Mining Matters 2010 – Introduction to Manitoba Geology

Home , Sherridon, Southern Manitoba, Volcanism of Canada, Wabowden

www.manitoba.ca/minerals Introduction to Manitoba Geology A journey through geological time

Presentation to: Mining Matters 2010 By: Jim Bamburak IdIndust tilMirial Mineral s Geologist

Prepared by: Ric Syme Director Manitoba Geological Survey www.manitoba.ca/minerals Introduction to Manitoba Geology A journey through geological time www.manitoba.ca/minerals 50 staff; 26 geologists Manitoba Geological Survey

Visit us on the Internet (www.manitoba.ca/minerals) www.manitoba.ca/minerals 50 staff; 26 geologists Manitoba Geological Survey 1. Regional and detailed geological investigations to support mineral andhd hy drocar bon exp lora tion in the province 2. Geoscience information for decision-making (e.g., land use ppg,planning, protected areas) Mapping in northern Manitoba 3. Outreach and education

Mapping in southern Manitoba Working with First Nations www.manitoba.ca/minerals Geology of North America US Geological Survey

PRECAMBRIAN www.manitoba.ca/minerals The third dimension

Phanerozoic Usually, when we go down through the Earth's rock layers we are going back in time.

Precambrian www.manitoba.ca/minerals Manitoba geology

ChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchill S#

PPrreeccaammbbrriiaann SShhiieelldd SedimentarySedimentary basins basins

LynnLynn LakeLakeLynn Lake S# S# LLeeaaff RaRappiidsds

BS# ThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompson Precambrian Shield SherridonSherridonSherridonSherridon S# SnowSnow LakeLakeSnow Lake • Crystalline rocks >1.5 billion years old S# S# S# Waabobowden BFlinFlin FlonFlonFlin Flon • host of Manitoba’s metallic mineral deposits Phanerozoic • Sedimentary basins <500 million years old

SedimentarySedimentary basinsbasins BissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissett • host of Manitoba’s petroleum S# resources, aggregate and industrial minerals WinnipegWinnipegWinnipegWinnipeg S# www.manitoba.ca/minerals Mineral production in Manitoba

ChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchillChurchill S# Nickel/Cobalt (Vale, Crowflight) Thompson Mine PPrreeccaammbbrriiaann SShhiieelldd SedimentarySedimentary basins basins Birchtree Mine LynnLynn LakeLakeLynn Lake S# Bucko Mine S# LLeeaaff RaRappiidsds 24% ofCf Canadi an Ni pro duc tion BS# ThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompsonThompson 16% of Canadian Co production SherridonSherridonSherridonSherridon S# SnowSnow LakeLakeSnow Lake S# S# S# Waabobowden Copper/Zinc ((yHudBay Minerals Inc.) BFlinFlin FlonFlonFlin Flon Callinan and 777 mines Trout Lake Mine 10% of Canadian Cu production Mine closed 11% of Canadian Zn production

Tantalum/Cesium (Tantalum Mining Corp. of SedimentarySedimentary basinsbasins BissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissettBissett Canada Ltd.) S# Tanco Mine

Gold (San Gold Corporation) WinnipegWinnipegWinnipegWinnipeg S# Rice Lake Gold Mine www.manitoba.ca/minerals Manitoba

Lynn Lake

Leaf Rapids Thom pson througggh geolog ical time

Fl in Flo n

Sn o w L ake

L a k e

W i Formation of the Earth Present day n n ip e Lak e g Win nipegos is

Bissett

A s Lake s in Manitoba i b o i n e r e iv R Winnipeg r Rive d e R 1 2 3 4 Hadean ArcheanPRECAMBRIANProterozoic Phanerozoic 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 All of human history • 4,600,000,000 years of earth history • 4 periods or Eons • Manitoba geology records significant portions of this extensive history • Each Eon has a distinct mineral endowment Ma = million yy(gears (ago) 1000 million years = 1 billion years (e.g., 1500 Ma = 1.5 billion) Zirconswww.manitoba.ca/mineralsare tiny mineral Hadean Eon: crystals that occur in many rocks. Zircon contains trace Formation of Earth amounts of uranium and 4600 – 3800 Ma thorium and can be dated by a variety of analytical techniques. Precambrian Time

Assean Lake • The Earth formed as a solid planet • Earth’s interior organized into

Greywacke layers • Early crust formed but was largely recycled or destroyed bidtidby rapid convection and 3.9 billion year old zircons numerous meteorite impacts www.manitoba.ca/minerals Archean Eon: Formation of Crust 3800 – 2500 Ma

Precambrian Time

•Eaatspeaetcustrth's permanent crust was formed • First large continents formed • Earliest life forms began • The oceans and atmosphere resulted from volcanic out-gassing www.manitoba.ca/minerals Archean Eon in Manitoba • Very early crust formed (3500 Ma). Locally contains indications of very old rocks (3900 Ma) Precambrian Time

