GTK's new directions The digital mapping revolution International ...

GeoFoorumi
ISSUE 2/2008
GTK’s new directions
The digital mapping revolution
International Polar Year
highlights
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GeoFoorumi 2/2008
Publisher: Geologian tutkimuskeskus
Exchange operator: +358 20 550 11
www.gtk.fi
Guest Editor: Greg Moore
Layout and design:
Raija Sandqvist, Piccolo Oy
Editorial board: Elias Ekdahl, Greg Moore,
Hannu Idman, Keijo Nenonen, Pekka Nurmi,
Marie-Louise Wiklund, Sini Autio
Front cover: Research scientist
Aimo Kuivamäki maps fractures and faults in
the greater Tampere region. Photo: Jari
Väätäinen, GTK
Printed by: Vammalan Kirjapaino Oy
ISSN 1796-1475
GeoFoorumi, published three times a year,
is the in-house magazine of the Geological
Survey of Finland. Articles cover topics of
interest to the geological community,
stakeholders and the public at large.
In 2008, issues 1 and 3 will be published in
Finnish, and issue 2 in English. Subscription
requests and change-of-address information
can be submitted to viestinta@gtk.fi or
http://en.gtk.fi/Media/Order/.
gtk@gtk.fi
Geological Survey of Finland
Southern Finland Office
Betonimiehenkuja 4
P.O. Box 96, FI-02151 ESPOO
Fax +358 20 550 12
Eastern Finland Office
Neulaniementie 5
P.O. Box 1237, FI-70211 KUOPIO
Fax +358 20 550 13
Western Finland Office
Vaasantie 6
P.O. Box 97, FI-67101 KOKKOLA
Fax +358 20 550 14
Northern Finland Office
Lähteentie 2
P.O. Box 77, FI 96101 ROVANIEMI
Fax +358 20 550 14
Jari Väätäinen, GTK
CONTENS
3 Research director’s note
4 The new language of geological resource accounting
7 Digital mapping – GTK’s biggest revolution
10 Peat, carbon balance, and methane in a warming world
12 GTK’s new directions
14 The ICI – Sharing the wealth
15 Examples of GTK International Cooperation
16 International Polar Year studies highlight climate issues
19 Climate change adaptation at the local level
20 Seismic sounding of ore belts continues
21 New isotope lab offers broad research possibilities
22 New publications
23 Latest news
23 GTK online
Lake sediment sampling at Lake Puruvesi, Kesälahti.

RESEARCH DIRECTOR’S NOTE
GTK stands for sustainable growth
GTK is one of the leading geoscientific research organizations in
Europe. Our expertise is focused on the Precambrian geology of the
Fennoscandian Shield, Quaternary geology of the repeatedly glaciated
terrain and the natural earth resources in bedrock and soil.
GTK employs some 300 experienced scientists (more than 70 PhDs)
specialized in various aspects of geology, environmental research,
geophysics, geochemistry and information technology. Our research
staff is supported by in-house modern equipment and facilities, including
the state-of-the-art Isotope Laboratory, Mineral Processing
Laboratory, Drill Core Depot and experienced technical support for
surveying. Altogether we are an institution of some 700 persons under
the Ministry of Employment and the Economy.
The geological resources of strategic and economic importance
(precious and base metals, industrial minerals, groundwater, aggregates,
dimensional stones and geological energy sources such as peat
and thermal capacity of soil and bedrock) will remain at the core of
GTK’s research mission. Future research priorities will also include
environmental accounting of geological resources, life-cycle analyses,
technologies for sustainable use of raw materials and advanced
multidimensional geological modelling. Environmental issues and
the acceptability of consuming non-renewable geological resources
is today an object of active public discussion. Only transparent and
objective information on geology and its technical applications can
be the basis for assuring the politicians and the public that e.g. nuclear
waste disposal deep in hard crystalline bedrock is safe enough
for our nation. Our parliament made the decision in 2000 to go
ahead with deep disposal plans based on thorough geological and
technical studies from GTK. Fortunately, most of the tasks we face
are less thorny than this one.
We are working to further improve our databases. Our goal is
to make more of our products and materials accessible online. Improved
geological vector maps will soon be released for distribution.
You can browse geological information in a GEOINFO map-server
or search the catalogues of printed map series and FINGEO digital
publications. Our mission is to make Finnish geology readily understandable
and easily accessible to the public, society and industry, as
well as decision-makers at all levels. Welcome to the www.gtk.fi website
and our exhibition stand at IGC 2008 in Oslo – and take some
time to listen to the presentations of our specialists at the conference
sessions.
KEIJO NENONEN
Research Director
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Jari Väätäinen, GTK

The new language
of geological resource
accounting
Just a decade ago, it was rare for
policymakers and stakeholders to
discuss land use and infrastructure
issues with terms like “energy mix”,
“ecological rucksack”, “material flow
analysis”, “proportion ality”, or even
“sustainability”. New balanced
approaches to human modification
of the geological environment are
helping reduce red tape and save
money in the long term.
TEXT: SINI AUTIO
PHOTOS: JARI VÄÄTÄINEN, GTK
The Finnish Environment Institute ranks Finns among the
most active consumers of natural resources in the world. Natural
material flows are estimated at about 500 million tons
a year, or around 100 tons per inhabitant. Over 90% of this
figure involves the shifting of rock or soil for such purposes as
road-building, mining, agriculture or underwater earthworks.
Of this, about 100 million tons relates directly to quarrying or
removal of minerals ranging from production of dimension
stone to construction aggregates, as well as 22 million tons of
commercially extracted minerals and metallic ores.
4 GeoFoorumi ��������
Senior scientist Saku Vuori wants to increase general awareness of
natural material flow and life-cycle thinking as part of sustainable
use policies.
As geological resources lie at the heart of Finnish economic
activity, their sustainable use has become a hot topic.
GTK seeks to provide decision-makers with unbiased, accurate
resource data so they can formulate solutions meeting
the nation’s long-term environmental sustainability goals.
This information is also useful to companies working with
mineral resources and in promoting public awareness. The
EU wants national commitments to mineral use policies to
reduce harmful environmental impacts.

