Santiago to host geochemical symposium

Chile will host the International Geochemical Exploration Symposium (IEGS) in early May, marking the first time the meeting has been held in the country.

Among the topics to be covered are: geochemical exploration for concealed gold, porphyry copper and other base metal deposits; exploration geochemistry in arid saline environments; sea water and sea bed geochemistry in seaport sites; the use of partial extractions for geochemical samples taken in deeply weathered areas; applications of isotope geochemistry in exploration; and geochemical exploration for industral minerals.

Before the meeting, there will be field trips to epithermal precious-metal deposits in northern Peru, the diverse mineral deposits of the Carajas region of Brazil, and the porphyry-copper districts of southern Peru and northern Chile.

Following the symposium, eight workshops will be offered, covering analytical, environmental, and statistical aspects of geochemical exploration, as well as field methods for stream sediments, soils in deeply weathered terrain, and targets in porphyry and epithermal environments.

The IGES, put on roughly every two years by the Association of Exploration Geochemists, was first held in Ottawa in 1967.

The Santiago symposium will be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Santiago from May 6 to 10. Further information is available from Acme Analytical Labs, Santiago. Phone 56-2-748-6771 or fax 56-2-748-6772. To register on-line, visit the Association of Exploration Geochemists at www.aeg.org

The Association of Exploration Geochemists also contributes to a journal, Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis, which covers all aspects of the field. The journal is published by the Geological Society of London and can be ordered on the association’s web site.