THESE TERMS GOVERN YOUR USE OF THIS DOCUMENT
Your use of this Ontario Geoiogicai Survey document (the "Content") is governed by the terms set out on this page ("Terms of Use"). By downloading this Content, you (the "User") have accepted, and have agreed to be bound by, the Terms of Use.
Content: This Content is offered by the Province of Ontario's Ministry of Northern Development and Mines (MNDM) as a public service, on an "as-is" basis. Recommendations and statements of opinion expressed in the Content are those of the author or authors and are not to be construed as statement of government policy. You are solely responsible for your use of the Content. You should not rely on the Content for legal advice nor as authoritative in your particular circumstances. Users should verify the accuracy and applicability of any Content before acting on it. MNDM does not guarantee, or make any warranty express or implied, that the Content is current, accurate, complete or reliable. MNDM is not responsible for any damage however caused, which results, directly or indirectly, from your use of the Content. MNDM assumes no legal liability or responsibility for the Content whatsoever.
Links to Other Web Sites: This Content may contain links, to Web sites that are not operated by MNDM. Linked Web sites may not be available in French. MNDM neither endorses nor assumes any responsibility for the safety, accuracy or availability of linked Web sites or the information contained on them. The linked Web sites, their operation and content are the responsibility of the person or entity for which they were created or maintained (the "Owner"). Both your use of a linked Web site, and your right to use or reproduce information or materials from a linked Web site, are subject to the terms of use governing that particular Web site. Any comments or inquiries regarding a linked Web site must be directed to its Owner.
Copyright: Canadian and international intellectual property laws protect the Content. Unless otherwise indicated, copyright is held by the Queen's Printer for Ontario.
It is recommended that reference to the Content be made in the following form: Telford, P.G., Long, D.F., Norris, G., Zippi, P. and Griffis, R. 1991. Mesozoic geology and lignite potential of the Moose River basin; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5777, 185p.
Use and Reproduction of Content: The Content may be used and reproduced only in accordance with applicable intellectual property laws. Non-commercial use of unsubstantial excerpts of the Content is permitted provided that appropriate credit is given and Crown copyright is acknowledged. Any substantial reproduction of the Content or any commercial use of all or part of the Content is prohibited without the prior written permission of MNDM. Substantial reproduction includes the reproduction of any illustration or figure, such as, but not limited to graphs, charts and maps. Commercial use includes commercial distribution of the Content, the reproduction of multiple copies of the Content for any purpose whether or not commercial, use of the Content in commercial publications, and the creation of value-added products using the Content.
Contact:
FOR FURTHER PLEASE CONTACT: BY TELEPHONE: BY E-MAIL: INFORMATION ON The Reproduction of MNDM Publication Local: (705) 670-5691 Pubsales@,ndm.gov.on.ca Content Services Toll Free: 1-888-415-9845, ext. 5691 (inside Canada, United States) The Purchase of MNDM Publication Local: (705) 670-5691 Pubsales@,ndm.gov.on.ca MNDM Publications Sales Toll Free: 1-888-415-9845, ext. 5691 (inside Canada, United States) Crown Copyright Queen's Printer Local: (416) 326-2678 Copyright@,g' Toll Free: 1-800-668-9938 (inside Canada, United States)
Ministry of Northern Development and Mines Ontario
Ontario Geological Survey Open File Report 5777
Mesozoic Geology and Lignite Potential of the Moose River Basin
1991
Ministry of Northern Development and Mines Ontario
ONTARIO GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Open File Report 5777
Mesozoic Geology and Lignite Potential of the Moose River Basin
By
RG. Telford, D.F. Long, G. Norris, R Zippi and R. Griffis
1991
Parts of this publication may be quoted if credit is given. It is recommended that reference to this publication be made in the following form:
Telford, RG. Long, D.F., Norris, G., Zippi, R and Griffis R. 1991. Mesozoic geology and lignite potential of the Moose River basin; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5777, 185p.
This project was a component of the Hydrocarbon Energy Resources
Program (HERP) of the Ontario Geological Survey.
®Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1991
Ontario Geological Survey
OPEN FILE REPORT
Open File Reports are made available to the public subject to the following conditions:
This report is unedited. Discrepancies may occur for which the Ontario Geological Survey does not assume liability. Recommendations and statements of opinions expressed are those of the author or authors and are not to be construed as statements of govern ment policy.
This Open File Report is available for viewing at the following locations:
(1) Mines Library Ministry of Northern Development and Mines 8th floor, 77 Grenville Street Toronto, Ontario
(2) The office of the Regional or Resident Geologist in whose district the area covered by this report is located.
Copies of this report may be obtained at the user's expense from a commercial printing house. For the address and instructions to order, contact the appropriate Re^onal or Resident Geologist's office(6) or the Mines Library. Microfiche copies (42x reduction) of this report are available for $2.00 each plus provincial sales tax at the Mines Library or the Public Information Centre, Ministry of Natural Resources, W-1640, 99 Wellesley Street West, Toronto.
Handwritten notes and sketches may be made from this report. Check with the Mines Library or Regional/Resident Geologist's office whether there is a copy of this report that may be borrowed. A copy of this report is available for Inter-Library Loan.
This report is available for viewing at the following Regional or Resident Geologists' offices:
Porcupine District, 60 Wilson Ave-, Timmins P4N 287
The ri^t to reproduce this report is reserved by the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Permission for other reproductions must be obtained in writing from the Director, Ontario Geological Survey.
V.G. Milne, Director Ontario Geological Survey
m
Foreword
This report details recent research into the Mesozoic rocks of the James Bay Lowland. This work was undertaken by staff of the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines and a number of academic and industry investigators as a part of the investi gation of lignite and oil shale deposits by the Ontario
Geological Survey through the Hydrocarbon Energy Resources
Program. The Ontario Geological Survey was fortunate to be able to find highly competent researchers outside the organization to assist in this investigation^ a process which is expected to be followed in future research activity.
The presence of Mesozoic strata in the Lowland has been known for most of the century yet their character, distribution, age and economic significance remain relatively poorly understood. This is a direct result of their lack of exposure and limited accessibility. Evidence to date indicates that these rocks have the promise of potential resources in both energy and industrial minerals. With the establishment of a complete geological data base, the economic potential of these rocks can be realized. Despite being of a preliminary nature this report is a significant contribution to this data base.
V. G. Milne, Director, Ontario Geological Survey
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT 1
1. 0 INTRODUCTION 3 1. 1 Program Review 3 1.2 Project Methodology 5
2. 0 PREVIOUS WORK 9 2. 1 Introduction 9 2. 2 Early Years 10 2. 3 1926 to 1966 13 2.4 Post 1966 Activities 18 2. 5 Recent OGS Activities 24 2. 5. 1 1983 24 2.5.2 OGS-83D Schlievert Lake Drillhole 25 2. 5. 3 1984 26 2.5. 4 OGS-85D Onakawana B Drillhole 27 2.6 Mineral Exploration Interests 27 2. 6. 1 Selco Mining Corporation 28 2.6. 2 Ontario Energy Corporation 28 2. 6. 3 Lignasco Resources Limited 30 2. 6. 4 Carlson Mines Ltd 30
3.0 REGIONAL GEOLOGY OF THE MOOSE RIVER BASIN AREA 31 3. 1 Structural Setting 31 3. 2 Structural Geology 35 3. 3 Igneous Intrusions 39 3. 4 Geology of the Moose River Basin Area 40 3. 4. 1 Paleozoic Geology 41 1) Ordovician 41 2) Silurian 42 3) Devonian 43 3. 4. 2. Mesozoic Geology 49 3. 4. 3 Quaternary Geology 50
4. 0 MESOZOIC LITHOSTRATIGRAPHY 52 4. 1 Introduction 52 4. 2 Mistuskwia Beds 54 4. 2. 1 Distribution and Lithology 54 4. 2. 2 Stratigraphy and Depositional Environment . 57 4.3 Mattagami Formation 58 4. 3. 1 Distribution and Lithology 58 1) STACKED SAND AND GRAVEL 60 2) SANDSTONE WITH SILT AND MINOR ORGANICS . . 62 3) PEBBLY MUDSTONE 62 A, 5, 6, 7) MUDSTONES 70 8, 9) LIGNITE 70 4. 4 Geochemistry 75 4. 5 Depositional Environment 79 4. 6 Stratigraphy 83 4. 7 Conclusions 85
VII
5. 0 MESOZOIC PALYNOSTRATIGRAPHY OF THE MOOSE RIVER BASIN . 87 5. 1 General Introduction 8 7 5. 2 Mistuskwia Beds 88 5. 2. 1 Palynofloral Descriptions 88 5. 2. 2 Age and Correlation 89 5.3 Mattagami Formation 90 5. 3. 1 Previous Palynological Work 90 5. 3. 2 Zonation 104 Zone 6 Summary: 106 Zone 5 Summary: 107 Zone 4 Summary: 108 Zone 3 Summary: 109 Zone 2 Summary: 109 Zone 1 Summary: 110 5. 3. 3 Dinocyst Intervals Ill 5.3.4 Intra-Basinal Correlation 113 5. 3. 5 Age and Regional Correlations 115 Zone 6 115 Zone 5 117 Zone 4 118 Zone 3 119 Zone 2 119 5. 3. 6 Paleoenvironmental Interpretations 120 5. 3. 7 Devonian Karst Infilling 123 5. 3. 8 Cretaceous Palynomorphs in Precambrian Karst, Cargill Township 124 5. 4 Summary and Conclusions 125
6. 0 LIGNITE RESOURCES OF THE MOOSE RIVER BASIN 127 6. 1 Introduction 127 6.2 Onakawana Lignite Deposits 127 6.3 Other Known Occurrences 129 6. 3. 1 Portage Island 129 6. 3. 2 Adam Creek and Sanborn Township 132 6. 3. 3 McBrien Township/Coal Creek 132 6. 3. 4 Gentles Township 135 6. 3. 5 McCuaig-Brian Townships 145 6.4 Exploration Targets 148 6. 4. 1 General Comments 148 6.4.2 Specific Target Areas 149 6.5 Development Potential 152
7. 0 PLATES 158
8. 0 References 166
CONVERSION TABLE 184
IX
MAPS, FIGURES, TABLES, PLATES AND APPENDICES
Maps: (Back Pocket)
Map 1: Geological map of the Moose River Basin,
Map 2: Drillhole locations and Cretaceous Isopach in the Moose River Basin.
Map 3: Lithostratigraphy of Selected Holes in the Moose River Basin.
Map 4: Top Paleozoic Structure Contour for the Central Moose River Basin.
Figures:
Page
Figure 1. 1: Lignite fields in the Moose River Basin (Vos 1982) 4
Figure 3. 1: Location map of the Hudson Bay and Moose River Basins 32
Figure 3. 2: Stratigraphic chart for the units in the Moose River Basin 34
Figure 3. 3: Structural elements map of the Moose River Basin 3 7
Figure 3. 4: Past and current terminology for units in the Moose River Basin 4 6
Figure 4. 1: Distribution of Jurassic and Cretaceous
sediments, 53
Figure 4. 2: Correlation of Jurassic strata 56
Figure 4. 3: Depositional model for the Cretaceous in the Moose River Basin 63 Figure 4. 4: Ontario Geological Survey drillhole OGS-84- 05 64
Figure 4. 5: Ontario Geological Survey drillhole OGS-84- 06 65
Figure 4. 6: Ontario Geological Survey drillhole OGS-84- 08 67
Figure 4. 7: Ontario Geological Survey Onakawana B Drillhole ' 72
xi
Page
Figure 6. 2: McBrien Township lignite occurrence, Onex-82- 14. Geological and geophysical log of part of the drillhole (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1982) 134
Figure 6. 3: Location of drillholes in the Gentles Township area (after Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1983)... 136
Figure 6. 4: East Gentles Township lignite occurrences, Onex-81-12. Geological and geophysical log of part of the drillhole (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1982) 138
Figure 6. 5: East Gentles Township lignite occurrences, Onex-82-05. Geological and geophysical log of part of the drillhole (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1982) 139
Figure 6. 6: East Gentles Township lignite occurrences, Onex-82-06. Geological and geophysical log of part of the drillhole (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1982) 140
Figure 6. 7: West Gentles Township lignite occurrences, Onex-82-08. Geological and geophysical log of part of the drillhole (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1982) 141
Figure 6. 8: Lignite in drillhole Onex-W83-02 (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1983) 142
Figure 6. 9: Lignite in drillhole Onex-W83-09 (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1983) 143
Figure 6. 10: Lignite in drillhole OGS-W83-01. The geology and geophysical logs are offset appproximately 3. 5 m (11.5') (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat 1984) 147
Xlll
Tables: Paas.
Table 4. 1: Lithology and interpretation of rocks from the Mattagami Formation 61
Table 4. 2: Average uranium and thorium content in the Mattagami Formation 78
Table 6. 1: Analyses of lignite samples from the Onakawana deposits 130
Plates: Page
Plate 5. 1: Zone 2 159
Plate 5. 2: Zones 3 and 4 161
Plate 5. 3: Zones 5 and 6 163
Plate 5. 4: Dinocysts 165
XV
Mesozoic Geology and Lignite Potential of the Moose River Basin
By
RG. Telford^ D.R Long^, G. Norns^. R Zippi^ And R. Griffis^
1991
Ontario Geological Survey. ^Department of Geology, Laurentian University, Sudbury ^Department of Geology, University of Toronto "^Watts, Griffis and McQuat, Toronto Manuscript approved for publication by Owen White, Section Chief, Engineering and Terrain Geology Section, November 30,1990. Report published with the per mission of V.G. Milne, Director, Ontario Geological Survey.
ABSTRACT
Mesozoic strata in the Moose River Basin of the James Bay
Lowland of Ontario contain significant amounts of lignite, kaolinite and silica sand. These strata were deposited on a deeply weathered topographic surface developed on Paleozoic carbonate, mudstone and sandstone. The Middle Jurassic Mistuskwia
Beds accumulated in a non-stratified lake whose location may have been influenced by stress induced uplift on the Fraserdale and
Cape Henrietta Maria Arches. Cretaceous strata of the Mattagami
Formation accumulated on a low gradient floodplain, characterised by extensive wetlands and stable, high constructive, anastomosed channels. Coals accumulated in levee marginal settings and in protected parts of the floodplain in settings adjacent to bedrock highs. Palynological studies indicate that the Mattagami
Formation can be divided into six zones, ranging in age from
Early Albian or Aptian, to Late Albian. Younger strata tend to be concentrated in the western part of the basin, suggesting westward migration of the trunk stream system with time.
Both palynological and geochemical investigations indicate that the Mattagami Formation was deposited in a tropical to subtropical humid climatic setting. The flora was dominated by coniferous gymnosperms and schizaeceous pteridophytes, with associated bryophytes and lycopods. The presence of restricted assemblages might be considered to indicate marine influence, but this is not supported by the sedimentary or geochemical characteristics of the sequence.
Extensive drilling in the Moose River Basin has led to the discovery of several new coal fields, each with potential lignite resources of 50 to 200 thousand tonnes in the central and southern part of the basin. Most of these are at depths of greater than 50 m and will require use of unconventional mining techniques for full recovery. 1. 0 INTRODUCTION
by P. G. Telford
1.1 Program Review
Evaluation of the lignite resource potential of Mesozoic
strata in the Moose River Basin (Figure 1. 1) was a primary
objective of the Hydrocarbon Energy Resources Program (HERP).
This program was initiated in 1981, with funding from the Ontario
Ministry of Treasury and Economics for a five year term ending
March 31st, 1986.
HERP was developed in response to an Ontario government
decision, in the Fall of 1979, that the province should endeavor
to raise its energy self-sufficiency by 1995. To this end, the
Ontario Geological Survey was given the mandate to carry out an
inventory of the province's hydrocarbon energy resources and to determine the contribution that they could make to greater self- sufficiency.
HERP included four major components which correspond to the
four main types of hydrocarbon deposit known to be present in the province. The Ontario Geological Survey was responsible for conducting inventories and evaluations of peat, lignite, and oil shale resources. The Petroleum Resources Section (Ontario
Ministry of Natural Resources) in London was chosen to review the province's reserves and potential resources of conventional oil and natural gas.
This report brings together the results of investigations carried out as part of the HERP program between 1981 and 1986, and includes data collected as a result of mineral industry activity in the area, and academic studies funded by Ontario
Geoscience Grants 19, 108 and 134. The objective is to provide a comprehensive account of the Mesozoic Geology of the Moose River
Basin, along with a detailed assessment of lignite resource potential of the region.
1.2 Project Methodology
The assessment of the lignite resource potential of the
Moose River Basin was conducted generally along two lines of investigation. Firstly, the Mesozoic strata were examined from a geological point of view to establish an accurate stratigraphic and paleontological framework for the basin and to develop a depositional model based on lithofacies relationships within the basin. Secondly, the occurrence and distribution of lignite within the Mesozoic sequence was evaluated according to economic and other development related parameters. Obviously, these two lines of investigation are not completely separate, as a better understanding of the stratigraphic and depositional relationships within the Mesozoic sequence provides a more concise framework for predicting the distribution, thickness and quality of lignite deposits. Poorly consolidated Mesozoic strata of Middle Jurassic and
Lower Cretaceous age are confined generally to the southeastern portion of the Moose River Basin (Map 1).
As discussed in Section 3. 0, the geological area termed the
Moose River Basin is coincident with the physiographic area of
Ontario called the James Bay Lowland. Because of the flat swampy nature of this region, and subsequent lack of natural exposures of Mesozoic and older strata, geological and other resource investigations have always been hampered by problems of difficult access, and subsequent high exploration costs. As a direct consequence, a comprehensive geological study of the Mesozoic sequence had not been completed before the modern OGS programs were initiated during the mid-1970's (see Section 2.0) and later continued in the early 1980's as part of HERP.
Drilling programs and associated geophysical surveys provide a means of circumventing the lack of surface exposures in the
James Bay Lowland. However, such field programs involve considerable technical and other difficulties. Many of these are related to the swampy terrain of the Lowland during summer months, the variable and unpredictable weather conditions of the short spring and fall, and the intense cold of the winter.
During the winter, drilling operations can be relatively problem-free from a technical viewpoint. The frozen ground provides an excellent base for the drilling rigs and, once winter roads have been established, access is not difficult. However, the cost of providing the winter roads, suitable living quarters. and other support services can be high. During the summer the
very soft ground conditions make the drilling operations
technically difficult and surface access to most of the Lowland
is virtually impossible. However, the OGS operations carried out
in recent years have demonstrated the effectiveness of using
helicopter-based support services to alleviate many of the
logistical problems (Telford and Verma 1982; Watts, Griffis, and
McOuat Limited 1984a and 1984b).
As described below, the bulk of the field work associated
with the current program consisted of various types of drilling
operations and downhole geophysical surveys. Only limited
helicopter-based outcrop reconnaissance was carried out. The
distribution of field activities, especially the location of
drilling sites, was also governed by private sector exploration
interests in the region. The OGS did not wish to duplicate the
activities of the private sector groups. Except for the drilling
of the Onakawana B Drillhole (Sanderson and Telford 1985, Bezys
1989), all of the OGS activities were in areas away from the
known lignite deposits at Onakawana (Map 3). The main thrust of
the OGS program was to determine the potential for additional
lignite resources rather than re-examination of known deposits.
To avoid duplication of effort, OGS field investigations
avoided the large area between the Missinaibi River and the southern boundary of the Lowland that was, at the time, under exploratory licence to the Ontario Energy Corporation (OEC). It was hoped that OEC would conduct as comprehensive an assessment of this area as had been originally planned by OGS and that the results would be useful in encouraging further interest in the area. OEC did indeed carry out a large scale exploration program and generously shared the results with OGS. Vital geological information was therefore available from the OEC exploratory area to aid in interpreting the Mesozoic stratigraphy and depositional history of the southeastern Moose River Basin. The availability of the OEC data and information from other private sector drilling programs was also important in developing an overview of the lignite resource potential of the basin. 2. 0 PREVIOUS WORK
by P. G. Telford
2. 1 Introduction
The James Bay Lowland area of Northern Ontario has been the
subject of geological exploration for over one hundred years. In
the 17th and 18th centuries, fur traders and explorers recorded
many of the cultural and geographic features of the area. The
geological framework was established towards the end of the 19th
century by officers of the Geological Survey of Canada and
Ontario Bureau of Mines. The early reports were concerned with deposits of lignite, fireclay, kaolin, silica sand, gypsum, and iron. Exploration, since this time, has proceeded intermittently with periods of feverish exploratory activity. The period of most active geological investigation was the late 1920s through to the early 1930s when the Ontario Department of Mines conducted an extensive program of exploration, development, and feasibility studies of the economic mineral resources of the James Bay
Lowland. Extensive drilling was carried out in the Onakawana lignite area at this time and the first deep drillhole was sunk
(the Onakawana A Drillhole).
In this review only major developments in the understanding of the Paleozoic and Mesozoic geology of the Moose River Basin are considered. For more detailed reviews of the literature available on the Hudson Bay Lowland, pre 1967, see Norris et al.
(1968). Beals (1968) and Hood (1969) list the proceedings of two important symposia on the Hudson Bay Lowland held by the Department of Energy, Mines, and Resources, Ottawa. More recent
bibliographies by Sanford and Norris (1975), Henley and Eyler
(1976), Verma (1982a), and Cowell (1982) list work after 1967.
Papers in Martini (1986) review the geological, geographical,
biological and cultural features of the Hudson Bay Lowland.
2. 2 Early Years
The earliest European settlers at Moose Factory (late 1600s)
had known of the lignite occurrences exposed along the Abitibi
River, in the area now known as Onakawana. Lignite from this
site is reported to have been used in the forges at Moose Factory
to manufacture tools. The early name "Blacksmith Rapids" was
used to identify the site. It was not until the late 1800s and
early 1900s that any systematic geological evaluation was undertaken. The earliest known geological account of the Hudson
Bay territories was given by Isbister in 1855. Later, in the years 1871-1912, Robert Bell, of the Geological Survey of Canada, wrote no less than 22 reports dealing with various geological aspects of the land surrounding Hudson Bay. Two of his reports
(Bell 1877, 1879) are of particular interest as they established the geological framework of the Moose River Basin and record the occurrence of lignite on the Missinaibi River, limonite on the
Mattagami River and the presence of other important industrial minerals elsewhere in the region.
In the late 1870s the Government of Ontario became interested in the economic development of the James Bay Lowland.
10 Two important reports were prepared by E. B. Borron (1880, 1891)
for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Borron's observations of the lignite and silica sand-kaolin deposits on the Missinaibi
River and the lignite outcrops on the Abitibi River were to form the basis of much of the later work in this area. The first detailed report on the economic resources of the Moose River
Basin, incorporating much of the earlier work and the work done by the Ontario Bureau of Mines, was prepared by J. M. Bell (1904).
This report gave a detailed economic evaluation of the Onakawana lignite, as well as a variety of industrial minerals.
In the Moose River Basin, there are two types of organic rich strata which had been loosely referred to as * lignite' . One is true lignite from the Cretaceous Mattagami Formation. This is found in association with fireclays and silica sands. The other type is more appropriately described as peat and is found in the
Forest Peat Member of the Quaternary Missinaibi Formation
(Skinner 1973). In the early days of exploration of the James
Bay Lowland, the distinction between true Cretaceous lignite and
Quaternary peat was not recognized. The majority of the exposures of * lignite' reported in the early literature are peat deposits of Quatenary age.
Baker (1911, p.223, 230, 237) considered all lignite deposits of the Mattagami River basin to be of Quaternary age.
One of the primary objectives of Baker's studies was to investigate reports circulating during the winter of 1909-1910 that real "coal" had been found on the Mattagami River resulting
11 in staking of several claims. When Baker indicated that the so called "coal" offered few economic possibilities, no further staking took place. Baker's report is however important as it describes, in greater detail, the iron deposits of the Mattagami
River, which had first been reported by R. Bell (1877).
Keele (1920) was the first to suggest that some of the lignite along the Mattagami River was of Cretaceous age. He noticed that clays in the area were found in intimate association with lignite and silica sands and, suggested that this assemblage was "undoubtedly of pre-glacial age, of more recent origin than
Upper Devonian". Keele (1920) named this assemblage the
' Mattagami series' . This was later renamed the Mattagami
Formation by Dyer (1930a). The Lower Cretaceous age of the formation has since been confirmed by several paleo-botanical studies, including W. A. Bell (1928), Hopkins and Sweet (1976) and
Norris et al. (1976).
About the same time attention was focused on the pre-
Cretaceous rocks of the James Bay Lowland. Following early
Paleozoic mapping by Parks (1899, 1904) for the Ontario Bureau of
Mines, Savage and Van Tuyl (1919), Williams (1920a, b), and
Kindle (1924) produced the basic framework for the Paleozoic stratigraphy of the region and Cross (1920) studied the iron ore deposits of the Abitibi-Mattagami area.
12 2. 3 1926 to 1966
In 1926, the Ontario Government showed renewed interest in the Onakawana lignite deposits and withdrew from staking a 2840 km^ area in the vicinity of Onakawana. In 1928, testing of a seven ton sample of lignite collected from the Abitibi River outcrop near Onakawana showed similarity with Saskatchewan lignite and suggested a potential for commercial fuel. The ensuing six or seven years constitutes the most productive period in the history of exploration of the James Bay Lowland. It was during this time that officers of the Ontario Bureau of Mines carried out an extensive program of exploration, development, and feasibility studies of all major mineral resources of the James
Bay Lowland. This included detailed studies of the Onakawana lignite based on extensive drilling and reports on industrial minerals such as limestone, gypsum, kaolin, and refractory clay.
At Onakawana, the Ontario Bureau of Mines drilled 116 holes totalling 5200 m. In addition, two shafts were sunk. Shaft No.
1 near the Abitibi River was 23 m deep. Shaft "W" near the
Onakawana River was 41 m deep with drifts extending 389 m. In
1930, the first drillhole to penetrate the entire sedimentary section in the Moose River Basin was set in the middle of the
Onakawana area. This was the Onakawana A Drillhole (Dyer and
Crozier 1933a) which was to form the basis of much of the later understanding of the stratigraphy of the Moose River Basin. It was during this period of extensive exploration that the first geophysical studies, aimed at detecting underground lignite, were
13 made (Gilchrist 1932; Hawkins 1933). Studies related to exploratory work on the lignite in the Onakawana area are documented in the works of Dyer (1930a, 1930c, 1931a, 1931b,
1932b), Dyer and Crozier (1933a), Gilmore (1930), Haanal and
Gilmore (1933). In addition, the Ontario Research Foundation conducted a study of the technical and economic factors involved in commercial development of the Onakawana deposit. This report recommended that further research be directed toward the use of
Onakawana lignite in locomotive, industrial and commercial furnaces.
McLearn (1927) conducted a thorough study of the Mesozoic and Pleistocene deposits of the lower Missinaibi, Opasatika, and
Mattagami Rivers for the Geological Survey of Canada. This study was the first to clearly distinguish the Cretaceous lignite from the Pleistocene peats. Fuel analyses of samples collected by
McLearn finally established the Pleistocene peat had one-half to one-third the calorific value (BTU) of the Cretaceous lignite.
This, combined with its patchy occurrence, made it a less serious contender for large scale mining operations.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, concurrent with investigation of lignite in the Onakawana area, great progress was being made towards understanding the distribution, nature and development potential of the iron ore, clay, silica sand and other industrial mineral deposits of the Moose River Basin.