Seal River

Remnants of Granite gneiss early crust

3.5 billion years old www.manitoba.ca/mineralsArchean pillow lava, Cross Lake Modern pillow lava on the sea floor Archean Eon in Manitoba

Formation of pillow lava

• Widespread volcanism (3000-2720 Ma) “Greenstone belts ” – volcanic rocks Volcanic eruption under the sea Volcanic breccia, Knee Lake

NOAA, courtesy of Richard Pyle at Lava Video Productions www.manitoba.ca/minerals Bissett Archean Eon in Manitoba

? ? ? ? • Laurentian orogeny ? (mountain building) (2730- ? ? 2700 Ma) ? • Granite plutonism and ? assembly of a large Archean ? Au continent (Superior “craton”) ? Gold and quartz vein in metamorphic rock San Antonio Mine , Bissett •Manyygg large gold de posits On loan from the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada, M38683 formed (e.g., Rice Lake © AMNH / Craig Chesek mine in Bissett) www.manitoba.ca/mineralsEdiacaran Fauna (600-545 Ma) Proterozoic Eon: Modern Earth Processes Begin 2500 – 542 Ma

National Museum of Natural History

Subduction and island arc • Modern plate tectonics started volcanoes • Large mountain chains formed as the Archean continents collided

http://slohs.slcusd.org/pages/teachers/rhamley/B • Photosynthesisiology/Continental%20Drift/Tectonics.html lead to NOAA oxygenated atmosphere around 2200 Ma Mid-ocean rifting • Soft-bodied life forms proliferated (no skeletons) www.manitoba.ca/minerals Proterozoic Eon in Manitoba • 2500-2000 Ma opening of a large ocean basin • subsequent (1885 Ma) with basin-margin “shoreline” sediments laid Thompson dAhbtdownemplacement on Archean of b asemen nickel depositst rocks

Rifting

Rifting ? ? ? ? Ni? Proterozoic >500 million-year time gap ? quartzite Ni? ?

? Archean gneiss

http://slohs.slcusd.org/pages/teachers/rhamley/Biology /Continental%20Drift/Tectonics.html www.manitoba.ca/mineralsFlin Flon Proterozoic Eon in Manitoba

http://slohs.slcusd.org/pages/teac hers/rhamley/Biology/Continental %20Drift/Tectonics.html

n so ud -H ns en a og LynnTr LakeLakeLynn Or Hudson Bay ?Basin Leaf RapidsLeafRapidsRapids ? dary Zo un? ne Cu-Zn o B Thompson Nickel ?r o • 1910-1830 Ma active volcanism and Belt i r ?e p Snowu LakeLakeSnow deposition of copper-zinc deposits (e.g., Flin ?S CuFlin-Zn FlonFlinFlonFlonFlin Flon ? Flon, Lynn Lake) ? L Superior a k e

W Province in n ? i p e g The greenstone belts in the Trans-Hudson Lak e Winnipegosis ? animation copyrighted by McGrawOrogen Hill as of Manitoba and Saskatchewan have Western part of PLUMMER Canada MCGEARY AND ? Sedimentary produced more than $60 billion in metals (at A s Lake CARLSON 11th s in Manitoba i Basin b o i edition n e r 2010 pr ices ) -making them some of th e mos t e subduction iv R

River d e R productive greenstone belts in Canada. www.manitoba.ca/minerals Proterozoic Eon: copper-zinc-ggpold deposits

http://slohs.slcusd.org/pages/teac hers/rhamley/Biology/Continental %20Drift/Tectonics. html

Polished slab of basalt flow top breccia, Flin Flon

Submarine eruption

NOAA

Underwater eruptions produce distinctive volcanic deposits that can be recognized in ancient greenstone belts www.manitoba.ca/minerals Proterozoic Eon: copper-zinc-ggpold deposits

http://slohs.slcusd.org/pages/teac hers/rhamley/Biology/Continental %20Drift/Tectonics. html

Dr. Robert Ballard

Massive sulphide mound

http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/mindep/synth_dep/vms/index_e.php www.manitoba.ca/minerals Proterozoic Eon: copper-zinc-ggpold deposits

Zinc ore , Snow Lake

Copper ore, Flin Flon

Massive sulphide mound

http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/mindep/synth_dep/vms/index_e.php www.manitoba.ca/minerals Proterozoic Eon in Manitoba • 1830-1780 Ma closing of ocean basin and formation of the Trans-Hudson Orogen (mountain belt)

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

? http://mafecarr.blogspot.com/

http://slohs.slcusd.org/pages/teachers/rhamley/Biology/Continental%20Drift/Tectonics.html www.manitoba.ca/minerals Comparison of the Trans-Hudson Orogen with a modern orogen (mountain belt) Manitoba Trans-Hudson Orogen (1830 – 1800 Ma)

Superior Craton

Alpine-Himalayan Orogen (< 50 Ma) www.manitoba.ca/minerals Phanerozoic Eon Phanerozoic Eon:

