Reconnaissance geochemical assessment of the Meadow Valley Mountains, Bureau of Land Management Wilderness Study Area (NV-050-156), Lincoln and Clark Counties, Nevada

Technical Report · Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1984

OSTI ID:5719925

Hoffman, J D; Day, G W

This report presents the results of a mineral survey of the Meadow Valley Mountains Wilderness Study Area, Lincoln and Clark Counties, Nevada. Rocks of the Meadow Valley Mountains consist of 200- to 600-million-year-old sedimentary rocks in the south and 60-million-year-old and younger volcanic rocks in the north. The structure is typical of the Basin and Range province and is characterized by north-trending normal faults. No patented claims or mining districts are located in the WSA. However, two unpatented claim groups, both believed to be staked for precious metals, are located in the WSA. One of these groups is a large block of about 100 lode claims, less than half of which are in the WSA on the western flank of the range adjacent to Kane Springs Wash. The other group consists of about 20 placer claims in the extreme southeastern corner of the WSA; this group is a part of a larger group of claims in the alluvial fans surrounding the Mormon Mountains to the east of the WSA. The only two reported nonmetallic deposits in the WSA are a perlite deposit in the north and a gypsum deposit in the south. Oil and gas leases cover all of the GRA; no geothermal leases exist in the WSA. Stream-sediment and heavy-mineral-concentrate samples were collected and analyzed spectrographically by the US Geological Survey. The results suggest that thorium and tin mineralization occur in the extreme northern part of the WSA. Geochemical anomalies indicative of detrital mineral occurrences (chromium, lanthanum, and niobium) may exist along the east-central margin of the WSA. Epithermal or skarn-type mineralization, exhibiting the typical metallic suite of molybdenum, tungsten, arsenic, and antimony, may be present along the extreme southwestern border of the WSA. Barite veins may be present. 11 refs., 2 figs., 6 tabs. (ACR)

• Research Organization: Geological Survey, Reston, VA (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5719925
• Report Number(s): USGS-OFR-84-655; ON: TI85901667
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
NEVADA
MINERAL RESOURCES
GEOCHEMICAL SURVEYS
GEOLOGY
GYPSUM
NATURE RESERVES
PERLITE
ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS
CALCIUM COMPOUNDS
CALCIUM SULFATES
FEDERAL REGION IX
IGNEOUS ROCKS
MINERALS
NORTH AMERICA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
RESOURCES
ROCKS
SULFATE MINERALS
SULFATES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SURVEYS
USA
VOLCANIC ROCKS
580100* - Geology & Hydrology- (-1989)