Much of the Australian regolith ranges from Palaeogene to Late Cretaceous in
age or even older, contrasting with the relatively young landscapes of the
Northern Hemisphere. Hence, many imported geochemical exploration methods are
unsuitable for Australian environments; this has led to successful homegrown
innovation. Exploration geochemistry seeks to track geochemical anomalies
arising from concealed ore deposits to their source. Much is known about
element associations for different types of ore deposits and about observed
patterns of dispersion. Element mobility in a range of Western Australian
environments is discussed, drawing on field examples from the Mt Percy and
Boddington gold mines and the Yandal greenstone belt, with reference to the
effect of modern and past weathering regimes and the influence of groundwater
on element mobility. Soil biota and vegetation affect Au mobility in the
regolith, but specific processes, scale and environmental factors are unknown.
Possible future synergies between biogeochemical or environmental research and
regolith exploration geochemistry include determining the fundamental
biogeochemical processes involved in the formation of geochemical anomalies as
well as environmental concerns such as regolith aspects of land degradation.
Exploration geochemists must study the work of biogeochemical and
environmental researchers, and vice versa. There should also be collaborative
research with regolith scientists and industry.
Effective mineral exploration for gold using geology, Quaternary geology and exploration geochemistry in areas of shallow till