier for 'grams/tonne' using metric units. Well-known identifier for 'degrees' angular unit. Well-known identifier for percentage. Yukon term for trace amount.