Lynn Lake

Leaf Rapids Thom pson EraEra Modern Earth and Life Forms Evolve Mesozoic Fl in Flo n Sn o w LPaleozoic ake Era Era

L a k e

in n ip e Cenozoic Cenozoic Lak e g Win nipegos is

542542542 Bissett 251251251 6666066 0

A s Lake s in Manitoba i b o i n e r e iv Million of years ago R Winnipeg er Precambrian Time Riv d e R

• Life forms with skeletons proliferate • 8 major life extinction events • Continents separated and then collide d agaitfin to form more mountain chains • North America and Manitoba as we know it were formed. www.manitoba.ca/minerals The Phanerozoic

MiMesozoic

Precambrian Paleozoic Phanerozoic Eon

Mesozoic

Paleozoic oic Eraoic Era Paleozoic Era Era zzzz CenoCeno 542542542 251251251 6666066 0 Million of years ago www.manitoba.ca/mineralsCrushed rock Tyndall Stone Paleozoic Era in Manitoba 542 – 251 Ma

Gillis quarry, Garson

• Preceded by a long period during which the Precambrian was eroded flat • Manitoba was located near to the equator • Shallow inland seas flooded North America • Va lua ble depos its o f hig h-calilcium limestone, potash, building stone and oil www.manitoba.ca/mineralsTrilobite diorama Early Paleozoic diorama Maclurites (gastropod) Paleozoic Era in Manitoba

Receptaculites

Bob Elias

So litary coral s (In terl a ke )

Graham Gastropods and cephalopods Young ’ World’s largest trilobite – from Churchill Virgiana (brachipod) www.manitoba.ca/minerals Upper Devonian reef diorama http://www.chasestudio.com/rtmp/large Paleozoic Era images/Upper-Devonian-Diorama.jpg in Manitoba

Paleozoic

Precambrian www.manitoba.ca/minerals Mesozoic Era 251 – 66 Ma in Manitoba

Mesozoic

Phanerozoic Eon

Mesozoic Paleozoic• Era PrecededEra by nozoic Eranozoic Era eeee

period ofCC erosion 542542542 251251251 6666066 0 Million of years ago www.manitoba.ca/minerals Mesozoic Era in Manitoba • Periodically flooded by shallow inland seas • Ended by a meteoric impact and major extinction event

Cretaceous in Manitoba diorama Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre, Morden www.manitoba.ca/minerals Cenozoic Era 66 – 0Ma0 Ma

Phanerozoic Eon aa aa

Mesozoic Paleozoic Era Era Glacial retreat Quaternary

In N America enozoic Erenozoic Er CC CC 542542542 251251251 6666066 0 MillionGlacial of retreatyears ago In Manitoba www.manitoba.ca/minerals Cenozoic Era

Dr. Ron Blakey, NAU Geology - http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~rcb7/ 66 – 0Ma0 Ma

Glacial retreat In N America

Glacial retreat In Manitoba 55.80.0133.9Present1.823.05.3 –– –––5.323.065.51.855.833.9 Ma MaMa MaMaMa Warm,ColdWarm,Cool,Cooler,Cool, dry dryhumidhumid drier Icewww.manitoba.ca/minerals age diorama Cenozoic Era The Ice Ag()ge(s)

Glacial retreat In N America

Glacial retreat In Manitoba www.manitoba.ca/minerals Cenozoic Era The modern landscape

Esker, NE Manitoba Esker

Rogan moraine Bedrock highs

Rogan moraine, NE Manitoba

• The last glacial period resulted in the deposition or modification of the landscape features we see today. Digital Elevation Model (NASA) www.manitoba.ca/minerals Cenozoic Era The modern landscape

• Digital topographic and surficial geology information is used by many government and non-government organizations

Saskatchewan R. delta Bedrock

Lake Agassiz

Manitoba Conservation

Digital Elevation Model (NASA) www.manitoba.ca/minerals Aerial photograph Cenozoic Era Iceberg scours, Lorette The modern landscape • In the Red River Valley, it is still possible to see the scars left in the former lake bottom of Glacial Lake Agassiz

Iceberg scours, in Red River valley (LIDAR imagery) Digital Elevation Model (NASA) www.manitoba.ca/minerals Conclusion

Digital elevation model, oblique view looking north Vertical exaggeration: 30X Satellite image of the 1997 flood draped over DEM Gaywood Matile & Greg Keller, MGS • Geological processes have shaped (and reshaped) Man itob a over nearly 4 billion years o f EthEarth his tory • Our geological heritage impacts our daily life o Resources we use (e.g., metals, oil, aggregate, groundwater) o Landscape we live in www.manitoba.ca/minerals Contact us

• The Manitoba Geologgyical Survey is a public resource, available for anyone to use • We can answer questions about rocks, minerals, how landscapes developed, and what exploration activity is going on in the province • Call us at: 1-800-223-5215 • Or e-mail: miif@[email protected]