Interest in the silica sand, kaolin, and fireclay deposits was focused on three separate areas: i) the Missinaibi River Deposits
14 (McBrien Township); ii) the Mattagami River Deposits (Kipling
Township); and iii) the Onakawana Deposits (Dyer, Morrow, and
Sutcliffe Townships). Of these the Kipling Township deposits, situated at the foot of Long Rapids on the Mattagami River, are the only ones in the in the Moose River Basin which have been developed to produce fireclay and silica sand. The deposits on the east side of the river were developed by the Northern Ontario
China Clay Corporation while those on the west side were developed by General Refractories Products Limited and included the sinking of two shafts (McCarthy Shafts 1 and 2). Production in 1942-43 from the deposits of the west bank amounted to 815 tonnes of fireclay. Giblin (1970) gave results of 1970 drilling in this area. The Missinaibi River deposits are now held by
Algocen Mines Limited. A winter road from Hearst leads to the
Algocen camp on the banks of Missinaibi River. This area has also undergone extensive sampling and drilling, some as recent as
1970 (Smith and Murthy 1970). The reserves known to date are about 180 million tonnes.
Important contributions to the understanding of all the above silica sand, kaolin and fireclay deposits have been made by
Dyer (1928b, 1930a-c, 1931a, 1931b, 1932a, 1932b, 1933), Dyer and
Crozier (1933a, 1933b), Dyer and Montgomery (1930), Montgomery
(1930a, 1930b, 1933), Montgomery and Watson (1929), Crozier
(1933), Westman (1933), Hilder (1935), and Davey (1932).
The poor economic conditions of the post-depression era resulted in the termination of all exploratory activities at
15 Onakawana but the war years saw a rejuvenation of interest. The
James Bay extension of the Timiskaming and Northern Ontario
Railway (now the Ontario Northland Railway) had reached Onakawana in 1930 and Moosonee in 1931. This railway greatly facilitated access to the Onakawana area. During and after World War 11, concern about potential fuel shortages resulted in renewed interest by the Ontario Government in the lignite potential of the area. Extensive drilling (182 holes) was carried out, totalling 5120 m. A small area near the railway line, containing an estimated 9 million tonnes of lignite, was demarcated for commercial development. In 1943, the Fuel Commission of Ontario was established and it recommended that the deposit be put in a condition to meet the fuel shortage expected in 1945-46 (Ontario
Fuel Commission 1944). Between 1945 and 1946, a pit was excavated between the Abitibi River and the railway line and 2720 tonnes of lignite were stockpiled. At the same time, a 100 horse power return tubular boiler was installed along with associated processing plant, garage and machine shop, and pump houses
(McLaren 1948). After nearly fifty years of exploratory work, this was the closest that Onakawana came towards a full scale commercial development.
In 1946, after an on-site examination, a Select Committee of the Ontario Legislature recommended that, in view of the absence of any substantial demand for lignite fuel in the industrial markets, it was uneconomical to continue the development at
Onakawana. Consequently in 1947, all operations at Onakawana
16 were discontinued and the plant and equipment removed. The
foundations of these buildings and of the discarded machinery can
still be seen on the banks of the Abitibi River at Onakawana
today.
The post-1947 lull in activities at Onakawana was to last
for nearly twenty years. At the regional level, however, the
exploration of the Moose River Basin was continued by the Ontario
Department of Mines and other agencies. The Ontario Department
of Mines drilled three deep holes to the Precambrian basement.
These are: Campbell Lake (310 m), Jaab Lake (552 m) and Puskwache
Point (468 m). The 61st Annual Report of the Ontario Division of
Mines (1953) contains contributions by Martison, Wilson, Dyer,
Crozier, Gerrie, Hogg, Satterly, and Wilson, based on these
holes. This report also includes a comprehensive account of the
stratigraphy of the James Bay Lowland, as well as comments on the
petroleum potential of the area.
During 1966, another regional study, called "Operation
Kapuskasing", was undertaken by the Ontario Department of Mines.
This study consisted of a helicopter-supported survey of the
geology and mineral resources of about 72, 500 km^ of the James
Bay Lowland (Bennett et al. 1967). Also in 1966, the Alberta
Coal Company acquired a licence of exploration for a 1036 km^ area around Onakawana. The company carried out extensive drilling (133 holes totalling 5791 m) with the objective of delineating the field boundaries and establishing reserve quantity and quality of the lignite in the area. A hitherto
17 unknown deposit, called Portage Field, was discovered north of
Onakawana during this investigation.
2.4 Post 1966 Activities
Following an aeromagnetic survey of the Hudson Bay region in
1966 (MacLaren et al, 1968), the Geological Survey of Canada carried out an air supported geological reconnaissance survey of about 337,000 km^ of the Hudson Bay Lowland (Operation Winisk;
Sanford et al. 1968). Important results of this program included reports on the Quaternary stratigraphy of the Moose River Basin
(Skinner 1973), Ordovician strata of the Hudson Bay Lowland
(Gumming 1975), Devonian stratigraphy of the Hudson Platform
(Sanford and Norris 1975), Devonian palynology of the Moose River
Basin (McGregor et al. 1970, McGregor and Camfield 1976, Playford
1977), and Mesozoic deposits and coal of the Hudson Bay Lowland
(Price 1978).
The world oil crisis, in the early 1970s, prompted the
Ontario government to re-evaluate the Moose River Basin lignite deposits with a view to lessening the province's dependence on coal from western Canada and overseas. As a first step (in
1972), the Ontario Government, Ontario Hydro, and the Onakawana
Development Limited (a subsidiary of Manalta Coal Limited, the successor of the Alberta Coal Company) entered into an agreement to undertake a feasibility study on the development of the
Onakawana lignite deposit. The results of this study by
Shawinigan Engineering Company (1973) were published by the
18 Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. This study concluded that
the development of Onakawana lignite for thermal power generation
was a viable prospect.
The feasibility study by the Onakawana Development Limited,
as well as including a recalculation of tonnages on the basis of
compilation of data from all drillholes by Trusler et al. (1974),
indicated that the total recoverable reserves are about 170
million tonnes from a total in place quantity of about 200
million tonnes. Three lignite fields were outlined. These are:
Main Field, East Field, and Portage Field (see Figure 1. 1).
The estimated reserves are distributed among the three fields as
follows:
Main Field 147. 8 million tonnes East Field 10. 6 million tonnes Portage Field 13. 0 million tonnes Total 171.4 million tonnes
In examining Onakawana as a possible source of energy,
environmental concerns have not been ignored. In January 1973, a
special task force (Task Force Onakawana) with representatives of
various Ontario Ministries, Ontario Hydro, the Conservation
Council of Ontario, and local representatives from Moosonee, produced a report on the possible environmental effects of mining
of the Onakawana lignite. The Task Force concluded that, on
balance, the local and regional effects of developing this
resource could be advantageous provided appropriate steps were taken to maximize the benefits to the local people and to minimize any adverse environmental effects. Strip mining
followed by proper reclamation is considered to provide better
19 drainage in the swampland and the resulting environment would be a better habitat for wild life then or as it is at present.
During 1977, Onakawana Development Limited continued to update their engineering and feasibility studies of the Onakawana area. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the economic viability of several modes of power plant generation based on varying capacities and tonnages of lignite. Included in this study was a major investigation by Colder Geotechnical
Consultants Limited to evaluate the geotechnical and hydrological conditions on the site. Onakawana Development Limited was granted a 21 year lease, effective February 1, 1978, giving it the right to mine, stockpile and process lignite.
Limited petroleum exploration was carried out during the early 1970s in the James Bay Lowland. A consortium of companies headed by Aquitaine of Canada Limited drilled several deep holes
(to the Precambrian basement) in the Moose River Basin. One of these, Hambly No. 1 (Aquitaine Sogepet et al. 1973), was put down in Hambly Township northwest of Smoky Falls and encountered an important complete section of the Lower Cretaceous Mattagami
Formation (Telford 1982). In 1974, the Aquitaine Sogepet group drilled a series of shallow holes in the Ranoke area, south of
Onakawana (File No. 83-1-118, Aquitaine Company of Canada
Limited, Assessment Files Research Office, Ontario Geological
Survey), providing much new data on the Devonian stratigraphy of the basin.
20 In 1975, the Ontario Geological Survey launched a fresh program of geological and geophysical investigation of the
Mesozoic sediments in the Moose River Basin. Three drilling programs (Rogers et al. 1975, Verma et al. 1978, Telford and
Verma 1978), two geophysical surveys (Utard 1975, Scintrex
Surveys Limited 1976), and two outcrop reconnaissance surveys
(Telford et al. 1975, Verma and Telford 1978) were completed.
The Winter 1975 drilling program (Rogers et al. 1975) consisted of the drilling and sampling of six holes in a general north-northwest line extending from Smoky Falls to the northern boundary of the supposed subcrop area of Mesozoic sediments, and geophysical studies mainly along the winter road. The six drillholes ranged in depth from 46 to 175 m. Although no significant lignite discoveries were made, valuable information on clay and silica sands, as well as the regional geology was obtained. Holes 75-02 and 75-03 contained intervals of calcareous claystone and sandstone which were named the
Mistuskwia Beds by Telford et al. (1975). These beds were later found to be of Jurassic age (Norris 1977, 1982).
Geophysical studies in the area consisted of a seismic survey (72 km) and a resistivity survey (84 km), which were carried out in an attempt to identify effective reconnaissance exploration tools that could broadly define depths to the
Quaternary-Mesozoic and the Mesozoic-Paleozoic boundaries. These efforts were largely unsuccessful because of the lack of contrast between the various sedimentary units.
21 During the summer of 1975, a helicopter supported outcrop reconnaissance survey of the Moose River Basin was carried out and the lignite deposits at Onakawana were re-examined (Telford et al, 1975). The objective of this work was to determine which of the earlier reported occurrences of "lignite" outside
Onakawana were true lignites worthy of follow-up studies. It was determined that, except for the reported occurrences along Coal
River where it meets the Missinaibi River, and those of the
Mattagami River and its tributary Adam Creek, most of the other occurrences were of Quaternary peat. Palynological analyses of samples collected from outcrops of the Mattagami Formation along the Mattagami River near Smoky Falls suggested at least a late
Middle or Late Albian (Lower Cretaceous) age for the unit (Norris et al. 1976).
In 1975-76 another geophysical survey was carried out over the Onakawana lignite fields (Scintrex Surveys Limited 1976).
The purpose of this work was to determine whether existing geophysical methods, particularly geo-electric techniques (ground as well as airborne) can be used as search tools to locate near surface deposits of the Onakawana type. The ground resistivity survey indicated that there was no appreciable difference between the resistivity of the lignites and the clays associated with them. The airborne electromagnetic surveys indicated two regions of relatively high conductivity, one to the west of the Ontario
Northland Railway containing "within its confines" the known lignite fields, and another area immediately to the east of the
22 Abitibi River. The second zone included three anomalies and
Scintrex considered them to be correlative with the anomalies over the known lignite fields at Onakawana.
In the Fall of 1977, three shallow holes were drilled by the
Ontario Geological Survey on the anomaly locations of the Abitibi
River (Verma et al. 1978). Hole 77-01 was 46 m deep, 77-02 was
50 m and 77-03 was 51 m. Sampling was done by split spoon sampler at intervals of about 2 to 3 m as well as by BQ wire line core barrel giving continuous core recovery. This investigation did not result in identification of significant quantities of lignite east of the Abitibi River, but important stratigraphic information was obtained. Subsurface stratigraphy on the east side of the Abitibi River is significantly different from that on the west side, with Devonian bedrock forming local structural hi ghs.
In the summer of 1978, a third major Mesozoic drilling program was carried out in the Mesozoic sequence by the Ontario
Geological Survey. This helicopter-supported drilling program consisted of eight holes totalling 1176 m. These holes were located along an east-west strip between Kipling (Mattagami
River) and McBrien (Missinaibi River) Townships. The program was carried out to ascertain a stratigraphic analysis of the Mesozoic sediments and an assessment of the lignite and industrial mineral potential of the region. This project was a continuation of a program of investigation (called the Fossil Fuel Project) which
23 commenced in 1975 and involved geological, geophysical, and deep
drilling techniques.
This drilling program was successful in locating impressive
deposits of lignite not previously known at Adam Creek (Kipling
Township; holes OGS-78-01, and -08) and in McBrien Township.
Significant lignite was found in OGS-78-06 in the southwestern
corner of Sanborn Township. As a result of this drill program,
it was recommended that further drilling be carried out in
Sanborn, Kipling and Emerson Townships. Results of this work are
described by Guillet (1979) and by Griffis (this report-Section
6. 3).
At the same time of this drilling program, an outcrop
sampling and reconnaissance program was carried out along Adam
Creek in Kipling Township (Verma and Telford 1978). This led to
the discovery of an in situ lignite seam on the bank of Adam
Creek.
2. 5 Recent OGS Activities
2. 5. 1 1983
The Ontario Geological Survey 1983 winter reconnaissance drill program was intended to test northern areas in the
Cretaceous basin of the Moose River Basin. The main target of drilling was an area north of the Missinaibi River towards the eastern margin of the Moose River Basin. A total of seven holes
(863.7 m) were drilled, with the deepest hole penetrating 180 m.
A total of 770 m of borehole geophysical logging was carried out.
24 The program resulted in the discovery of significant new lignite
deposits in drillholes OGS-W83-01 and -02 and numerous smaller
lignite seams in OGS-W83-07.
The main lignite seam in holes 83-01 and 83-02 was 5-6 m
thick, occurring at depths of approximately 73-75 m. Lignite
seams in 83-07 were indicated by the inhole geophysical survey.
Most were no more than 0. 5 m thick. All occurred in a thick
sequence of quartz-rich sands at depths of 90-120 m.
The thickness of Cretaceous strata in these holes ranges
from 14 m in drillhole 83-04 to 102 m in 83-07, confirming
northward thinning of Cretaceous strata in the basin. Units of
possible Jurassic age were indicated in holes 83-03 and -04.
These beds of weakly calcareous clay and sand bear similarity to
both Cretaceous and Devonian sequences.
2. 5. 2 OGS-83D Schlievert Lake Drillhole
In September 1983, the Ontario Geological Survey drilled a
deep hole in the Schlievert Lake area. This hole formed part of the Hydrocarbon Energy Resource Program (HERP) to evaluate the lignite, oil shale, and conventional oil and gas potential of the
region. As the entire Phanerozoic sequence was intersected and
cored, a precise regional stratigraphic section was established
for this area.
The total depth of the Schlievert Lake hole was 624.5 m, with 153.2 m of Quaternary strata (Russell et al. 1985). Only
0. 8 m of unusual varicoloured clays in the hole appeared to
25 correlate with the Cretaceous Mattagami Formation. No lignite seams were found.
The Schlievert Lake hole indicated a much more restricted areal extent of both the Cretaceous Mattagami Formation and the
Upper Devonian Long Rapids Formation than was previously thought
(Russell et al, 1985). The hole was significant in demonstrating the importance of detailed logging and palynology as the only method of distinguishing Cretaceous from Quaternary sediments.
2.5.3 1984
In 1984, Watts, Griffis, and McOuat Limited carried out a lignite reconnaissance drill program for the Ontario Geological
Survey. A total of 11 holes were drilled with a total depth of
996 m, with 811 m of geophysical surveying. The main goal of this program was to test the western end of the Moose River Basin for possible lignite occurrences and to better understand the extent of the Cretaceous sediments that host the lignite deposits in this region. The western area was the only remaining part of the Moose River Basin where no lignite reconnaissance drilling had been carried out.
Lignite was found in only one hole (OGS-84-08) as thin seams
(< 0. 6 m) in a relatively thick sequence (about 43 m) of carbonaceous clays, light green clays, and minor quartz. Of the
11 holes, only 3 were definitely Cretaceous sediments and were typical of units further east in the central Cretaceous Basin; kaolinitic quartz sands and a great variety of non-calcareous
26 clays (many were kaolinitic). The thickest Cretaceous unit was
98 m in OGS-84-08.
2. 5. 4 OGS-85D Onakawana B Drillhole
The Ontario Geological Survey, in March of 1985, drilled the
Onakawana B Drillhole to obtain a continuous core of material to the Precambrian and to obtain additional information on the lignite field and the underlying oil shales. The total depth of the hole was 320. 9 m, 55 m of which was Cretaceous. Two major and one minor lignite seams were present. The upper seam is 10 m thick, the middle seam is approximately 7 m, and the lowermost seam is 1. 5 m thick (Bezys 1989). The lowermost lignite seam was not recorded in the original Onakawana A Drillhole (drilled in
1930) (Dyer and Crozier 1933a), but the upper two had been. This new seam is important in that it may indicate that more lignite is present in the Onakawana area than was previously thought.
The Paleozoic sequence in OGS-85D was 237 m thick. Drilling this hole confirmed that the Long Rapids Formation is anomalously thick in the Onakawana area (approximately 80 m thick: Bezys 1987)
2. 6 Mineral Exploration Interests
Recent exploration activity in the Moose River Basin has not been confined to the Ontario Geological Survey. Active programs have been undertaken by Selco Mining Corporation Limited, the
Ontario Energy Corporation, Lignasco Resources Limited and
Carlson Mines Limited.
27 2. 6. 1 Selco Mining Corporation.
Selco Canada Limited executed a regional exploration program to locate diamond bearing kimberlite intrusions in the James Bay
Lowland, including areas south and west of the Moose River Basin.
The initial exploration licence, issued in 1981, was for 93,000 ha. This was reduced to 59, 000 ha in 1982 and 2,914 ha in 1983.
The licence was allowed to expire in September 1985. During this period, numerous holes were drilled to examine tight magnetic anomalies detected by closely spaced, high sensitivity, airborne surveys. While no true kimberlites were encountered, several lamphrophyre and carbonatite bodies were discovered.
The carbonatite bodies at Martinson Lake were examined in
1984 by Camchib Mines Incorporated. They outlined a sizable apatite body, containing substantial amounts of niobium. The main deposit is a thick apatite residuum which overlies a carbonatite at depths of 45 to 75 m. While most of the work in this area involved exploratory drilling, a bulk sample of 136 tonnes was obtained in 1984 for metallurgical testing. This deposit has the potential to become a major phosphate producer.
2. 6. 2 Ontario Energy Corporation.
The Ontario Energy Corporation (OEC), a Provincial Crown
Corporation, began exploring for lignite in the James Bay Lowland in 1980, when an initial exploration licence of occupation for
425,000 ha was issued. This was reduced to 113,000 ha in 1982 and transferred to a subsidiary company, ONEXCO Minerals Limited.
28 ONEXCO further reduced their licence area to 61,000 ha in 1983.
This licence expired in September 1986 and has not been renewed.
Between 1980 and 1986, OEC and its subsidiaries drilled
about 60 holes, some of which intersected significant new lignite
seams. During 1980 six auger holes were drilled in the vicinity
of Portage Island to test for possible extensions of the lignite indicated by previous workers. All holes were drilled along the banks of the Moose River.
None of the holes encountered significant lignite, but several holes contained substantial thicknesses (>10 m) of dark grey to black carbonaceous clays which are probably lateral equivalents to the known occurrences.
In 1981, OEC drilled 12 holes west of Portage Island (at the
forks of the Missinaibi and Mattagami Rivers). One hole, OEC-81-
09, encountered 1. 5 m of lignite, whereas most of the others intersected thick sequences of Quaternary strata.
In 1982 Onexco Minerals Limited sank 18 holes and found significant lignite occurrences in the southeast corner of
McBrien Township. Onex-82-14 had the greatest combined thickness of lignite seams in the region, excluding the Onakawana deposit.
This lignite was also the deepest deposit of lignite encountered to date (Try 1984).
Drilling in 1983 included 28 shallow holes, most of which were located in and around Gentles and Lambert Townships.
Significant lignite seams were encountered.
29 2. 6. 3 Lignasco Resources Limited
Lignasco Minerals Limited was issued an exploratory licence in 1980 covering 38,000 ha in Kipling, Emerson and Sanborn
Townships. This was reduced to 4,856 ha in 1983, and has since lapsed.
In 1982 Selco Limited drilled 8 holes on Lignasco ground in search of kimberlites, and 4 holes on behalf of Lignasco
Resources to determine the lignite and kaolinite potential of the area. No thick coal seams were encountered (Try 1984).
2. 6. 4 Carlson Mines Ltd.
In 1985 Carlson Mines Limited examined the kaolin potential of the Mattagami Formation in Kipling Township. Exploration activity included three sonic drillholes and limited stripping.
While Carlson Mines undertook minor investigations in 1986 and
1987, no large scale development has taken place.
30 3. 0 REGIONAL GEOLOGY OF THE MOOSE RIVER BASIN AREA
by P. G. Telford.
3.1 Structural Setting
The Hudson Platform is the name applied to the area of sedimentary strata which overlies the Precambrian Shield in the vicinity of Hudson Bay. The Platform consists of two basins, the large Hudson Bay Basin and the much smaller Moose River Basin; it occupies most of Hudson and James Bays, the Hudson Bay Lowland, and makes up all or part of Southampton, Coats and Mansel Islands
(separating Hudson Bay from the Foxe Basin and Hudson Strait)
(Figure 3. 1). The strata in the Moose and Hudson Bay Basins are composed mainly of carbonates (limestone and dolostone-55%) and siltstone (37%) and minor sandstone and gypsum (Sanford et al.
1968). The strata range from Ordovician to Mesozoic in age, spanning approximately 400 million years (Figure 3. 2).
The Hudson Bay Lowland is a distinctive geographic region with a monotonous plain and a gentle slope (0. 5 - 1 m/km). The only area of significant relief is the Sutton Ridges, southwest of Cape Henrietta Maria. The lowland is dominated by one major landscape process: the growth, decay and net accumulation of saturated organic deposits. It is one of the largest wetland regions of the world ("200, 000 km^) of which 161, 000 km^ are located in the Province of Ontario (Cowell 1982). The Hudson Bay
Lowland area has encompassed a variety of paleoenvironments.
31 JAMES BAY :r ' LOWLAND
0 50 100 150
Figure 3.1: Sedimentary basins, physiographic elements, and structural features in northern Ontario. Basins are outlined with dashes and the lowlands are outlined with dots.
32 including at least two previous wetland environments. The first occurred between 65-136 million years ago during the Cretaceous
Period (Mesozoic Era) where the peat deposited at that time are now represented by lignites from the Mattagami Formation. The most recent wetland period occurred approximately 125,000 years before present during the Sangamon Interglacial of the Quaternary
Period (SJcinner 1973). Repeated wetland development in the lowland indicates it has been an area of low relief since the
Paleozoic Era.
Basinal structures have occupied the Hudson Bay Lowland area almost since the Precambrian Era, over 600 million years ago
(Sanford et al. 1985). The Hudson Bay and Moose River Basins are erosional remnants of an extensive cratonic cover which probably joined up to the Appalachian, Michigan and Williston Basins in the south and the Arctic Platform to the north. Both the Hudson
Bay and Moose River Basins are now widely separated from the other sedimentary basins by broad expanses of the Canadian
Shield, which contains scattered Paleozoic outliers (such as the one at Lake Timiskaming, Ontario).
The Moose River Basin occupies the southern extension of the
Hudson Platform. It is separated from the Hudson Bay Basin by the Cape Henrietta Maria Arch (discussed below). The strati- graphic thickness of both Paleozoic and Mesozoic sediments in this basin is between 750-915 m (Fig. 3.2). The much larger
Hudson Bay Basin is centred within Hudson Bay where Paleozoic units reach a thickness between 1800-3050m thick (Sanford et al.
33
1968, Johnson 1971). Most of the bedrock of the Hudson Bay
Lowland is buried beneath thick sequences of Quaternary deposits and Recent organics. Numerous outcrops, however, are present along the major rivers and tributaries, as well as the above mentioned Precambrian inliers.
3.2 Structural Geology
A broad arch which trends northeast-southwest between Winisk
Lake and Cape Henrietta Maria, joins the Hudson Bay Basin with the Moose River Basin. This arch is called the Cape Henrietta
Maria Arch (see Figure 3. 1) and is a structural high within the
Precambrian basement over which Paleozoic strata have been deposited. It was probably not a major feature in early
Paleozoic sedimentation patterns because most of the Ordovician sediments appear to have been continuously deposited over it, although there has been some thinning (Sanford and Norris 1968).
Most of the other Paleozoic strata here have been eroded away and thus, most units are very thin where they overlap the arch. In fact, several Precambrian inliers occur within the lowland southwest and west of the Cape. The largest of these are the well known Sutton Ridges which rise up to 120 m above the surrounding Lower and Middle Silurian limestones.
The Moose River Basin appears to have developed as a result of both gravity sag and block faulting in an otherwise stable part of the Precambrian Shield of the Superior Province (Sanford et al. 1985). It shows a history of relative tectonic stability
35 with only local interruptions of the regional basinal dips. The
Cretaceous and Upper Devonian portion of the basin consists of
two sub-basins separated by the northwest-trending Grand Rapids
High (or Arch).
The Moose River Basin is truncated in the south by an east-
west en echelon fault system, which forms part of the
Kapuskasing-Moosonee trend (Bennett et ai. 1967). In this area,
faulting and uplift of the Precambrian rocks has taken place
relative to the rocks of the basin. Definite evidence of this
fault scarp is found along the Missinaibi and Mattagami Rivers
(Martison 1953).
Two regional highs which have had some effect on the
sedimen-tation patterns of the Paleozoic and Mesozoic sediments
in the Moose River Basin are the Moose River and Grand Rapids
Highs (Martison 1953) (Figure 3.3). The development of the Grand
Rapids High is thought to have taken place in Devonian times
(Stoakes 1975). As mentioned earlier, it may have acted as a
barrier to sediment transportation, giving rise to two slightly
different facies within the Mesozoic rocks in each of the sub-
basins.
The massive gypsum exposures on the Moose and Cheepash
Rivers, at Gypsum Mountain (up to 5 m above the height of the
muskeg), and a small exposure on a branch of the North French
River near the Paleozoic/Precambrian contact suggests the
existence of a broad anticlinal arch off the Precambrian.
Martison (1953) named this structure the Moose River Arch (Figure
36
3.3). Recent research by the OGS and GSC have suggested those features to be more subtle than previously considered and they are thus identified as highs and not arches. At the Moose River sections, the gypsum cliffs represent a series of anticlines and synclines with dips up to 25*.
The Moose River Formation limestones present similar structural features on Louise Island (Moose River). Martison
(1953) suggested these undulations and warps may be partly due to the hydration of anhydrite to gypsum, but added that it seemed more probable that they were caused by a regional movement that concentrated the gypsum in its present position. The area of gypsum exposures, typically displays intense brecciation and karstification due to the solution of these Moose River Formation evaporites. Structures in this area probably originated as a result of solution collapse and bedding attitudes can be highly irregular and randomly oriented; in some places they are completely obliterated by brecciation. Only a small amount of gypsum was intersected in the Onakawana A Drillhole (27 km west of the Moose River outcrops) at a depth of 274 m.
An anticlinal arch exposes the William Island Formation limestones and the Long Rapids Formation shales on the Abitibi
River at Williams Island (see Map 2). The anticlinal axis strikes northeast to a small granitic outlier on the Little
Abitibi River approximately 5 km away. The dips are 30 to 38* on the flanks with a plunge to the southwest at a few degrees.
There are a number of other smaller anticlines on the Abitibi
38 River with a southwest-northeast trend, with prevailing dips to the northwest.
Bennett et al. (1967) discovered a pronounced ridge of
Precambrian mafic volcanic rocks devoid of any Paleozoic or
Mesozoic cover along the southern boundary of the Moose River
Basin and has been termed the Pivabiska Ridge (Fig. 3. 3).
In addition to basement controlled structures, there are biohermal structures in the Attawapiskat Formation. These bioherms are fairly numerous along both the north and south margins of the Cape Henrietta Maria Arch where they can be as high as 9 m (Sanford et al. 1968).
Minor folding is common throughout the area; beds undulate in all directions but maintains an overall dip of 3-5* towards the centre of the Devonian basin. Minor folds are due to supratenuous folding over irregularities in the Precambrian basement topography. Other folding has occurred in the Otter
Rapids-Coral Rapids area which can be ascribed to the intrusion of post-Middle Devonian lamprophyric and (?) kimberlitic dikes and sills. Major folding is present in the south-central portion of the Devonian basin that borders the Precambrian escarpment.
