The Covert Basin uranium occurrence lies about 6 kilometres north of Oliver, British Columbia and 4.5 kilometres east-northeast of the former Standard mine (082ESW091).

Regionally, the area is principally underlain by medium-grained intrusive rocks that form the Jurassic Oliver plutonic complex. Three distinct phases have been identified. From youngest to oldest these are: a central core of massive, medium-grained garnet-muscovite quartz monzonite which is surrounded by porphyritic biotite quartz monzonite to the south and biotite-hornblende quartz monzonite north of the core. Hornblende diorite occurs in several small areas to the north. Border phases and dikes related to the Oliver plutonic complex include lamprophyre, augite-plagioclase porphyritic andesite, micro-quartz diorite, albite porphyritic dacite, diabase, fine-grained quartz monzonite and aplite. To the south, the complex cuts Carboniferous to Permian Kobau Group metasedimentary rocks. These include laminated quartz schist or dirty quartzite, massive and laminated quartzite and minor limestone. On its northern margin, the intrusive mass is in contact with overlying Eocene volcanics and sediments of the Penticton Group. The Kettle River Formation, consisting of conglomerate, arkose and rhyolite tuff, is overlain by the Springbrook and Marron formations. The Covert Basin uranium occurrence has formed in unconsolidated glacial, fluvial and alluvial Quaternary sediments in the Okanagan river valley.

The Covert Basin is a fluviatile type of surficial uranium deposit. It occurs within an ancient meander (oxbow), which is now a valley margin swamp, on the flood plain of the Okanagan River where it has eroded into a glacial terrace. Uraniferous alkaline groundwater are infiltrating from side drainages into the porous terrace. Here the uranium is adsorbed and probably reduced in peaty layers within sand and clays. The deposit contains about 23 tonnes of uranium (Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Volume 21, May 1984, page 561).

The uranium-enriched area measures 72,000 square metres (800 by 800 metres) and averages 1.6 metre thick, at an average depth of 0.7 metre. With an estimated average density of 1100 kilograms per cubic metre, the deposit yields 126,720 tonnes. The average uranium concentration of 4 augerholes was 0.018 per cent with a 0.5-metre thickness assaying 0.05 per cent uranium (Culbert, 1979). Total contained uranium is 23 tonnes.