Botanical prospecting for uranium on La Ventana Mesa, Sandoval County, New Mexico
Trace Elements Investigations
471
Report concerns work done on behalf of the Division of Raw Materials of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
By: H. Starrett and Helen L. Cannon
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Abstract
A botanical sampling program has been completed by the U.S. Geological Survey on La Ventana Mesa, Sandoval County, N. Mex. A uranium-bearing coal in the Allison-Gibson members of the Cretaceous Mesaverde formation crops out in erosional remnants of the mesa.The coal is capped by a well-fractured 65-foot sandstone bed through which roots of a pinyon-juniper forest penetrate. Samples of several hundred branches of trees growing on top of the mesa were collected and analyzed for uranium. The assays ranged from 0.1 part per million to 2.3 ppm uranium in the wood ash. Dead branches, which were found to contain more uranium in the ash than live branches, were sampled where possible. The results have been contoured to indicated probable areas of mineralized coal. Parts of the north butte are recommended as favorable for physical exploration.
Suggested Citation
Starrett, H., Cannon, H., 1954, Botanical prospecting for uranium on La Ventana Mesa, Sandoval County, New Mexico: U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements Investigations 471, 16 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/tei471.
Study Area
| Publication type | Report |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | USGS Numbered Series |
| Title | Botanical prospecting for uranium on La Ventana Mesa, Sandoval County, New Mexico |
| Series title | Trace Elements Investigations |
| Series number | 471 |
| DOI | 10.3133/tei471 |
| Year Published | 1954 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Publisher location | Reston, VA |
| Description | 16 p. |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Mexico |
| County | Sandoval County |
| Other Geospatial | La Ventana Mesa |