In this area, several broad anticlinal arches occur with local dips up to 38'.
3. 3 Igneous Intrusions
Post-Middle Devonian, ultramafic, lamprophyric and possibly kimberlitic sills and dikes intrude the Sextant, Stooping River,
39 Kwataboahegan and Moose River Formations at Coral and Sextant
Rapids. These intrusions have been dated at 128 million years
using K - Ar methods (Sanford and Norris 1973). It is assumed
that the tectonic activity responsible for these intrusions was
responsible for faulting in the Moose River Basin. Age relation
ship to Williams Island and Long Rapids Formations are not clear.
Sextant Rapids on the Abitibi River is formed by a
lamprophyric sill, approximately 18 m thick, which cuts the
Devonian Sextant Formation. The sill extends across the river as
a sheet, and dips about one metre per kilometre to the north.
At Coral Rapids, 3 km downstream from Sextant Rapids,
another lamprophyric sill (about 19 m thick) is exposed on the
west bank of the Abitibi River and extends along the contact
between the Sextant Formation and Moose River Formation. In
outcrop, the lamprophyre is a grey, fine-crystalline rock, with
visible phlogopite. In thin section, the lamprophyre consists of phenocrysts of olivine, radiating fibrous zeolites in a very
fine-crystalline felted groundmass of melilite, magnetite, and
other unidentifiable minerals (Bennett et ai. 1967).
3. 4 Geology of the Moose River Basin Area
Two intracratonic sedimentary basins, the Hudson Bay Basin and the Moose River Basin, on land, constitute an area called the
Hudson Bay Lowland (Figure 3. 1). The Cape Henrietta Maria Arch separates the two basins: the Hudson Bay Basin (approximately
800,000 square kilometres) to the north and the Moose River Basin
40 (approximately 100,000 square kilometres) to the south. The
Moose River Basin occupies the physiographic land area termed the
James Bay Lowland (Figure 3. 1).
3. 4. 1 Paleozoic Geology
1) Ordovician
The first sign of Paleozoic transgression in Hudson Bay
Lowland appeared in the Upper Ordovician (Trentonian) time and is represented by the Churchill River Group and the Red Head Rapids
Formation (Fig. 3. 2). Deposition of sandy, basal clastic rocks took place directly over an irregular surface developed on
Precambrian granitic rocks. The distribution and thickness of these basal elastics within the Moose River Basin is not well defined. The presence of Ordovician units is largely inferred from subsurface records, which indicate that they may to be restricted to the western and northern margins of the Moose River
Basin (Map 1) (Norris 1986, Sanford 1987).
In ascending order, Ordovician strata of the Churchill River
Group and Red Head Rapids Formation, consist of dolomitic limestone with iron-rich dolostone, and microcrystalline dolostone with thin beds of anhydrite. These lithologies probably represent a minor marine transgression from the north west over the Cape Henrietta Maria Arch. A maximum thickness of
80 m has been recorded for these units by Sanford et al, (1968).
41 2) Silurian
Rocks of Silurian age are present in both the subsurface and
in surface exposures. The units present include the Severn
River, Ekwan River, and Attawapiskat Formations, as well as the
informal lower and middle members of the Kenogami River Formation
(Fig. 3.2). The Severn River and Ekwan River Formations are only inferred to be present in the subsurface. The Severn River
Formation consists of various lithologies predominantly limestone, dolomitic limestone and dolostone. The Ekwan River
Formation consists of a well-bedded, skeletal and pelletoidal limestone and dolostone, whereas the Attawapiskat Formation (a lateral equivalent of the Ekwan Formation) consists of biohermal/ reefal carbonates.
The Kenogami River Formation (which straddles the Silurian-
Devonian boundary) consists of three informal members as follows:
- upper member: microcrystalline, brown and tan dolostone, with dolostone breccia (11-33 m in thickness); - middle member: red and green, gypsiferous mudstone, and dolostone (145-168 m in thickness); - lower member: fine-crystalline to microcrystalline dolostone with minor anhydrite (23-53 m in thickness).
Contacts between the members are gradational. During late
Niagaran/Cayugan times, depositional patterns and sedimentary environments appear to have changed drastically. The lower and middle members of the Kenogami River Formation indicate a restriction of the basin with deposition of gypsiferous dolostones of subtidal and inter-tidal origin (Sanford and Norris
1973). Further restrictions, along with possible adjacent uplift, resulted in a sedimentary section consisting of
42 siltstone, sandstone, mudstone, gypsum and dolostone (middle
member). The Kenogami River Formation (the lower and middle mem
bers) is the only Silurian unit that is reasonably widespread in
occurrence in the Moose River Basin, whereas the other units
outcrop predominantly along the western margin of the basin and
form the youngest strata continuously exposed across the Cape
Henrietta Maria Arch (Norris 1986, Sanford 1987).
For most of Ordovician and Silurian time, the Cape Henrietta
Maria Arch area was possibly contiguous with the Hudson Bay
Basin, and it was not until the late Silurian that the sediments
became more restricted in nature within the Moose River Basin,
because of greater prominence of the Cape Henrietta Maria Arch.
3) Devonian
Devonian age rocks constitute most of the Paleozoic
stratigraphic sequence in the Moose River Basin (approximately
400 m) and are represented by the following units (in ascending
stratigraphic order): the upper member of the Kenogami Formation,
and the Sextant, Stooping River, Kwataboahegan, Moose River,
Murray Island, Williams Island, and the Long Rapids Formations
(Fig. 3.2). All but the Sextant and Long Rapids Formations are marine carbonate units with significant evaporites present in the
Moose River Formation and shales in the Williams Island Formation.
The first strata deposited by a transgressing sea were of
Gedinnian age. This is represented by the upper member of the
Kenogami River Formation and consists of pelletal and oolitic
43 limestone and dolostone (Sanford and Norris 1975). These are
succeeded in the west and north by limestone with varying amounts
of sandstone, siltstone and chert of the Stooping River Formation
(Stoakes 1975),
The Sextant Formation consists mainly of reddish arkosic
sandstone, but also includes varicoloured conglomerate, siltstone
and mudstone, with a maximum thickness of about 90 m. It is
present along the southern margin of the Moose River Basin and
laterally wedges northward into and is overlain by marine
carbonate beds of the Stooping River Formation. The Sextant
Formation is usually considered to be a continental clastic unit,
although Stoakes (1975; 1978) argues that it may consist of
reworked coastal sediments.
The Stooping River Formation (correlative with the Schoharie^
Bois Blanc and lower Onondaga Formations in the Appalachian
Basin), consists of nodular to thin-bedded cherty limestone with
minor dolomitic limestone and dolostone (Sanford and Norris
1975). It varies from 50 to 140 m in thickness and is disconformably overlain by the Kwataboahegan Formation.
The Kwataboahegan Formation consists of up to 30 m of massive to thick-bedded biohermal and biostromal limestones. The name, Kwataboahegan Formation, was introduced and defined by
Sanford et al. (1968) to replace Martison's (1953) Upper Abitibi
River Formation (Fig. 3.4). The biohermal-biostromal nature of the Kwataboahegan Formation appears to be associated with topo graphic highs on the underlying Precambrian basement rocks. Away
44 from these topographic highs, the unit is thinner bedded and bituminous. Generally, the unit is very fossiliferous with corals, stromatoporoids, brachiopods and other invertebrates.
The fossil assemblages are similar to faunas found in the
Schoharie, Bois Blanc, Onondaga Formations of the Appalachian
Basin and similar to those of the Detroit River Group in the
Michigan Basin (Sanford and Norris 1975).
The Moose River Formation consists of a non-fossiliferous brecciated limestone and dolostone, with gypsum beds and minor anhydrite. The name Moose River Formation was originally introduced by Dyer (1928a) but removed by Martison (1953) in favour of the term Middle Abitibi River Formation. Sanford et al. (1968) and Sanford and Norris (1975) eliminated the Middle
Abitibi River Formation and resurrected the term Moose River
Formation (see Figure 3.4). The lithologies present in this formation reflect a regressive sea level phase, where the previously open marine platform conditions became restricted and environments conducive to evaporitic deposition were developed.
The maximum thickness of this unit can reach 50 m. The Moose
River Formation is disconformably overlain by the Murray Island
Formation, a banded sequence of calcareous dolostone, limestone, and argillaceous limestone. The limestones represent a return to open marine conditions. The brachiopod assemblage found in this formation suggests it is stratigraphically equivalent to the
Onondaga Formation in the Appalachian Basin and the Dundee
Formation in the Michigan Basin (Telford 1989). The Murray
45
Island Formation was first defined by Sanford et al. (1968).
Previous workers had assigned these strata to part of either the
Moose River Formation or Martison's Abitibi River Formation. The maximum thickness of this unit is approximately 15 m.
The Murray Island Formation is disconformably overlain by the Williams Island Formation which Kindle (1924) described as a sequence of shales and carbonates exposed around Williams Island on the Abitibi River. The unit was divided into two informal members by Sanford and Norris (1975). The lower member is dominated by grey shale with soft sandstone, gypsiferous shale, siltstone, sandstone, soft limestone and brecciated limestone
(35-50 m in thickness). The upper member is a thin-bedded, argillaceous limestone and calcareous shale, dolomitic limestone, oolitic limestone, brecciated, vuggy limestone, and dolostone
(30-45 m in thickness). The fossil assemblages found in the
Williams Island Formation are very similar to those found in the
Traverse and Hamilton Groups of the Appalachian Basin (New York
State) and Michigan Basin (southwestern Ontario) which have been dated as upper Middle Devonian (Givetian) (Norris 1986).
The upper contact of the Williams Island Formation with the
Long Rapids Formation is observed on the east bank of the Abitibi
River at Williams Island. The contact is sharp and disconformable. The Long Rapids Formation is the youngest
Devonian unit present in the Moose River Basin and consists of interbedded brown-black shales, green-grey mudstones and shales, and carbonate nodules and beds. This formation is correlative to
47 the Kettle Point Formation in southern Ontario (Russell 1985) and
other Upper Devonian black shale units in eastern North America
(i. e. the New Albany and Chattanooga Shales: Cluff 1980, Kepferle
and Roen 1981, Broadhead et al. 1982, Bezys and Risk 1986, Bezys
1987, 1989).
The Long Rapids Formation was first introduced as the Long
Rapids Shale by Savage and Van Tuyl (1919) for a sequence of
Upper Devonian shales exposed along the Abitibi River near Long
Rapids and Williams Island. The average thickness of the unit is
approximately 30 m (Sanford and Norris 1975), but toward the
eastern margin of the Moose River Basin, thicknesses of
approximately 80 m have been reported (in the Onakawana A & B
Drillholes). Dyer and Crozier (1933a) subdivided the unit into
three informal members when they logged the Onakawana A Drillhole
(lower, middle, and upper members). The lower member (up to 37 m
thick) consists of green-grey mudstone and shale, alternating with fissile black shale and frequent concretionary carbonate layers. The middle member (up to 30 m thick) is a black fissile shale while the upper member (up to 20 m thick) is a poorly
consolidated green-grey clay and grey shale. The upper contact to Mesozoic strata is not sharp. See Bezys and Risk (1986) and
Bezys (1987) for further details on the Long Rapids Formation.
After the Devonian, it appears the entire basin was uplifted and exposed to an extensive period of erosion and weathering.
Most of the Paleozoic cover of the Precambrian Shield was in part or in whole removed. Evidence of seaway connections with the
48 Michigan, Appalachian, and Williston Basins was lost, with only
small Paleozoic outliers, such as those at Lake Timiskaming
(Ontario), Waswanipi and Clearwater (Quebec), bearing evidence to
the one time more extensive nature of the Paleozoic seas.
3. 4. 2. Mesozoic Geology
Mesozoic strata are represented by two units in the Moose
River Basin; the Middle Jurassic Mistuskwia Beds and the Lower
Cretaceous Mattagami Formation. The Mistuskwia Beds consist of
unconsolidated calcareous clays and sands with minor gravel beds.
These appear to be restricted to the south-central portion of the
basin. This unit has only been identified in drill core samples
by palynologic analyses (see Telford et ai. 1975, Telford and
Verma 1982) and thus is not identified on the geology map of the
Moose River Basin located in the back pocket.
The Mattagami Formation consists of unconsolidated clays,
sands, gravels, and lignite. A considerable amount of
exploration has been associated with the lignite horizons in the
central portion of the Moose River Basin (see maps in back pocket). The formation is interpreted to be the product of deposition in a highly constructive, possibly anastomosed,
segment of a major river system which drained an extensive tract of the Canadian Shield (Try et ai. 1984, Telford and Long 1986).
Further details are provided in Section 4. 0.
49 3. 4. 3 Quaternary Geology
A sequence of Quaternary glacial and glaciolacustrine
deposits, as well as Recent marine clays, peat, and muskeg
blanket the Paleozoic and Mesozoic units in the Moose River
Basin. The thickness of Quaternary material is variable but can
reach 200 metres. Identification of the Quaternary/Cretaceous
contact can be difficult because of the unconsolidated nature of
the Cretaceous and Quaternary strata.
The Quaternary geology of the Moose River Basin was poorly
known until recent publications on the area by Skinner (1973) and
Shilts (1986) were completed. Skinner reported the presence of
at least five distinct till sheets separated by non-glacial and
interglacial sediments as follows (from youngest to oldest):
- late- and post- glacial glaciolacustrine, marine, and
terrestrial units
- Cochrane (Kipling) Till
- Friday Creek non-glacial sediments
- Adam (Matheson) Till
- interglacial Missinaibi Formation
- Till III
- intertill sediments II-III
- Till II
- Intertill sediments I-II
- Till I
The three pre-Missinaibi Formation tills, which recorded oscillations of a restricted ice margin, were deposited by ice
50 advancing from the northeast. The glaciolacustrine sediments which separate the tills exhibit south trending paleocurrent indicators, suggesting blockage of the natural drainage to the north.
Till III is overlain by the Missinaibi Formation, an interglacial sequence of marine and fluvial strata containing minor peat horizons. This formation is overlain by the Adam
(Matheson) Till, the Friday Creek non-glacial sediments, and the
Cochrane (Kipling) Till. These units are, in turn, overlain by
Recent glaciolacustrine and marine sediments (deposited in Lake
Barlow-Ojibway and the Tyrrell Sea, respectively). Isostatic rebound of the land in the Moose River Basin and the subsequent retreat of the sea left behind an extensive series of stranded beach ridges which parallel the paleoshotelines of Hudson Bay.
Following isostatic rebound, extensive peat bogs developed in flat areas, with spruce forests confined to better drained areas along river banks.
51 4. 0 MESOZOIC LITHOSTRATIGRAPHY
by D. G. F. Long
4. 1 Introduction
As mentioned in section 3, the Moose River Basin contains only a thin veneer of Mesozoic strata. This rests unconformably to disconformably on a subdued topographic surface developed on
Devonian carbonates and elastics. The oldest strata consist of poorly consolidated vari-coloured calcareous claystone, sandstone and minor conglomerate of Middle Jurassic age. These beds, known as the Mistuslcwia Beds (Telford et al. 1975, Norris 1977, Telford
1982), are only known from the subsurface in the northwestern part of the basin (Figure 4. 1, Maps 2 and 3). The poorly consolidated kaolinitic mudrocks, silica sands, minor conglomerates and lignite of the overlying Lower Cretaceous
Mattagami Formation (Dyer 1928a, b) are more extensive, yet exposure is poor because of the extensive cover of Quaternary and
Recent strata.
Exposures are limited to small outcrops along the banks of the Mattagami, Missinaibi and Abitibi Rivers and their tribu taries. Most of these are of a temporary nature in that they are generated by the active diapiric rise of hydroplastic mudrocks in the form of valley bulge structures (Winder and Long 1983, Fyfe et ai. 1983) and are soon obscured by slumping or removed by recent fluvial activity. The most extensive exposures of the
Mattagami Formation are found in the southern part of the Moose
52
River Basin, along Adam Creek, a tributary of the Mattagami River which acts as a diversion channel for the Long Rapids hydro dam.
The purpose of this section is to outline the lithostrati- graphy of the Mistuskwia Beds and the Mattagami Formation and to expand on prior environmental interpretations presented in papers by Hopkins and Sweet (1976), Price (1978), Winder et al, (1982),
Long et al. (1982), Fyfe et al. (1983), Murray et al. (1984), Try et al, (1984), Try (1984), and Winder et al, (1985). Interpre tations in this section are based on surface exposures and examination of logs from the numerous drillholes sunk in the area since 1929 and core from holes drilled between 1981 and 1984.
4. 2 Mistuskwia Beds
4. 2. 1 Distribution and Lithology
Strata of Middle Jurassic (early Bajocian) age were first reported from the Moose River Basin following palynological analysis of samples from two drillholes (OGS-75-02 and OGS-75-03) in the northwest portion of the Mesozoic basin (Figure 4. 1)
(Telford et al. 1975, Norris 1977, 1982). These strata, informally termed the Mistuskwia Beds (Telford et al. 1975,
Telford 1982) have since been identified in a third hole (OGS-84-
04) located about 15 km further to the northwest (Watts, Griffis, and McOuat Ltd. 1984a, Norris and Zippi 1986). Try (1984) suggested, based on lithological grounds, that Jurassic strata may be present in a fourth hole, OGS-83-08 at Schlievert Lake.
54 Norris and Zippi (1986) have since identified Quaternary palymorphs down to the 150 m level in this hole.
The Mistuskwia Beds, in holes OGS-75-02, 75-03 and 84-04 are dominated by vari-coloured (grey, green, brown and red) massive
or weakly laminated calcareous claystone, with thin beds of
nonlithified grey to white, fine- to medium-grained calcareous
quartz sand (Telford 1982). The basal 2 m of OGS-75-02 is a
conglomerate with abundant limestone fragments, small pyrite
concretions, reddish sandstone fragments, quartz chert and volcanic pebbles, set in a sandy, silty matrix (Figure 4. 2).
Hamblin (1982) noted that the sands from the Mistuskwia Beds are typically well-sorted quartz arenite, with a minor clay matrix and well-rounded, high sphericity grains, including limestone and Precambrian granules. He suggested that the heavy mineral assemblage while low in abundance, could be used to differentiate these sands from overlying Cretaceous and
Quaternary sands. The granular, very-coarse sand and small pebble conglomerate at the 150-153.4 m level of OGS-83-08 (Figure
4. 2) resemble the conglomerates in OGS-75-02, in that they contain clasts of limestone and red and black chert (Try 1984, p.133). The absence of metavolcanic clasts and the presence of red, brown and grey claystones with ped textures, and a solution collapse breccia, below this unit, indicates that the sand is best interpreted as Cretaceous or (reworked) Quaternary.
55
4. 2. 2 Stratigraphy and Depositional Environment
The stratigraphy of boreholes containing Middle Jurassic strata is shown in Figure 4. 2. Hole OGS-83-08 is shown for comparison. Direct correlation between holes is not possible because of the lack of distinctive marker horizons. The base of the sequence is known only from hole OGS-75-02, where conglomerates lie with a sharp disconformity on Middle Devonian limestone of the Williams Island Formation. The other two holes did not reach the base of the Jurassic sequence, hence the maximum reported thickness of the unit is the incomplete 19.4 m section in OGS-75-03. In all three holes the upper contact of the Mistuskwia Beds with either Quaternary glacial sediments or the Lower Cretaceous Mattagami Formation is sharp and disconformable.
Hamblin (1982) suggested that the Mistuskwia Beds are predominantly lacustrine in origin. This is supported by the abundance of coniferous pollen in these beds (Norris 1982, Norris and Zippi this volume) and the apparent progradational sequence in OGS-75-03, in which vari-coloured clays below the 124 m level are succeeded by mudstones with thin, fine- to coarse-grained sand laminae and then medium- to very fine-grained sands.
Absence of distinct lamination in the mudstones may indicate that the lake was not stratified. The conglomerates at the base of
OGS-75-02 may be of fluvial or nearshore lacustrine in origin.
The overlying sequence of sands contains thin laminae of green
57 mudstone and may reflect deposition in a nearshore, prodeltaic setting.
4. 3 Mattagami Formation
4. 3. 1 Distribution and Lithology
In the Moose River Basin, poorly consolidated silica sands, kaolinitic mudstones, minor conglomerates and lignites underlie an area of approximately 7, 000 km^ (Fig. 4.1, Maps 2 and 3).
Equivalent strata have been recognized in Quebec (Remick et ai.
1963) along the banks of the Lower Missiscabi River (51"00'N,
49*05'W), in Manitoba (Williams 1948) at a locality 56 km southwest of Churchill, and in Ontario, as karst fill in Cargill
Township (Norris 1982, Norris and Zippi this volume) and along the banks of the Kabinakagami River at Limestone Rapids
(50*01'03-N, 84*01'OS-W) roughly 58 km west of Cretaceous strata in the Moose Eliver Basin (J. A. Richards, personal communication to J. Springer 1985).
Lignite, silica sand and kaolinite were first reported from the Moose River Basin in the latter half of the 19th century
(Bell 1877, Borron 1891). At first all of the lignite occurrences were thought to be of Quaternary age and were not distinguished from interglacial peats now referred to as the
Forest Peat Member of the Quaternary Missinaibi Formation
(Skinner 1973, Verma 1982a). Keele (1920) was the first to demonstrate that lignite bearing strata in the area were of pre-
Quaternary age, and suggested that they be named the Mattagami
58 series. The name was later relegated to formational status by
Dyer (1928a-b).
Exposure of the Mattagami Formation is extremely poor
because of the extensive cover of Quaternary and Recent strata.
Much of the existing stratigraphic data have been obtained
through subsurface exploration for lignite, kaolin and silica
sand (Vos 1978, 1982, Try 1984). Maximum known thickness of the
formation is only 166 m (Try et ai. 1984). The thickness of the
formation is highly variable as a result of the local highs on
the underlying Paleozoic and Precambrian surface, combined with
erosion at the base of the Quaternary (see Section 2). Bedding
dips in the subsurface strata are shallow to flat-lying and may
reflect simple compaction over the bedrock topography. Bedding
dips in outcrop exposures (up to 70') are more irregular, with
strikes parallel to the river banks. Winder and Long (1983) and
Fyfe et al, (1983) suggest that this can be related to the
emplacement of most surface exposures by the hydroplastic rise of
mudrocks of the Mattagami Formation in the form of valley bulge structures.
Try et ai. (1984) suggested that the bulk of the Mattagami
Formation is composed of grey, black, white, yellow and red mudrocks, with lesser amounts of poorly consolidated silica sand, lignite and gravel. They suggested that nine major lithofacies can be recognized and related to specific depositional settings
(Table 4. 1). In addition. Try et al, (1984), recognized local breccia zones within the Paleozoic bedrock which they interpreted
59 as karst fill and solution collapse breccias that had formed prior to and locally coeval with deposition of the Mattagami
Formation. Details of individual facies are given in Try et al.
(1984) and in Table 4. 1. The distribution of the facies in the subsurface is shown on Map 3.
1) STACKED SAND AND GRAVEL units are a common component of the
Mattagami Formation, especially in the area west of the Grand
Rapids Arch (Figure 4. 1, Map 3). The sandstones are typically white, massive, flat bedded or planar cross stratified, well- sorted to moderately well-sorted, medium- to very coarse-grained
(kaolinitic) quartz arenite. They occur in composite units from
2 to 30 m thick, in association with minor massive to plane- bedded, well-sorted to very-well sorted, granule to large pebble conglomerate in composite beds up to 3 m thick. While most of the sands and conglomerate are unconsolodated, some are held together by diagenetic cements, including pyrite, limonite and less commonly dolomite or siderite.
Clasts in the conglomerates are predominantly well-rounded vein quartz, with some red, grey and black chert and rare carbonate rock fragments. Kaolinite is present in the matrix of the conglomerates and replacing pebbles of feldspar. Sands are predominantly quartzose and can be distinguished from those of the Mistuslcwia Beds by their greater angularity, and higher relative abundance of hornblend, pink garnet, magnetite, ilmenite and rutile in the heavy mineral fraction (Hamblin 1982). Most
60 TABLE 4. 1: Lithology and interpretation of rocks in the Mattagami Formation (after Try et al. 1984, Try 1984).
LITHOLOGY DEPOSITIONAL SETTING
1: sandstone, with minor con channel fill, channel lag glomerate (massive, flat bedded, cross-bedded)
2: sandstone, with siltstone levee and splay deposits and minor organics (flat to wavy bedded)
3: pebbly mudstone (massive) crevasse splay and flood deposits
4: black, organic-rich mudrocks floodplain - swamp; organic (massive, flat to wavy accumulation exceeds oxidation laminated)
5: grey mudstone (massive, some floodplain - marsh; limited roots and woody lignite oxidation, periodic exposure preserved)
6: white, yellow and red floodplain with extensive mudstone (massive, with oxidation, prolonged exposure, pedogenic textures) leaching and soil formation
7: laminated mudstone lake or pond deposits
8: dull, muddy lignite lowland marsh, meadow or swamp, floodplain swamp
9: woody lignite forest swamp developed on channel margin swamps and raised bogs
samples contain some kaolin, both coating grains and replacing labile grains (feldspar). Carbonate rock fragments and minor grains of black, grey and red chert are present locally.
61 2) SANDSTONE WITH SILT AND MINOR ORGANICS form a minor component
of the Mattagami Formation, and are found adjacent to channel
fill sand and gravel, and interbedded with black, grey and white
mudstones in outcrops along Adam Creek (Try 1984) and in core
(Figures 4. 3, 4. 4, 4. 5 and 4, 6). They consist of flat and wavy laminated, very fine-grained sand and silt units with locally
abundant concentrations of transported and In situ organic material, including tree roots in growth position (Try et al.
1984, figure 8). In places they appear to be cyclic on a small scale and may contain abundant plant roots.
3) PEBBLY MUDSTONE and massive muddy sand units are rare in the
Mattagami Formation. They occur in units 0. 1 to 1 m thick, which may be adjacent to channel sands, as at Adam Creek (Try et ai.
1984, figure 4), associated with thin laminated sands and mudstones, as in holes OEC-82-13 and -14, or associated with organic-rich mudstone and woody lignite, as in hole OEC-82-05
(Try 1984). Clasts in the conglomerate are similar to those in the stacked sand and gravel units, but may include greater abundances or reworked mudstone pebbles. Detrital woody material is common.
62
4, 5, 6, 7) MUDSTONES form over fifty percent of the Mattagami
Formation. Black, organic-rich mudstone is found in intimate
association with lignite in surface and subsurface sections, and
is found in association with fine- and very fine-grained sands
and silts, and pebbly mudstones adjacent to channel fill structures at Adam Creek. It may be massive or flat to wavy laminated, with or without well developed traces of plant roots.
Grey mudstone tends to be more massive that the black, organic-
rich varieties. It may contain carbonized plant roots and in places well developed soil textures and abundant slickensides.
White, yellow and red mudstones tend to be massive, with well developed soil textures and abundant slickensides.
Laminated mudstones are comparatively rare in the Mattagami
Formation. Where preserved, they contain abundant well preserved plant material along the bedding planes. Petrographic studies of the mudrocks indicate that they consist mainly of kaolinite and quartz (Price 1978), with local concentrations of illite and montmorillonite (Vos 1982). Murray et ai. (1984) confirm the high kaolinite content of most of the mudstones, but show that illite may be locally more important in dark grey and some red and brown varieties. Murray et ai. (1984) also indicate the presence of siderite in samples or red-grey mottled clay, and hematite in pink and mottled dark grey to purple-red clays.
8, 9) LIGNITE in the Mattagami Formation is of two main types: woody coal, consisting of flattened carbonized tree trunks and
70 branches in a dull organic-rich matrix; and dull coals,
containing less woody material and in places considerable mud.
Dull coals are most commonly associated with mud-rich parts of
the Mattagami Formation. Woody coals are more common and they
occur in close association with channel fill sand, and fine sand
and silt units, as well as in mud-rich sections (see Figure 4. 7).