True costs
In his office at GTK, senior scientist Saku Vuori explains the
conundrum of environmental and logistic issues arising from
benign materials in vast quantities. “It may seem unexciting
to think about rock chips at a granite quarry, but how should
we think about them? Are they an intermediate byproduct or
waste? Somebody has expended considerable energy to make
materials that may be useful to someone else. The EU Court attempted
to clarify this issue in the case of Palin Granit (2002),
where it found “intent to discard” to be the critical characteris-
How GTK promotes sustainable
materials use
● Inventories of metal-bearing ores, industrial
minerals, natural stone, gravel, sand, soil,
peat and groundwater.
● Online access to spatial and statistical data
on inventoried resources.
● Development of a system of geological
resource accounting and modeling that includes
mineral byproducts and suitable substitutes.
● Contributes to the discussion on what constitutes
mineral waste.
● Expansion of bioenergy accounting to cover
peat reserves.
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tic of waste under EU law. Still, how does one form such intent
if one is only waiting to identify a suitable use? The answer, I
believe, lies in considering the entire value chain.”
The first step is valuation of natural resources. Resource
accounting should not only consider the volume and quality
of a deposit, but also its location and potential users. This
has changed the model of value. While traditional competitive
bidding favors the lowest bidder, low pricing in resource
services may give bad motivations to cut corners or shift costs
onto others.
“Two-thirds of rock materials and aggregates purchased
in Finland are used by public agencies,” explains Vuori. “This
Mine Closure Handbook now
available in English
The Green Net Mining (GNM) Group, a joint cooperation of
GTK, VTT, Outokumpu Oyj, Jaakko Pöyry Infra and Destia
Oy, has just released an updated English-language version
of the original Finnish-language mine closure handbook
published in 2005.
The handbook is targeted at mine operators, public agencies,
and third-party interest groups dealing with closure
planning in the context of EU legislation and regulations.
The handbook reviews regulatory requirements and trends,
avoidance of potential negative impacts, risk management
strategies, bonding and other economic considerations,
best practices, as well as instructions on preparing a closure
plan, implementation of closure, and post-closure issues.
The closure-related R&D efforts at the Hitura nickel mine in
western Finland illustrate an actual case and provide a rich
source of reference material.
A printed version is available from the GTK head office or by
online order from http://en.gtk.fi/Geoinfo/Publications/Publicationsales.html.
A PDF-version of the handbook may be downloaded
from http://arkisto.gtk.fi/ej/ej74.pdf.
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puts the state in an excellent position to institute energy efficiency
objectives via a material efficiency approach in public
procurement. We can benchmark relative to the quality of the
material to set a desired cost performance from the supplier.”
Broader horizons
An ecological rucksack comprises the total quantity of natural
materials disturbed and expended to generate a product.
This includes the transport of extracted, and possibly semirefined,
materials from the site of the resource to the point it
is delivered as a ready-to-use product, minus the weight of the
product itself.
A 2008 study by Germany’s Wuppertal Institute for Climate,
Environment and Energy, considered whether it made
better sense to bring copper concentrates from Chile to Germany,
which has excellent, environmentally sound smelting
facilities and electrolytic refining capacity, or make the copper
in Chile, even with its less efficient smelters and refining,
before bringing finished cathodes to Germany. By examining
the major environmental pressure indicators (primary energy,
material inputs, water consumption, solid waste, as well
as emissions of greenhouse gases, sulfur and arsenic), copper
refining in Chile was shown to be the wisest approach. This
insight not only encourages the Chilean copper industry to
develop its technology and supply chain, it also is to Germany’s
environmental advantage to accept this global division of
labor in materials production.
Getting people to think with wider boundaries requires
overcoming the not-in-my-back-yard (Nimby) phenomenon
and political worries about material independence. The answer
lies with rational approaches that bring together supply
and demand in the most environmentally friendly way.
Substitutes may be an answer
“A number of quality issues attach to mineral use,” says Vuori.
“It may be wasteful to use high-quality granite, for example,
as filler material in a construction project when a poorer quality
stone could be used. Substitute materials can save tremendous
costs as long as it meets the rule of appropriate material
for appropriate use.”
GTK has made basic assessments of mineral resources by
collecting data from over 10,000 bedrock sites. This information
is useful in land planning and zoning, as well as optimization
of quarry sites and as a basis for planning large infrastructure,
construction projects and protected areas.
“Geological resource data is valuable to the regional planner
as such data are often determinative of land use. Urban
expansion can take place smoothly if the needs of resource
exploitation are anticipated. Oil and gas extraction, for example,
has continued for nearly a century in the Los Angeles
basin and along the California coast even as the population
in that region grew to more 15 million people. I believe with
the right approach we can secure the best uses of our mineral
wealth for centuries to come without sacrificing our quality
of life.” ●

Driven by technological change that allows greater information intensity, mapping is
moving from conventional quadrangle mapping to demand-driven data capture and
interpretation. After more than a century of work with traditional mapping, GTK is
re-engineering all aspects of field data capture, storage, analysis and map formats.
TEXT: GREG MOORE
Digital mapping – GTK’s
biggest revolution
Polish semanticist Alfred Korzybski liked to say “the map is
not the territory.” His idea was that an abstract representation
was not the thing itself – it merely stood for something and
was by its nature incomplete. Of course, any mapmaker of his
generation would have conceded this in a second; a very limited
amount of information fits on a conventional paper map.
Large quantities of useful information have to be left out.
“The big change,” notes GTK’s Geological Mapping Program
Director Hannu Idman, “is in how we work. We have
to understand the various needs in the society, and focus the
mapping accordingly.” A city planner, for example, designing
a town plan, might want to know geological conditions
of the area concerned. He will want many
dense data points for that area – a feature
of urban geology – and may want the
site boundaries from adjacent plats
listed in the land register in order
to adjust for easements or subsidence.
In the end, the city
planner gets a tailor-made
map on demand, a map
that can be provided
in two or three
dimensions, with
detailed information
on clay types,
bedrock characteristics
and anything
else useful
to the builder.”
Renewal process in full swing
GTK is currently in the process of renewing its mapping
strategies. Modern information technology attacks head-on
one of the challenges of limited information availability. But
there are other factors driving change at GTK, including pressures
for greater responsiveness to stakeholders and a push
for organizational efficiency. Web-based approaches make it
possible to query and exchange geoscientific information internationally.
An illustration of typical Finnish
geological features.
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Drawing: Harri Kutvonen, GTK

