NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the panel responsible for the report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
Support for this study by the Panel to Review the Mineral Resource Surveys Program Plan of the U.S. Geological Survey was provided by the U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the U.S. Government. Research supported by the U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior, under USGS Agreement No. 14-08-0001-A0900.
Additional copies of this report are available from
Board on Earth Sciences and Resources
National Academy of Sciences
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Copyright 1996 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Cover: A digital aeromagnetic map of a portion of the states of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. The map was assembled by the USGS for a mineral resource assessment of the southeastern United States. Structural features include igneous dikes (N and NW trending) and Piedmont faults (NE-SW trending). The Gold Hill fault (central and west of shaded dome) is a locus for numerous small gold mines.
PANEL TO REVIEW THE MINERAL RESOURCE SURVEYS PROGRAM PLAN OF THE U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
SAMUEL S. ADAMS,
Chairman, Minerals Consultant,
Lincoln, New Hampshire
PHILIP A. ABELSON,
American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C.
HUGO T. DUMMETT,
BHP Minerals International, Inc., San Francisco, California
RODERICK G. EGGERT,
Colorado School of Mines, Golden
D. CHRISTOPHER FINDLAY,
Geological Survey of Canada, Ottawa (ret.)
ANN S. MAEST,
Hagler Bailly, Boulder, Colorado
DIANNE R. NIELSON,
Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Salt Lake City
JONATHAN G. PRICE,
Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Reno
DONALD D. RUNNELLS,
Shepherd Miller, Inc., Fort Collins, Colorado
BRIAN J. SKINNER,
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
DAVID A. STEPHENSON,
South Pass Resources, Inc., Scottsdale, Arizona
PETER G. VIKRE,
ASARCO, Inc., Reno, Nevada
U.S. Geological Survey Liaison
RICHARD B. CARTEN
Staff
CRAIG M. SCHIFFRIES,
Study Director
LALLY ANNE ANDERSON,
Staff Associate
JENNIFER T. ESTEP,
Administrative Assistant
COMMITTEE ON EARTH RESOURCES
CAREL OTTE, JR.,
Chairman, Independent Geologist,
LaCañada, California
PHILIP H. ABELSON,
American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C.
SAMUEL S. ADAMS,
Minerals Consultant,
Lincoln, New Hampshire
JOEL DARMSTADTER,
Resources for the Future, Washington, D.C.
RODERICK G. EGGERT,
Colorado School of Mines, Golden
MARCO EINAUDI,
Stanford University, California
NORMAN H. FOSTER,
Independent Petroleum Geologist,
Denver, Colorado
CHARLES G. GROAT,
University of Texas, El Paso
PERRY R. HAGENSTEIN,
Resources Issues, Inc., Wayland Massachusetts
DONALD C. HANEY,
Kentucky Geological Survey, Lexington
PHILIP E. LAMOREAUX,
P. E. LaMoreaux and Associates, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
SUSAN M. LANDON,
Thomasson Partner Associates, Denver, Colorado
JILL D. PASTERIS,
Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri
JONATHAN G. PRICE,
Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Reno
NOEL TYLER,
Bureau of Economic Geology, University of Texas at Austin
W. FRANK WEST,
PACO Minerals, Inc., Dallas, Texas
Staff
CRAIG M. SCHIFFRIES,
Director
JUDITH L. ESTEP,
Administrative Assistant
BOARD ON EARTH SCIENCES AND RESOURCES
J. FREEMAN GILBERT,
Chairman,
University of California, San Diego
THURE CERLING,
University of Utah, Salt Lake City
MARK P. CLOOS,
University of Texas at Austin
JOEL DARMSTADTER,
Resources for the Future, Washington, D.C.