Petrographic analysis of woody material in coals from Adam
Creek and Onakawana by Winder et al, (1985) and Brown et al,
(1986), indicates a wide variety of maceral types. Huminites, which represent mummified woody tissues, bark and leaves (Bustin
et al, 1983) are well preserved and represent 78% of the material
examined by Brown et al. (1986). The uncompressed character of pores in the Humanites suggests only minor compaction during diagenesis. Liptinites, which represent resistant resins, spore exines, cuticles and algae, form 6% of the observed macerals; and inertites, which represent chemically degraded, and burnt plant material, form 14%. Examination of woody coals using scanning
electron microscopy (Winder et al, 1983, Brown et al. 1986) indicates that gypsum occurs in close association with iron sulphide. Pyrite and marcasite occur as replacement pseudomorphs of woody material and as individual crystals infilling wood spores.
Breccias are present at the base of the Mattagami Formation in holes OEC-81-07 and OGS-83-04 and -08 and within the underlying
Paleozoic bedrock in other locations (Figure 4. 1) including holes
OEC-82-02, -03, and -07, OGS-83-04, 84-02 and -08. They
71
typically consist of cobbles and pebbles of local bedrock, encapsulated in a soft matrix of vari-coloured mud or sand, with occasional lignite fragments.
4. 4 Geochemistry
Prior to 1983, studies on the geochemistry of the Mattagami
Formation concentrated on the calorific value of the lignites, and the quartz content of the sands. Vos (1978, 1982) examined the bulk geochemistry of the -20 to +100 mesh fraction of sand
from the Mattagami Formation and indicated a modal silica (SiOg) content of 70 to 97%; with 1 to 6% AlgOj and 0. 2 to 1. 8% Fepy
Bulk analysis of lignite from the Onakawana Field by Vos
(1982) and Graham and Morgan (1985), indicate that it contains
from 46 to 48% moisture, 9 to 10% ash, 20 to 22% volatiles, 21 to
2 3% fixed carbon and 0. 5% sulphur. Similar results were obtained by Winder et al. (1985) for samples from the spoil heap at
Onakawana and exposures along Adam Creek. The thermal value of the Onakawana lignites is estimated at 12. 2MJ/Kg by Vos (1982) and 11. 2MJ/Kg by Graham and Morgan (1985).
Brown et al. (1986) used scanning electron microscopy, linked to energy dispersive spectroscopy, to confirm that iron sulphide
(pyrite/marcasite) is the dominant mineral contaminant of coals from the Mattagami Formation. They found that iron sulphides occurred in three main forms: as veinlets filling cracks; as crystals in pores; and as replacement pseudomorphs of woody structures. Minor concentrations of clays were also detected.
75 Fyfe et ai. (1983), Murray (1984), Murray et ai. (1984), Van der Flier (1985), Van der Flier and Fyfe (1985) and Brown et ai.
(1986), provide multi-element whole rock analysis of mudstone, sandstone, gravel and lignite form the Mattagami Formation. They note that uranium occurs at approximately crustal abundance, but is highly variable (as are the Th/U ratios) with respect to individual lithologies (Table 4.2). The highest average values of uranium and thorium are in black and grey mudstones, with low values in coarse sand and gravel, and in woody lignite. Murray et al. (1984) and Van der Flier and Fyfe (1985), noted that in individual stratigraphic sections, uranium is concentrated above and below coal seams. They suggest that mobilized uranium (>6 ppm) was reduced and fixed in carbonaceous sediments before it could reach the coal.
Murray et ai. (1984) and Brown et ai. (1986), noted that lignite from the Mattagami Formation is low in sulphur and heavy metals, and does not contain high concentrations of environ mentally undesirable elements such as fluorine, arsenic, cadmium, lead or uranium. Murray et al. (1984) and Fyfe et ai. (1983) both indicate that significant enrichment or gold, platinum and palladium occur in some samples, and they imply that these elements may be recoverable from fly ash if the lignites were used for thermal power.
Winder et al. (1985) applied X-ray photo electron spectroscopy
(XPS or ESCA) to lignite dull and woody samples from the
Mattagami Formation. They found comparatively little mineral
76 matter in two samples of woody lignite, and indicated that the
carbon content could be classified into four groups (0-C=0, C=0,
C-0 and {CH^}^) using the C Is spectra, with a ratio of approxi
mately 1: 1: 5: 30. The relatively high Ca and S contents of the woody samples (confirmed using X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy),
combined with an Al/Si ratio which exceeds that of alumino-
silicate minerals, was taken by Winder et al. (1985) to indicate
the presence of an alumina-rich mineral such as gibbsite.
Analysis of two dull lignite samples by Winder et al. (1985) indicates C=0, C-0 and (CH2)„ in ratios of 1: 3: 15, with no detectable 0-C=0. These samples also contain chemically bonded nitrogen of pyrrole-type and pyridine-type, and sulphur as sulphate, sulphite and sulphide. The presence of gibbsite is indicated by Al/Si ratios, and has been confirmed using electron microscopy.
77 TABLE 4. 2: Average (and range) of uranium and thorium content (parts per million) in the Mattagami Formation, based on analyses in Fyfe et ai. (1983) and Murray et ai. (1984), Lithologies as in Table 4.1.
u Th Th/U n
1: sand, gravel 1, 2 4. 8 5. 1 13 0. 2-4. 3 1. 2-12 2. 8-9. 6
2: sand, silt 5. 1 9. 1 1. 9 10 0, 9-10. 4 9, 1-14 1. 2-2. 2
4: black 5. 1 10. 6 2. 1 9 mudstone 2. 3-7. 5 6. 3-14 1. 5-2. 8
5: grey mudstone 4. 8 11. 3 2, 8 13 2. 3-7. 5 2. 9-17 1. 8-5. 5
6: white, 4. 6 10. 9 . 2. 8 21 yellow, red 0. 4-8. 4 1. 6-15 1. 8-4. 9 mudstone
7: laminated 2. 2 7. 4 3. 4 3 mudstone 1. 9-2. 7 6. 9-8. 1 2. 6-3. 9
8: dull, muddy 3. 6 6. 8 1. 9 2 lignite 1. 3-6. 0 2. 5-11
9: woody lignite 1. 3 2. 7 2. 1 9 0. 1-3. 2 0. 1-7. 3 1. 4-2. 9
wood (spars) 1. 4 1. 8 3. 3 12 0. 1-2. 2 0. 1-5. 6 0. 02-17
78 4. 5 Depositional Environment
Try et aJ. (1984) suggest that the Mattagami Formation represents the products of deposition from low gradient, high- constructive (anastomosed) rivers, in which bank stability was maintained by dense vegetation (Figure 4.3). Specific interpretation of individual sections and core are given in Try et al. (1984), Try (1984), and Figures 4.4 to 4.7.
Stacked sand and gravel sequences are interpreted as channel fill and channel lag deposits. The absence of marked vertical change of grain size in these deposits, indicates that flow conditions remained relatively constant during periods of sediment accumulation. Minor grain size changes (Figure 4. 6, 135 m level, and Try et al. (1984, figure 5) may reflect channel aggradation during rising and falling flood stages (cf. Smith
1983). The general absence of distinct fining upwards sequences and epsilon cross stratification indicates that point bars, normally considered a characteristic feature of high-sinuosity meandering streams, were not common in the river system responsible for deposition of the Mattagami Formation. The sharp upper and lower contacts of many of the stacked sand sequences indicates that channel formation was avulsion controlled. The width of individual channels is difficult to ascertain from subsurface data. Channels exposed in Adam Creek are between 10 and 50 m wide (Try et ai. 1984). Channel and associated levee deposits in the Onakawana area may be 500 to 600 m across (cf.
Graham and Morgan 1985, figure 4).
79 Flat to wavy laminated fine sands and silts are interpreted as levee and splay deposits. Proximal splay deposits tend to be thick (up to 2 m) and may contain local thin gravel units with abundant mudstone clasts. Climbing ripples indicate rapid loss of flow competence in channel marginal settings. Distal splay deposits tend to be thin and associated with abundant mudstones.
Local coarsening- and fining-upwards sequences (Figure 4,5: 96,
113, 118 and 124 m levels; Figure 4.6: 104, 105.5, 117, 125,
131.5, 154 and 156 m levels) may reflect flood cycles or splay progradation and abandonment.
Pebbly mudstones and muddy sand units have been observed in outcrop in close association with splay deposits, directly adjacent to a major channel (Try et ai. 1984, figure 9). This, combined with their poor sorting, indicates a flood origin.
Mudstones of the Mattagami Formation are interpreted as overbank deposits. Black, organic-rich mudrocks are interpreted as floodplain and levee marginal marsh or swamp deposits in which the rate or organic accumulation exceeded the rate of decomposition by oxidation and bacterial activity. Grey muds accumulated in floodplain marsh and meadow environments where the water table was at or near surface during part of the year, but was periodically lowered to a level which permitted oxidation of most of the contained organic material. The presence of abundant slickensides in these (and other) mudstones is usually taken to be associated with a fluctuating water table (Try 1984).
80 Shrinkage and cracking in dry intervals, followed by swelling in wet periods may cause blocks of soil to slide past each other to produce grooved and polished surfaces (Donahue et ai. 1958,
Fitzpatrick 1980). Periodic drying is also indicated by local
"mottled" colour patterns (patches of pink and red) in the grey mudstones (Fitzpatrick 1980, Try 1984). White, yellow and red mudrocks are interpreted as floodplain meadow and ephemeral pond deposits which accumulated in areas where the water table was periodically lowered to such a level that most of the organic material was removed by oxidation. Soil textures are well developed, especially in the red and yellow varieties as peds of soil are outlined by thin laminae of clay washed into place during eluviation of the soils,
Fitzpatrick (1980) indicates that red and yellow soils are commonly developed in tropical and subtropical settings. The bright red and yellow colours in some of the mudrocks from the
Mattagami Formation are probably a result of oxidation of iron minerals under strongly aerobic conditions. These bright colours, combined with the presence of abundant kaolinite and minor gibbsite in the soils (Fyfe et al, 1983, Murray et al.
1984) indicate formation under intense weathering conditions.
This is confirmed by the geochemical characteristics of these mudrocks which, according to Brown et ai. (1986), are analogous to those found in soils and surface sediments in the modern
Amazon and Niger Basins.
81 Laminated mudrocks were deposited in small ponds and lakes on
the floodplain surface. Minor colour variations may reflect
seasonal or temporal variations in the character of sediment
input or biogenic activity (Try et ai. 1984). Norris and Zippi
(1986, and in Section 5.0) indicate the presence of low diversity
Dinocyst assemblages in laminated mudstones in holes OGS-84-06
(Figure 4.5, 115 and 121 m levels), OGS-84-08 (Figure 4.6) and
OGS Onakawana B Drillhole (Figure 4.7). While Dinocysts are
normally indicate marine or brackish water conditions, there is
no evidence of direct marine influence in the Mattagami
Formation. Paleogeographic reconstructions by Telford and Long
(1986) indicate that the contemporary shoreline was at least 600
km away, hence if these cysts are not of freshwater origin, they
may have been introduced into floodpond lakes by aeolian activity
or on the feet of migratory birds.
Woody lignites are interpreted as the products of deposition in forest swamps in levee marginal and floodplain settings (Try
et ai. 1984). Proximity to channel margins is indicated by spatial relationships with levee and splay deposits, and occasional presence of coarse sand laminae. Dull lignites are interpreted as products of organic accumulation in wetland swamp, bog or marsh meadow settings which could support only limited tree and shrub growth. The locally high mud content of these coals is consistent with frequent inundation of wetland areas by mud-laden flood waters in anastomosed stream environments (Smith and Smith 1980, Smith 1983).
82 Breccias at the base of the Mattagami Formation and in underlying Paleozoic strata are interpreted as karst fill and solution collapse features, based on the angularity and low diversity of clast types present. The abundance of breccias on paleotopographic highs (Figure 4. 1) indicates that these formed prior to and during deposition of the Mattagami Formation.
4.6 Stratigraphy
Lithology appears to be of little use in establishing stratigraphic correlations within the Mattagami Formation as most lithologies have only limited lateral continuity. Hamblin (1982) suggested that petrography could be used to allow recognition of two zones (or phases) in the area west of the Grand Rapids High.
He suggested that the lower phase (as seen in OGS-75-06) is characterized by medium-grained quartzose sands which are slightly more calcareous and less kaolinitic than finer sands in his upper phase. Try et al. (1984) and Try (1984) found that petrography of sand units was of little to no use in establishing stratigraphic relationships within the Mattagami Formation, as the calcareous nature of some of the sands can be directly related to grain size and the proximity of local bedrock highs.
Apparent differences in heavy mineral assemblages and kaolin content of Hamblin's (1982) upper and lower phases may be related to diagenetic conditions.
Palynological analysis offers the best solution to stratigraphic problems in the Moose River Basin, despite the
83 observations by Norris and Dobell (1980) and Richardson and
Norris (1981) that at least some of the pollen are strongly facies controlled. The evolution and application of palynological zones to the Mattagami Formation is considered in
Section 5. 0 by Norris and Zippi.
Zippi and Norris (1985) used information from 36 drillholes to subdivide the Mattagami Formation into four concurrent range and interval zones. They suggest plots of the areal distribution of the zones may indicate that fluvial sedimentation began in the eastern part of the basin and migrated westward during the
Albian. Norris and Zippi (Section 5) propose a six-fold subdivision of the Mattagami Formation, which covers an interval from Early Albian or Aptian, to Late Albian times. Too few holes have been examined to allow a comprehensive stratigraphic reconstruction of the basin (Map 3). Some general lithostrati- graphic trends are apparent: coal deposits and black and grey mudstones are concentrated in the lower four zones, while white and red mudstones are most abundant in the upper zones. This may indicate a temporal trend towards development of better drainage, or greater fluctuation of ground water levels as the system evolved.
84 4. 7 Conclusions
Mesozoic strata in the Moose River Basin are all of non-marine
origin. The Middle Jurassic Mistuskwia Beds accumulated in a
non-stratified lake whose position (and subsequent preservation)
may have been influenced by stress induced uplift on the
Fraserdale and Mid-Continental - Cape Henrietta Maria Arch (cf.
Sanford et ai. 1985, Telford and Long 1986). Albian strata of
the Mattagami Formation accumulated on a low gradient floodplain
characterized by extensive wetlands with stable channel
(anastomosed) rivers. Coal accumulation in levee marginal
settings and in protected floodplain settings adjacent to bedrock
highs (Long et ai. 1982, Try et ai. 1984). While the presence of
Dinoflagellate cysts may be considered indicative of a marine
influence, this is not supported by the geochemistry of the coals
(Murray et al, 1984), the sedimentology of the host strata, or
paleogeographic reconstruction of the craton interior (Telford
and Long 1986).
The abundance of quartz and kaolinite, and the presence of
minor gibbsite in the sediments from the Mattagami Formation,
combined with the low heavy metal content of the coals, indicate
that the floodplain and drainage basin were subject to intense or prolonged weathering in a tropical to subtropical environment
(Murray et ai. 1984, Winder et al, 1985, Brown et al, 1986).
Prolonged, rather intense weathering, may be indicated by the
relatively thin paleosoils below the Mattagami Formation and the presence of a few highly altered feldspar grains in the channel
85 sands. Kaolinite tends to form during diagenesis in the presence of acid, oxygenated pore waters, especially in the presence of organic acids (Burley et ai. 1985). The embayed character of many of the quartz grains (Price 1978) also indicates weathering by acid pore water in the presence of organic acids (Clearly and
Conolly 1972). Kaolin in the channel sands is thus considered a product of direct precipitation from pore waters and in situ alteration of detrital feldspar.
Winder et ai. (1985) and Brown et ai. (1986) suggest that the survival of large pore spaces in the coal macerals is indicative of a lack of burial and compaction. Minor enrichment of calcium and magnesium in the coals could be explained by rising groundwater, released from underlying Paleozoic carbonates
(Murray et ai. 1984), or by flushing by CaCOj charged groundwater during the Quaternary (Winder et ai. 1985; Brown et ai. 1986).
86 5. 0 MESOZOIC PALYNOSTRATIGRAPHY OP THE MOOSE RIVER BASIN
by G. Norris and P. Zippi
5. 1 General Introduction
Palynostratigraphy has proved to be an indispensable approach to correlation and environmental interpretation of subsurface rocks, particularly those deposited in non-marine and marginal marine basins where other fossils are rare or absent.
Early work on the Mesozoic of the Moose River Basin focused on the identification of sporadically distributed and rather rare plant fossils. For example. Bell (1928) reported leaf floras from two localities along the Mattagami River comprising
Nllssonla, Pityophyllum, Brachyphyllum, Cladophlebis, and
Onchyopsis. The age, however, could not be indicated more precisely than Late Jurassic or Early Cretaceous. Precise age determinations of these strata were not possible until introduction of modern palynologic methods of study of the
Mattagami Formation about a decade age.
The most intensive work in the Moose River Basin has been done on the Cretaceous Mattagami Formation, in part reflecting the availability of material and in part reflecting the keen interest in delimiting both the timing and areal extent of the lignite accumulation in the basin. Less intensive work has been done on the Jurassic sequence, which was only discovered during routine examination of drillhole material in the northern portion of the basin. The Jurassic palynofloras will be considered first. Mid-
87 Cretaceous palynofloras from the Mattagami Formation will be
treated subsequently.
5. 2 Mistuskwia Beds
5. 2. 1 Palynofloral Descriptions
A thin group of vari-coloured clays with thinner unconsoli
dated quartz sand horizons yielded a Jurassic microflora and was
termed the Mistuskwia Beds by Telford et ai. (1975). Norris
(1977) listed the spore-pollen flora from the Mistuskwia Beds penetrated in Ontario Division of Mines drillhole 75-03 in the
northwest part of the Moose River Basin and this article
illustrated some species.
The spore-pollen flora from the Mistuslcwia Beds in drillhole
75-03 consists of the following:
Deltoidospora hall el Miner Cyathldites minor Couper Leptolepidites paverus Levet-Carette Apiculatisporis sp. Klukisporites sp. Krauselisporites sp. Araucariacites aus trails Cooks on Spheripollenites psilatus Couper Taxodiaceaepollenites hiatus (Potonie) Kremp Perinopollenites elatoides Couper Perinopollenites sp. Callialasporites dampieri (Balme) Dev Callialasporites crenulatus Pocock Callialasporites trilobatus (Balme) Dev Callialasporites sp. cf. C. segmentatus (Balme) Dev Callialasporites turbatus (Balme) Schulz Cerebropollenites carlylensis Pocock Podocarpidites convolutus Pocock Alisporites bilateral is Rouse Pteruchipollenites microsaccus Couper Classopollis minor Pocock Classopollis sp. Exesipollenites tumulus Balme
88 The dominant elements in the flora comprise bisaccate species and those belonging to Calllalasporites and Cerebropollenites,
Norris and Zippi (1984) noted the following flora from
Jurassic strata in OGS drillhole 84-04 between 113. 1 and 116. 1 m:
Deltoidospora juncta (Kara-Murza) Singh Biretisporites potoniaei Delcourt and Sprumont Deltoidospora hallei Miner Cyathidites minor Couper Todisporites major Couper Leptolepidites paverus Levet-Carette Araucariacites australis Cookson Spheripollenites scabratus Couper Perinopollenites sp. Calllalasporites dampieri (Balme) Dev Calllalasporites turbatus (Balme) Schulz Podocarpidites convolutus Pocock Alisporites bilateral is Rouse Classopollis torosus (Reissinger) Balme Classopollis minor Pocock Classopollis sp. Exesipollenites tumulus Balme
Although these assemblages are less diverse than those described by Norris (1977), they have many species in common and are probably closely correlative.
5. 2. 2 Age and Correlation
Certain species appear to exhibit restricted ranges as discussed by Norris (1977), notably Classopollis minor (Middle
Jurassic but higher occurrences are probably due to recycling),
Leptolepidites paverus (Middle Jurassic), Calllalasporites turbatus (Lower-Middle Jurassic), Cerebropollenites carlylensis
(Middle to Upper Jurassic), Podocarpidites convolutus (Middle to
Upper Jurassic), C. crenulatus (Middle to Upper Jurassic), S. scabratus (Middle Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous), C. dampieri (Lower
89 Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous), C. trilobatus (Lower Jurassic to
Lower Cretaceous). Overlapping ranges of these species indicate a probable Middle Jurassic age.
Jurassic palynofloras from the subsurface western plains of
Canada have been described by Pocock (1970, 1972). Palynofloras from the Upper Gravelbourg Formation (believed by Pocock to be
Lower Bajocian), and the Shaunavon and Sawtooth Formations
(believed to be Bajocian or Bathonian or possibly as high as
Callovian according to Brooke and Braun (1972) of southern
Saskatchewan and southern Alberta) show the closest resemblances to those from the Mistuskwia Beds. However, the floras from western Canada are generally more diverse with a greater number of pteridophyte species and different dominants. Middle Jurassic assemblages from Europe (Couper 1958, Thusu and Vigran 1976,
Vigran and Thusu 1975) do not closely compare with palynofloras from the Mistuskwia Beds.
5. 3 Mattagami Formation
5. 3. 1 Previous Palynological Work
Paleobotanical and palynological contributions on the
Cretaceous of the Moose River Basin prior to 1975 are summarized by Hopkins and Sweet (1976). Price (1978), Norris (1982), and
Verma (1982a) and will not be considered in further detail. In general, this early work established that plant macrofossils and plant microfossils (spores and pollen) occur in the Mattagami
90 Formation but contributed little to precise zonation and correlation.
Starting in the mid-1970s, several papers established detailed zonations and age determinations. The study by Hopkins and Sweet
(1976) focused on the Operation Winisk boreholes drilled by the
Geological Survey of Canada in the Onakawana Lignite Field, in the eastern part of the basin. The various papers by Norris and co-workers discussed below, all related to work sponsored by the
Ontario Geological Survey and its forerunner, the Ontario
Division of Mines. These papers examined both outcrop and bore holes drilled across a large area covered provincial government agencies.
Hopkins and Sweet (1976) studied representative samples from 4 boreholes and a lignite pit in the Onakawana area. These samples were selected as representative of various lignite and shale horizons spanning a total of approximately 42. 7 m. A list of miospores was provided indicating the presence of 36 species.
However, detailed distributions of miospores were not provided;
Hopkins and Sweet noted that the spores and pollen did not show significant variation in distribution or frequency from top to bottom of the boreholes. They noted, however, on the basis of comparison with palynofloras from elsewhere in North America, that the assemblages appeared to indicate most probably an Early
Albian age. Their work focused on the use of megaspores for paleoenvironmental interpretations and correlation. They demonstrated that 10 megaspore species showed distinctive
91 distributions in the lithofacies examined, and could be used to
correlate two of the lignite seams in the Onakawana Field. On
the basis of megaspore distribution, they suggested that the
shale beneath the lowest lignite in the boreholes is lacustrine.
The lowest lignite represents very high water table, swamp and
marsh conditions. The superadjacent shale and overlying lignite
represent more terrestrial conditions with a lowered water table.
The highest shale represents a return to wetter conditions,
according to Hopkins and Sweet (ibid).
Norris (1982) re-examined the spore-pollen identifications
made by Hoplcins and Sweet (1976) and noted some errors. He
suggested that their assemblages, rather than indicating an Early
Mbian age, in fact are typical of Middle Albian. This point
will be discussed in more detail later.
The first detailed palynological study of an outcrop of
elastics from the Mattagami Formation was reported by Norris et
ai. (1976) on a sample from near the southern boundary of the
Moose River Basin near Long Rapids on the Mattagami River in
Kipling Township (Map 1,3). Outcrop in the basin is generally
poor and confined to river banks and river bottoms. The studied
sample was part of a reconnaissance focused on the possibility of utilizing palynostratigraphic methods for lignite and clastic
correlations in the basin. The sample had been collected some years previously by M. Vos as part of an assessment of industrial mineral potential by the Ontario Division of Mines. It proved to yield a relatively rich flora which indicated unequivocally that
92 the Mattagami Formation (presumably the upper part) is at least
partially Late Albian.
This Long Rapids flora contains 25 species, a mixture of
gymnosperms, pteridosperms, pteridophytes, and minor
contributions of early angiosperms. Bisaccate gymnosperms and
pteridosperms are dominant. Many of the species reported from
the Long Rapids proved subsequently to occur commonly from other
horizons in the Mattagami Formation. However, it is significant
that the following are present:
Pristinuspollenites inchoatus (Pierce) B. D. Tschudy Rugubivesiculites reductus Pierce Cupullferoldaepollenites parvulus (Groot and Penny) Dettmann Retitricolpites vulgaris Pierce Tricolpites sagax Norris
These species do not occur below the Middle Albian, are common
in the Upper Albian, and may occur higher in the Upper
Cretaceous. Futhermore, the following pteridophyte species do not
occur elsewhere in North America above the Albian:
Trilohospories minor Pocock Appendicisporites problematicus (Burger) Singh Costatoperforosporites foveolatus Deak Distaltriangulisporites perplexus (Singh) Singh Cicatricosisporites angustus Singh Ornamentifera baculata Singh
The presence of early dicotyledenous pollen (C. parvulus, R.
vulgaris, T. sagax) suggests a correlation with late Middle
Albian or Late Albian assemblages from Alberta (Norris 1967,
Singh 1971, Norris et ai. 1975), Maryland (Brenner 1963, Doyle
and Robbins 1977), and Oklahoma (Hedlund and Norris 1968, 1986).
Systematic study of the palynostratigraphy of the subsurface
Mattagami Formation commenced in 1979 when Norris (1979) outlined
93 an approach for intra-basinal and regional correlation using
spores and pollen. The first phase of this was concerned with
boreholes drilled by the Ontario Geological Survey. Publication
by Norris of preliminary zonation of the 1975 series of boreholes
was delayed until 1982. Meanwhile, papers were published by
Norris and Dobell (1980), Richardson and Norris (1981), Fensome
and Norris (1982), and Legault and Norris (1982) on various other
boreholes drilled at later dates. Discussion of these papers will
be by date of examination rather than date of publication to
emphasize the evolution of biostratigraphic concepts.
The 1975 series of drillholes were located along a winter road
running approximately north-south along the west-central part of the basin (Map 2). Some of the boreholes were barren, while some intersected only Quaternary and/or Jurassic. Ontario Geological
Survey drillholes 75-05 and -06 were notable in providing for the
first time some detailed information on the succession of spore- pollen floras in the Mattagami Formation near the southern margin of the Moose River Basin. These floras were documented by Norris
(1982) and compared with previous work on the Long Rapids flora
(Norris et ai. 1976), the Onakawana Field (Hopkins and Sweet
1976), and some unpublished work by Norris on the Onakawana lignite.
The boreholes studied by Norris (1982) were represented by cuttings samples rather than core samples. Therefore, he adopted a zonal scheme which utilized the concept of interval zones and
94 emphasized range tops to optimize interpretation of the samples
provided.
Unfortunately the two drillholes that yielded the most diverse
assemblages exhibited a sequence of facies which in part were
unfavourable for preservation of palynomorphs over significant
intervals. Telford (1982) summarized the stratigraphy of these
holes and Hamblin (1982) provided detailed sedimentological data.
Drillhole OGS-75-05 intersected Cretaceous between 22. 9 m and
85.3 m (total depth of hole). Palynomorph recovery was
exceptionally good between 38. 1 and 53. 9 m, but the core above
and below these horizons was barren, principally due to oxidized
red clay facies dominating the sections here.
Drillhole OGS-75-06 intersected Cretaceous between 15. 2 m and
approximately 137.2 m (the contact with the underlying Devonian is uncertain). Moderately good recovery occurred at two horizons: one at the top of the Cretaceous section between 15.2
and 54. 9 m, but represented by only two samples, and the other between 121.9 and 134.4 m near the bottom of the section. The intervening barren interval was dominated by white, quartzose sandstones, in part calcareous with high sphericity of individual clasts. The palyniferous intervals, in contrast, were drab grey, brown and black facies, mostly fine-grained and lignitic.
