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Glacial dispersal of mercury from bedrock mineralization along Pinchi Fault, north central British Columbia

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Abstract

Mineralized occurrences of Hg in bedrock are abundant along Pinchi Fault, in north central British Columbia, two of which have been mined in the early to mid 20th century. Distribution patterns of mercury concentrations measured in the clay sized fraction (<2 μm) of till reveal anomalous levels on and down-ice from the fault Mercury in the till is interpreted to be of detrital origin. In other words, during glaciation, glacier ice eroded bedrock and older sediments enriched in mercury and transported them in a down-ice direction, finally depositing the sediment load at a distance from the source. Consequently, the area with anomalous mercury concentrations in the till is several orders of magnitude larger than the area of mercury mineralization in bedrock.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geological Survey of Canada, 601 Booth St., K1A OE8, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

    A. Plouffe

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  1. A. Plouffe
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Geological Survey of Canada Contibution No. 25494

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Plouffe, A. Glacial dispersal of mercury from bedrock mineralization along Pinchi Fault, north central British Columbia. Water Air Soil Pollut 80, 1109–1112 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01189772

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01189772

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