The big issues involve data models and architecture, data
capture and acquisition, and the forms in which information
is delivered. The process occupies considerable resources and
demands a wide variety of skills. GTK has already expended
some 200 person-years digitizing its legacy data. Its databases
have also had to be divided into spatial and aspatial parts.
To date, GTK has digitized all core datasets (surficial and
bedrock geology data, exploration, aggregate resources, peat
resources, etc.) and transferred existing digital data into its
new databases. These contain vast amounts of observation
points, vector/raster maps, and exploration datasets that include
claim reports, drilling sites and report maps. Remarks
Idman, “The present focus is on careful analyses of work flows
to modernize GTK’s mapping processes, designing seamless
map databases for the country, map products at scales of 1:1
million and 1:200,000, as well as finalizing national data models
for Precambrian and Quaternary geology.”
Find the right conceptual
model – and then harmonize!
Finland’s new geological data model
largely follows the NADM (North
American Data Model), which sets
forth guidelines on classification rules
and hierarchies, descriptors and symbols,
and relationships. Since GTK has
been amassing mapping data for more
than a century, it is of little consolation
that it does a good job in providing
web-based services such as maps, index-based
services and archive reports.
Mountains of legacy information still
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DATA MODEL
remain re in conventional formats awaiting editing,
in digitization and harmonization.
Finding ways to make numeric datasets accessible,
ce relevant and easy to use by different audiences
d must occur within the constraints of Europe’s
ro interoperability requirements (INSPIRE)
and an global agreements on normative conceptual
data d models, classification systems and common
geological ge terminology (OneGeology). GTK has
begun b the long march to harmonized databases.
These T must largely comply with the recommendations
d of the INSPIRE directive (GeoSciML).
Three T teams (CGI, NADM and GeoSciML) coordinate
o the harmonization process with international
n developments.
Despite harmonization, the database structure
tu will inevitably be complex. For example,
the th data model for bedrock observations covers
all al sub-processes included in bedrock mapping
such su as basic mapping, exploration for metallic
ores, o natural stone investigations, and detailed
mapping ma for infrastructure projects.
What kind of a map do you want?
GTK has developed its own process software for map production
and publishing. The system includes predefined product
groups, symbol sets, colors and annotations. On-demand
maps will be available online in formats that accommodate
standard web browsers, GIS software and Open Geospatial
Consortium interfaces.
Concludes Idman, “Geological surveys traditionally served
as producers of data. Today, they need to be part of society’s
decision-making processes. This lifts our role from simply
providing decision information to providing the tools for decision
analysis. It’s new territory for all of us.” ●
DATABASES
PRODUCTS
CLIENTS/
STAKEHOLDERS

Kai Nyman, GTK
National aerogeophysical mapping
programme now complete
GTK has completed its programme of low-altitude airborne
geophysical mapping of Finland. Systematic airborne measurement
of the physical properties of the Earth’s crust in
Finland (electrical conductivity, magnetic field variations and
natural background radiation levels) began in 1972.
Airborne geophysical mapping provides valuable subsoil
data useful to user groups such as prospectors, officials
involved in zoning, construction and environmental permitting,
and those seeking to identify groundwater. GTK’s measurement
package performs three types of geophysical measurement.
Magnetic measurement gives information about
bedrock fracture zone belts as well as the magnetic properties
of various types of rock. Variations in electrical conductivity
are detected with an electromagnetic method. Background
radioactivity measurement provides clues of what lies beneath
the ground. Measurement flights were made at 30 meters
above the ground in long single-direction measurement
lines, spaced 200 meters apart.
During the programme, GTK’s flight team measured
around two million line kilometers and logged over 15,000
flight hours. The huge amount of measurement data collected
has been stored in digital form. Where detailed data was
requested, e.g. around gold deposits in Lapland, line spacing
was narrowed.
Geophysicist Maija Kurimo explains, “When low-altitude
aerial mapping began in 1972, we focused on ore-critical
areas. Over the years, however, we discovered new uses such
as environmental and permafrost mapping. Our cooperation
with British Geological Survey (BGS) in 2006−2007 offered
both parties beneficial solutions and increased the pool of
resources to develop and update the equipment. We expect
to keep our emphasis on quality, state-of-the-art approaches
and international cooperation.” ●
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Jari Väätäinen, GTK
Peat, carbon balance,
and methane in a
warming world
Field researchers use a closed chamber method to measure gas
(CH 4 and CO 2 ) exchange.
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Peatlands cover one third of Finland’s
land area, so Finnish researchers have
long studied their potential as energy
sources, as well as their role in affecting
climate change. Since the last glacial
period, 200–450 billion tons of organic
carbon have accumulated in peatlands
in the northern hemisphere. At present,
they constitute more than 30% of the
global store of soil carbon. Their sheer
bulk makes them important environ-
mental buffers.
TEXT: MARKKU MÄKILÄ
Peatlands both absorb and release greenhouse gases. At present,
they are a major sink for carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and a net
contributor of methane (CH 4 ). The conversion of CO 2 to carbon
is a very slow process. The plants at the surface initially
take CO 2 from the air. Much of this CO 2 is simply returned
to the air through plant respiration or when the plant dies.
Although a relatively high proportion of the litter produced
by mire plants is decomposed, a part of it accumulates as peat
due to the wet conditions that restrict the decomposition
processes. Decomposition continues even in anoxic conditions
where a small proportion of the assimilated carbon is
converted to CH 4 , which has a greenhouse effect 23 times that
of CO 2 .