While these two drillholes, on which the early interpretations were based (in spite of their late publication), yielded abundant new information on species present, they reflect only a sporadic sampling of the section. Furthermore, they were represented by
95 cuttings samples which tend to yield reliable biostratigraphic information only on the tops of ranges.
Working with the available assemblages, Norris (1982) recognized a tripartite zonal scheme in these two drillholes.
The lowest zone occurs in drillhole 75-06 at the base of the section and was termed the Reticulatasporites-
Concavissimlsporites Interval Zone. This zone is characterized by a large number of species as listed in Norris (1982, p. 99-
101), although it should be noted that Norris erroneously included in this list four species which occur only at the top of the drillhole, some 70. 1 m higher, namely, Aequitriradites spinulOBus (Cookson and Dettmann), Sestrosporites pseudoalveolatus (Couper) Dettmann, Cedripites cf. cretaceous
Pocock, and Eucommiidites minor (Groot and Penny). It is noteworthy that no angiosperms occur, but that 32 species occurring in the lower assemblage are confined to this interval as follows:
Gleicheniidites senonicus Ross Vitrei 8 porites pallidus (Reis singer) Pot oni e Cicatricosisporites cf. ludbrooki Dettmann 494 Concavissimisporites-1 492 Pteruchipollenites-2 Cicatricosisporites hughesi Dettmann Appendicisporites problematicus Cica tri cos is pori t es orbi culatus Klukisporites cf. pseudoreticulatus Cicatricosisporites austral is (Cooks on) Pot oni e Osmundacidites wellmannii Couper 497 Tripartina-1 Podocarpidites multesimus (Bolchovitina) Pocock Todisporites major Couper Baculatis porites comaumensis (Cooks on) Pot oni e Platysaccus megasaccus Brenner 441 Cica tri cos is pori tes-\
96 Schlzosporis reticulatus Cookson and Dettmann Trilobosporites cf. marylandensis Brenner Trlporoletes radiatuB (Dettmann) Playford Converrucoslsporltes variverrucatus (Couper) Norris Trilobosporites tribotrys Dettmann Cicatricosisporites cf. A. exilioides (Maljavkina) Concavissimisporites punctatus (Delcourt and Sprumont) Concavissimisporites cf. punctatus (Delcourt and Sprumont) Appendicisporites erdtmanii Pocock Cedripites canadensis Pocock Podocarpidites radiatus Brenner Cyathidites australis Couper Foraminisporis aysmmetricus (Cookson and Dettmann) Dettmann Cycadopites nitidus (Balme) Cedripites cretaceous Pocock
Subsequent work on additional drillholes proved some of the
range tops were of local significance only. Nevertheless, these
species with restricted ranges did delimit assemblages in the
Concavissimisporites - Reticulatasporites Zone which
characterized the lower part of the Mattagami Formation in the
southern part of the basin.
The second zone recognized by Norris (1982) was termed the
Tigrisporites - Trilobosporites humilis Interval Zone. This
occurs between 43. 6 and 53. 9 m in drillhole 75-05. The subjacent
interval to total depth at approximately 85, 3 m is reddened and
barren of spores and pollen. Therefore, the relationship to the putatively lower Concavissmisporites - Reticulatasporites is not
known. In drillhole 75-05, this latter zone is overlain by a thick barren interval of white quartzose sandstone (approximately
61 m thick). Only very rare specimens of Alisporites bilateralis,
Taxodiaceaepollenites hiatus, and Stereisporites antiquasporites occur here (these have no precise stratigraphic significance) together with one occurrence of Trilobosporites trioreticulosus.
97 These suggest little more than an Early Cretaceous age and cannot
be used for precise zonations.
The Tigrisporites - Trilobosporites humilis interval zone
occurs in drillhole 75-05 between 43. 6 and 53. 9 m and is
characterized by local range tops of 54 species as listed by
Norris (1982, p.101-103). Many of these ranges, however, are
based on single occurrences in extremely rich samples. Extension
of ranges is therefore not known. Norris (1982) noted some
similarities with Middle Albian palynofloras from western and
eastern North America and Europe. The first appearance of
dicotyledonous angiosperms is noted in this interval, further
strengthening close comparisons with Middle Albian.
The third zone {Impardecispora purverulenta -
Cicatricosisporites annulatus Interval Zone) recognized by Norris
(1982) was noted in drillhole 75-05 between 37.5 and 40.2 m. It was distinguished from the subjacent Tigrisporites -
Trilobosporites humilis zone by the entrance of 32 new species not known below (see list in Norris 1982, p. 103-104). Many of these species, however, are also single occurrences and require further work on other sections to characterize their total ranges in the basin. A number of close similarities with late Middle
Albian or Late Albian assemblages from the Atlantic Coastal and
Gulf Coastal Plains of North America were noted by Norris. He also commented on the possible extension of ranges upwards by comparison with the putatively higher Long Rapids flora described by Norris et al. (1976) from the east bank of the Mattagami River
98 in Kipling Township. However, the Impardecispora purverulenta -
Cicatricosisporites annulatus Interval Zone in drillhole 75-05 is overlain by a barren interval, largely comprising reddened sands and clays, which precluded detailed comparisons with higher assemblages.
Norris and Dobell (1980) reported on a reconnaissance of drillhole series CX3S-78-01 to 78-08 along the southern margin of the basin in an approximate east-west line. They used the interval zones of Norris (1982) to determine if this scheme was valid over this series of drillholes. Since some of the ranges used by Norris (1982) proved to require modification in the light of this study, they renamed the zones: Zone I, Zone II, and Zone
III from top to bottom, respectively. For example, they demonstrated that the eponymous species of the lowest zone,
Reticulatasporites sp. , appears to range upwards into higher zones. They suggested the presence of Zone I near the bottom of drillhole 78-01 on the basis of the presence of this species and others believed to characterize the zone - such as Microreticu- latisporites uniformis - but subsequent work has proved this to be wrong. Rather, the bottom of Zone I probably correlates with relatively higher horizons in the Mattagami Formation elsewhere.
However, Norris and Dobell (1980) did draw attention to the possibility that distribution of certain palynomorphs may be sensitive to facies. For example, Reticulatasporites sp. may be a lacustrine algal cyst rather than representing a miospore derived from terrestrial embryophytes. Zone II described by
99 Norris and Dobell (1980) appeared to be well represented in the
78 series of drillholes. They noted that apart from range tops of the eponymous species of the Tigris pori tes-Trilobos porites
humilis zone, a number of other species also disappeared in this interval including Ae qui tri radiates spinu-losus,
Appendicisporites bilateralis. A, spinosus, and A, crimensis.
Zone III was reported by Norris and Dobell (1980) only from near the top of drillhole 78-01, although tricolpate dicotyledonous angiosperm pollen at 147.8 - 148.4 m in drillhole
78-03 may indicate the base of Zone III. In general. Zone III was recognized on the basis of eponymous range tops of
Impardecispora purverulenta and Cicatricosisporites annulatus, together with range tops of Camarazo-nosporites insignis,
Lycopodi urns porites marginatus, Clavatipollenites hughesi,
Eucommiidites minor, Platysaccus megasaccus and other pteridophyte species. The interval containing angiosperm pollen from outcrop near Long Rapids on the Mattagami River described by
Norris et al. (1976) was termed Zone IV by Norris and Dobell
(1980). Norris and Dobell (1980) indicated that these angiosperms may be from higher strata than those in drillhole 78-
03, although they recognized the problems of precise correlation engendered by the extensive development of reddened and unpaly- niferous fine-grained elastics interbedded with unpalyniferous white quartzose sands above and below this occurrence.
A more detailed study was initiated by Richardson and Norris
(1981) to provide a working standard for palynostratigraphy in
100 the basin. This study focused on a single drillhole (78-01)
previously studied in a reconnaissance manner by Norris and
Dobell (1980). Assemblages were grouped into three Oppel Zones
termed A, B, and C with the middle zone being further divided
into two subzones, Bl and B2. Zone A corresponded to Interval
Zone I and the lower part of Interval Zone II of Norris and
Dobell (1980). Zone Bl occupied the remaining upper part of Zone
II, with the upper zone B2 approximately coinciding with Zone
III. Zone C of Richardson and Norris (1981) occupied the
uppermost interval examined and was represented by only one
sample with a restricted flora.
Zone A of Richardson and Norris (1981) occupies an interval
with thick carbonaceous clays and 0. 6 - 1. 2 m thick lignite beds
which are underlain by orange and red silts barren of
palynomorphs (135.0-150.3 m). The lowest samples examined at
158. 5-159. 1 m contain several long-ranging Cretaceous species but
also 496 Gleicheniidites-l, 492 Pteruc/3ipo2JeJ3ites-2.
Mi crore ticulatis pori tes uni formi 8, Di8 tal tri an gul i 8 pori t es
perplexus, 450 Pristinuspollenite8-2, and Reticulatas pori tes sp. ,
suggesting an Albian age. They listed 21 species confined to
Zone A, including Rugubivesiculites rugo8us, Trilohospori tes
humulis, Cicatricosisporites auritus, and several species of
Pristii3uspoiJejiites, Phyllocladidites, and Impardecispora in
association with Reticulataspora sp. . The latter had hitherto
been believed to be restricted to the lower Mattagami Formation, whilst the former species and genera were previously thought to
101 be confined to the upper part of the Mattagami Formation. This cast doubt on the validity of the tripartite zonation erected by
Norris (1982) and used in reconnaissance studies by Norris and
Dobell (1980).
Gleicheniidites senonicus was noted to be the dominant species in Zone A, whilst Inaperturopollenltes dubius (also referred to a
Taxodiaceaepollenites hiatus in other reports) is dominant in the succeeding two zones. Zone B contained a series or range tops which allowed Richardson and Norris (1981) to recognize two subzones in this part of the succession characterized by fining- upwards cycles culminating in thin lignite beds. Subzone Bl contains 18 range tops including, notably, those of
Appendicisporites unicus (Markova) Singh, Pristinuspollenites sp.
450 (Norris), Rouseia sp. 446 (Norris) and several species of
Cicatricosisporites, Subzone B2 is characterized by 37 range tops including several species of Cicatricosisporites,
Appendicisporites (notably A, spinosus Pocock), Phyllocladidities inchoatus (Pierce) Norris, and Cupullferoldaepollenites sp. 447
(Norris). Richardson and Norris (1981) noted that there appeared to be some facies control on palynofloral assemblages in Zone B, with carbonaceous clays tending to be characterized by diverse schizeacean spores, whilst diverse gymnosperm pollen tends to occur in mottled, silty clay facies.
Zone C, recognized by Richardson and Norris (1981), occurs at the top of the section and is overlain by barren Cretaceous gravel. Four species were listed as confined to this zone, but
102 it is unlikely that these are particularly significant
stratigraphically because of the severe truncation of ranges by
the Pleistocene unconformity as noted by Richardson and Norris.
Legault and Norris (1982) studied recycling phenomena on the
east side of the Moose River Basin near Onakawana in the OGS 1977
series of drillholes. They described Devonian and Cretaceous
assemblages and discussed multiple recycling of Devonian into
Cretaceous, and recycled Cretaceous and Devonian into Quaternary.
The assemblages recovered from the Mattagami Formation were
listed and included 33 species of pteridophytes and gymnosperms,
but completely lacked angiosperm pollen. Legault and Norris
indicated, therefore, that these assemblages most likely
correlated with the Reticulasporites - Concavissimispori tes
Interval Zone of Norris (1982).
No further palynostratigraphic work has been published on the
Mattagami Formation since 1982. However, Fensome and Norris
(1982) made a detailed study of terrestrial miospore distribution
in selected wells from the Scotian Shelf in an attempt to provide
rigorous controls on ranges of species in the Moose River Basin.
Their study focused on Aptian, Albian, and Cenomanian intervals with marine dinoflagellate control in three exploratory wells penetrating the mid-Cretaceous marginal marine elastics in off shore Nova Scotia. This work will be discussed in more detail in a later section on age determinations of the Mattagami Formation.
103 5. 3. 2 Zonation
The following lists summarize the zones in order from highest
to lowest and will be discussed in more detail below.
The earlier palynostratigraphic zonal concepts for the
Mattagami Formation evolved over a period of years as summarized
in the previous section. In general, the shortcomings of these
zones were the result of an incomplete data base. The first
zones to be formulated (Norris 1982) were based on drillholes
represented by cuttings samples and very few, if any, cores.
Consequently, successive-disappearance interval zones were
initially used. Subsequently, as more core became available, it
was possible to use both tops and bottoms of ranges of species,
and to formulate zonal concepts based on overlapping ranges (the
Oppel Zones of Hedberg 1976). Furthermore, the earlier studies
were based on parts of the section which tended to represent the
middle and upper portions of the Mattagami Formation. In effect,
it would seem that these earlier attempts were based mostly on
ranges that, at least in part, are the result of facies or
environmental factors, and less on evolutionary-extinction patterns or regional phytogeographical migrations.
With the expansion of drilling programs by the Ontario
Geological Survey, high quality cored sections became available during 1983 and 1984 which have allowed a substantial improvement in the formulation of zonal concepts, and a clarification and rationalization of earlier zones and their mutual relationships.
The Mattagami Formation, as developed in the southwest portion of
104 the Moose River Basin near the Pivabiska Ridge (see Fig. 3. 3), is particularly noteworthy in this respect, with the most important
OGS drillhole being 84-08, which penetrated the most complete section of the Mattagami Formation to date.
The more recent drillholes have been the subject of further reconnaissance palynologic studies as reported by Norris and
Zippi (1984, 1985a, b). A considerable more detailed study is underway by P. Zippi as part of a doctoral dissertation at the
University of Toronto. Meanwhile, the following section summarizes zonal concepts as based on data presented in Map 3 and held on file at the Geological Survey. It is the intent of the
OGS to release all bore hole data relating to this report in a separate Open File Report. Some aspects of this zonation necessarily remain unresolved pending completion of detailed taxonomic and stratigraphic studies. The detailed taxonomy, probably will yield further information on short-ranging species and will clarify the relationships on distribution of species in an open nomenclature. Meanwhile, the zonation summarized below appears to be applicable in the drillholes examined to date. The zones are based on overlapping ranges, appearances, and disappearance of species. Abundance of spores and pollen is not considered a reliable criterion for stratigraphic correlation, rather reflecting ecological, sedimentary, or environmental conditions. Abundances, however, may ultimately prove useful for correlation of individual lignite seams if these are the result of widespread, basin-wide environmental change (e. g. see Hopkins
105 and Sweet 1976 for a discussion of abundances of megaspores in
Mattagami Formation lignite seams). Zones are summarized from
top (Zone 6) to bottom (Zone 2) of sections of Mattagami
Formation available for palynostratigraphic study at this time.
Occurrences of zones of individual sections are summarized in the
next sections (5. 3. 3 and 5. 3. 4).
Zone 6 Summary:
The zone is marked at or near the bottom by the bases of
ranges of the following species:
152 Rucfubivesiculites reductus Pierce 30 Pristlnuspollenites incboatus (Pierce) Tschudy 171 Rugubivesiculites rugosus Pierce 925 Cicatricosisporites cf. C. dorogensis 920 Verrucosis pori tes cf. V. rotundus Singh 455 Marattisporites-1 450 Pristinuspollenites-l 152 Camarazonos pori tes ins ignis Norris
Characteristic species occurring in this zone include:
902 Arcellites reticulatus (Cookson and Dettmann) Potter 904 Ephedripites virgianus Brenner 191 Tri lobos pori tes cf. purverulentus Dettmann 472 Klukisporites foveolatus Pocock 461 Psilatriletes radiatus Brenner 154 Appendicisporites bilateralis Singh 188 Appendicisporites problematicus (Burger) Singh 447 Cupuliferoipollenites-2 159 Appendicis pori tes bifurcatus Singh 441 Cicatri cos is porites-1 (occurs lower in 84-08) 29 Cicatricosisporites august us Singh 914 Matonisporites crassiangulatus (Balme) Dettmann 476 Perotjriietes-1 918 Podocarpidites canadensis Pocock 919 P. naumovae 922 P. herbs ti Burger 425 Araucariacites-l 446 Rouseia-\ 477 Baculatis pori tes'1 438 Inaperturopollenites-3 481 Converrucosisporites platyverrucosus Brenner 924 Cicatricosisporites imbricatus (Markova) Singh 168 Ornamentifera baculata Singh
106 71 Todis porites major Couper 424 Distaltriangulisporites-1 426 Parvisaccites-1 15 Cicatricosisporites annulatus Archangels Id. & Gamer ro (also in Zone 5) 428 Pristinupollenites-1 433 Densoisporites circumundulatus (Brenner) Playford 54 Distaltriangulisporites perplexus (Singh) Singh 434 Tri 1 obospori tes-1 442 Fungus-l 445 Dens ois pori tes cf. D. perinatus Couper 453 Neoraistrickia-1 164 Cupuliferoidaepollenites minutus (Brenner) Singh 157 Cupuliferoidaepollenites parvulus (Graat and Penny) Dettmann 165 Tri col pi tes sagax Norris 209 Reti tri col pi tes vulgaris Pierce 451 Lycopodiacidites cf. L. expansus Singh 452 Trilobosporites crass us Brenner 196 Trilobosporites minor Pocock 454 TuberOSisporites-I 456 Aratrisporites ocellatus Hedlund and Norris 457 Crybelosporites brenneri Playford 490 Monosulcites chaloneri Brenner (ranges down to Zone 4) 464 Distaltriangulisporites irregularis Singh 469 Cooksonites-1 493 Rouseia cf. R. geranioides (Couper) 481 Converrucosisporites cf. C. platyverrucosus Brenner 483 Baculatis pori tes-2 482 Uvaespori tes-1 484 Tigrisporites sp. B. 210 Reti cul is pori tes elongatus Singh 181 Cicatricosisporites subrotundus (also in Zone 5) Brenner 489 Coptospora-1 486 IPri 2 obos pori tes-2 488 A ppendi ci s pori tes cri mensi s 167 Klukisporites foveolatus Pocock 205 Chomotriletes fragilis Pocock
Zone 5 Summary:
This zone is marked at or near the base by the bottoms of ranges of the following:
466 Appendicis pori tes spinosus Pocock 14 Lycopodi umspori tes marginatus Singh 18 Tigrisporites scurrandus Norris 462 Lophotriletes babsae (Brenner) Singh 872 Annulispora-1 463 Tigrisporites reti cul atus Singh 216 Appendicisporites unicus (Markova) Singh 163 Appendicisporites matesovai (Bolchovitina) Norris
107 Characteristic species occurring and mostly confined to this zone include:
883 Liliacidltes crassatus Singh 176 Clavatipollenites minutus Brenner 898 Retitricolpites georgensis Brenner 157 CupvLliferoidaepollenites parvulus (Groot and Penny) Dettmann (also in Zone 8) 682 Parvisaccites amplus Brenner 899 Podocarpidites potomacensis Brenner 15 Cicatricosisporites annulatus Archangelski & Gamerro (also in Zone 6) 181 Cicatricosisporites suhrotundus Brenner (also in Zone 3 & 6) 490 Monosulcites chaloneri Brenner (also in Zone 6 and may occur in top of Zone 4)
Dinoflagellate assemblages occur at the base of Zone 5 in drillhole 84-06, but will be discussed in a later section.
Zone 4 Summary:
This zone is marked at the base by the extinction of 882
Retitricolpites prosimilis and by the bottoms of ranges of the following:
501 Trilobosporites tribotrys Dettmann 41 Rouseisporites laevigatus Pocock 209 Retitricolpites vulgaris Pierce 900 Retitriletes-1 903 Arcellites disciformis Miner
The above five species appear to be confined to Zone 4. In addition, the following species appear in this zone:
769 Fractisporites-1 161 Schlzosporis grandis Vocock 188 Appendicisporites problematicus (Burger) Singh 439 Trilobosporites cf. T. trioreticulosus Cookson & Dettmann 187 Acanthotriletes varispinosus Pocock 861 Balmeisporites-2 317 Trilobosporites cf. T, hannonicus 901 Minerisporites pterotus Singh 897 Coptospora-3 906 Matonisporites-Z 38 Aequitriradites spinulosus (Cookson & Dettmann) Cookson & Dettmann 405 Sestrosporites pseudoalveolatus (Couper) Dettmann
108 431 Appendicisporites cf. A. potomacensis Brenner
The top of Zone 4 and the base of overlying Zone 5 appears to be marked by a series of extinctions:
443 Clavatipollenites hughesi Couper 430 Exesipollenites-1 775 Retimonocolpites peroreticulatus (Brenner) Doyle 56 Deltoidospora juncta (Kara-Murza) Singh 880 Rouseisporites triangularis Pocock 176 Clavatipollenites minutus Brenner 467 Trlporoletes radiatus (Dettmann) Playford 45 Schlzosporis parvus Cookson and Dettmann 363 Trlporoletes parvus Stanley 64 Tripartina cf. T. variabilis Maljavkina 501 Trilobosporites tribotrys Dettmann 431 Appendicisporites cf. A. potomacensis Brenner 41 Rouseisporites laevigatus Pocock 188 Appendicisporites problematicus (Burger) Singh 439 Trilobosporites cf. T. trioreticulosus Cookson & Dettmann
Dinoflagellate assemblages occur in Zone 4 in drillhole 84-06, but will be discussed in a later section.
Zone 3 Summary:
The base is marked by the appearance of 882 Retitricolpites prosimilis, 176 Clavatipollenites minutus, 60 Rouseisporites reticulatus, 463 Tigrisporites reticulatus Singh, and 880 Rousei sporites triangularis Pocock.
Towards the middle of the zone, the following appear:
478 Appendicisporites cf. A. macalesteri Pocock 363 Tricolpites parvus Stanley 64 Tri parti na cf. T. variabilis Maljavkina
Zone 2 Summary:
The base of this zone is marked by the bottoms of ranges of the following:
775 Retimonocolpites peroreticulatus (Brenner) Doyle 56 Deltoidospora juncta (Kara-Murza) Singh 437 Coptospora cf. C. striata Dettmann
109 491 Trilobosporites humilis Delcourt and Sprumont 31 Lycopodiumsporites austroclavatidites (Cookson) Potonie 499 Reticulatasporites-1 186 Appendicisporites potomacensis Brenner 20 Cicatricosisporites australis (Cookson) Potonie 4 Cicatricosisporites hallei Delcourt and Sprumont 2 Taxodiaceaepollenites hiatus (Potonie) Kremp 877 Microreticulatisporites-2 154 Appendicisporites bilateralis Singh 492 Pteruchipollenites-2 504 Cedripites cf. C. cretaceus Pocock 11 Concavissimisporites punctatus (Delcourt & Sprumont) Brenner 459 Podocarpidites radiatus Brenner 318 Eucommiidites minor Groot and Penny 66 Trilobosporites cf. T. apiverrucatus Couper 50 Coronatispora valdensis (Couper) Dettmann 58 Trilobosporites trioreticulosus Cookson and Dettmann
In addition, these species are characteristic and appear progressively through the lower part of the zone:
869 Antulsporites-l 883 Liliacidltes crassatus Singh 879 iticeiiaespojrites-15 73 Marattisporites scabratus Couper 203 Taurocusporites segmentatus Stover 491 Trilobosporites humilis Delcourt and Sprumont 441 Cicatricosisporites-l 437 Coptospora cf. C. striata Dettmann 89 Foraminisporis assymmetricus (Cookson and Dettmann) Dettmann 430 Exesipollenites-1 443 Clavatipollenites hughesi Couper
48 Circulina parva Brenner
Zone 1 Summary:
This zone has not been defined because sediments underlying
Zone 2 have so far proved to be barren of palynomorphs (e.g.
150. 9 to 173. 1 m in drillhole 84-08). Cretaceous plant microfossils below this barren interval occur as infilling in karstified Devonian rocks and are apparently derived - as least in part - from Zones 3 to 5. These stratigraphically leaked assemblages are discussed in a later section.
110 5. 3. 3 Dinocyst Intervals
Dinocyst assemblages are present in three drillholes from the
Mattagami Formation. Drillholes OGS-84-06 and 84-08 are positioned 10 km apart in the southwestern corner of the Mesozoic basin. The third drillhole, Onakawana B, is situated at the eastern margin of the basin, near the Onakawana Lignite Field
(Map 1,2, Figure 1). In all cases, the dinocysts were recovered
from laminated dark grey to black, carbonaceous, silty clays and lignites.
In the southwestern drillholes, the dinocysts occur in two distinct intervals. The dinocysts appear in the upper portion of the lower laminated carbonaceous clay units and continue into the lower portions of overlying coarse-grained silts and sands (Upper
Zone 4). The dinocysts are absent throughout the remainder of the overlying coarse-grained unit and the lower portion of the next carbonaceous clay unit. The pattern is repeated for the overlying units with the dinocysts appearing above the base of the upper carbonaceous clay units and continuing into the lower portions of the second overlying sand (Lower Zone 5). The lithologic units and the concomitant dinocyst assemblages occur with similar thickness and spacing at comparable elevations, with respect to sea level, in both drillholes.
The dinocyst assemblage in Onakawana B occurs throughout an interval of laminated dark carbonaceous silty clays which are underlain by lignite and abruptly truncated above by Quaternary tills.
Ill Six types of dinocyst were tentatively identified from OGS-84-
06 and are illustrated in Plates 1 to 4.
Although dinocysts are very abundant in several samples, the
diversity of the dinocyst assemblages from any individual sampled
horizon is low. The dinocyst assemblages are predominantly
monospecific and numerically sparse compared to the preponderance
of gymnosperm pollen and pteridophyte spores.
The occurrence of dinocysts in the Mattagami Formation raises
the cjuestion of paleo-salinity. Are these sediments brackish or
marine in origin, or are the dinocysts of freshwater nature? The
Mesozoic sediments of the Moose River Basin have been described
as fully continental, fluvial deposits (Fyfe et ai. 1983, Price
1978, Try et al, 1984 and Section 4). Paleogeographic
reconstruction have depicted this location as essentially near the centre of the Albian North American continent (Williams and
Stelck 1975, Kauffman 1984, Telford and Long 1986). A freshwater
origin for the Mattagami Formation is supported by the absolute lack of marine fossils and the low diversity of dinocyst assemblages with a single dominant species. Freshwater dinoflagellates are known from sediments as old as the Paleocene of Australia (Harris 1973) and as geographically close as the
Oligocene Brandon Lignite of Vermont (Traverse 1955). Batten
(1985) and Hughes and Harding (1985) have described dinocysts from lower Cretaceous non-marine strata in southern England.
Their conclusion that the dinocysts were non-marine in origin was based on the high abundance and low diversity of dinoflagellates
112 in the horizon; association with freshwater gastropods and ostracods, and the lack of marine fossils in the non-marine horizons (including other marine dinoflagellates).
If the dinocysts that occur in the Moose River Basin are taxonomically distinct and not referable to any marine species, then it can be assumed that they have a freshwater origin.
On the other hand, tentative identifications place some of these species in taxa referable to marine or brackish water species. Since a planktonic marine organism cannot be deposited beyond the reach of marine processes, the possibility of a marine phase of sedimentation cannot be ruled out.
In either case, the discovery of dinocysts in the upper Albian sediments of the Moose River Basin is of major importance.
Currently, taxonomic and paleoecologic work is progressing to determine whether the dinocysts represent the earliest occurrence of lacustrine dinoflagellates or a brief phase of marine or brackish deposition in an otherwise entirely non-marine formation. Either outcome will be of major significance to the geology and stratigraphy of the Mesozoic Moose River Basin.
