The South Mount Gething coal occurrences are located south of Williston Lake approximately 28 kilometres west of Hudson's Hope, in the Liard Mining Division.
The Peace River Coalfield extends nearly 400 kilometres along the Northern Rocky Mountain inner foothills from the Alberta border, 180 kilometres east of Prince George, to 130 kilometres north of Hudson’s Hope at Pink Mountain. Medium to low volatile bituminous coal seams of economic thickness and continuity are hosted by the Lower Cretaceous Gething (up to 1036 metres thick) and Gates (up to 280 metres thick) sedimentary formations of the Bullhead and Fort St. John groups, respectively. The Gething Formation represents the dominant coal-bearing strata north of the Sukunka-Bullmoose area (MINFILE 093P 001, 093P 014 ) west of Tumbler Ridge.
Approximately 12 coal seams (0.07 to 4.5 metres thick) occur in the Lower Cretaceous Gething Formation (Bullhead Group) interbedded with medium- to fine-grained sandstones, shales and siltstones, which were deposited in fluvial floodplain and deltaic environments.
In the upper part of the section, the Superior seam averages 2.06 metres thick (1.65 to 2.59 metres). The Trojan seam thins and splits from the Bri-Dowling Creek property (MINFILE 093O 029), located 6 kilometres east, to the South Mount Gething area. The Titan seam appears to be channeled in places. The Falls seam thins from 1.4 to 1.25 metres and splits into two 0.6-metre thick seams in the northeast of the property. The older (and generally thinner) seams are not named.
Samples of the coal from rotary drill hole SMG-81-28 showed values (on an air dry basis) of: ash, 11.12 to 49.51 per cent; sulphur, 0.45 to 2.61 per cent (mostly less than 1 per cent); volatile matter, 17.51 to 29.84 per cent; fixed carbon, 29.29 to 57.69 per cent; BTU, 6895 to 13 523; and FSI, 1 to 8 (Coal Assessment Report 639).
The structure consists of a broad, south-plunging anticline that is cut (at its base) by numerous northwest-trending, southwest-dipping thrust faults. Minor folding and faulting are common.
In 1978, 24 contiguous coal licenses were issued to Utah Mines Ltd. and comprise the South Mount Gething property. Geological mapping and diamond drilling of three holes, totalling 606.86 metres, were completed in the same year. In 1979, Utah Mines completed seven diamond drill holes, totalling 1493 metres, on widely spaced centres on the property. The 1980 exploration program was designed to provide further information on the extent, metallurgical quality and continuity of coal seams on the property, pursuant to the 1978 and 1979 programs. In particular, the program had three objectives: to conduct an extensive mapping program, determine an adit entry for the Superior and Trojan seams by a rotary program near the property's northeastern boundary, and determine the extent of the thick coal seam intersected in diamond drill hole SMG 78-1. The extensive mapping enhanced the understanding of the stratigraphic and structural complexity on the property, which previously was poorly understood. The 27 rotary drill holes, totalling 1151.1 metres, drilled on coal licenses 4131 and 4132 were unsuccessful in locating adit entries for the Superior and Trojan seams because the seams subcropped below excessive overburden thickness. Two diamond drill holes, totalling 354 metres, were drilled in the western part of the property to locate the thick seam intersected in drillhole SMG 78-1. Diamond drill hole SMG 80-11, collared 1 kilometre away, successfully intersected this seam and another thick seam not previously intersected. The 1981 exploration program was formulated to determine further information of the extent, metallurgical quality and continuity of the two thick coal seams intersected in drillhole SMG 80-11. Two rotary drill holes, located 4 kilometres northwest of SMG 80-11 on coal license 4152and totalling 160 metres, were unsuccessful in locating the two thick seams. Seven test pits, located 500 metres south of SMG 78-1 on coal license 4139, also were unsuccessful in uncovering the thick seams.