Dry and wet years
In boreal mires, the annual balance of carbon uptake and release
depends strongly on the growing season. Boreal mires
turn into net carbon emitters in dry years when the summer
water table falls below the long-term average level. Thus,
mires may shift from acting as carbon sinks to carbon source
if the frequency of summer droughts increases in the future.
Presumably, the consequent lowering of the water table would
decrease the methane (CH 4 ) fluxes from peat. If the melting
of the world’s largest frozen peat bog area in Siberia is affected
further by global warming and the bog area remains wet,
methane will be released directly to the atmosphere, increasing
the greenhouse effect. However, the predicted climate
warming could also be a benefit rather than a threat for carbon
sinks in northern wetlands because a warm spring and an
early start to the growing season makes them more effective
CO 2 sinks in the short term.
The simulated 30-year CO 2 balances calculated annual
carbon balances for pristine mires in south-eastern Finland
ranged from –100 to +17 gCm 2 a year for a Sphagnum bog
and from +36 to +91 gCm 2 a year for a sedge fen, with corresponding
annual CH 4 effluxes of –7 to –9 gCm 2 and –17
to –19 gCm 2 . Negative values indicate net efflux from the
ecosystem. These results indicate a higher net CO 2 uptake for
fens than bogs. Numerous studies on CH 4 release show clearly
that, on average, minerotrophic fens release more CH 4 than
ombrotrophic bogs. In addition to high methane production,
northern aapa mires also have lower carbon accumulation
rates than more southern raised bogs. The general rule is that
lower-lying areas such as hollows, pools and peatland margins
have higher CH 4 emissions and lower CO 2 uptake than the
adjacent raised areas such as hummocks, ridges and plateaus.
As is obvious from the extent to which peatlands have formed
over past millennia, the annual balances averaged over time
form a long-term positive balance.
Carbon accumulation rates vary
Recent data from GTK senior scientist Markku Mäkilä and
Polish radiocarbon specialist Tomasz Goslar suggest a steep
decline in the apparent rate of carbon accumulation within
the pre-peat of the surface layers. The actual average accumulation
rates for 300-year-old layers amount to 17–36% of those
in the uppermost organic matter and litter layers. The highest
rates of carbon loss occur in the surface layers of aapa sedge
fens. The average carbon accumulation rate in layers younger
than 300 years is 33.8 gCm 2 a year in the aapa mire region,
38.4 gCm 2 a year in the raised bog region, and 61.3 gCm 2 a
year in young coastal mires. The long-term average carbon accumulation
rates for entire peat deposits are 14.6 gCm 2 a year
in the aapa mire region, 19.8 gCm 2 a year in the raised bog
region and 43.0 gCm 2 a year in young coastal mires.
The results indicate that, in order to set in perspective
contemporary measurements of carbon flux between mires
and the atmosphere, it is essential to understand the dynamics
of carbon accumulation in both superficial and deep peat
layers. It may anticipate relatively rapid cycling of a large part
of the biomass − and thus carbon − within the surface layers
of mires due to the intense decomposition that occurs as
part of peat formation. The high carbon accumulation rate
in the surface layers, although necessary for the development
and maintenance of the mire, is temporary. The surface layer
consists of living and dead biomass, which is slowly decomposing
into peat. Rapid carbon accumulation and turnover
of peat carbon occur in young surface layers (

Jari Väätäinen, GTK
GTK’s new directions
Geofoorumi sat down with
GTK Director General
Elias Ekdahl to learn about
current trends on the
national geology scene.
TEXT: MARIE-LOUISE WIKLUND
What are the biggest challenges facing GTK?
At the national level, it is raising our profile – getting people
to understand how the work of the geological survey affects
their lives. In part, we want to reach more people by providing
information online in forms that are useful, easy-to-understand
and well-organized.
At the international level, our goal is to integrate with
networks of international experts. Geologists everywhere
work towards the same end of creating new knowledge for the
benefit of the society.
Could you give a brief overview of what’s happening on
the mapping and applied geophysics front?
Our mapping efforts have been redirected from conventional
quadrangle mapping to focused investigations. The motivations
for detailed mapping can come from the needs of an
engineering project, promising ore samples or other indicators
that justify study of an area.
We have spent the past decade getting our mapping data
into shape. Under the North American Data Model for geologic
data, we are placing our data in central data banks to
allow efficient management and production of maps that are
internationally comparable. Data in standard formats makes
the information easy to access over the Internet.
3D modeling of crustal structures has also gained importance
as they may be associated with ore deposits. This study
also helps us understand and reconstruct bedrock formation
processes. The Earth’s crust in Finland has an average thickness
of about 50−55 km, so much of the work at present is
basic research. However, our seismic sounding programme
(HIRE) is currently studying over a dozen well-known ore areas.
One remarkable aspect of this work is that we can identify
structures that never break the surface, and yet lie just a few
dozen meters below our feet.
Part P of GTK’s mission is to support sustainable development
strategies? Can you give some examples?
I’d start with an example of what we call mineral balance
assessment or resource accounting. We are studying
the land in a 150-km radius around Helsinki to
identify suitable mineral resources for, say, construction
purposes. p p This includes determining
the quality and quantity of
the resource, associated

groundwater bodies, and if the resource lies in an environmentally
protected areas. With this information, planners and
developers can make informed decisions. A value can be to
the mineral resource to help ascertain if it is worth exploiting
and which method applies.
Another example comes from our mineral process laboratory
in Outokumpu, where our researchers are on the front
lines in developing environmentally friendly mining methods.
Even advanced methods, such as bioleaching introduced at the
Talvivaara mine, continue to evolve. At present, bioleaching
takes place in huge heaps on the surface. We envision mines
of the future where metals removal will occur mostly in situ.
Depth is not the issue, the bioleaching occurs underground.
Let’s talk a little bit about the various kinds of user groups
and how GTK helps them.
We are getting new user groups all the time so it’s a bit hard
to say. For example, our airborne geophysical measurement
data has turned out to o
be extremely useful in n
environmental applica-
tions. These techniques s
are now being applied d
elsewhere in Europe e
where these issues have e
become quite acute.
We have a tremen-
dous amount of physi-
cal material archived, ,
including, for example,
diamond drill cores stored at our national drill core depot in
Loppi. This is regularly exploited by the international and domestic
exploration companies.
We are quite flexible in finding ways to cooperate. A client
might be a local government agency, an international mining
company, a road-builder, or a power company. They come to
us and we put together a team of researchers to study the matter
that concerns them.
Finland faced some complicated questions on nuclear
waste disposal. What happened there?
As I said at the beginning, our product is facts. These become
the basis of decisions by others. Perhaps nowhere is this better
illustrated than our studies of the bedrock in the vicinity
of the proposed nuclear waste storage site near Olkiluoto on
the western coast of Finland. A thorough understanding of the
bedrock structures improves the planner’s ability to anticipate
risk. We have been involved in this process for over two decades,
long before the final siting was decided in 2000. Now we
are looking at faults, fractures, bedrock structures and groundwater
percolation where the nuclear waste will be stored.
Finland is probably the most advanced anywhere in the
world in this process of nuclear waste siting and long-term
storage. We have many inquiries about this.
Could you give a brief overview of what is happening
with cooperation in the EU and developing countries?
GTK has a good reputation as a partner in international projects.
Cooperation in Europe is quite tight. The EU INSPIRE
project, for example, seeks to make spatial data available
throughout Europe. GTK has actively participated in a number
of EU projects focusing mainly on environmental issues,
groundwater, gr
climate
change ch and the Baltic
Sea. Se Russia has also
been be a good partner in
recent re years, providing
unique u technical assistance
si and research
insights. in
At the global level,
the th UK is leading the
charge ch with the One-
Geology G initiative to
get global geological information online. We actively participate
in this project.
GTK has been especially active in Africa, but we are also
looking to projects in Central America and Southeast Asia.
One new area has been institution-building. A great danger
for countries blessed with great mineral wealth is that the elite
in the country will profit at the expense of everybody else.
We have worked closely with Finland’s foreign ministry in
making a policy framework for development assistance in Africa,
Eastern Europe and Asia.
Finally, I would note that we have extensive exchange programmes,
both short and long term. One of our main recruiting
goals is to add more international experts onto our staff.
●
We see our job not so much as providing answers
as providing the facts facts needed to make sure
the right questions get asked.
�������� GeoFoorumi 13