5. 3. 4 Intra-Basinal Correlation
Zone 5/6 boundary 53.9/54.3 m
75-06: Zone 2 probably below 121.9 m Possibly Zone 5 above 62.5 m
Zone 5/6 at 116. 1/117. 3 m
113 93-01; Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 61-97.2 m Zone 5 from 61-81.4 m Zone 4/5 at 81. 4 m or possibly lower at 96. 9 m Zone 4 (uncertain) from 81. 4-96. 9 m
Gross lithology: 50% dark clays, 30% sand-silt, 20% lignite
93-Q2; Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 51.2-85.3 m Zone 5 from 51. 2-76. 2 m Bottom Zone 5 at 76. 2 m Below this perhaps Zone 3 from 76.8-85.3 m Gross lithology: sand 63%, clays 24%, lignite 13% 93-Q3; Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 39.2-45.7 m Zone indeterminant
Gross lithology: sand-silt 90%, dark clays 10%
83-05: Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 94.5-112. 5 m Zone 5 94. 5-112. 5 m Zone 5 at bottom
Gross lithology: sand-silt 47%, light clays 47%, dark clays 6%
93-0^; Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 173.7-179. 8 m Zone 5 at 173. 7-179. 8 m
CretaceouGross lithologys palynomorph: sand-sils recoveret 55%, dclay fros m 4557.9-131.% 1 m Zone 5 from 57. 9-99. 1 m 93-Q7Zone ;4 from 99. 7-131. 1 m Gross lithology: sand 74%, dark clays 12%, light clays 11%, lignite 3%
84-02: Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 1 sample at 67. 7 m Restricted assemblage from any zone Gross lithology: collapse breccia composed of karstic Devonian muddy-limestone
84-04: Jurassic palynomorphs recovered from 113. 1-116. 1 m Gross lithology: calcareous grey-green clays, 100%
94-9$; Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 89.6-92. 0 m Indeterminate zones 2-6 Gross lithology: light clays and interbedded silts 73%, sands 27%
114 Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 61.0-125.3 m Zone. 6 from 61.0-85.6 m, Zone 5 from 85.9-116.1 m, and Zone 4 from 116. 1-125. 3 m Dinocyst intervals: 113.4-116.1 m; 120.1-121.3 m Gross lithology: sands 55%, dark clays 30%, light clays 16%, lignite <0. 1%
Cretaceous palynomorphs recovered from 75.0-147.2 m Zone 5 from 75. 0-120. 4 m. Zone 4 from 121. 0-142. 6 m. Zone 3 from 125.7-142.6 and Zone 2 from 143.3-147.2 m Gross lithology: dark clays 39%, light clays 30%, sands 24%, lignite 7%
5. 3. 5 Age and Regional Correlations
Age determinations for the zones are easier towards the top of
the section because more comparative studies are available near
the Albian/Cenomanian boundary compared with spore-pollen studies
on Aptian and earlier Cretaceous stages.
Zone 6 (Late Albian; possibly late Middle Albian at base):
This includes the Long Rapids flora of Norris (1982) and Zone
IV of Norris and Dobell (1980). The co-occurrence of
Pristlnuspollenites inchoatus, Rugubivesiculites reductus,
Rugubivesiculites rugosus, Camarozonosporites insignis,
Cupul i feroi daepolleni tes parvulus, Tri col pi tes sagax and
Reti tri col pi tes vulgaris indicate a correlation with the Upper
Albian floras of Alberta (Norris 1967, Singh 1971). In addition,
the presence of the megaspore Arcellites reticulatus in Zone 6 strengthens this correlation because it occurs also in Upper
Albian and Cenomanian strata of Alberta, the Canadian Arctic
Islands and southeastern Australia (Singh 1983). Norris et ai.
115 (1975) noted the occurrence of the angiosperm pollen and miospore
species listed above in association with marine dinoflagellate
assemblages in the upper part of the their Early Tricolpate Suite
and higher Cretaceous horizons in southern Alberta. Thus, this
zone at the base would be Late Albian in age or late Middle
Albian if the co-occurrence of Aratrispori tes ocellatus and
Monosul cites chaloneri is confined to this horizon as in Oklahoma
(Hedlund and Norris 1968). The age of the top of the zone is
uncertain. However, the characteristic tricolporate pollen and
angiosperm permanent tetrad noted by Singh (1975) to characterize the Albian/Cenomanian boundary are not known as yet in the Moose
River Basin, suggesting that the Cenomanian is not represented in
Zone 6. Regional phytogeographical variations in North America
close to the Albian/Cenomanian boundary are not known in detail.
It is noteworthy, however, that Fensome and Norris (1982) reported from the Cenomanian Cleistosphaeridium polypes Zone of off-shore Nova Scotia a number of species also known in Zone 5 and Zone 6, but additionally many miospore species not occurring lower. Permanent angiosperm tetrads are not present, but
Extratriporopollenites and Carpinipi tes sp. are present in the
Cenomanian but not lower in the Cretaceous of the Scotian Shelf.
These differences between eastern and western Canada angiosperm pollen floras probably reflect the floral provincialism which characterizes the Late Cretaceous of North America as documented and discussed elsewhere (e.g. Hergreen and Chlonova 1981).
116 Zone 5 (Middle Albian; possibly early Late Albian at top):
This zone is subjacent to Zone 6, the latter being at the base of either late Middle Albian or Late Albian as discussed above.
The palynofloras compare closely with those from the Upper Peace
River, Joli Fou and Viking Formations of Alberta (Norris 1967,
Singh 1971) marine units containing the late Middle Albian
Gastroplites fauna and Haplophragmoides gigas microfauna.
The zone is marked at the base by the appearance of, amongst others, Lophotriletes babsae which first appears in England at the base of the marine Middle Albian (Kemp 1968, 1970; Laing
1976). The first appearance of this species also characterizes the base of Subzone IIA of the Atlantic Coastal Plain which is believed to be basal Middle Albian (Doyle and Robbins 1977). In
Alberta, L. babsae ranges up sporadically into the late Middle
Albian basal Cadotte Member of the Peace River Formation (Singh
1971). Cicatricosisporites subrotundus was reported by Norris
(1982) to occur in strata now classified in Zone 5 and indicative of Middle and early Late Albian age. Recent work indicates that this species first occurs in Zone 3. The higher occurrences in
Zone 5 are consistent with a Middle Albian age assignment.
Fensome and Norris (1982) provided some information on distribution of terrestrial miospores in marine sediments of the
Scotian Shelf. They noted, amongst others, that Appendicisporites unicus and Tigrisporites scurrandus occur in the Albian
Spinidinium cf. S. vestiturn-Eucommiidites minor Zone of offshore eastern Canada. T. scurrandus appears to be restricted to the
117 Early Tricolpate Suite of Alberta, late Albian according to
Norris et ai. (1975), who however, noted the presence of Cauca parva in the lower part of the Early Tricolpate Suite. This dinoflagellate characterizes the lower Aptian to middle Albian interval in Europe (Alberti 1961, Davey and Verdier 1971).
Therefore, the balance of evidence suggests that Zone 5 is probably Middle Albian, with the possibility of early Late Albian at the top.
Zone 4 (early Albian):
This zone is subjacent to Zone 5 which is believed to be earliest Middle Albian at the base as discussed in the preceding section. The occurrence of angiosperm pollen, such as
Reti tri col pi tes vulgaris, Retimonocolpites peroreti cul atus,
Clavatipollenites minutus, and Tricolpites parvus indicate that this zone is late early or early Middle Albian to judge from the appearance and distribution of angiosperms in North America and
Europe (Doyle and Robbins 1977, Brenner 1976, Laing 1975, 1976,
Fensome and Norris 1982). On the basis of possible migration patterns for early angiosperms, Norris (1982) argued that angiosperm pollen might be expected to appear first in the Moose
River Basin in the medial portion of the Middle Albian, which however, is at variance with the earliest Middle Albian age for the superjacent Zone 5. Furthermore, the subjacent Zone 3, in fact, contains the earliest records of tricolpate pollen in the
Moose River Basin, namely Reti tri col pi tes prosimilis, and
118 Tricolpites parvus. Therefore, an Early Albian age assignment for
Zone 4 is more closely in accord with currently available evidence, and suggests that angiosperm floras first appeared in the Moose River Basin in the Early Albian and not later in the
Middle Albian as suggested by Norris (1982).
Megaspores in Zone 4 do not help determine precisely the age relationships - Arcellites disciformis ranges from Barremian to
Cenomanian in North America (Singh 1983), whilst Minerisporites pterotus appears to be confined to early and Middle Cenomanian in
Alberta (Singh 1983). There is little doubt that Zone 4 is pre-
Cenomanian; therefore, this record appears to extend the range of
M. pterotus downward to Early Albian.
Zone 3 (Early Albian):
This is subjacent to Early Albian Zone 4 as discussed above, and contains the earliest occurrences of tricolpate pollen which first appear in eastern North America and Europe in early Albian.
However, in western Canada, these species appear to first occur later in the record, in Middle and Upper Albian. An Early Albian age assignment is in accord with the majority of evidence.
Zone 2 (Early Albian or Aptian):
On the basis of subjacency. Zone 2 should be close to Early
Albian. However, it is noteworthy that Zone 2 contains the basal range of Liliacidltes crassatus which is confined to the Upper
Albian of Alberta (Singh 1971). Phytogeographic barriers,
119 however, may be constraining ranges in western Canada compared with the east as discussed above. On the other hand, other early
angiosperms, such as Retimonocolpites peroreticulatus and
Clavatipollenites hughesi also occur in this zone, but elsewhere in eastern and western North America and Europe range as low as
Barremian (Singh 1971). Fensome and Norris (1982) noted the
common occurrence of many miospore species in marine Aptian of the Scotian Shelf which occur in the lowest horizons of the
Mattagami Formation in the Moose River Basin; indicating the possibility of an Aptian age for lower parts of the Mattagami
Formation.
Thus, the precise age of Zone 2 is not determinable more accurately than Early Albian or Aptian in the present state of knowledge.
5. 3. 6 Paleoenvironmental Interpretations
Various lines of evidence and different techniques have produced similar paleoenvironmental interpretations of the
Mattagami Formation. Using plant microfossils. Bell (1928) characterized the depositional environment as conifer swamps and ephemeral lakes. Hopkins and Sweet (1976, p. 61) employed lithology and palynoflora to expand the paleoenvironmental reconstruction to "...a broad lowland of deposition with meandering streams, ephemeral lakes, swamps and bogs, [in which] the principal vegetation was composed of conifers, possibly dominated by the Taxodiaceae, with a rather extensive fern
120 flora. " As discussed in the previous section, Hopkins and Sweet related water table conditions to megaspore assemblages. Price
(1978) used tectonic setting and sediment characteristics to conclude that the Mattagami Formation was a non-marine, aggrading fluvial plain or upper delta plain. Try et ai. (1984) made the most detailed attempt to characterize the paleoenvironments of the Mattagami Formation. Nine distinct lithologic types were identified and interpreted in terms of depositional setting
(Table 4. 1).
Using palynofacies and lithofacies in combination, four of the nine depositional settings can be more accurately reconstructed.
The channel, levee, splay, and oxidized floodplain environments
(1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 of Try et ai. 1984) cannot be expanded upon, because the coarse-grained and light coloured oxidized lithofacies are generally, palynologically barren. Swamp, bog, marsh, meadow and lake facies are characterized by, essentially, in situ deposition of organics in very slow moving or standing water. The dark, carbonaceous fine-grained sediments of the
Mattagami Formation yield diverse, well-preserved palynofloras that can be used to reconstruct the surrounding depositional environment.
Woody lignites of facies 9 represent a bottom-land forest or wooded swamp. The palynofacies of this lithology indicates a conifer (tree) dominated wetland with subordinate pteridophyte ferns. As with modern wooded swamps, flooding would be seasonal.
121 resulting in decomposition of fragile organic particles and the concentration of wood.
Dull, muddy lignites of facies 8 represent a bog or marsh- meadow facies, characterized by pteridophytes with subordinate bryophytes and angiosperms. Similar to the modern analog, this facies would be semi-permanently flooded. This would provide a mechanism for transport of clays and muds and the preservation of organic matter.
Laminated, carbonaceous mudrocks of facies 7 were possibly deposited in a lake or pond facies. Anoxic, quiet water conditions must have persisted to preserve the high organic content and fine laminae. The palynoflora from this lithofacies is dominated by gymnosperm pollen with subordinate bryophytes, pteridophytes and notably, fresh-water algal cysts. The dinocysts discussed in the previous section also occur in the laminated mudrock facies. Fossil dinocysts generally imply brackish or marine water, and therefore may indicate a connection to a marine body of water. If this is the case, tidal current influences must have been at a minimum in order to preserve the laminated anoxic nature of the sediments. Sheltered or restricted bays and inlets may be likely environments.
Dark, organic-rich, massive mudrocks of facies 4 are interpreted as floodplain-swamp environments in which organic accumulation exceeds oxidation. Pteridophytes dominate this diverse palynoflora only slightly with gymnosperms and bryophytes present in nearly equal proportions.
122 Occasionally, coarse-grained and oxidized facies (1,2 and 5)
yield well-preserved diverse palynofloras. In many cases, the
palynoflora is produced from intraformational lignite clasts
contained in these normally unproductive lithologies.
Palynological results from lithologies with intraformational
clasts should be used with caution.
As an overview, the paleoenvironment of the Mattagami
Formation was dominated by swamps, floodplain wetlands, and small
lakes. The depositional basin was drained and flooded by low
gradient stable river channels with levees and splays. In general
the vegetation indicates accumulation under humid climates,
dominated by coniferous gymnosperms and schizaeceous
pteridophytes with associated bryophytes (Sphagnaceae) and
lycopods.
5. 3. 7 Devonian Karst Infilling
Three drillholes located near the Pivabiska Ridge, in the
southwestern portion of the Mesozoic Moose River Basin contain
stratigraphically leaked Mesozoic fossils in well developed karst
in Devonian rock. Younger spore and pollen assemblages infiltrated through fractures and solution cavities to be deposited with collapse breccias and cavity infillings. In drill hole OGS-84-08, very diverse and well preserved Cretaceous assemblages occur below a breccia of limestone, chert and siderite containing abundant Devonian corals and brachiopods. An impoverished Mesozoic assemblage is found in drill-hole OGS-84-02
123 in a mudstone-limestone breccia which is overlain by 12. 2 m of
Devonian limestones and mudstones. Drillhole OGS-84-05 exhibits similar stratigraphic leakage of Mesozoic palynomorphs into
Devonian rocks, but also contains karst horizons with Quaternary pollen.
Fractures, collapse breccias, and solution cavities were frequently found in drillholes from the Moose River Basin (Watts,
Griffis, and McOuat 1984a, 1984b, Try et ai. 1984). The karst features seam to be localized around bedrock highs (e.g.
Pivabiska Ridge in the southwest and the Grand Rapids High in the east-central portion of the basin). The stratigraphic leakage of
Cretaceous spores and pollen into karst features of Devonian age demonstrates that the Mattagami Formation was deposited on a subaerially exposed and weathered Devonian bedrock surface.
5. 3.8 Cretaceous Palynomorphs in Precambrian Karst, Cargill Township
A unique assemblage of Cretaceous spores, pollen and possible freshwater algal cysts was noted by Norris et ai. (1980) from karstic terrain developed on Precambrian carbonatite on the upthrown southern margin of the Moose River Basin (Sage 1988).
These assemblages contain a number of Normapolles taxa which provide a Campanian date, notably younger than the Mattagami
Formation. However, this karsti-fication episode is noteworthy in view of karstification in the sub-Mattagami terrain. As noted above, the sub-Mattagami karst is infilled with Albian
124 terrestrial assemblages in part and presumably pre-dates the
carbonatite karst of Late Cretaceous age.
5. 4 Summary and Conclusions
The Mesozoic sediments of the southern Moose River Basin
consist predominantly of non-marine fluvial, paludal, and
lacustrine deposits of the mid-Cretaceous Mattagami Formation and
a limited occurrence, in 3 drillholes, of the middle Jurassic
Mistuskwia Beds. A well-preserved, diverse assemblage consists of over 120 species of pollen and spores, and 13 species of dinoflagellate cysts, as well as megaspores, seeds, and algal
cysts. Based on restricted occurrences and concurrent ranges of these species, the Mattagami Formation is divided into 5 Oppel zones and one barren zone. The zones are successfully used for intra-basinal correlation. On a continental scale, the palynological flora shows similarity to elements of the Atlantic
Coastal Plain (Brenner 1963, Doyle and Robbins 1977) and the
Western Interior (Singh 1971, 1975, 1983). The age of the
Mattagami Formation is assigned as early to late Albian by comparison with paleofloras in North America and Europe.
Palynologic and lithologic evidence strongly suggest that the
Mattagami Formation was deposited in a low gradient river system where floodplain wetlands, swamps, and small lakes were dominant over channel facies. The vegetational communities vere composed largely of coniferous gymnosperms and schizeaceous pteridophytes with minor components of bryophytes and lycopods. Early
125 angiosperms, although abundant in certain horizons, are generally
rare. The vegetation, lithology and karstic Devonian bedrock
indicate a humid climate. The occurrence of dinocysts in several
drillholes suggest the possibility that the Mattagami Formation was, at times, influenced by marine waters.
126 6. 0 LIGNITE RESOURCES OF THE MOOSE RIVER BASIN
by R. Griffis
6. 1 Introduotion
This section summarizes available information on the lignite resources in Cretaceous strata of the Moose River Basin, James
Bay Lowland. Information is derived largely from provincial and federal government publications and private sector reports available in the assessment files of the Ontario Ministry of
Northern Development and Mines.
6. 2 Onakawana Lignite Deposits
The lignite the banks of the Abitibi River were known to early explorers in this region, but is was not until the 1920s and
1930s that extensive drilling was implemented to outline the deposits at Onakawana. Immediately after World War II, a major pilot-plant test was carried out, but no decision was made to develop a full-scale operation. Considerably more drilling was carried out by the Alberta Coal Company (later Manalta Coal
Limited) in 1966, in order to better define the main lignite field. Trusler et ai. (1974) used all the available drill data on the area and calculated the lignite reserves at Onakawana.
This estimate was based on about 400 drillholes. Detailed drilling in the Onakawana area has outlined one main field and a small (east) field, which is exposed on the west ba:nk of the
Abitibi River. Other smaller satellite fields occur south of the main deposit, as well as farther north in the vicinity of Portage
127 Island (see Section 6. 3. 1). Figure 1. 1 illustrates the general
extent of these occurrences.
The estimate of mineable reserves is in part dependent on the
minimum thickness of seams to be mined and, very importantly, on
the waste to ore ratio. The work by Shawinigan Engineering
Company (1973) estimated a total of 171 million tonnes of
reserves; this included 148 million tonnes in the Main Field,
about 11 million tonnes in the East Field and 13 million tonnes
in the Portage Field. A statistical evaluation by Trusler et al.
(1974) resulted in a reserve estimate of about 181 million tonnes
for the Main and East Fields. This is very close to the estimate
of 182 million tonnes by Graham and Morgan (1985) for seams
greater than 1. 2 m thick and less than 43 m deep.
The Main lignite field consists of two main lignite seams with
interbedded clay and, in some places, quartz-rich sands. The
lower seam is the most persistent, with an average thickness of
5. 5 m over an approximately 21 km^ area. The upper seam is also
relatively thick (5.4 m), but has a much less areal extent. In
some areas, there is a discontinuous lignite overlying the main
upper seam, but as a result of post-Cretaceous erosion, it is
very limited in extent. The interbedded clays vary considerably
in colour and extent; many units have a very high carbonaceous
content. According to Price (1978), quartz sands occur as small lenses within the main lignite-clay sequence and become increasingly prominent towards the western margins of the lignite
fields.
128 Table 6. 1 summarizes the average analyses of lignite samples from the Onakawana area. These indicate that, on a dry basis, the average calorific value will exceed 20.9 MJ/kg (9,000 BTU/lb) and average dry ash content will be close to 20 wt%. From descriptions of the lignite and clay occurrences at Onakawana, every lithology variation from lignite with minor clay (ash) to carbonaceous clays with 60-80% clay can be expected. In most cases, on an * as received' basis, the moisture content of the lignite is very high, usually in the 45-50 wt% range. An important aspect of these lignite fields, from a mining viewpoint, is the extent of the overburden. By comparison to most parts of the Moose River Basin, the overburden at Onakawana is relatively thin. Price (1978) has drawn an isopach map of the overburden in this area; the overburden is thinnest at the
Abitibi River exposures and then increases towards the west. The central part of the main lignite field has about 18-30 m of overburden, whereas the western margins are more in the range of
30-50 m. In areas just west of the deposit, the overburden is up to about 90 m.
6. 3 Other Known Occurrences
6. 3. 1 Portage Island
In the early 1930s, the Ontario Department of Mines (Dyer and
Crozier 1933a) drilled several holes in the vicinity of Portage
Island at the confluence of the Mattagami and Missinaibi Rivers.
This work resulted in the discovery of significant lignite seams
129 in two holes on the opposite banks of the Moose River, immediately west of Portage Island. According to Dyer and
Crozier (1933a, p.78) "...two drillholes, numbers P-3 and P-6,
found lignite aggregating 15 ft (4. 6 m) in two seams. These
Table 6. 1: Analyses of lignite samples from the Onakawana deposits.
Sample Basis Moisture Ash Volatile Fixed Heat Values Sulphur (%) (%) Matter Carbon BTU/lb MJ/kg (%) (%) (%) a AR 50. 6 - - - - — — MF - 8. 5 46. 2 45. 3 10, 500 24. 4 1. 3
b AR 51. 8 6. 9 19. 6 21. 7 5, 020 11. 7 1. 0
AD 18. 3 11. 7 33. 2 36. 8 8, 510 19. 8 1. 7
MF - 14. 3 40. 7 45. 0 10,410 24. 2 2. 1
c AR 46. 0 8. 8 21. 9 23. 3 5, 246 12. 2 0. 5
d AR 43. 1 10. 0 21. 4 25. 5 5, 258 12. 2 0. 7
AD 15. 4 14. 9 31. 8 37. 9 7, 810 18. 2 1. 0
MF - - - - 11, 500 26. 7 - e AR 48. 0 10. 0 20. 0 21. 4 - 11. 2 0. 5
AR = As received AD = Air dried MF = Moisture free
Sample a Average of 8 samples from shaft 1, Onakawana Field (Dyer 1928a). b Bulk sample analysis, Onakawana (Dyer 1928a). c Average analysis> Onakawana (Shawinigan Engineering Co. 1973). d Average of 9 samples from de-watered Onakawana (east) open pit (Trusler et ai. 1974). e Average of 1980 drilling program by Onakawana Developments Limited and Manalta Coal (Graham and Morgan 1985).
130 lignite seams are very probable extensions of the seams of the
Onakawana lignite field 6 miles (10 km) to the south."
Descriptive logs of the drillholes from this area, summarized in
Price (1978) indicate that these lignite seams occur at relatively shallow depth; approximately 10 m on the north bank and about 15 m on the south bank. However, several other holes in close proximity to these occurrences indicated substantially thicker amounts of overburden and no significant lignite.
The 1980 OEC program included the drilling of several auger holes in the general vicinity of Portage Island in order to test for possible extensions of the lignite indicated by previous workers. In total, six auger holes were drilled along the banks of the Moose River (Watts, Griffis, & McOuat 1981). None of these holes encountered significant lignite, but several holes contain substantial thicknesses (>10 m) of dark grey to black carbonaceous clays, which are probably lateral equivalents to the known lignite occurrences.
In 1981, the OEC regional drill program included several holes west of Portage Island. One of these holes, OEC-81-09, had 1.5 m of lignite, whereas the remaining holes contained only limited
Cretaceous units and no lignite. In most cases these holes encountered well over 30 m of Quaternary overburden before intersecting Cretaceous units.
131 6. 3. 2 Adam Creek and Sanborn Township
In situ occurrences of lignite had been reported along the
banks of Adam Creek in Kipling Township (Telford and Verma 1978,
Watts, Griffis, & McOuat 1981). To further investigate these
occurrences, the OGS drilled two holes, approximately 2 km apart,
on opposite sides of Adam Creek. Drillhole OGS-78-01 revealed
numerous narrow seams of lignite (maximum thickness 2. 7 m) with
most seams less than 1 m thick between depths of 70-126 m. The
lignite is associated largely with a variety of clays and silty
clays and some narrow sections of quartz-rich sands. Nearby, in hole OGS-78-08, a 1. 1 m thick lignite seam was intersected at about 59 m. This hole was terminated prematurely at 63 m in
Mesozoic clays, and thus did not test any of the deeper seams as indicated in hole OGS-78-01.
In the 1978 OGS helicopter-supported drill program, significant lignite was indicated in hole OGS-78-06 in the southwest corner of Sanborn Township. A 1. 1 m thick seam was intersected at a depth of 70 m, whereas a 6 m seam was intersected at a depth of 96 m. The lignite seams appear to be associated with carbonaceous clays, although the section also contains abundant quartz-rich sands. The Sanborn hole is located approximately 12 km from the OGS-78-01 hole near Adam Creek.
6.3.3 McBrien Township/Coal Creek
For several decades, lignite exposures have been known on Coal
Creek (southwest corner of McBrien Township), close to its
132 confluence with the Missinaibi River (Vos 1982, Price 1978).
However, despite numerous attempts to drill shallow holes in this immediate area by various groups over the years, the surface occurrences could not be extended to any great degree and it is suggested that facies relations or glacial tectonics may be in part responsible for the limited surface exposures.
In 1978 the OGS drilled a hole (OGS-78-05) on the north side of the Missinaibi River, opposite Coal Creek (Guillet 1979).
This hole intersected two thin lignite seams (each about 0. 6 m thick) at depths of about 100 m. At approximately 111 m, the hole entered Paleozoic age units (Try 1984).
The regional drill program by ONEXCO in 1982 resulted in a significant lignite discovery in the southeast corner of McBrien
Township (see Maps 2 and 3). This occurrence (hole ONEX-82-14) is illustrated in Figure 6. 2 and represents the greatest combined thickness of lignite seams in this region, excluding the
Onakawana deposit. This sequence is also the deepest of the known lignite occurrences in the Cretaceous Basin. This is probably accounted for by its close proximity to the normal-fault boundary with the Precambrian crystalline units.
In the 1984 OGS winter drilling program, thin lignite seams were discovered in hole OGS-84-08, in the northwest corner of
McBrien Township, on the banks of the Pivabiska River. Here, very thin lignite seams (<1 m thick) are present at depths of
121-125 m and again at 143-150 m (Fig. 4.6).
133
The geological descriptions of the lignite in hole ONEX-82-14, as well as analytical data in the company report (Watts, Griffis,
& McOuat 1982), suggest this occurrence is quite similar to those in Gentles Township area. However, the moisture content of the
ONEX-82-14 samples was moderately lower; mostly in the 18-35 wt% range. The ash content of most samples analysed was high (10-40 wt% as received), but the sulphur content is low. In general the sulphur content (usually pyrite) varies inversely with the clay content. In the main McBrien lignite occurrence, sulphur is usually less than 1 wt%. The thermal value of samples naturally varies with ash content. Low ash samples have heat values as high as about 22.6 MJ/kg (approximately 9,700 BTU/lb), whereas very high ash samples, perhaps better described as carbonaceous or lignitic clays, have values closer to 5. 8-12. 8 MJ/kg
(approximately 5, 500 BTU/lb).
6. 3. 4 Gentles Township
The initial lignite discovery in Gentles Township was made during the 1981 OEC regional drilling program. Subsequent work in 1982 and 1983 helped to define the geology and extent of lignite in this area. Figure 6. 3 indicates the location of drillholes in the area and highlights those holes which contain significant lignite occurrences.
Drilling in Gentles Township and vicinity has indicated at least two main lignite occurrences. One occurrence, in the east- central part of the township, is informally referred to as the
135
East Gentles deposit. The second occurrence is largely located in unsurveyed land immediately west of Gentles Township and is informally referred to as the West Gentles deposit. This deposit was discovered in the 1982 OEC program and better defined during the 1983 OEC winter program.
