Computerized geological mapping in the Grenville Province, Quebec

Abstract

Since 1965, the Quebec Department of Natural Resources has conducted reconnaissance mapping in the Grenville Province, completing to date over 70 000 square miles (181 000 km2). In 1968 a computer-based data processing system was designed at Queen's University, and applied to this Grenville Project. Data are recorded in the field on input documents designed to recover a complete description of the structure and lithology of an outcrop in a standard and reproducible form. From these records a data bank, now with descriptions of over 5000 outcrops, has been constructed for the field seasons of 1968 and 1969. Lthological sorting programs based on the textural and mineralogical qualities used to define rock types have been written to provide listings of some 40 potential map-units. Outcrop maps identifying lithologies have been drawn on a computer-driven drum plotter to provide the geologist with a basic document from which to make geological interpretation. Structural data have been extracted and plotted in equal-area projections, and also plotted on maps directly by machine, using standard structural symbols for layering, foliation, and lineation. The system has upgraded the standard of data collection in the field, and provides a rapid and versatile means of handling data and of interpreting the geology. The data bank, when made publicly available, will enable users of government geological maps and reports to reinterpret the area in their own manner, or freely to add any proprietary data in the preparation of revisions.