The ICI – Sharing the wealth
Successful social development based on mineral wealth requires that wealth is
transformed efficiently into other forms of capital, particularly human and physical
capital. “The key”, explains GTK deputy director Pentti Noras, “is finding practical
measures that improve quality of governance. It is the most important factor in
translating minerals into economic growth and poverty reduction”.
TEXT: GREG MOORE
Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index Rankings of 2007. Scale: dark green (least corrupt), dark mauve (most corrupt). In
green countries, mineral resource allocation is handled institutionally. As redness increases, investors and decision-makers are more likely to decide
resource allocation directly. Transparency International map redrawing by Lencer, Wikimedia Commons, 2007.
Extractive industries globally represent a $5 trillion-a-year
business. Understandably, countries find themselves dealing
with both the economic benefits and corrosive effects of their
mineral endowments. Many of the world’s advanced economies,
including Finland, Sweden and Norway, were built on
metal or hydrocarbon wealth.
Considerable international effort lately has gone to creating
initiatives for voluntarily improvements in governance
and producer codes of conduct, yet the tragedies of poverty,
corruption and resource wars continue. Serious international
efforts such as the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
(EITI) have yet to lead to binding regulatory regimes at the
national level, and no-one can say how, e.g., China’s massive
mineral needs will shape its business culture.
Pentti Noras may have an answer. “Based on the new international
cooperation policy of the Finnish Ministry for
Foreign Affairs, our goal is to develop a Minerals Sector Institutional
Cooperation Instrument (ICI) that recognizes what it
actually takes to bring good governance to minerals management.
Development programmes traditionally focus on technical
assistance rather than the much-slower evolving aspect
14 GeoFoorumi ��������
of institution-building. Institutions matter, however. For example,
the collegial decision-making tradition of Finland and
Sweden dates back to 1766.”
“Most mineral-rich countries have robust resource laws.
The problem is that decision-makers prefer to negotiate directly
with investors. This provides a motivation for circumventing
the law and engaging in self-dealing. The last thing
decision-makers in such countries want to talk about is good
governance! In contrast, geologists around the world are professionals
who rarely stray from their fiduciary obligations.
Thus, geological surveys and other unitary organizations like
national health institutes and central banks are perfect candidates
as mentoring organizations in developing nation.”
“The process of matching up organizations job-for-job is
sometimes referred to as twinning. This type of work would
be different from traditional contracting work in developing
countries, where organized technical training is just a small
part of the work. Under the ICI model, our people would spend
time in the partner country and their people would spend time
in Finland. We would match learning about functions. The ICI
approach requires long-term commitment from both sides.” ●

Examples of GTK International Cooperation
Scientific Cooperation and International Associations
● HIRE (High Resolution Reflection Seismics in Ore Exploration)
The project involves reflection seismic surveys of potential exploration
and mining areas in Finland to produce useful structural
and lithological information. The seismic contractor is the Russian
company, Spetsgeofizika.
● NORDSIM, Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet (Swedish Museum of
Natural History) A Nordic facility based around a Cameca 1270 ion
microprobe mass spectrometer that allows direct in situ measurement
of isotopic and elemental composition in selected micrometer-sized
sample areas.
European Union R&D Programmes
● ARMONIA (Applied Multi-Risk Mapping of Natural Hazards for
Impact Assessment) The project seeks to provide the EU with
harmonized methodologies for producing integrated risk maps to
achieve more effective spatial planning procedures in areas prone
to natural disasters in Europe.
● Baltic Sea management – Nature conservation and sustainable
development in the marine ecosystem through marine spatial
planning (BALANCE) The project aimed to develop transnational
marine spatial planning tools and an agreed template for marine
management planning and decision-making. It was based on four
transnational pilot areas demonstrating the economical and environmental
value of habitat maps and marine spatial planning (exemplified
through two zoning plans). The tools and zoning plans
integrated biological, geological and oceanographic data with local
knowledge from stakeholders.
Data from recent airborne geophysical
surveys carried out by GTK under
technical assistance programmes
are helping guide Tanzanian
geologists to sites of potential
mineralogical interest.
● BIOSHALE (Search for a sustainable way of exploiting black
shale ores using bio-technologies) The project examines biotechnologies
that provide safe, clean beneficiation of black shale ores.
● Joint Airborne-geoscience Capability (JAC) JAC is a cooperative
system between two equal partners, Geological Survey of Finland
(GTK) and British Geological Survey (BGS), mainly to provide
airborne survey capability to both parties, and third party commissioned
surveys throughout Europe, focussed on environmental issues.
The primary purpose of the JAC is to provide both partners
with a cost effective, state-of-the-art capability for acquiring highresolution
airborne geophysical data for their respective national
strategic science programmes.
Developing Country Projects
● Geological Mapping (LOT 2) in Mozambique Mapping of a
168,000 km2 area in northern Mozambique. The project generated
geological maps on the 1:250,000 and 1:50,000 scales and mineral
resources maps on the 1:250,000 scale.
● Geochemical and Geophysical Surveys in Tanzania Geological
mapping (1:100,000), geochemical and geophysical surveys on five
quarter-degree sheets, production of compilation maps from two
blocs (1:500,000) for the west and southwestern part of Tanzania.
Cross-Border Cooperation
● Narva Groundwater Management Plan (Narva GMP) The project
supports sustainable management of groundwater resources on the
Russian-Estonian border by building Russian environmental administration
and specialist capacity, and promoting public participation.
�������� GeoFoorumi 15
Seppo Lahti, GTK

Antti Ojala, GTK
Finland’s International Polar Year (IPY) studies includes new methods for Holocene
glaciology and studies of permafrost soils and bedrock. GTK will host an IPY confe-
rence at its Espoo headquarters this November.
TEXT: GREG MOORE
IPY studies highlight
climate issues
Division manager Petri Lintinen strings line for EM mapping of the discontinuous mountian permafrost of the Halti fells. Finland’s geocryologists
have adapted seismic, EM and ground radar techniques developed at Halti for use in other permafrost areas.
�� GeoFoorumi ��������

