RESOURCE POTENTIAL OF ROCK AND POTASH SALTS IN THE FORE-SUDETIC AREA

Abstract

Intensive geological prospection in the Fore-Sudetic area in the second half of the 20th century enabled to recognize occurrences of late Permian (Zechstein) rock and potash salts and to contour two rock salt deposits: Sieroszowice and Bądzów (with the registered anticipated economic resources of 4.09 billion Mg and economic resources of 0.49 billion Mg), as well as to estimate the prognostic rock salt resources in six copper deposits at ca. 45.19 billion Mg. To contour the prospective areas of Zechstein rock and potash salts occurrences in the Fore-Sudetic area and to estimate their predicted (prognostic and prospective) resources, 34 map sheets at scale of 1:200,000 have been compiled. Twenty-eight map sheets have been constructed for four rock salt seams, representing the four Zechstein cyclothems (PZ1 to PZ4), and six map sheets for two potash–bearing series of the PZ2 and PZ3 cyclothems. The predicted rock salt resources, estimated for 42 prospective areas, are more than 1x1012 Mg, covering the total acrea of over 18.5 thousands km2. The final amount of these resources, reduced by the amount of resources of the above-mentioned six copper deposits, is over 995.7 billion Mg. Including the documented resources of two salt deposits, the total amount of Zechstein rock salt, in the study area down to a depth of 2 km is estimated at ca. 1000 billion Mg. The predicted resources of Zechstein potash salts in nine prospective areas were estimated at ca. 3.3 billion Mg with the total area of over 456 km2. Many prospective areas with significant thicknesses of rock salt seams could be managed both for salt production (underground and leaching mines) and as cavern storages (for hydrocarbons or hydrogen) and waste disposals. Only some of the indicated areas of potash salts could be considered for future mining, however after their detailed geological surveying and resource calculation.