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File Created: 24-Jul-1985 by BC Geological Survey (BCGS)
Last Edit:  17-May-2010 by Sarah Meredith-Jones (SMJ)

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NMI
Name ANITA AND LELA LAKES, ANITA LAKE (L.3266), LELA LAKE (L.5253), SURPRISE (L.5249), SODA 15, 16 AND 17, CSW 7 AND 8 Mining Division Clinton
BCGS Map 092P033
Status Past Producer NTS Map 092P06W
Latitude 051º 18' 55'' UTM 10 (NAD 83)
Longitude 121º 27' 42'' Northing 5686009
Easting 607208
Commodities Sodium Carbonate Deposit Types F09 : Playa and Alkaline Lake Evaporites
Tectonic Belt Intermontane Terrane Overlap Assemblage
Capsule Geology

Anita and Lela Lakes are located 4.5 kilometres west of 70 Mile House.

The lakes are semi-evaporitic playa lakes. They are located in the "Green Timber Plateau" area (EMPR Bulletin 4), a semi-arid plateau area averaging 1130 metres elevation which is part of the Cariboo Plateau and host to several playa lakes. The area is underlain by alkaline plateau basalt flows of the Miocene to Pleistocene Chilcotin Group, mantled by a thin cover of glacial till and glaciofluvial sediments. Annual precipitation averages between 300 and 400 millimetres (EMPR Paper 1991-1).

Anita and Lela Lakes constitute two parts of an original lake bed which was approximately 27 hectares in size. In 1937 (EMPR Bulletin 4, page 18) the lakes covered approximately 10 and 2.5 hectares respectively. Both lakes contain sodium carbonate-rich brine and in October of 1937, a thin layer of "winter crystal" (natron or hydrated sodium carbonate) was in the process of formation over the muddy bottom of Anita Lake (EMPR Bulletin 4, page 18). The brine from Anita Lake had a density of 1.117 and 12.44 per cent total dissolved solids which were 93.2 per cent sodium carbonate, 6.0 per cent sodium chloride and 0.5 per cent sodium sulphate. Between 1918 and 1937, it is estimated that at least 2700 tonnes of "winter crystal", equivalent to 900 tonnes of sodium carbonate were harvested from Anita and Lela Lakes. Canadian Occidental Petroleum staked the Soda 15, 16 and 17 claims in 1989, collected 3 water and 3 mud and one winter crystal samples and completed analyses for sodium carbonate and other alkalai salts (Assessment Report 20080). Canoxy also completed an airborne infrared survey to test for dissolved solids in the lakewaters. In 1993, the lake was re-staked as the CSW 7 and 8 claims by Mr. G.M. Rogers (Assessment Report 23127) who collected 4 water samples to test for the presence of natron winter crystal. One sample contained natron crystals.

In 2010 Lomiko Metals Inc. acquired 100 per cent interest in the Anita and Lela Lakes.

Bibliography
EMPR AR 1918-228, 1924-158, 1929-230
EMPR ASS RPT 20080, 23127
EMPR BULL *4-18
EMPR EXPL 1978-E186
EMPR P 1991-1
GSC MAP 1278A
GSC MEM 363, 118
STOCKWATCH May 17, 2010
EMPR PFD 681629

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