IPY history
The International Polar Year (IPY) is testimony to international
geoscientific cooperation and an indicator of prevailing
scientific concerns. The first IPY was the idea of German explorer
Georg von Neumayer and the Austro-Hungarian naval
officer Karl Weyprecht. The two spent seven years organizing
the first IPY, which ran 1882–83. The twelve participant countries
(including Finland) shared costs on getting information
about the last unexplored frontier on earth (meteorology,
geomagnetism, aurora borealis, currents, tides, ice structures
and motion, atmospheric electricity, etc.).
IPY2, held in 1932–33, emphasized advances in meteorological
measurement. The number of member countries grew
to 44. Some 70 countries in participated in an International
Geophysical World event of 1957–58, which commemorated
the IPY and introduced advances in electronics, rockets and
seismography.
IPY3 (2007–08), now in progress, focuses on climate
change effects in the polar regions. Finland’s contributions to
IPY3 are coordinated by the Finnish National Board on Scientific
Polar Research.
Once there was a glacier…
Senoir specialist Antti Ojala, head of Holocene climate change
studies at GTK, explains where to go in Finland to find a recent
glacier site: “You look for the coldest place, which is probably
also the highest place”. That would be the Halti Fell (elevation
1,328 meters above sea level), on the northwestern tip of Finland’s
border with Norway. After the retreat of the continental
ice sheet ten thousand years ago, a glacier remained in the
Kovdajohtka valley below the Halti peak for 1,500 years. A series
of well-defined moraine arches in the Kovdajohtka valley
are indicators of these post-glacial advances. The glacial disappearance
was driven by rising summer temperatures, only
to be interrupted by a period of cooling about 6,000 years ago.
During this time, the glacier grew for about 500 years.
Observes Ojala, “Glaciers are like libraries, carrying a record
of climate history. Even when they are gone, we still learn
a lot by examining the remains. You might say I’m a glacial
pathologist”. Ojala’s innovation was to correlate the mineralmagnetic
trends in undisturbed clay sediment layers in the
runoff lake below the glacier with the recession of moraines
in the glacier valley. In other sites, the varved sediment curves
provide correlation with climate history of the Holocene. The
climate record was also compared against the pollen record
for July temperatures and a reconstruction of precipitation
patterns back to the last ice age.
Permafrost measurement in Komi
Finland’s Halti region, because of the cold, is also one of the
few places in Finland with a permafrost layer. Using electrical
resistivity soundings and airborne electromagnetic (EM)
data, GTK established an effective approach to permafrost
mapping in Lapland fells over the past decade. These techniques
are now being adapted to the permafrost areas near
Vorkuta, part of the Komi Republic in Russia.
GTK’s Russian partner in the project is Mireko, the Mining
Geological Joint-Stock Company of Komi. Mireko started
the monitoring of permafrost temperatures in 1970’s. The
data indicate warming of the permafrost. In addition to the
Temperature of permafrost at a depth of 14 meters in the Vorkuta
study area in Komi, Russia. Data courtesy of Dr. Oberman and the
Mireko monitoring programme.
Electrical resistivity section over a temperature monitoring borehole. Vorkuta study area in Northern Komi, Russia.
�������� GeoFoorumi 17
Heikki Vanhala, GTK

Heikki Vanhala, GTK
Antti Ojala, GTK
The annually laminated lake sediments of Lake Nautajärvi provide a
“master” regional record variation of geomagnetic field intensity and
direction. Palaeomagnetic secular variation and palaeointensity master
curves can give a good indication of behavior of the geomagnetic
field as far back as 12,000 years.
�� GeoFoorumi ��������
undesired environmental impacts of permafrost thawing such
as carbon dioxide and methane release, roads, railways, oil
pipelines and buildings in permafrost areas are at risk of sinking
into the mud. Finnish researchers found the Komi permafrost
conditions quite different from that of the Lapland fells.
Notes project leader Heikki Vanhala, “The southern part of
the Komi permafrost is thin and largely discontinuous, while
the northern part is continuous reaching a thickness of more
than 300 meters near the Urals.
“We were used to complicated structures and much higher
resistivity values in the Ridnitsohkka permafrost in Finland
than what we encountered in Vorkuta.” The unfamiliar situation
gave the Finnish researchers an added challenge of extending
the use of EM techniques. Work carried out in 2007
established that the modified EM and electrical techniques
provide accurate and reliable data about the permafrost layer
(e.g. taliks, thickness and conditions in the active and frozen
layers). The suitability of the area for airborne EM mapping
of permafrost is now under study.
Digital image analysis records a seasonal-scale laminae thickness of
the clastic-organic varves from Lake Nautajärvi, Central Finland.
Polar Geoscience
Conference in November
As part of its contribution to IPY3, GTK is hosting a conference
on Finnish geoscience studies in polar areas on 12–13
November 2008. Topics include atmospheric science, glaciology,
hydrology, marine research, geophysics, navigation, Arctic
geology and geography. The closing date for abstract submissions
is October 15. For more information, go to:
http://projects.gtk.fi/polaarikokous/ENGLISH/. ●

Climate change adaptation
at the local level
The winter storm Gudrun caused flooding of the Helsinki market square in January 2005.
The risks of climate change are usually portrayed in terms that have little
significance to local decision-makers. Recent approaches co-financed by the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) have supported countries in the
Baltic Sea Region (BSR) to adopt climate change adaptation strategies.
TEXT: GREG MOORE
Adaptation, mitigation, vulnerability and risk
Research scientist Philipp Schmidt-Thomé and a network of
specialists throughout the Baltic Sea Region have developed a
framework supporting local and regional decisions to implement
strategies for adjustment. “My first advice is don’t panic.
Decision makers need to promote two sorts of complementary
actions, mitigation and, most importantly, adaptation. We
need to learn to adapt to a changing climate.”
Mitigation involves technical or behavioral modifications
that reduce CO 2 emissions. Adaptation is the adjustment to a
changing state or condition. Vulnerability comprises the potential
losses, and is determined by many factors, including
the geographic location (coastline or fault zone) and inadequate
institutional response. Together, these factors contribute
to the overall risk to economic, social and environmental
conditions.
Under the lead of GTK, the project “Developing policies
and adaptation strategies to climate change in the Baltic Sea
Region” (ASTRA) ran from June 2005 to December 2007. Participant
countries were Germany, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania,
Estonia and Finland. Several study findings are worth noting.
● A “one-size-fits-all” approach to rising sea level is inappropriate.
Dike construction in anticipation of a 100-year
flood is warranted in Denmark, Germany and Latvia, while
the costs of such measures are unjustified for Estonia, Finland
and Lithuania.
● The winter storm Gudrun in 2005 revealed the hidden
economic benefit of coastal construction regulations.
● Coastal erosion and impacts on estuary conditions will likely
require an integrated approach to coastal and flood protection.
● Traditional groundwater sites in low-lying areas are at
risk.
● Changes in the water-level regime of river basins in threaten
loss as part of fish habitat and damage to local tourism.
�������� GeoFoorumi 19
Philipp Schmidt-Thomé, GTK

