Moose River Basin: geology and mineral potential - Geology Ontario

Moose River Basin
more is to be gained from geological reconnaissance which, through better un
derstanding of the geology, will lead to delineation of the areas with lignite po
tential, thus reducing exploratory drilling to the estimated 200 km 2 of poten
tial lignite deposits. This will reduce the area of exploratory drilling to 1/35
(200 km 2), of its present size (7,000 km 2), and the number of required explora
tory holes accordingly to seven or eight holes, or less if the area of interest is of
necessity larger than the Onakawana lignite area.
INDUSTRIAL MINERALS
Introduction
Industrial mineral resources of economic interest in the Moose River Basin
include the Devonian high-calcium limestones, the Middle Devonian gypsum
deposits, Mesozoic quartz sands and kaolinitic clays, and Quaternary deposits
of gravel and peat. Gravel deposits will be of importance locally in areas where
construction of roads or railways is contemplated. The potential importance of
peat deposits is less predictable, but successful development of Onakawana lig
nite as a fuel for power generation will undoubtedly attract more attention to
extensive peat deposits known to exist in the James Bay Lowland area. Highcalcium
limestone of Devonian age has potential importance as a flux stone or
as chemical stone in future industrial developments, or as the basic raw mate
rial for cement production. It could provide pulp and paper manufacturers with
their needs of high-calcium lime or limestone from local sources. According to
Goudge (1938, p.322) 31 feet of high-calcium limestone ^957c CaCo3 ) are expo
sed in a section at Coral Rapids. Gypsum deposits in the Moose River Basin pro
vide spectacular outcrops of white rock along the Moose and Cheepash Rivers,
64 km southwest of Moosonee. A description of these deposits with literature
references was given by Guillet (1964). A calculation based on the descriptions
shows that a total of 180 million tons may be accessible in areas underlying the
outcrops. If the area between outcrops is included a total of 6 billion tons of gyp
sum may be involved.
In the Mesozoic Era limited deposition of sand and clay took place in parts
of the drainage basin of the Moose River. These continental deposits are of del
taic character and occur below the present elevation of the Precambrain es
carpment which is the southern limit of the James Bay Lowland. Also present
are accumulations of lignite representing swamp vegetation. The deltaic sedi
ments were subject to extreme weathering which led to characteristics of eco
nomic significance. Weathering, combined with sorting of sediments during
water transport, has produced deposits of almost pure quartz sand and kaolini
tic clay.
In 1975 a program of drilling and geophysical studies of the Moose River
Basin was commissioned by the Ontario Division of Mines. A refraction seismic
and resistivity survey and reverse circulation chip drilling (6 holes) were con
ducted along 110 km of winter road north-northwest of Smoky Falls (see Figure
1.5). The results are expressed in a profile of geologic formations along this road
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