4 La GJBX-1 3 STATE OF ARIZONA BUREAU OF GEOLOGY AND MINERAL TECHNOLOGY RADIOACTIVE OCCURRENCES AND URANIUM PRODUCTION - IN ARIZONA 7" V / ............................................................................ 'S l Earth Science and Mineral Resources in Arizona A: . ,ea ti: ,; A DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA TUCSON, ARIZONA metadc1393014 85721 RADIOACTIVE OCCURRENCES AND URANIUM PRODUCTION IN ARIZONA FINAL REPORT Robert B. Scarborough Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology Geological Survey Branch Tucson, Arizona March 1981 Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy Grand Junction Office, Colorado Under Bendix Field Engineering Corporation Subcontract No. 79-374E This report is a result of work performed by the Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology, through a Bendix Field Engineering Corporation Subcontract, as part of the National Uranium Resource Evaluation. NURE is a program of the U. S. Department of Energy's Grand Junction, Colorado, Office to acquire and compile geologic and other information with which to assess the magnitude and distribution of uranium resources and to determine areas favorable for the occurrence of uranium in the United States. This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommenda- tion, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. i CONTENTS ABSTRACT.................................-.-...-.--.-.....1 INTRODUCTION.............................-..-.--- - 2 Purpose and Scope... ............................ 2 Previous work and Sources of Information . ........ 2 Acknowledgments ".. .. - - - - -"-"-"-.-"- 3 Key to Individual County Listings . .. ........ 4 URANIUM OCCURRENCES IN ARIZONA (discussions) . ............... 7 COLORADO PLATEAU REGION..........................10 Morrison Formation.............................. 10 Lukachukai Mountains . ......-.-... 11 Carrizo Mountains..........................12 Black Mesa. ..................-.-....-.- 12 Mineralization timing and source . ................ 12 Potential...................-....-.-...-.-.--13 Chinle Formation...............................30 Monument Valley...........................30 Monument No.2 Mine........................ 31 Cameron-Holbrook region...................... .. 31 Vermilion Cliffs-Lee's Ferry. .....-.-.-.-...-.-.-.-.-.-.-. 33 Toreva Formation . ..... ...........-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.40 Breccia Pipes . .....................-.--.--.--.. -.-.43 Orphan Lode... .........-.......-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. 44 Hopi Buttes. ..... ............-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.51 Other Host Rocks . ........ 54 Synthesis of Stratabound Deposits. ... ....-.......-.-.56 SOUTHERN ARIZONA REGION Stratabound Occurrences . .......... 58 Dripping Spring Quartzite..............-.-......58 Red Bluff Mine. ........................ 61 Cretaceous Sandstones........... ................ 68 Duranium Mine. ......................... 68 Cenozoic Sediments..........................-.....70 Northern Whitlock Hills....... ................ 71 Date Creek Basin..... ............. 75 Miocene dolomites . ........... 81 Mineta Formation.....................-...... .. 83 Precambrian Sediments and Unconformities . ..........-.- 84 Non-stratabound Occurrences Precambrian granites...........................-....85 Jurassic-Cretaceous volcanic terrain...................88 Porphyry Copper deposits . -.......... 93 Cenozoic volcanic rocks..........................95 Veins, faults, shears..........................-........97 THORIUM IN ARIZONA . .R.M.N.R.O. .N. 101 2- CONTENTS (continued) INDIVIDUAL COUNTY LISTINGS. 103 Apache . 104 Cochise . 135 Coconino . 141 Gila . 165 Graham . 190 Greenlee . 195 Maricopa . 196 Mohave . .. " .. 202 Navajo . 216 Pima . 228 Pinal . 237 Santa Cruz............... 241 Yavapai. 247 Yuma. .......... 256 APPENDIX A - Production Tables and Histograms Table 2 - District total production table . ...... .... 264 3 - Arizona uranium production histogram . 265 4 - County production table, year-by-year. 266 5 - County listing of number of occurrences and producers . 267 6 - Monument Valley production histogram . 268 7 - Orphan Lode production histogram . ...... .... 269 8 - Carrizo Mountains production histogram . 270 9 - Lukachukai Mountains production histogram 271 10 - Cameron district production histogram. 272 11 - Recent exploration trends in Arizona . 273 APPENDIX B - Synopsis of History and Mining Early history and AEC involvement.......... 274. Carrizo Mountains....... .. ..... .. 