March 2023 – Monthly Talk | BC Geophysical Society

March 2023 Monthly Talk

Speaker: Dr. Graham Banks, Senior Principal Geologist, WSP Mining Canada

Title: Mapping Mineral Systems Under Sediment Cover: The Right Geophysics and Structural Geology at the Right Scale at the Right Time

Date: Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Time: 4:30pm to 5:30pm PDT

Location: Room 111 – 409 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC, V6C 1T2

Abstract:

This presentation is an expanded version of a seminar given at PDAC 2023 in the session called
Geophysics: Exploration Case Histories:

https://www.pdac.ca/convention/programming/technical-program/sessions/technical-program/geophysics-exploration-case-histories

The objectives of geophysics and structural geology in mineral exploration should be to: (a) formulate exploration hypotheses to then, (b) test the existence of a mineral system, its plays and its deposits under sediment cover by, (c) sequentially narrowing the team’s uncertainty range through province, then play, then prospect, then borehole scales. To make undercover mineral exploration more efficient, the optimal combination of survey types that test objectives a to c should be applied, instead of conducting the most familiar suite of surveys.

The accompanying presentation will summarize how geophysics integrated with structural geology was used by Southern Geoscience Consultants in 2021, to assist Battery Minerals Limited focus its exploration program towards understanding the under cover geology. The project area is in the Stavely-Stawell metallogenic province of gold and base metals in Australia. The interpretation team did a gap analysis and a SWOT analysis of the existing data, built a district-scale geological framework, made a litho-structural interpretation, to then identify areas of further interest for deposit-scale targeting.

Thank you to Battery Minerals Limited and Southern Geoscience Consultants for permission to display this case study.

Bio:

A senior principal geoscientist with 17 years in industry (copper, lithium, rare earth elements, nickel, gold, petroleum) spanning tectonic to drill core scales.
Evolved from a structural geologist to advisor of exploration-mining organisations: how to translate a project’s geoscience into probability of success, uncertainty, risk and value.
Helps clients create success-case and failure-case hypotheses before spending money and effort collecting costly data.
Integrates structural geology with geophysics: 10 years interpreting reflection 2D and 3D seismic; Interpret borehole image log data; Structural geology maps from aeromagnetic and spaceborne imagery.
A regional-scale geologist, with years of experience building district-scale geology models.
Integrates structural geology with mineral deposit-forming processes in sedimentary, igneous, metamorphic regions.
Creates professional development workshops for exploration-mining companies, geological surveys, policy-makers, universities and governments: exploration risk and value.
An external advisor on the European Union’s lithium exploration program.
Senior Principal Geologist, WSP Mining, Canada.
Director of Route To Reserves Consulting Inc.
Associate of Southern Geoscience Consultants.
Ph.D. Structural and igneous geology of VHMS deposits. Cardiff University, U.K.
BSc. Geology. 1st class with Honours. University of St. Andrews, U.K.