PROPERTY HIGHLIGHTS
- Property contains sediment-hosted uranium mineralization yielding historical values of 0.236% U3O8 (4.72 lbs/ton) and selective grab sample assays of up to 2.87% U3O8 (57.34 lbs/ton)
- Historic uranium occurrences as well as a prominent uranium in-soil geochemical anomaly have not been tested by diamond drilling
PROPERTY OVERVIEW
Uranium metallogenesis in New Brunswick is closely related to late to post-orogenic Devonian intrusions and related volcanic rocks and younger sedimentary rocks, in overlying successor basins. In New Brunswick, these Carboniferous-age basins (collectively known as the Maritimes Basin) formed through collapse and subsidence of the uplifted Appalachian Orogen and contain sedimentary-hosted uranium occurrences of various styles. Uranium mineralization is hosted in alluvial, fluvial and lacustrine sediments, commonly occurring in close proximity to faults.
The Plaster Rock property is located in one such Carboniferous-age basin, known as the Plaster Rock basin. The 230 claim property comprises 3723 hectares and straddles a ten kilometre long section of the western margin of the Plaster Rock basin, in fault contact with Devonian-age felsic volcanic rocks. The Blue Bell Fault separates pink to red massive rhyolitic basement rocks of the Cameron Mountain Formation from overlying red sandstone, conglomerate and mudstone of the Arthurette Redbeds Formation (Wilson 1987). Previous exploration efforts completed in the 1970’s by Urangesellschaft Ltd. and Lacana Mining Corporation in this locale, were successful in locating a number of new uranium showings and soil geochemical anomalies, intimately associated with the Blue Bell Fault.
Lacana Mining Corporation carried out regional well water geochemical sampling programs in 1978 and 1979 on the current Plaster Rock property. Follow-up soil sampling, prospecting and trenching located a number of new showings within the Arthurette Redbeds, immediately adjacent to the Blue Bell Fault. Assessment reports filed with the New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources report the best results from Trench B, where 2 out of 7 samples returned greater than 2000 parts per million uranium or 0.236% U3O8 (4.72 pounds) and a third sample assayed 1000 parts per million uranium or 0.118% U3O8 (2.36 pounds). Selective grab sampling of the mineralized zone returned an assay of 24,300 parts per million uranium or 2.867% U3O8 (57.34 pounds). Mineralization is associated with radioactive chalcopyrite nodules in red sandstone.
Urangesellschaft also explored a segment of the Blue Bell Fault approximately 2.5 kilometres west of the Lacana showings in 1979. A soil geochemical survey completed on a survey grid straddling the fault, delineated anomalous uranium in-soil values over a one kilometre strike length. Soil values within the well-defined anomaly include 71, 50, 49 and 45 parts per million uranium. There is no recorded work performed to follow-up on any of these most encouraging exploration results.
AIRBORNE GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY
Fugro Airborne Surveys recently completed a combined radiometric and total field magnetic survey on the property to help guide exploration efforts. The survey comprised approximately 500 line kilometres flown at a line spacing of 200 metres between flight lines. The structural interpretation indicates numerous faults crosscutting the area of interest. Several high priority radiometric anomalies (equivalent uranium and equivalent uranium/equivalent thorium) are also delineated by the survey, 2 of which are intimately associated with uranium mineralization and the large Urangesellshaft uranium in-soil anomaly.
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