Figure 6. 4 illustrates the geological and geophysical log of the discovery hole for the East Gentles deposit. Follow-up work to the initial discovery indicates that this occurrence is probably quite restricted. Several nearby holes (see Figure 6. 3) contain lignite. Figure 6. 5 illustrates the logs for hole ONEX-
82-05, whereas Figure 6. 6 shows a reduced section of lignite in hole ONEX-82-06 which is only about 1 km northeast of the original discovery hole.
The West Gentles lignite deposit was discovered in drillhole
ONEX-82-08. Figure 6. 7 summarizes the geological and geophysical logs of that hole. Subsequent drilling in the winter of 1983 indicated that the lignite does not appear to extend very far to the east, but may extend west for some distance (Watts, Griffis and McOuat Ltd. 1983). Figure 6. 8 and 6. 9 give the two best lignite intersections resulting from the 1983 program. In most cases, other holes have lignite seams in the range of 0. 3 to 2. 5 m thick.
No attempt is made here to review all features of these lignite occurrences as this information is available in the references previously cited. However, a few general observations should be made. The East Gentles lignite occurs at depths ranging
137
from about 50 to 90 m and seams appear to vary considerably over
relatively short lateral distances. The West Gentles lignite is
generally deeper (85-105 m) and displays rapid lateral facies
changes. In both cases, the plan projections appear to be
irregular. However insufficient drilling has been carried out to
adequately define seam boundaries. The thicker lignite seams are
usually associated with prominent clay and/or carbonaceous clay
units. The thinner seams appear to occur in sequences where
sands and silts are important members. Wet samples (i.e.
reverse-circulation cuttings) of lignite are typically jet black in colour. Dried samples (core and cuttings) often display a
brown colour which is more typical of lignite elsewhere in the world. Very commonly, the lignite contains abundant iron
sulphides (pyrite/ marcasite). In a few cases, the lignite
contains conspicuous grains of coarse- to fine-grained quartz and on the basis of analytical tests, most seams contain a significant ash component (6-30% by weight), which is probably dominated by clay minerals.
Analyses of typical samples indicate an initial moisture content (as received) in the range of 40-50% (by weight). Good samples of lignite yielded higher heating values (dry basis) consistently in excess of 9,000 BTU/lb (20.9 MJ/kg), whereas those with higher ash content were usually in the range of 5, 500-
7, 500 BTU/lb (12.8-17.4 MJ/kg). The total sulphur content appears to be in the range of 0.5-5% (wt%; as received) and on average is likely to be at least 2%. Limited analyses of trace
144 elements have not indicated the presence of any metals of
economic significance, although some samples show enrichment of
gold, platinum and palladium (see Section 4. 4).
6. 3. 5 McCuaig-Brian Townships
The 1983 OGS winter reconnaissance drill program was intended
to test northern areas in the Cretaceous Basin. This program
resulted in significant new lignite discoveries.
Drillhole OGS-83-01 is located along the western boundary of
McCuaig Township. At a depth of about 76 m, there is an
approximately 5. 5 m thick lignite seam with a few thin
carbonaceous clay interbeds. Minor lignite seams are also present
between depths of 86-98 m. Figure 6. 10 illustrates the
geological and geophysical log from a section in this hole.
Hole OGS-83-02 in central Brain Township also contains lignite
at similar depths to the occurrence in McCuaig Township. Here,
an approximately 5 m thick seam occurs at a depth of about 74. 5 m
in a sequence of Cretaceous sands and clays quite similar to the
units in OGS-83-01. No additional lignite seams were discovered
below a depth of 80 m.
At the west end of McCuaig Creek (west of McCuaig Township),
drillhole OGS-83-07 revealed a relatively thin lignite seam
(approximately 1. 8 m) at a depth of about 116 m. Because of
severe drilling problems, this lignite seam was only partially
revealed in drill cuttings. However, a geophysical log of the hole revealed a sharp response from a 1.5-2 m unit that has been
145 interpreted as being lignite. Unlike most of the nearby lignite occurrences, which are usually associated with prominent
Cretaceous clays, this particular seam is more closely associated with a very thick sequence of quartz sands. This seam could well be a lateral equivalent of the thicker seams in holes OGS-83-01 and -02. It is possible that these seams may correlate with lignite units adjacent to the Missinaibi River, just west of
Gentles Township.
The character of the lignite from this area is not well known.
From visual examinations, they appear to be similar to the nearby occurrences south of the Missinaibi River, in the vicinity of
Gentles Township.
146
6.4 Exploration Targets
6. 4. 1 General Comments
Broadly spaced reconnaissance drilling has been carried out
over much of the known extent of the Moose River Basin. This
drilling has resulted in the discovery of numerous new lignite
occurrences at widely spaced locations within a large region.
The assessment of data from the various drill programs has helped
to better define the nature of the various lignite occurrences,
as well as to better establish the paleogeographic features of
the region at the time lignite beds were first being formed. The
interpretation of this data is of considerable importance to any
future lignite exploration activities in this region.
The detailed information from the Onakawana area indicates
that the lignite was associated with a broad low wetland region
in a humid subtropical climate. The area was transected by a
major high-constructive river system which carried large amounts
of sediment from the adjacent Precambrian Shield to the south.
It would appear that the main channel of this drainage system
entered the wetlands in the area between McBrien and Kipling
Townships and then followed a generally northern route. This is indicated by the dominance of thick Cretaceous sands in this region of the Moose River Basin (Map 3). Within this central region, areas dominated by sand sequences contain little known lignite. The most significant lignite occurrences appear to be off the margins of the major channels, in areas where the accumulation of clays has been prominent. Thus, from an
148 exploration view point, paleogeographic reconstruction will be a useful tool.
Drilling in the central part of the basin has indicated a broad paleotopographic high. This is reflected by thin or absent
Cretaceous units, as well as the absence of the Upper Devonian
Long Rapids Formation. This paleo-high would appear to be the subsurface extension of the Grand Rapids High, a broad pre-
Cretaceous structural feature. Within this zone, several significant lignite occurrences are known and include the
Gentles, McCuaig and Brain Townships deposits. This general area would be attractive for further exploration.
The Onakawana Lignite Field and those in Gentles Township area have irregular, patchy outlines. Certainly the limited drilling in the Gentles Township area indicates that lateral variations in lignite seams can be quite abrupt, hence in order to properly define the main lignite fields closely spaced drilling will be required. The present pattern of occurrences suggests that there will probably be a lot of small fields rather than one or two much larger fields.
6. 4. 2 Specific Target Areas
The Portage Island area remains an obvious target for additional reconnaissance drilling. The known lignite seams should be traced laterally in more detail. The thick carbonaceous clay units could grade into lignites over a short distance. There is a considerable area south, and to a lesser
149 degree north, of Portage Island where substantial reserves could exist. From drill information, it is evident that there are also rapid changes in the thickness of Quaternary units in this area and, very likely, glacial events have eroded significant reserves. Thus, the lignite reserve potential in this general area would not be expected to exceed 50 million tonnes. Of the 4 holes drilled in this area, only 1 OEC-81-09) had a lignite seam, while 2 others (OEC-81-8 and 11) went into the Long Rapids
Formation, with no Cretaceous present. The last hole (OEC-81-07) only intersected carbonaceous clays. The main attractions of the area around Portage Island are that it is close to the main
Onakawana Field where the known occurrences are quite shallow and that there is a railroad nearby.
The Adam Creek - Sanborn Township lignite could be regarded as one continuous field. From what is known of the Gentles Township occurrences, it is difficult to extrapolate between widely spaced drillholes and therefore considerably more drilling is needed to define the lignite potential of this area. Limited drilling by
Selco Inc. and Lignasco Resources Ltd. in 1982 (Verma 1982) revealed only thin seams (approximately 1 m thick) in several holes in Sanborn Township, near drillhole OGS-78-06, where a 6 m seam was discovered. This occurrence may therefore be fairly localized although there are large untested areas where tonnage potential is good. Another Selco Inc. drillhole, approximately
3. 5 km south of OGS-78-01, revealed two thin seams and one 3 m seam between the depths of 91-107 m. Certainly, in this general
150 area, there is the potential to develop reserves in the order of
100 million tonnes. However, as in other parts of the central
basin, the lignite in this area is too deep for a conventional
surface mining operation.
The McBrien Township - Coal Creek area has indications of
substantial lignite seams at considerable depth. The known
occurrences are widely separated and poorly defined.
Nevertheless, as there are large parts of this area that are
untested, the overall resource potential here should be at least
comparable to the Sanborn-Adam Creek area farther east. The
depth of these seams will necessitate use of an unconventional
extraction system to recover this resource.
The central part of the Moose River Basin has good potential
to contain significant lignite reserves. This includes areas
such as Gentles, McCuaig and Brian Townships where there are
numerous scattered occurrences. While it is possible that these
occurrences represent one fairly continuous, but complex field, preliminary drilling suggests it contains a mosaic of small to
medium-sized lignite fields. Large, unexplored areas occur
between the discoveries on the north and south sides of the
Missinaibi River, as well as in and around most of the known
occurrences. Most of the lignite in this broad area is
relatively deep and certainly would require unconventional
recovery systems. An overall resource potential of 200-300 million tonnes for this area is considered quite possible.
151 6. 5 Development Potential
At various times over the past 50 years or more, efforts have been made to assess the viability of a lignite mining operation at Onakawana. The latest effort stemmed from the oil crisis of the 1970s which highlighted the Province of Ontario's vulnerability because of its dependence on the importation of oil and coal from foreign sources and the western provinces. The opportunity to replace some coal imports with a local supply was an obvious attraction. However, even though such an operation was clearly possible, the lack of very large lignite reserves at
Onakawana presented a problem. Thus, a reconnaissance survey to better assess the regional potential was initiated in the hope of discovering new reserves which would justify a much longer term operation. During the course of this reconnaissance work, and in subsequent years, increased discovery rates led to the present oversupply of oil on the world market, and hence a reduction in prices, which has helped to ease the province's energy cost deficit. In time, supply and demand conditions will likely readjust in such a fashion to once again make a lignite operation in the James Bay Lowland an attractive option to the province.
At that point, having a better idea of resource potential of the lignite will be critical. This would suggest that a continued preliminary evaluation of the lignite in this region is needed.
The regional reconnaissance work completed to-date has indicated that the known lignite reserves at Onakawana, and to a lesser extent the possible reserves of the Portage Island area,
152 will be the easiest and probably the most economic to recover.
These deposits are relatively shallow and therefore would be
amenable to large-scale surface mining techniques that are
commonly used in coal and lignite operations in many parts of the
world. Either the lignite would be used in a local electrical
generating plant, which would be integrated with the regional
grid system, or the lignite could be shipped to urban centres in
northern and southern Ontario, where it would be utilized for
fuel or possibly as feedstock in petrochemical operations. In
any event, no serious technical difficulties should prevent this
resource from being tapped when the demand is established.
Throughout the remainder of the Moose River Basin, there are
now numerous new lignite discoveries which could greatly increase
the lignite reserves of the region. At this point, no accurate
tonnage figures can be estimated, but very likely, there will be
several small fields with reserves in the range of 50-200, 000
tonnes. Virtually all of these will be at depths in excess of 50
m, and some, such as those in McBrien Township, will be at depths in the range of 140-160 m. By today's standards, these deposits are not likely to be developed using open-pit mining schemes, because the stripping ratios would be very high and the ground
conditions very unstable. Certainly they could be mined by large-scale underground methods, but the relatively thin seams and unstable ground would again impose severe economic constraints. Thus other less conventional techniques will have to be considered if this lignite is to be recovered.
153 In some parts of the world, coal and/or lignite deposits which
are less amenable to conventional mining techniques, have been
exploited by in situ gasification. The Russians, in particular,
have been active in developing this method which, in essence,
involves igniting a coal seam and recovering a low-quality gas.
This in turn is upgraded to a more useable form of energy.
Large-scale experiments have been carried out in North America,
but no commercial operations have been attempted. In the case of
the James Bay lignites, it is not clear if in situ gasification
is feasible. These lignites have an extremely high moisture
content and therefore achieving adequate combustion may be a
problem. Furthermore, any in situ gasification scheme must
involve an impermeable caprock, which will prevent any
substantial amounts of potentially dangerous gas from escaping to
the surface environment. In the case of the James Bay Lowland, most of the lignite seams are overlain by Cretaceous clays and,
in many places, by dense, clay-rich Quaternary tills, which would
probably be effective caprocks. However, the Cretaceous units
also include widespread, unconsolidated quartz sand associated with the lignite seams and would be ineffective caprocks. There may be some occurrences, such as in McBrien Township, where the lignite is more compacted and hence has a lower moisture content, as well as being associated with overlying clay sequences. In such cases, in situ gasification may be a viable process.
Extensive experimentation has been undertaken by the United
States Bureau of Mines on a hydraulic mining system, generally
154 referred to as the borehole slurry method. This system has great
potential in mining operations at depth where surface mining
methods become too expensive because of stripping ratios. Also,
it may be effective when ground conditions or costs may prevent
conventional underground mining or where surface environmental
considerations prevent surface mining operations. The system has
been considered for shallow phosphate deposits in coastal
Florida, as well as for kaolin, uranium and coal deposits. The
method involves drilling a large-diameter borehole down which an
hydraulic rotating mining tool with a monitoring device is
lowered into the zone to be mined. High pressure water then
mines out the mineral or rock of interest and the resulting
slurry pumped to the surface for treatment. The mining tool can
usually cut an area with a 7. 6 m radius.
The feasibility and cost of borehole mining of silica sand and
kaolinite in the Moose River Basin has been considerd by Derry et
ai. (1983). In principle, this method should work effectively on
many of the Moose River Basin lignite seams where both the roof
and floor of the seams are cohesive. As much of the
stratigraphic sequence in this area is unconsolidated, all the
boreholes would have to be cased to avoid excessive dilution.
This would be an expensive additional step. Furthermore, mine
planning would have to be done very carefully because as soon as
any lignite is removed, the overlying units would collapse, thus
making dilution and recovery problems acute. Despite these problems, slurry mining techniques might be suitable for the
155 extraction of lignite seams, and thus warrants future
consideration.
It has been known for several decades that the James Bay
Lowland has a wide variety of mineral resources besides lignite.
Vos (1982) and Guillet (1985) has discussed industrial commodities, such as clays, silica sand, gypsum, and limestone present in the basin. More recently, interest has been shown in oil shale and peat and some government projects have involved preliminary assessment of these commodities in the region
(Guillet 1985). In addition, mining companies have carried out relatively extensive drilling and sampling programs on the phosphate- and columbium-bearing carbonatite near Martison Lake at the west end of the Moose River Basin and on numerous aeromagnetic anomalies across the southern part of the basin. It has been suggested that some of these anomalies are kimberlitic intrusions, but as yet, there has been no report of diamonds being discovered.
In a less remote location or one with a more extensive infrastructure, many of the industrial commodities present in the
Moose River Basin would have probably been carefully studied by now and possibly developed into viable mining operations. At various times, one or two of the better known commodities, such as kaolin and silica sand, have been looked at in considerable detail, but the economic obstacles to any mining operation in the region have prevented any real developments from proceeding.
156 Past experience has indicated that no one or two mineral commodities from this area could be developed on their own.
Thus, any future mining may greatly depend on a general development scheme that will help establish the necessary infrastructure for several operations. Such a scheme will probably involve establishing an inexpensive local energy source, such as lignite or possibly peat, because upgrading various industrial minerals into consumer products is relatively energy intensive.
An order-of-magnitude study should be undertaken to broadly define the economic parameters that could set guidelines for any future regional development of the lignite and other mineral resources in the James Bay Lowland.
157 Plate 5. 1
ZONE 2
1. Tri lobos pori tes apiverrucatus 500x mid-proximal focus
2. TriJoJbos pori tes apiverrucatus 500x mid focus
3. Trilobosporites humilis 500x mid-proximal focus
4. Trilobosporites humilis 500x mid focus, equatorial view
5. Concavissimis pori tes punctatus 500x distal focus
6. Concavissimis pori tes punctatus 500x proximal focus
7. Lycopodi ums pori tes aus trod avidi tes 500x mid-proximal focus
8. Foraminisporis asymmetricus 500x mid-proximal focus
9. Appendicis pori tes bilateralis 50 Ox mid focus
10. Cicatricosisporites australiensis 500x mid-proximal focus
11. Cicatricosisporites hallei 50Ox mid focus
12. Foraminisporis asymmetricus 50Ox mid focus
13. Circulina parva 500x mid-proximal focus
14. Circulina parva 500x mid focus
15. Eucommiidites minor 500x mid focus
16. Taxiodiaceaepollenites hiatus 500x mid focus
17. Autulispora sp. 500x mid-proximal focus
18. Clavatipollenites hughesii lOOOx mid focus
19. Reticulatas pori tes sp. 500x mid focus
20. Cedripites cretaceous 500x mid focus
158
Plate 5. 2
ZONE 3
1. Trlporoletes reticulatus 500x mid focus
2. Trlporoletes reticulatus 500x proximal focus
3. Trlporoletes triangularis 500x mid focus
4. Tigrisporites reticulatus 500x mid-distal focus
5. Clavatipollenites sp, lOOOx high focus
6. Clavatipollenites sp. lOOOx mid focus
7. Tricolpites sp. lOOOx mid focus
8. Tricolpites sp. lOOOx high focus
9. Tigrisporites reticulatus 500x mid focus, equatorial view
ZONE 4
10. Trilobosporites trioreticulosus 500x mid focus
11. Appendicisporites problematicus 500x mid focus
12. Appendicisporites potomacensis 500x proximal focus
13. Aequitriradites spinulosis 500x mid focus
14. Acanthotriletes varisspinosis 500x mid-proximal focus
15. Trilobosporites tribotrys 500x mid focus
16. Sestrosporites pseudoalveolatus 500x distal focus
17. Trilporoletes triangularis 50Ox mid focus
18. Exesipollenites tumulus 500x mid focus
19. * Retitricolpites^ vulgaris lOOOx high polar focus
20. Clavatipollenites hughesii lOOOx mid focus
21. Retimonocolpites peroreticulatus lOOOx mid focus
160
Plate 5. 3
ZONE 5
1. Tigrisporites reti cul atus 50 Ox mid focus
2. Tigrisporites reti cul atus 50 Ox distal focus
3. Tigrisporites scurrandus 500x mid-proximal focus
4. Tigrisporites scurrandus 500x distal focus
5. Rousea georgensis lOOOx mid equatorial view
6. Lycopodi ums pori tes marginatus 500x mid focus
7. Lycopodi ums pori tes marginatus 500x distal focus
8. Lophotriletes babsae 500x proximal focus
ZONE 6
9. Lycopodi ums pori tes expansus 500x mid focus
10. Matonis pori tes crassiangulatus 500x mid fociis
11. Trilobosporites purverulentus 500x mid focus, equatorial view
12. Tri lobos pori tes purverulentus 50 Ox proximal focus
13. Rugubivesiculites rugosus 500x proximal focus
14. Rugubivesiculites reductus 500x mid focus
15. Klukisporites cf. K. areolatus 500x distal focus
16. Klukisporites cf. K. areolatus 50Ox distal focus
17. Appendicisporites bilateralis 50Ox proximal focus
18. Neoraistrickia sp. 500x mid focus
19. Chomotriletes fragilis 500x mid focus
20. Tricolpites sagax lOOOx high focus, equatorial view
21. Tricolpites sagax lOOOx mid focus, equatorial view, same
specimen
22. ^ Retitricolpites' vulgaris lOOOx polar focus, polar view
162
Plate 5. 4
DINOCYSTS
1. ' type i5' 500x mid focus
2. ' type JS" 500x mid focus
3. ' type iL' 500x mid focus
4. ' type 2L' 500x high focus
5. ' type 2L' 500x mid focus
6. ' type 2U 500x low focus
7. ' type 2S' 500x high focus
8. ' tj^e 3' 500x high focus
9. • type 3' 500x high focus
10. ' type 4' 500x high focus
11. ' type 4' 500x low focus
12. ' type 5' 500x mid focus
13. ' type 5' 500x high focus
14. ' type 6' 500x mid focus
164
References
Albert!, G. 1961: Zur Kenntnis und altterliarer Dinoflagellaten und Hystrichosphaerideen von Nord = und Mitteldeutschland soqwie einigen anderen Europaischen Gebieten; Plaeon- tographica. Abt. A, Band 116, Leifg. 1-4. , p. 1-58.
Aquitaine Sogepet et ai. 1973: Hambly No. 1 well, dirll log; on file at Ministry of Natural Resources - Petroleum Resources Section - London.
Baker, M. B. 1911: Iron and Lignite in the Mattagami Basin; Ontario Bureau of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 20, part 1, p.214-246.
Batten, D. J. 1985: Two new dinoflagellate cyst genera from the non-marine Lower Cretaceous of southeast England; N. Jb. Geol. Palaont. Mh. , Volume 7.
Beals, C. S. (editor) 1968: Science, History and Hudson Bay; Volumes 1 and 2, Canada Department of Energy, Mines, and Resources, Canada, 1058p.
Bell, J. M. 1904: Economic resources of the Moose River Basin; Ontario Bureau of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 13 (1).
Bell, R. 1877: Report on exploration in 1875 between James Bay and Lakes Superior and Huron; Geological Survey of Canada, Report of Progress 1875-1876.
1879: Report on exploration of the east coast of Hudson Bay, 1877; Geological Survey of Canada, Report of Progress 1877-78.
Bell, W. A. 1928: Mesozoic plants from the Mattagami series, Ontario; Natural Museum of Canada, Bulletin 49, Contribution to Canadian Paleontology, Geological Series, no. 48.
Bennett, G. , Brown, D. D. , George, P. T. , and Leahy, E. J. 1967: Operation Kapuskasing; Ontario Department of Mines, Miscellaneous Paper 10.
166 Bezys, R. K. 1989: The Onakawana B drillhole, OGS-85D, District of Cochrane: report on drilling and preliminary geological findings; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5708, 93p.
1987: An Ichnological and Sedimentological Study of Devonian Black Shales from the Long Rapids Formation, Moose River Basin, Northern Ontario; MSc. Thesis, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, 244p.
Bezys R. K. and Risk, M. J. 1986: The depositional environment for the black shales of the Upper Devonian Long Rapids Formation, northern Ontario; p. 39-53 In Geoscience Research Program, Summary of Research 1985-1986, edited by V.G. Milne, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 130.
Borron, E. B. 1880: Part of the Basin of Hudson Bay; Ontario Legislative Assembly Sessional Papers, No. 22.
1891: Report on the Basin of the Moose River; Ontario Legislative Assembly Sessional Papers, No. 87.
Brenner, G. J. 1963: The spores and pollen of the Potomac Group of Maryland; Department of Geology, Mines, and Water Research, Bulletin 27.
1976: Middle Cretaceous floral provinces and early migrations of Angiosperms; In C. B. Beck (editor). Origin and Early Evolution of Angiosperms, Columbia University Press.
Broadhead, R. F. , Kepferle, R. C. , and Potter, P. E. 1982: Stratigraphy and sedimentalogic controls of gas in shale -examples from Upper Devonian of northern Ohio; American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin, Volume 66, p. 10-27.
Brooke, M. M. and Braun, W. K. 1972: Biostratigraphy and microfaunas of the Jurassic System of Saskatchewan; Saskatchewan Department of Mineral Resources, Report 161, p. 1-83.
Burley, S. D. , Kantorowicz, J. D. , and Waugh, B. 1985: Clastic diagenesis; p. 189-220 In P.J. Brenchley and B.P.J. Williams (editors), Sedimentology, Recent developments and applied aspects, Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, England, 338p.
167 Bus tin, R. M. , Cameron, A. R. , Grieve, D. A. , and Kalkreuth, W. D. 1983: Coal petrology, its principles, methods and applications; Geological Association of Canada, Short Course Notes, Volume 3.
Cleary, W. J. and Conolly, J. R. 1972: Embayed quartz grains in soils and their significance; Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, Volume 24, No. 4, p. 899-904.
Cluff, R. M. 1980: Paleoenvironment of the New Albany Shale Group (Devonian -Mississippian) of Illinois; Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, Volume 50, p. 767-786.
Couper, R. A. 1958: British Mesozoic microspores and pollen grains, a systematic and stratigraphic study; Palaeontographica, Abt. B, Band 103, Liefg. 4-6.
Cowell, D. W. 1982: Earth Sciences of the Hudson Bay Lowland: Literature Review and Annotated Bibliography; Lands Directorate Working Paper No. 18, Environment Canada, Burlington, Ontario, 309p.
Cross, J. C. 1920: Precambrian Rocks and Iron Ore Deposits in the Abitibi- Mattagami Area; Ontario Department of Mines, Volume 29, part 2, p. 1-18.
Crozier, A. R. 1933: Refractory Clay Deposits on the Missinaibi River; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 42, part 3, p. 88-101.
Gumming, L. M. 1975: Ordovician Strata of the Hudson Bay Lowland, Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 74-28, 23p.
Davey, E. R. 1932: Tests on Onakawana Fireclays; Journal of the Canadian Ceramic Society, Volume 1, no. 1, p. 32-39.
Davey, R. J. and Verdier, J. P. 1971: An investigation of microplankton assemblages from the Albian of the Paris Basin; Verhandelingen der Knonklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, Afdeeling Natuurkunde, Eerste Reeks, Deel 26, No. 2.
168 Derry, Michener, Booth and Wahl and IMD Laboratories Ltd. 1983: Bore hole mining of silica sand and kaolinite clay in the James Bay Lowland, Ontario; Feasibility and cost analysis; Ontario Geological Survey, OFR 5427, 73p.
Donahue, R. L. , Miller, R. W. , and Shikluna, J. C. 1958: Soils, an introduction to soils and plant growth; Prentice-Hall Inc., New Jersey, U.S.A.
Doyle, J. A. and Robbins, E.I. 1977: Angiosperm pollen zonation of the continental Cretaceous of the Atlantic coastal plain and its application to deep wells in the Salisbury Embayment; Palynology, Volume 1: p. 43-78.
Dyer, W. S. 1928a: Geology and economic deposits of the Moose River Basin; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report 37, part 6, p. 1-69.
1928b: The Mesozoic clay deposits of the Mattagami and Missinaibi Rivers, northern Ontario; Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Bulletin no. 196, p. 989-1001.
1930a: Investigations of non-metallic mineral resources of Ontario, 1928 general review; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 38, part 4, p. 1-18.
1930b: Investigations of non-metallic mineral resources of Ontario, 1928, Limestones of the Moose River and Abitibi River Basins; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 38, part 4, p. 31-33.
1930c: Lignite deposits at Onakawana, Moose River Basin; Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy Bulletin, July 30, Volume 29, part 6, p. 1-14.
1931a: The Onakawana Lignite Deposit, Moose River Basin (Progress Report to May 31, 1930); Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 29, part 6, p. 1-14.
1931b: Stratigraphy and Structural Geology of the Moose River Basin, Northern Ontario; Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada, 3rd Series, Volume 25, Section 4, p. 85-99.
1932a: Fire-clay Deposits of the Moose River Basin; Journal of the Canadian Ceramic Society, Volume 1, no. 1, p. 32-39.
1932b: Stratigraphy and Oil and Gas Possibilities of the Moose River Basin; Geological Survey of Canada, Economic Geology Report 9, 89-103.
169 Dyer, W. S. (cont. ) 1933: The Siderite of Grand Rapids, Mattagami River; Paper read before Section IV, Royal Society of Canada, May 1933 Dyer, W. S. and Crozier, A. R.
1933a: Lignite and Refractory Clay Deposits of the Onakawana Lignite Field; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 42, part 3, p. 46-78.
1933b: The Refractory Clay of Northern Ontario; Bulletin of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, June 1933.
Dyer, W. S. and Montgomery, R. J. 1930: Semi-commercial Tests on Northern Ontario Fireclays; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 38, part 4, p. 19- 21.