Seismic sounding
of ore belts continues
TEXT: GREG MOORE
High resolution reflection seismic surveys in the Outokumpu
Cu-Co-Zn ore belt revealed that strong reflectors are generated
by the rock type family typically hosting ore deposits in the
area. The geology of the uppermost reflector was confirmed by
drilling a deep hole down to 2.5 km.
GTK is currently engaged in a high-resolution seismic reflection
imaging (HIRE) project to develop mineral exploration
technology in Finland. HIRE applies high-resolution 2D and
3D modeling approaches. The two-year project examines 15
geological complexes with ore potential as well as already
known economic deposits. Further, the structures of bedrock
on the Olkiluoto island and surroundings on Finland’s western
coast, the planned site of the national nuclear waste repository,
will be surveyed.
The HIRE surveys launched in September 2007 with
soundings of the old massive sulfide zinc mining area in Vihanti,
western Finland. From there, the project moved on to
the massive sulfide Zn-Cu deposits in the Pyhäsalmi mining
area in central Finland, and the Kevitsa Ni-Cu-PGE mafic intrusion
in northern Finland. In 2008, field work has already
been finished at the Suurikuusikko gold deposit and in the Fe-
�� GeoFoorumi ��������
Cu prospects in Kolari, both in
northern Finland. Presently,
measurement is underway
in the Kemi Cr mining area.
Measurements have proceeded
smoothly and the data is of
good technical quality.
HIRE is the successor to
the FIRE project completed
in 2005. FIRE involved a national
seismic mapping down
to depths of about 80 km that
provided an unprecedented look at crustal structures underlying
Finland.
The massive exercise in applying seismic soundings is
the brainchild of the previous FIRE project, in which critical
testing of the method was successfully done in ore provinces,
such as the classical Outokumpu Cu-Co-Zn ore belt and the
Suhanko mafic intrusion with PGE deposits. GTK Research
professor Ilmo Kukkonen notes:
“HIRE is one of the most interesting projects at GTK in
recent years. From the experience gained in the FIRE project,
it became obvious that reflection seismics can be a very powerful
tool in mineral exploration. We are happy to cooperate
in HIRE with a good number of mining and exploration
companies, and at the end of the project we will be able to
provide a comprehensive data set of high resolution seismic
reflection data on the geologically and economically most important
deposits in Finland.”
“The HIRE survey in Olkiluoto nuclear waste site will
naturally not focus on any ore potential, but the large scale
structures of the disposal formation. This will provide a detailed
view of the bedrock structures in the uppermost 10 km
not obtainable otherwise.”
Nearly half of HIRE’s funding comes out of a joint Russia-
Finland project for settlement of Soviet-era debt. Measurement
services in Finland are provided by the Russian state
enterprise Vniigeofizika. Other participants are the Russian
Machinexport, GTK, and international mining companies
operating in Finland.
The final products of HIRE are detailed mappings and 3D
models of critical ore complexes. ●

New isotope lab offers
broad research possibilities
Lab chieftains Hugh O’Brien and Yann Lahaye encourage colleagues to come up with interesting problems and research themes to take
advantage of the Finland Isotope Geosciences Laboratory capabilities.
The Finland Isotope Geosciences Laboratory (FIGL), a joint
collaboration of Helsinki, Oulu and Turku Universities, Åbo
Akademi, Helsinki University of Technology and GTK, is now
available for analysis of the isotopic composition of nearly
the entire periodic table of elements in all types of materials.
Accurate determination of isotope ratios is useful in applications
such as age-dating, fundamental research on earth’s
evolution, radioactive waste monitoring, and environmental
contaminant fingerprinting. The lab features a laser ablation
multiple-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer
(LA-MC-ICPMS) that provides high precision isotopic
measurements of elements in samples introduced as solutions
using the Nu Instruments desolvating nebulizer or as
solids using the New Wave 193 nm deep UV solid-state laser.
Mass spectroscopy is long-standing analytical technique
that measures the mass-to-charge ratio of charged particles.
The Nu instruments High Resolution mass spectrometer installed
at FIGL consists of an argon plasma source running at
8,000 º C – a temperature higher than the first ionization potential
of most elements, an energy filter that brings all transmitted
ions to the same energy level, a magnet that separates
the ions based on their mass, and an analyzer equipped with
12 Faraday detectors (for larger ion beams) and 3 ion counters
(for tiny ion beams). Measuring ion beams on multiple collectors
means near elimination of plasma instability-induced
uncertainties and results in precise and accurate isotope ratio
measurements.
Other major advantages of the system include its speed
and extremely low detection limits. For example this technique
has been used to study: early earth core formation
tracing 182 Hf- 182 W anomalies; extinct radionuclides as chronometers
for terrestrial, lunar, and Martian samples to time
metal segregation and silicate differentiation; paleo-environmental
change using redox-sensitive stable isotopic systems
within sediments; mantle-crust interactions and ore forming
systems through Nd, Sr, Hf, Pb and Os isotopic analyses; the
evolution of the earth’s atmosphere by means of Mg and Ca
isotope variability in carbonates and barite; migration of Fe,
Cu, Zn, Cr, Ni, Mo, Hg in mapping of anthropogenic sources;
sediment loading in large river systems by monitoring 30Si
variability; Pb bioavailability; radionuclide and airborne pollutant
behavior; Sr, Pb isotope variability in groundwater to
monitor its sources and quality; and human blood Fe isotope
variability. ●
�������� GeoFoorumi ��
Jari Väätäinen, GTK

