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File Created: 17-Jul-1989 by Laura L. Duffett (LLD)
Last Edit:  17-Jul-1989 by Peter S. Fischl (PSF)

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NMI
Name B.C. CEMENT, BLUBBER BAY, GRILSE POINT Mining Division Nanaimo
BCGS Map 092F087
Status Past Producer NTS Map 092F15E
Latitude 049º 48' 04'' UTM 10 (NAD 83)
Longitude 124º 36' 21'' Northing 5517755
Easting 384443
Commodities Limestone Deposit Types
Tectonic Belt Insular Terrane Wrangell
Capsule Geology

This occurrence is located on Lot 12 on the east side of Blubber Bay at the north end of Texada Island. Limestone was quarried here by B.C. Cement between 1929 and 1957.

The B.C. Cement deposit is located on the north end of a 13 kilometre long belt of Upper Triassic Vancouver Group, Quatsino Formation limestone up to 3 kilometres wide that is preserved along the axis of a broad northwest plunging syncline. Locally, the limestone is folded into a northwest plunging anticline which comprises minor tight folds up to a few metres across. The core of the anticline is occupied by the lower member of the Quatsino limestone, which outcrops as a northwest trending belt of high calcium limestone. The overlying middle and upper members are exposed along the flanks of the anticline as two subparallel belts of calcium and magnesian limestone extending southeast from Blubber Bay and Grilse Point. A northeast trending 300 metre long stock of diorite-gabbro intrudes the limestone along the east shore of Blubber Bay. Numerous north to west trending greenstone and diorite dykes originate from this stock.

The high calcium limestone in the core of the fold is grey and granular and commonly displays a foliation, while to the southwest it becomes black and fine grained. The magnesian limestone tends to have a more uniform creamy colour. A series of five chip samples taken in succession across 152 metres of high calcium limestone in the central portion of the property averaged 53.86 per cent CaO, 0.74 per cent MgO, 1.23 per cent insolubles, 0.40 per cent R2O3, 0.16 per cent Fe2O3, 0.020 per cent MnO, 0.027 per cent P2O5, 0.04 per cent sulphur and 43.52 per cent ignition loss (Bulletin 40, page 69). This does not include a 30.5 metre chip sample near the middle of the section contaminated with some cream coloured feldspathic material. This sample contained 48.80 per cent CaO, 0.80 per cent MgO, 8.64 per cent insolubles and 2.13 per cent R2O3 (ibid).

Limestone was produced from four quarries located along a 1.0 kilometre long section of the east shore of Blubber Bay, the largest being the number 4 quarry at Grilse Point.

Bibliography
EM EXPL 1998-47-55; 1999-25-32
EMPR AR 1929-437; 1930-423; 1931-238; 1933-344; 1936-F65; 1937-F38; 1938-F71; 1948-183; 1949-248; 1951-221; 1952-259,260; 1953-193; 1954-183; 1955-96,97; 1956-154; 1957-88,89
EMPR ASS RPT 12084, 12085, 14447
EMPR BULL 23, pp. 75-78; *40, pp. 51-58,67-71
EMPR OF 1990-3; 1992-18, pp. 24, 27-28
GSC MAP 17-1968; 1386A
GSC MEM 58, p. 66
GSC OF 463
GSC P 68-50, pp. 14,15
CANMET RPT 811, Part 5, pp. 148-150

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