The predominantly volcanic Archean and Proterozoic greenstone belts throughout Canada are important for estimating Canada's mineral potential.
Consequently, geologists study greenstone belts to understand the volcanoes and the environment in which they erupted, and to provide a working model for mineral exploration.
The 1,904‑ to 1,864‑million-year-old Flin Flon greenstone belt of central Manitoba and east-central Saskatchewan is one of the largest Paleoproterozoic age volcanogenic massive sulfide ore deposits in the world, containing 27 copper-zinc-(gold) deposits from which more than 183 million tonnes of sulfide ore have been mined.
The 2,575‑million-year-old Yellowknife greenstone belt in the Northwest Territories is the host for world-class gold deposits with total production of 15 million ounces of gold.
In the Archean Hope Bay greenstone belt of western Nunavut, three large gold deposits have been known as Doris, Boston and Madrid, while the 2,677‑million-year-old Abitibi greenstone belt of Ontario and Quebec is the second most prolific gold producing area on Earth; the most prolific gold producing area is the Witwatersrand hill range in South Africa.
The predominantly volcanic Archean and Proterozoic greenstone belts throughout Canada are important for estimating Canada's mineral potential. Consequently, geologists study greenstone belts to understand the volcanoes and the environment in which they erupted, and to provide a working model for mineral exploration. The 1,904‑ to 1,864‑million-year-old Flin Flon greenstone belt of central Manitoba and east-central Saskatchewan is one of the largest Paleoproterozoic age volcanogenic massive sulfide ore deposits in the world, containing 27 copper-zinc-(gold) deposits from which more than 183 million tonnes of sulfide ore have been mined. The 2,575‑million-year-old Yellowknife greenstone belt in the Northwest Territories is the host for world-class gold deposits with total production of 15 million ounces of gold. In the Archean Hope Bay greenstone belt of western Nunavut, three large gold deposits have been known as Doris, Boston and Madrid, while the 2,677‑million-year-old Abitibi greenstone belt of Ontario and Quebec is the second most prolific gold producing area on Earth; the most prolific gold producing area is the Witwatersrand hill range in South Africa.
Volcanism of Canada