Arkansas earth mapping resources initiative project abstract summary - FY2023PROJECT title: geologic mapping of arkansas mississippi valley-type mineral districtproject period: july 1, 2023 through…

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) awarded the Office of the State Geologist in Arkansas a $727,833.06 Cooperative Agreement under the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (CFDA 15.073) to conduct detailed geologic mapping of areas in northern Arkansas containing critical minerals such as zinc and lead. The 3-year project period runs from July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2026. The key deliverables include:

Year 1 (by June 30, 2024): Digital geologic maps of the Smithville and portions of 4 other 1:24,000-scale quadrangles in .PDF format and a Level 3-compliant geodatabase.

Year 2 (by June 30, 2025): Digital geologic maps of the Zinc, Pyatt, and portions of 3 other 1:24,000-scale quadrangles in .PDF format and a Level 3-compliant geodatabase.

Year 3 (by June 30, 2026): Digital geologic maps of the Cotter SW and portions of 3 other 1:24,000-scale quadrangles in .PDF format and a Level 3-compliant geodatabase, plus a summary of scientific results.

The geologic mapping aims to characterize the distribution and thickness of mineral-bearing rock units to support assessment and potential development of these critical domestic mineral resources.

Arkansas earth mapping resources initiative project abstract summary - FY2023PROJECT title: geologic mapping of arkansas mississippi valley-type mineral districtproject period: july 1, 2023 through june 30, 2026THE purpose of this award is to conduct detailed geologic mapping in areas of north arkansas that contain the critical minerals zinc and lead. This will set the stage for assessment of these and additional critical minerals as a domestic resource. Geologists will locate and describe geologic units that contain the critical minerals, collect samples of mineralized zones for geochemical analyses, and integrate the data into a geospatial database for ease of use. The geologic maps will show the distribution of the mineralized units at the surface and the cross-sections will display thickness of the units beneath the surface for potential three-dimensional maps for subsequent subsurface research. The activities proposed in this grant will be performed by two geologists, working as a team. They will conduct fieldwork on a weekly basis for approximately 35 weeks out of each year, for three consecutive years. During their traverses in the field, they will enter data into a handheld data collector and collect rock samples for descriptions and possibly thin sections. When back in the office, this data will be used to draw geologic maps and cross sections which will then be digitized by a GIS technician. The geologists will then create joint diagrams, stratigraphic columns, and any other map elements needed for the map layout. Once the layout is completed and finalized, the maps will go through a rigorous editing process and be converted into a level 3 compliant geologic map schema geodatabase. The geologists will also submit 200 mineral and rock samples to the united states geological survey for geochemical analyses.deliverables are divided into three years:year 1DIGITAL geologic maps of the smithville 1:24,000-scale quadrangle and portions of the poughkeepsie, eaton, black rock, and imboden 1:24,000-scale quadrangles in .PDF format and map data in a geologic map schema level 3-compliant database will be delivered by june 30, 2024.year 2 digital geologic maps of the zinc and pyatt 1:24,000-scale quadrangles and portions of the omaha NE, bergman, and harrison 1:24,000-scale quadrangles in .PDF format and map data in a geologic map schema level 3-compliant database will be delivered by june 30, 2025.year 3 - digital geologic maps of the cotter SW 1:24,000-scale quadrangle and portions of the peel, cotter, and cotter NW 1:24,000-scale quadrangles in .PDF format and map data in a geologic map schema level 3-compliant database will be delivered by june 30, 2026.also provided in the last year is a summary of scientific results for the project area.beneficiaries and users of this data are state agencies such as arkansas departments of health, environmental quality, and the highway department, local public water system managers and users, private companies that produce natural resources including the oil and gas, and university researchers. Landowners and developers also benefit from information about resources that are on their property.