KENNETH I. DAUGHERTY,
E-Systems, Fairfax, Virginia
WILLIAM R. DICKINSON,
University of Arizona, Tucson, emeritus
MARCO T. EINAUDI,
Stanford University, California
NORMAN H. FOSTER,
Independent Petroleum Geologist,
Denver, Colorado
CHARLES G. GROAT,
University of Texas, El Paso
DONALD C. HANEY,
Kentucky Geological Survey, Lexington
SUSAN M. KIDWELL,
University of Chicago, Illinois
SUSAN KIEFFER,
Kieffer & Woo, Inc., Palgrave, Ontario
PHILIP E. LAMOREAUX,
P. E. LaMoreaux and Associates, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
SUSAN M. LANDON,
Thomasson Partner Associates, Denver, Colorado
J. BERNARD MINSTER,
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California
ALEXANDRA NAVROTSKY,
Princeton University, New Jersey
JILL D. PASTERIS,
Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri
EDWARD C. ROY, JR.,
Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas
Staff
CRAIG M. SCHIFFRIES,
Director
THOMAS M. USSELMAN,
Associate Director
INA B. ALTERMAN,
Senior Program Officer
WILLIAM E. BENSON,
Senior Program Officer
KEVIN D. CROWLEY,
Senior Program Officer
ANNE M. LINN,
Senior Program Officer
CHARLES MEADE,
Senior Program Officer
LALLY ANNE ANDERSON,
Staff Associate
VERNA J. BOWEN,
Administrative Assistant
JENNIFER T. ESTEP,
Administrative Assistant
JUDITH L. ESTEP,
Administrative Assistant
COMMISSION ON GEOSCIENCES, ENVIRONMENT, AND RESOURCES
M. GORDON WOLMAN,
Chairman,
The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
PATRICK R. ATKINS,
Aluminum Company of America, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
JAMES P. BRUCE,
Canadian Climate Program Board, Ottawa, Ontario
WILLIAM L. FISHER,
University of Texas at Austin
JERRY F. FRANKLIN,
University of Washington, Seattle
GEORGE M. HORNBERGER,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville
DEBRA S. KNOPMAN,
Progressive Foundation, Washington, D.C.
PERRY L. MCCARTY,
Stanford University, California
JUDITH E. MCDOWELL,
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Massachusetts
S. GEORGE PHILANDER,
Princeton University, New Jersey
RAYMOND A. PRICE,
Queen's University at Kingston, Ontario
THOMAS C. SCHELLING,
University of Maryland, College Park
ELLEN K. SILBERGELD,
University of Maryland Medical School, Baltimore
STEVEN M. STANLEY,
The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
VICTORIA J. TSCHINKEL,
Landers and Parsons, Tallahassee, Florida
Staff
STEPHEN RATTIEN,
Executive Director
STEPHEN D. PARKER,
Associate Executive Director
MORGAN GOPNIK,
Assistant Executive Director
GREGORY SYMMES,
Reports Officer
JAMES MALLORY,
Administrative Officer
SANDI FITZPATRICK,
Administrative Associate
SUSAN SHERWIN,
Project Assistant
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Preface
The U.S. Congress directed the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to develop a program plan for its mineral-resource activities. In 1995, the USGS completed the Mineral Resource Surveys Program (MRSP) plan requested by Congress (Appendix A). To obtain an independent review of the five-year MRSP plan, the U.S. Geological Survey, in a letter from Dr. Willis H. White, the Chief of the USGS Office of Mineral Resources, requested in July, 1995, that the National Research Council (NRC) evaluate the MRSP plan and recommend improvements.
The Panel to Review the Mineral Resource Surveys Program Plan was established by the NRC in November, 1995. The panel consists of 12 geoscientists and resource experts from the mining and mineral industry, the environmental consulting industry, academia, state agencies, and the Geological Survey of Canada. The panel members have expertise in mitigation of environmental impacts related to extraction and use of mineral resources, as well as in genesis, assessment, exploration, and development of mineral resources. In spite of this diversity of professional focus and experience, the panel reached consensus on all significant issues, thus obviating the need for minority reports. Brief biographies of panel members are provided in Appendix F. The panel operates under the Committee on Earth Resources, which is under the aegis of the Board on Earth Science and Resources within the NRC's Commission on Geosciences, Environment, and Resources.
The USGS requested the panel's report by April, 1996, in order to provide timely advice for the fiscal year 1997 planning process. The panel operated on a fast-track schedule, with three meetings in three months. The panel met once in Washington, D.C., and twice near Denver, Colorado. Briefings and discussions were conducted with approximately 50 representatives of federal and state agencies, policy
groups, industry groups, and other mineral resource experts who work with the MRSP or use its products. Presenters had the opportunity to discuss their mineral resource planning needs and provide observations and recommendations regarding the MRSP. The presenters are identified in Appendix B. In light of these briefings and discussions, as well as information provided by the MRSP staff, published literature, technical reports, and the expertise of its members, the panel evaluated and made recommendations for the MRSP plan.
Without the intensive effort of the NRC staff, particularly Dr. Craig M. Schiffries, Study Director, this report could not have been developed within the assigned time frame.
Samuel S. Adams
Chairman