Unnamed Occurrences (ARDF - CV070; Don Miller Hills area), Copper River Mining District, Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska, USAi

Regional Level Types
Unnamed Occurrences (ARDF - CV070; Don Miller Hills area)	- not defined -
Copper River Mining District	Mining District
Valdez-Cordova Census Area	Census Area
Alaska	State
USA	Country

This and other geologically similar areas in the Cordova quadrangle warrant further investigation (Nelson and others, 1994). Chugach Alaska Corporation, Anchorage, Alaska has control of these lands.
Location: This site represents several occurrences in an approximately 30 square mile area in the Don Miller Hills. The roughly arcuate area is bounded on the east by the Bering River, on the west by the Katalla River, on the north by Bering Lake, and on the south by Redwood and Burls Creeks. The map site is about at the center of this area, on Peak 2067 in the pass between Rope Creek and Split Creek drainages. It is in the N1/2 sec. 10, T 19 S, R 6 E, of the Copper River Meridian.
Geology: These occurrences consist of anomalous metal values in geochemical samples from drainages in the area. The metals are thought to come from organic-rich shales in continental clastic rocks of Eocene to Miocene age (Goldfarb and others, 1992), intercalated with marine mafic volcanic rocks in the Poule Creek Formation (Winkler and Plafker, 1991). Heavy mineral concentrates contain abundant barite, pyrite, and sphalerite. Analyses of concentrates yielded values of up to 5000 ppm Ba, >2% Zn, and 10%-30% Fe. Anomalous values of Ag, Cu, Mo, and Pb were also detected (Goldfarb and others, 1992).
Workings: None, however, investigations of similar geochemical anomalies to the south on Kayak Island (Pickthorn and others, 1985) failed to find any outcrops containing minerals that could be the source of the anomalous metal values in the geochemical samples (Goldfarb and others, 1992). Heavy mineral concentrates contain abundant barite, pyrite, and sphalerite. Analyses of concentrates yielded values of up to 5000 ppm Ba, >2% Zn, and 10%-30% Fe. Anomalous values of Ag, Cu, Mo, and Pb were also detected (Goldfarb and others, 1992).
Age: The occurrences are considered to be Eocene to Miocene based on the age of the host rocks.

Commodities (Major) - Zn; (Minor) - Ag, Ba, Cu, Fe, Mo, Pb
Development Status: None
Deposit Model: Possibly sedimentary-exhalative Pb-Zn (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 31a)

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:	CV070

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References