Photo: GTK
NEW PUBLICATIONS
Understanding tectonic evolution helps
determine construction suitability of bedrock
The tectonic structures formed during the Svecofennian
orogeny determine the tectonic framework for orienting post-
Svecofennian deformations. Deformation events are studied
using field data and analyses of key structures on outcrops on
ductile events, shear and fault zones and jointing. The main goal
of the seven papers in the volume was to produce geological
baseline information for different applications to meet the various
demands of society.
Pajunen, Matti (ed.) 2008. Tectonic evolution of the Svecofennian crust in
southern Finland – a basis for characterizing bedrock technical properties.
Geological Survey of Finland, Special Paper 47. An electronic version is available
at http://arkisto.gtk.fi/sp/sp47.pdf.
Pan-European geochemical atlas supports
environmental protection
Baltic seabed conditions in the eastern Gulf of Finland highlight
ecosystem frailty
GTK recently issued the results of the joint Finnish-Russian project “Sediment geochemistry
and natural and anthropogenic hazards in the marine environment of the Gulf of Finland”
(SAMAGOL). The research sought to clarify the seabed geology of the eastern Gulf of Finland
and the impacts of human activity on seabed conditions. GTK implemented the project
in cooperation with the VSEGEI Research Institute of St. Petersburg in 2004–2006.
Vallius, Henry (ed.) 2007. Holocene sedimentary environment and sediment geochemistry of the eastern Gulf of
Finland, Baltic Sea. Geological Survey of Finland, Special Paper 45 is available for €20 (incl. 8% VAT).
An electronic version is available online at http://arkisto.gtk.fi/sp/sp45.pdf.
Sediment sample from the seabed of the eastern Gulf of Finland.
Geochemical atlas of Barents region
The results of the extensive Russia-Finnish mapping project,
Ecogeochemical Mapping of Eastern Barents Region –
Barents Ecogeochemistry (1999–2004), are now compiled in
atlas-form with over 200 maps. One aim of the project was
assessment of anthropogenic impact in relation to baseline
concentrations of heavy metals and other key elements in
areas that area among the most pristine in Europe but also
containing major industrial polluters.
Salminen, R.; Chekushin, V.; Tenhola, M. et al. 2004. Geochemical Atlas
of the Eastern Barents Region. Journal of Geochemical Exploration. 83:
1−3. Elsevier, ISSN 0375-6742.
Results of the extensive FOREGS Geochemical Baseline Mapping Program
are now assembled in two volumes. Geochemical Atlas of Europe, Part 1
includes some 360 maps. The work is the first to provide a comprehensive
look at surface water quality and elemental concentrations in mineral and
organic soils across Europe. Geochemical Atlas of Europe, Part 2 issued in
2006 provides interpretations of geochemical maps, additional tables, figures,
maps, and related publications, is also out now.
The Atlas is available online and in print. The electronic version includes special features such
as a photo archive of images from various sampling sites (http://www.gtk.fi/publ/foregsatlas/).
Salminen, R. (ed.), Batista M.J., Bidovec M., Demetriades A. et al. 2005. Geochemical Atlas of
Europe, Part 1, Background Information, Methodology and Maps. Geological Survey of Finland,
Espoo. 526 pages (incl. 360 maps). ISBN: 951-690-921-3 (print) & 951-690-913-2 (electronic).
Price �63.00 (incl. 8% VAT).
De Vos W. and Tarvainen T. (eds.), Salminen R., Reeder S., De Vivo B., et al. 2006. Geochemical Atlas of Europe. Part 2 – Interpretation of Geochemical Maps,
Additional Tables, Figures, Maps, and Related Publications. 690 s. ISBN: 951-690-956-6 (print) & 951-690-960-4 (electronic). Price �63.00 (incl. 8% VAT).
Printed copies of the atlas are available at any GTK office or by online order (see below).
The GTK books, publications and maps are available at any GTK office or by online order from http://en.gtk.fi/Geoinfo/
Publications/Publicationsales.html.
�� GeoFoorumi ��������

IN BRIEF
World magnetic anomaly map now available
The Commission for the Geological Map of the World (CGMW), with the help of UNESCO
funding, recently released its first edition of the World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map
(WDMAM). The map was put together by five international working groups and assembled
for final printing at GTK’s headquarters in Espoo.
Highlights of the WDMAM project are posted at http://projects.gtk.fi/WDMAM/. Numeric data and map image
files may be downloaded from http://ftp.gtk.fi/WDMAM2007/. The price is �8 (includes 22% VAT). International
distribution of the map is arranged from the GCMW office in Paris www.ccgm.org.
Finland gets its first World Natural Heritage Site
The Kvarken Archipelago, which features spectacular De Geer moraines formed by the
retreating continental ice sheet at the end of the last ice age, has been deemed the world’s
most representative site of uplift processes in flat and shallow moraine archipelagos. It is
Finland’s first World Natural Heritage Site to be included UNESCO’s list of protected sites.
The Kvarken Archipelago complements Sweden’s High Coast World Heritage Site.
The Kvarken Archipelago is the most representative site in the world for the study of land uplift in
moraine archipelagos. Photo: Seppo Lammi
Fennoscandian ore deposit data now available online
For the first time, a comprehensive numeric database on metallic mines, deposits and
significant occurrences in Fennoscandia has been compiled in a joint project of the geological
surveys of Finland, Norway, Russia and Sweden. The database contains information
on over 900 mines, deposits and significant occurrences across the region (292 in
Finland, 154 in Norway, 237 in Russia, and 259 in Sweden). Access the database from
http://en.gtk.fi/ExplorationFinland/fodd/.
GTK online
Users can access a large body
of GTK’s research materials
and databases online. The data
can be manipulated to suit user
needs with a range of geological
information system (GIS)
software. Our website also provides
a complete list of publications.
Popular online exploration
services include Active Map
Explorer, as well as a variety
of mineral databases and other
useful and interesting information
for extractive industries.
Geology as basis for
sustainable growth
and welfare
GTK’s mission is to produce
and disseminate geological information
for use in promoting
the systematic and sustainable
use of the national geological
endowment. We study and map
the Earth’s crust, perform inventory
of mineral and ore resources,
provide national geological
information services, perform
contract services for external
clients and participate actively
in international projects. It is
our vision that geology provides
a basis for sustainable growth,
prosperity and well-being.
Exploration opportunities:
explor@gtk.fi
Geodata: info@gtk.fi
Services: services@gtk.fi
www.gtk.fi
�������� GeoFoorumi ��

GeoFoorumi ��� ����
In 2007, GTK completed
a 35-year programme
of low-altitude aerogeophysical
mapping
of the entire country.
Kai Nyman, GTK