275. Lukachukai Mountains. ... .... ... 277 Monument Valley..... .... ....... 279. Cameron. .. ....... -......... 279. Orphan Lode 281. Other parts of Colorado Plateau . 283 Basin and Range country . 283 . REFERENCES CITED.. ................... ........ 285 .; ~ CONTENTS (continued) ILLUSTRATIONS Plates (under separate cover) NTMS Maps (1:250,000) Plate 1. Aj o 2. Flagstaff 3. Grand Canyon 2 4. Holbrook under 5. Kingman - Las Vegas 6. Lukeville - El Centro separate 7. Marble Canyon 8. Mesa cover 9. Nogales 10. Phoenix 11. Prescott 12. Salton Sea - Needles 13. Shiprock - Gallup 14. Silver City - Douglas 15. St.Johns - Clifton 16. Tucson 17. Williams District Maps Plate 18. Carrizo Mountains 19. Lukachukai Mountains 20. Cameron j4 21. Sierra Ancha FIGURES Figure 1. Physiographic Provinces and uranium districts of Arizona. 8 1A. Stratigraphic correlation chart for Arizona . 9 2. Salt Wash Member facies and Isopach map . 15 3. Lukachukais, stratigraphic cross section 16 4. Lukachukais, Mesa I, I , 1 Mines... ........ 17 5. Lukachukais, Mesa I34, II, II', III Mines . 18 6. Lukachukais, Mesa, IV, IV , IV , V, VI Mines . .. 19 7. Lukachukais, Frank No. 1 Mine... .......... 20 8. Lukachukais, Camp Mine . .. 21 9. Northwest Carrizos, Saytah Wash Mines . 22 10. Northwest Carrizos, Martin, Saytah, George Simpson Mines. 23 11. Northwest Carrizos, Plot 6 (Rattlesnake) Mines. 24 12. Northwest Carrizos, Rattlesnake Incline cross section . 25 13. Eastern Carrizos, Oak Springs-Gravel Top (Cap) Mines . 26 14. East Carrizos, RF&R, Hazell, Valley View, VCA Plot 11 Mines 27 15a. Carrizos, Cove Mesa Mines, northern half. 28 15b. Carrizos, Cove Mesa Mines, southern half. 29 16. Monument Valley area, Shinarump channels.. 34 17. Monument No. 2 Mine, geology and development . 36 18. Jack Daniels No. 1 pit, Cameron . .. 37 CONTENTS (continued) 19. Ramco pits, Cameron .-.........-.......-................... 38 20. Lee's Ferry - Vermilion Cliffs area - Shinarump channels .. 39 21. Claim 28 Mine, Black Mesa....--.-.-.-...-.. ......... 42 22. Breccia pipes, Grand Canyon region....... -..--.-.-.-.-.-.... 47 23. Hack Canyon Mine, cross section....--.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-...48 24. Orphan Lode, cross section....-...-...-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.49 25. Orphan Lode, 245 and 400 levels, plan views. 50 26. Hopi Buttes, Morale Mine . 53 27. Apache Group stratigraphic section................62 28. Apache Group, paleogeographic N-S cross section.-.-.-.-.-.....63 29. Sierra Ancha, N-S cross section...-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.64 30. Apache Group, outcrop map...............-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.65 31. Red Bluff Mine, Sierra Ancha.........................-.......66 32. Hope workings, Sierra Ancha...........-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.67 33. Duranium Mine, Santa Rita Mountains...........-.-...-.-...-... 69 34. Pliocene lacustrine rocks, 111 Ranch, Graham County.-.-.-....73 35. 111 Ranch, White Bluffs claim..................-.-.-.-.-.--74 36. Anderson Mine, Date Creek basin geology.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-...-...--79 37. Anderson Mine, cross section.-.--.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.80 38. New River area, Miocene dolomites.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.82 39. White Oak Mine, general geology, Santa Cruz County....-.-....-.. 90 40. White Oak - Clark Mine maps.....-.....-....-...-....------.-91 41. Squaw Gulch Granite, Santa Rita Mountains.-.-.-........-.-92 42. Rincon Mountains, Blue Rock, Chance, and Roble Springs claims 100 Tables Table 1. NURE reports covering Arizona. ..... ....... 6 Table lA. Uranium occurrences in Cenozoic sediments - examples .-.-.... 70 Tables 2 - 11, see Appcndix A 1 ABSTRACT Nine hundred and sixty-five natural radioactive occurrences of uranium, some containing thorium, are known for Arizona. Of these, 328 localities were the source of 18.1 million pounds of U3 08 between 1948 and 1970. About 43 million pounds of V2 05 were present in the uranium ores. Ninety-nine per- cent of Arizona's total production is from the Triassic-Jurassic sedimentary rocks of the Colorado Plateau, approximately half of which came from the Salt Wash Member of the Morrison Formation in the Carrizo and Lukachukai Mountains. Historically, only a small amount of uranium has been produced from the Basin and Range Province. However, recent exploration has shown significant uranium potential in late Tertiary sediments in this region. Arizona's largest single uranium