Fensome, R. and Norris, G. 1982: Grant 108, Palynostratigraphic comparison of Cretaceous of the Moose River Basin, Ontario, with marginal marine assemblages from the Scotian Shelf and Alberta; Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 103, p. 37-42.
Fitzpatrick, E. A. 1980: Soils, their formation, classification and distribution; Longman Inc., New York, U.S.A., 353p
Fuel Commission of Ontario 1944: The Onakawana lignite deposit; Report of Fuel Commission of Ontario, H. B. Speakman (chairman). Paper no. 48, on file with the Archives of Ontario, 77 Grenville Street, Toronto.
Fyfe, W. S. , Kronberg, B. , Long, D. , Murray, F. , Powell, M. , Try, C. , van der Flier, E. , Winder, C. , and Brown, J. 1983: Grant 134, Stratigraphy and geochemistry of northern Ontario carbonaceous deposits: Onakawana Lignites; p. 63- 81 In Geoscience Research Program, Summary of Research, 1982-1983, edited by E. G. Pye, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 113, 119p.
Giblin, P. E. 1970: Report on 1970 Drilling, Kipling Township, Ontario; kaolinitic silica sand deposit; Indusmin Ltd. , File No. 83, 1-77; Assessment Files Research Office, Ontario Geological Survey, Toronto.
Gilchrist, L. 1932: Geophysical Investigations in the Onakawana Lignite Field, Abitibi River, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Memoir 170, p. 92-98.
170 Gilmore, R. R. 1930: Lignite Coal from Blacksmith Rapids, Abitibi Rivera- Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 3 8, part 4, p. 34-40.
Graham, P. and Morgan, J. R. 1985: Geology and mine development of the Onakawana lignite deposit- Ontario; p. 81-84 In T. H. Patching (editor). Coal in Canada, Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 31, 327p.
Guillet, G. R. 1979: Fossil fuel program. Moose River Basin drilling project; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5276, 121p.
1985: Industrial mineral resources of the North Clay Belt; Northeast Municipal Advisory Committee and North Clay Belt Development Association, Kapuskasing, Ontario, 191p.
Haanel, B. F. and Gilmore, R. E. 1933: Review of Tests on Ontario Lignite; Mines Branch, Ottawa, 4p.
Hamblin, A. P. 1982: Petrography of Mesozoic and Pleistocene sands in the Moose River Basin; p. 51-92 In Telford, P. G. and Verma, H. M. (editors), Mesozoic Geology and Mineral Potential of the Moose River Basin, Ontario Geological Survey Study 21.
Harris, W. K. 1973: Tertiary non-marine dinoflagellate cyst assemblages from Australia; p. 156-166 In Mesozoic and Cainozoic Palynology; Geological Society of Australia, Special Publication 4.
Hawkins, R. H. 1933: Application to Resistivity Methods (Geophysical Prospecting: Trans. Vol 110, p. 76-120) to the Northern Ontario Lignite Deposits; Read before the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, New York, February 1933, 44p.
Hedberg, H. D. (editor) 1976: International Stratigraphic Guide. A guide to stratigraphic classification, terminology, and procedure; John Wiley, New York, 200p.
Hedlund, R. W. and Norris, G. 1968: Spores and pollen grains from Fredericksburgian (Albian) strata, Marshall County, Oklahoma; Pollen et Spores, Volume 10, p. 129-159.
171 Hedlung, R. W. and Norris, G. (cont. ) 1986: Dinoflagellate cyst assemblage from middle Albian strata of Marshal County, Oklahoma, U. S. A. ; Review of Paleobotany and Palynology 46, p. 293-309.
Henley, T. J. and Eyler, P. J. 1976: Hudson Bay Lowland Bibliography; Natural Research Institute, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Hergreen, G. F. W. and Chlonova, A. F. 1981: Cretaceous microflora! provinces; Pollen et Spores, Volume 23 (3-4), p. 441-554.
Hilder, A. E. 1935: Mattagami River Refractory Clays; Bulletin of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, March 1935, p. 110-122.
Hood, P. J. (editor) 1969: Earth Science Symposium on Hudson Bay; Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 68-53, 387p.
Hopkins, W. S. and Sweet, A. R. 1976: Miospores and megaspores from the Lower Cretaceous Mattagami Formation of Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 256, p. 55-71.
Hughes, N. F. and Harding, I. C. 1985: Wealden occurrence of an isolated Barremian dinocyst facies; Palaeontology, Volume 28 (3), p. 555-565.
Isbister, A. K. 1855: On the geology of the Hudson's Bay territories and portions of the Arctic and northwest regions of America; Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, Volume 11, p. 497-520.
Johnson, I. D. 1971: Petroleum potential of the Hudson Bay Basin studied; Oilweek, Volume 22, no. 12, p. 40, 43, 52,
Kauf fman, E, G. 1984: Paleobiogeography and evolutionary response dynamics in the Cretaceous western interior seaway of North America; In G.E. G. Westermann (editor), Jurassic-Cretaceous biochronology and paleogeography of North America, Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 27, p. 273-306.
172 Keele, J. 1920: Clay and shale deposits of the Abitibi and Mattagami Rivers; Ontario Department of Mines, Volume 29 (2), p. 31-55.
Kemp, E. M. 1968: Probable angiosperm pollen from the British Barremian to Albian strata; Palaeontology, Volume 11, p. 421-434.
1970: Aptian and Albian miospores from southern England; Palaeontographica, Abt. B, Volume 131, p. 73-143.
Kepferle, R. C. and Roen, J. B. 1981: Chattanooga and Ohio Shales of the southern Appalachian Basin; In T. G. Robert (editor) Geological Society of America Cincinnati ' 81 Field Trip Guidebooks, Volume 2, American Geological Institute, p. 259-361.
Kindle, E. M. 1924: Geology of a portion of the northern part of the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Summary Report 1923, Part 101, p. 21-41.
Laing, J. F. 1975: Mid-Cretaceous angiosperm pollen from southern England and northern France; Palaeontology, Volume 18, part 4, p. 775-808.
1976: The stratigraphic setting of early angiosperm pollen; In I. K. Ferguson and J. Muller (editors). The evolutionary significance of exine, Linnean Society of London, Academic Press, London, p. 15-37.
Legault, J. A. and Norris, G. 1982: Palynological evidence for recycling of Upper Devonian into Lower Cretaceous of the Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland, Ontario; Canadian Journal of Earth Science, Volume 19. p. 1-7.
Long, D. G. F. , Try, C. F. , Winder, C. G. , Fyfe, W. S. , Kronberg, B. I., and Van der Flier, E. 1982: Grant 134, Stratigraphy and geochemistry of Northern Ontario carbonaceous deposits; p. 15 In E.G. Pye (compiler), Ontario Geological Survey Geoscience Research Seminar, December 8-9th.
MacLaren, A. S. , Anderson, D. J. , Fortesque, J. A. C, Gaucher, E. G. , Hornbrook, E. H. W. , and Skinner, R. 1968: A preliminary study of the Moose River Belt, Northern Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 67-38, 67p.
173 Martini, I. P. 1986: Mesozoic Geology of the Hudson Platform; p. 43-54 In Canadian Inland Seas, Elsevier, Oxford; 494p.
Martison, N. W. 1953: Petroleum possibilities of the James Bay Lowland area; Ontario Department of Mines, Volume 61, 1952, Part 6, p. 1-58, plus appendices, p. 59-95.
McGregor, D. C. and Camfield, M 1976: Upper Silurian ? to Middle Devonian spores of the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 263. 63p.
McGregor, D. C. , Sanford, B. V. , and Norris, A. W. 1970: Palynology and Correlation of Devonian Formations in the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Geological Association of Canada, Proceedings, 22, p. 45-54.
McLaren, D. C. 1948: The Onakawana Lignite Development; Coal shortage, hastens commercial development; Canadian Mining Journal, Volume 67, p. 1013-1022.
McLearn, F. H. 1927: The Mesozoic and Pleistocene Deposits of the Lower Missinaibi, Opasatika, and Mattagami Rivers, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Summary Report 1926, part C, p. 16-47.
Montgomery, R. J. 1930a: A Survey of the Ceramic Industry in Canada (Interim Report); Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report 1929, Volume 38, part 4, p. 27-30.
1930b: Laboratory Tests on Northern Ontario Fireclays; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report 1929, Volume 38, part 4, p. 23-25.
1933: Laboratory Classification of Refractory Clays; Appendix In The Refractory Clay of Northern Ontario, Bulletin of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, June 1933, p. 79-87.
Montgomery, R. J. and Watson, R. J. 1929: Fireclay, Kaolin, and Silica Sand Deposits of the Mattagami and Missinaibi Rivers; Ontario Department of Mines, Annual Report, Volume 37, part 6, p. 80-120.
174 Murray, F. H. 1984: Geochemical trends in lignite bearing Cretaceous sediments from the Mattagami Formation (James Bay Lowland). MSc. thesis. University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, 106p.
Murray, F. , Van der Flier, E. , Fyfe, W. S. , Kronberg, B. I. , Long, D. G. F. , Try, C. , and Winder, C. G. 1984: Grant 134, Stratigraphy and geochemistry of Northern Ontario carbonaceous deposits: Onakawana lignites; p. 84- 98 In V.G. Milne (editor), Geoscience Research Grant Program, Summary of Research 1983-1984, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 121, 252p.
Norris, A. W. 1986: Review of Hudson Platform stratigraphy and biostratigraphy; p. 17-42 In I. P. Martini (editor) Canadian Inland Seas, Elsevier, Oxford, 494p.
Norris, G. 1967: Spores and pollen from the Lower Colorado Group (Albian- Cenomanian) of central Alberta; Palaent©graphica, Abt. B, Volume 120, p. 72-115.
1977: Palynofloral evidence for terrestrial Middle Jurassic in the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Canadian Journal of Earth Science, Volume 14, p. 153-158.
1979: Pal ynos trati graphy of lignite-bearing Mesozoic sediments. Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland, Ontario; Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 87, p. 67-68. 1982: Mesozoic Palynology of the Moose River Basin; In P. G. Telford and H. M. Verma (editors), Mesozoic Geology and Mineral Potential of the Moose River Basin, Ontario Geological Survey Study 21, p. 93-113.
Norris, A. W. , Sanford, B. V. , and Bell, R. T. 1968: Bibliography on Hudson Bay Lowland; Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 67-60, p. 47-118.
Norris, G. and Dobell, P. 1980: Palynostratigraphic Correlation of Cretaceous Lignitic Strata, Southern Moose River Basin, Ontario; p. 179-184 In Geoscience Research Grant Program, Summary of Research 1979-1980, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 93, 263p.
Norris, G. , Dobell, P. and Gittens, J. 1980: Late Cretaceous Normapolles in karstic carbonatite terrain, southern Moose River Basin, Ontario, Canada; 5th International Palynology Conference, Cambridge, Abstracts.
175 Norris, G. , Jarzen, D. M. , and Awai-Thorne, B. V. 1975: Evolution of the Cretaceous terrestrial palynoflora in western Canada; In W. G. E. Caldwell (editor). The Cretaceous System in the western interior of North America, Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 13, p. 333-364.
Norris, G. Telford, P. G. , and Vos, M. A. 1976: An Albian microflora from the Mattagami Formation, James Bay Lowland, Ontario; Canadian Journal of Earth Science, Volume 13, p. 400-403.
Norris, G. and Zippi, P. 1984: Interim report to the Ontario Geological Survey on palynostratigraphic analyses of drillholes series 83-01 to 83-08, Moose River Basin, Ontario; Unpublished report.
1985a: Interim report to the Ontario Geological Survey on palynostratigraphic analyses of drillholes series 83-01 to 83-08, Moose River Basin, Ontario; Unpublished report.
1985b: Interim report to the Ontario Geological Survey on palynostratigraphic analyses of drillholes series 84-01 to 84-11, Moose River Basin, Ontario; Unpublished report.
1986: Palynological analysis of drillhole series OGS-83-01 to 83-08D and OGS-84-01 to 84-11, Moose River Basin, NTS 42J, Cochrane District, Ontario; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5597.
Parks, W. A. 1899: The Nipissing - Algoma Boundary; The Ontario Bureau of Mines Report, Volume 8, p. 175-196.
1904: Devonian Fauna of Kwataboahegan River; The Ontario Bureau of Mines Report, Volume 13, part 1, p. 180-191.
Playford, G. 1977: Lower to Middle Devonian Acritarchs of the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada Bulletin 279, 87p.
Pocock, S. A. J. 1970: Palynology of the Jurassic sediments of Western Canada; Part I: Terrestrial species; Palaeontographica, Abt. B, Volume 130, p. 12-136.
1972: Palynology of the Jurassic sediments of Western Canada; Part 2: Marine species; Palaeontographica, Abt. B, Volume 137, p. 85-153.
176 Price, L. L. 1978: Mesozoic deposits of the Hudson Bay Lowland and coal deposits of the Onakawana area, Ontario; Geological Society of Canada, Paper 75-13, 39p.
Remick, J. H. , Gil lain, P. R, , and Durden, C. J. 1963: Geology of Rupert Bay - Missiscabi River area, Abitibi and Mistassini Territories; Quebec Department of Natural Resources, Geological Survey Branch, Preliminary Report 498, 20p.
Richardson, M. L. and Norris, G. 1981: Palynostratigraphic working standard for intra-basinal correlation of Albian lignitic strata. Moose River Basin, Ontario; p. 216-221 In E.G. Pye (editor), Geoscience Research Program, Summary of Research 1980-1981, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 98.
Rogers, D. P. , Hancock, J. S. , Ferguson, S. A. , Karvinen, W. O. , and Beck, P. 1975: Preliminary Report on the Geology and Lignite Deposits of the Cretaceous Basin, James Bay Lowland, Ontario; Ontario Division of Mines, Open File Report 5148, part 1, 157p.
Russell, D. J. 1985: Depositional analyses of black shales by using gamma-ray stratigraphy: the Upper Devonian Kettle Point Formation of Ontario; Bulletin of the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Volume 33, p.236-253.
Russell, D. J. , Telford, P. G. , Baker, C. L. , and Sanderson, J. W. 1985: The Schlievert Lake Borehole (OGS 83-8D): Report on drilling operations and preliminary geological findings; Ontario Geological Survey Open File Report 5563, 54p.
Sage, R. P. 1988: Geology of Carbonatite - Alkalic Rock Complexes in Ontario: Cargill Township Carbonatite Complex, District of Cochrane; Ontario Geological Survey, Study 36, 92p.
Sanderson, J. W. and Telford, P. G. 1985: The Onakawana B Drillhole, District of Cochrane; Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 126, p.165-166.
Sanford, B. V. 1987: Paleozoic geology of the Hudson Platform; p. 483-505 In C. Beaumont and A.J. Tankard (editors). Sedimentary Basins and Basin-Forming Mechanisms, Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Memoir 12, 527p.
177 Sanford, B. V. and Norris, A. W. 1968: Operation Winisk - air - supported geological recon naissance survey of Hudson Bay Lowland (Abstract); Mining in Canada, April 1968, p. 38.
1973: Hudson Platform, p. 387-410 In R. G. McCrosgan (editor) Future Petroleum Provinces of Canada; Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Memoir 1; 72Op.
1975: Devonian Stratigraphy of the Hudson Platform; Geological Survey of Canada, Memoir 379, Part 1 & 2, with maps. Part 1, 124p. , Part 2, 248p.
Sanford, B. V. , Norris, A. W. , and Bostock, H. H. 1968: Geology of the Hudson Bay Lowland; Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 67-60, p. 1-45, 4 figures, 23 plates, and Preliminary Series Map 17-1967.
Sanford, B. V. , Thompson, F. J. , and McFall, G. H. 1985: Plate tectonics - a possible controlling mechanism in the development of hydrocarbon traps in southwestern Ontario; Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Bulletin 33, p. 52-71.
Savage, T. E. and Van Tuyl, F. M. 1919: Geology and stratigraphy of the area of Paleozoic rocks in the vicinity of Hudson and James Bay; Geological Society of America Bulletin, Volume 30, p. 339-337.
Scintrex Surveys Limited 1976: Report on geophysical studies of Onakawana lignite fields. District of Cochrane; Ontario Division of Mines, Open File Report 5196, 47p.
Shawinigan Engineering Company 1973: Onakawana project, lignite mine and power plant development; Volume I: summary report. Volume II: engineering feasibility study and economic analysis. Volume III: power plant appendices. Volume IV: mining study report; Prepared for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.
Shilts, W. W. 1986: Glaciation of the Hudson Bay region, p. 55-78 In I. P. Martini (editor) Canadian Inland Seas; Elsevier, Oxford, 494p.
Singh, C. 1971: Lower Cretaceous microfloras of the Peace River area, northwestern Alberta; Research Council of Alberta, Bulletin 28, Volume 11, p. 1-299.
178 Singh, C. (cont. ) 1975: Stratigraphic significance of early angiosperm pollen in the mid-Cretaceous strata of Alberta; In W. G. E Caldwell (editor). The Cretaceous System in the Western Interior of Canada, Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 13, p. 365-389.
1983: Cenomanian microfloras of the Peace River area, northwestern Alberta; Alberta Geological Survey, Bulletin 44, 322p.
Skinner, R. G. 1973: Quaternary stratigraphy of the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 225, 77p.
Smith, D. G. 1983: Anastomosed fluvial deposits: modern examples from Western Canada; p. 155-168 In J. D. Collinson and J. Lewin (editors). Modern and ancient fluvial systems. International Association of Sedimentologists, Special Publication 6.
Smith, D. G. and Smith, N. D. 1980: Sedimentation in anastomosed river systems: Examples from alluvial valleys near Banff, Alberta; Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, Volume 50, p. 157-164.
Smith, D. E. and Murthy, M. K. 1970: Silica - kaolin Deposits of Algocen Mines Ltd. , Part 1: Exploration and Geology; Bulletin of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Volume 63, no. 699, p. 799-809.
Stoakes, F. A. 1975: Depositional History and Economic Potential of Lower and Middle Devonian (Gedinnian-Eifelian) Sediments of the Moose River Basin of Northern Ontario; M. Sc. Thesis, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, 12Ip.
1978: Lower and Middle Devonian Strata in the Moose River Basin, Ontario; Ontario Petroleum Institute Proceedings, Volume 17, Paper 4, 2 9p.
Telford, P. G. 1982: Mesozoic stratigraphy of the Moose River Basin; p. 21-50 In P. G. Telford and H. M. Verma (editors), Mesozoic Geology and Mineral Potential of the Moose River Basin, Ontario Geological Survey, Study 21, 193p.
179 Telford, P. G. (cont.) 1989: Devonian Stratigraphy of the Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland, Ontario, Canada; p. 123-132 In N. J. McMillan, A. F. Embry and D.J. Glass (editors) Devonian of the World, Proceedings of the 2nd International Symposium on the Devonian System, v. 1, Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Calgary, Alberta. Telford, P. G. and Long, D. G. F.
1986: Mesozoic Geology of the Hudson Platform; p. 43-54 In I. P. Martini (editor), Canadian Inland Seas, Elsevier, Oxford, 494p.
Telford, P. G. and Verma, H. M. 1978: Cretaceous stratigraphy and lignite occurrences in the Smoke Falls area, James Bay Lowland; Preliminary lithological logs from the 1978 drilling program, Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5255, 60p.
Telford, P. G. and Verma, H. M. (editors) 1982: Mesozoic Geology and Mineral Potential of the Moose River Basin; Ontario Geological Survey, Study 21, 193p.
Telford, P. G. , Vos, M. A. , and Norris, G. 1975: Geology and mineral deposits of the Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland, Preliminary Report; Ontario Division of Mines, Open File Report 5158.
Thusu, B. and Vigran, O. 1976: A review of the palynostratigraphy of the Jurassic System in Norway; Royal Norwegian Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Continental Shelf Division, Publication 67, 55p.
Traverse, A. 1955: Pollen analysis of the Brandon Lignite of Vermont, United States; Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, Report of Investigations 5151, 107p.
Trusler, J. R. , et ai. 1974: Onakawana lignite area. District of Cochrane; Ontario Division of Mines, Open File Report 5111.
Try, C. F. 1984: The sedimentology of the Lower Cretaceous Mattagami Formation, Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland, northern Ontario; M. Sc. Thesis, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, 161p.
180 Try, C. F. , Long, D. G. F. , and Winder, C. G. 1984: Sedimentology of the Lower Cretaceous Mattagami Formation, Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland, Ontario, Canada; In D. F. Stott and D.J. Glass (editors). The Mesozoic of Middle North America, Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Memoir 9, p. 345-359.
Utard, M. 1975: Report on refraction seismic and resistivity surveys in the James Bay Lowland Cretaceous Basin for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources; Ontario Division of Mines, Open File Report 5148, part 2, 47p.
Van der Flier, E. 1985: Geochemistry and sedimentology of two Cretaceous coal deposits in Canada. PhD. thesis. University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, 302p.
Van der Flier, E. and Fyfe, W. S. 1985: Uranium-thorium systematics of two Canadian coals. International Journal of Coal Geology, 4, p. 335-353.
Verma, H. M. 1982a: History of geological exploration in the James Bay Lowland; p. 1-20 In P. G. Telford and H. M. Verma (editors), Mesozoic Geology and Mineral Potential of the Moose River Basin, Ontario Geological Survey, Study 21, 193p.
1982b: Selco Inc. - Lignasco Resources Limited 1982 joint venture drilling, drill logs, prepared for Selco Inc.; Ontario Geological Survey, Geoscience Data Centre File LD14886.
Verma, H. M. and Telford, P. G. 1978: Surface and subsurface geology of the Smoky Falls Area, James Bay Lowland, p. 135-138 In Summary of field work, 1978 by the Ontario Geological Survey, edited by V. G. Milne, O. L. White, R. B. Barlow and J. A. Robertson. Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 82, 235p.
Verma, H. M. , Telford, P. G. , and Norris, G. 1978: Geological Studies East of the Abitibi River in the Vicinity of Onakawana, District of Cochrane; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5253, 74p.
Vigran, J. O. and Thusu, B. 1975: Illustrations of Norwegian Microfossils. Illustrations and distributions of the Jurassic palynomorphs of Norway. Royal Norwegian Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Continental Shelf Division, Publication 65, p. 1-55.
181 Vos, M. A. 1978: Silica in Ontario, Supplement; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5157, 50p.
1982: Lignite and industrial mineral resources of the Moose River Basin; p. 135-190 In P. G. Telford and H. M. Verma (editors), Mesozoic Geology and Mineral Potential of the Moose River Basin, Ontario Geological Survey, Study 21, 193p.
Watts, Griffis, and McOuat Limited 1981: Lignite exploration of the James Bay Lowland for the Ontario Energy Corporation; Ontario Geological Survey, Geoscience Data Centre File LD14886.
1982: Summary report on the 1982 exploration program in the James Bay Lowland for ONEXCO Minerals Limited, Volume 1; Ontario Geological Survey, Geoscience Data Centre File 63. 4180.
1983: Summary report, 1983 winter drill program, James Bay Lowland for ONEXCO Minerals Limited, volume 1; Ontario Geological Survey, Geoscience Data Centre File 63.4219.
1984a: Lignite Resource Assessment Project: 1983 Winter Drilling Program, Moose River Basin, James Bay Lowland; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5495, 114p.
1984b: Lignite Assessment Project - Winter Drilling Program, James Bay Lowland; Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 5511, 120p.
Westman, A. E. R. 1933: The Development of Kaolin and Fireclay Deposits; Presented at April 1933 meeting in Toronto of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Williams, M. Y. 1920a: Paleozoic rocks of Mattagami and Abitibi Rivers, Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Summary Report 1919, part G, p. 1-12.
1920b: Abitibi and Mattagami Rivers, north of National Trans continental Railway, Paleozoic geology; Ontario Bureau of Mines, Volume 29, part 2, p. 19-30.
1948: The geological history of Churchill, Manitoba; Western Miner, Volume 21, no. 6, p. 39-42.
182 Williams, G. D. and Stelck, C. R. 1975: Speculations on the Cretaceous paleogeography of North, America; p. 1-20 In W. G. D. Caldwell (editor). The Cretaceous System in the Western Interior of North America, Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 13, 666p.
Winder. C. G. , Brown, J. R. , Kronberg, B. I. , Fyfe, W. S. , and Murray, F. H. 1985: Grant 134, Geochemistry and petrography of the Mattagami Formation lignites (Northern Ontario); p. 15-24 In V.G. Milne (editor), Geoscience Research Grant Program, Summary of Research 1984-1985, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Paper 127.
Winder, C. G. and Long, D. G. F. 1983: Adam Creek anticline: unloading structure of Lower Cretaceous sediments, James Bay Lowland, Northern Ontario; Geological Association of Canada, Program with Abstracts, Volume 8, p. A75.
Winder, C. G. , Telford, P. G. , Verma, H. M. , Fyfe, W. S. , and Long, D. G. F. 1982: Fluvial model for Lower Cretaceous lignite. Northern Ontario; American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Bulletin 66, p. 643.
Zippi, K and Norris, G. 1985: Palynostratigraphy of Lower Cretaceous fluvial deposits and lignite occurrence in the Moose River Basin; Geological Association of Canada, Mineralogical Association of Canada, Program with Abstracts, Volume 10, p. A70.
183 CO^^VERSION FACTORS FOR MEASUREMENTS IN ONTARIO GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PUBLICATIONS
Conversion from SI to Imperial Conversion from Imperial to SI SI Unit Multiplied by Gives Imperial Unit Multiplied by Gives LENGTH 1 mm 0.039 37 inches 1 inch 25.4 mm 1 cm 0.393 70 inches 1 inch 2.54 cm 1 ra 3.280 84 feet 1 foot 0304 8 m 1 m 0.049 709 7 chains 1 chain 20.116 8 m 1 km 0.621 371 miles (statute) 1 mile (statute) 1.609 344 km AREA 1 cra2 0.155 0 square inches 1 square inch 6.451 6 cm2 1 m2 10.763 9 square feet 1 square foot 0.092 903 04 m2 1 km2 0.386 10 square miles 1 square mile 2.589 988 km2 1 ha Z471 054 acres 1 acre 0.404 685 6 ha VOLUME 1 cm3 0.061 02 cubic inches 1 cubic inch 16387 064 cm3 lm3 35.314 7 cubic feet 1 cubic foot 0.028 316 85 m3 1 m3 1.308 0 cubic yards 1 cubic yard 0.764 555 m3 CAPACITY 1 L 1.759 755 pints 1 pint 0.568 261 L IL 0.879 877 quarts 1 quart 1.136 522 L IL 0.219 969 gallons 1 gallon 4.546 090 L MASS Ig 0.035 273 96 ounces (avdp) 1 ounce (avdp) 28.349 523 g Ig 0.032 150 75 ounces (troy) 1 ounce (troy) 31.103 476 8 g 1kg 2.204 62 pounds (avdp) 1 pound (avdp) 0.453 592 37 kg 1kg 0.001 102 3 tons (short) 1 ton (short) 907.184 74 kg 11 L102 311 tons (short) 1 ton (short) 0.907 184 74 t 1kg 0.000 984 21 tons (long) 1 ton (long) 1016.046 908 8 kg 11 0.984 206 5 tons (long) 1 ton (long) 1.016 046 908 8 I CONCENl RATION Ig/t 0.029 166 6 ounce (troy)/ 1 ounce (troy)/ 34.285 714 2 g/i ton (short) ton (short) Ig/t 0.583 333 33 pennyweights/ 1 pennyweight/ 1.714 285 7 g/i ton (short) ton (short) OTHER USEFUL CONVERSION FACTORS Multiplied by 1 ounce (troy) per ton (short) 20.0 pennyweights per ton (shon) 1 pennyweight per ton (short) 0.05 ounces (troy) per ton (short) Note: Conversion factors which are in bold type are exact. The conversion factors have been taken from or have been derived from factors given in the Metric Practice Guide for the Canadian Mining a/id Metallurgical Indus tries, published by llie Mining Association of Canada in co-operation witJi die Coal Association of Canada.
184
3268 ISSN 0826-9580 ISBN 0-7729-8248-1