Meelpaeg Lake Molybdenum Prospect, Meelpaeg Lake, central Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canadai

Regional Level Types
Meelpaeg Lake Molybdenum Prospect	Prospect
Meelpaeg Lake	- not defined -
central Newfoundland	- not defined -
Newfoundland and Labrador	Province
Canada	Country

The Meelpaeg Lake molybdenum prospect is located midway between Meelpaeg and Granite Lakes, on the banks of a hydro-electric canal. More specifically, it lies about 68 kilometres south of Buchans, and 187 kilometres west-southwest of Gander.
The following capsule description of the occurrence is taken from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Department of Industry, Energy and Technology, Mineral Occurrence Database System [MODS] Report:
“The Granite Lake Molybdenum #1 occurrence is located near the northwest margin of the North Bay Granite, a major, polyphase intrusion in south-central Newfoundland. The granite in the vicinity of the showing has not been dated, but field relations, as well as age dates from elsewhere in the batholith suggest a Silurian or Devonian age (Dickson, 1982).
The showing consists of molybdenite with pyrite and traces of chalcopyrite, which occur in granite dykes, quartz and pegmatitic veins and, in the case of molybdenite, as coatings on joint surfaces in a porphyritic, two-mica granite (Dickson, 1982). The granite along the ditch is extensively jointed and locally sheared and altered.”
Tuach (1996) wrote that “Massive, coarse-grained, K-feldspar-porphyritic, biotite granite at Dolland Brook [about 40 kilometres to the south-east], lithologically similar to the Wolf Mountain Granite . . . , has yielded a U-Pb zircon date of 396 +6-3 Ma . . . . By implication, 396 Ma may be a reasonable estimate for the age of the biotite-muscovite granite that hosts mineralization at Granite Lake.”
Giles Peatfield comments on the minerals reported:
The mineralogy of the Meelpaeg Lake property area has several points of interest. I have chosen to comment on all minerals reported, a few in some detail. Most of the minerals listed were reported by Dickson (1982), who mapped two 1:50,000 scale (half) sheets. The area covered by these sheets included the locations of many of the mineral occurrences of economic interest. I have not added specific references in the case of some minerals reported by multiple workers.
Allanite: Dickson (1982) reported allanite as an accessory mineral in granites.
Amphibole group: Numerous workers have reported “hornblende” as a constituent of granitic rocks.
Andalusite: Dickson (1982) reported that andalusite occurs as porphyroblasts in some metasedimentary rocks.
Apatite: Dickson (1982) reported that apatite occurs as an accessory mineral in granitic rocks, but gave no specific data.
Beryl: A few small occurrences have been reported by several workers.
Bismuth: This has been reported by Tuach and Saunders (1988), by Saunders and Tuach (1989) and by Tuach (1996) who described it in a polished section, intergrown with galena.
Bismuthinite: Several workers have reported bismuthinite; Tuach (1996) regarded it as “possible”.
Bornite?: Tuach and Delaney (1987) reported bornite as possible locally; Dimmell (1982) regarded it as confirmed.
Calcite: Dickson (1982) described calcite as a cementing material in metasedimentary (semipelite) rocks.
Chalcocite?: The only reference to chalcocite that I can find is a single mention in a table of rock descriptions in Dimmell (1982). I would regard it as tentative for the locality.
Chalcopyrite: Reported by numerous workers as common, but never in large quantities.
Chlorite group: Most workers report “chlorite” or “chloritization” but none gives any more specific data.
Covellite: Tuach (1996) reported covellite with chalcopyrite, molybdenite and fluorite in a greisen specimen.
Epidote: Reported by several workers, but never as a major mineral.
Feldspar group: There are numerous references to plagioclase (zoned crystals of several compositions), orthoclase, and microcline.
Ferberite-hübnerite series: Most workers have reported “wolframite” with no specific data. However, Dickson (1982) noted one locality where “. . . 1 to 2 mm crystals of the brown manganese-rich variety of wolframite known as heubnerite [sic – hübnerite] occur in small, rare, 1cm vugs . . . .” This is a local occurrence; the bulk of the “wolframite” on the property tends to be coarser grained and of unknown chemistry.
Fluorite: Reported by most workers. Several colour varieties (white, purple, black) have been noted.
Galena: This is uncommon here, noted by a few workers. See note above for bismuth.
Garnet group: This is not commonly reported. Dickson (1982) noted that in some metasedimentary rocks “Garnet usually forms euhedral crystals and locally forms augen.” Dimmell (1982) reported red euhedral garnets. No-one has given any detailed mineral data.
Graphite: Dickson (1982) described graphitic schists.
Hematite: Dickson (1982), describing a migmatite unit, commented that “Near the contact with Unit 6 [“Coarse grained porphyritic biotite granite”] the biotite is totally retrogressed to chlorite, magnetite and skeletal hematite, and the feldspars are altered to sericite.” There are a few other references to hematite, usually as a stain.
Ilmenite: Tuach (1996) reported ilmenite as an accessory mineral in the Wolf Mountain granite.
Kaolinite: Reported by Dimmell (1982) and by Tuach and Delaney (1987). Tuach (1996) reported that “In the Wolf Mountain Granite, zones of white to grey kaolinite up to 5 m wide occur along the canal in association with fractures and aplite intrusions.” He also remarked that in one diamond drill hole “. . . up to 50 percent of the granite is pervasively kaolinitized.”
Magnetite: Although probably common as an accessory mineral, magnetite was mentioned specifically only by Dickson (1982).
Mica group: Biotite, muscovite and sericite have all been reported, by several workers. The first two are constituent minerals of various intrusive rocks; sericite is generally as an alteration product of feldspars.
Molybdenite: This is the principal mineral of economic interest here, reported by all workers. It occurs as distinct disseminated crystals or as “paint” on rock surfaces.
Monazite: Tuach (1996) reported monazite as an accessory mineral in the Wolf Mountain granite.
Pyrite: This is not common here, but has been reported by most workers.
Quartz: This is ubiquitous, both as rock forming mineral and in the form of mineralized veins.
Rutile: Tuach (1996) reported rutile as an accessory mineral in the Wolf Mountain granite.
Scheelite: This is not common; most of the tungsten appears to be in the form of “wolframite”. Tuach (1996) reported scheelite as occurring as fine disseminations or as thin coatings on fracture surfaces.
Sillimanite: Dickson (1982) reported sillimanite as a metamorphic product in psammitic schist, with biotite, muscovite and andalusite.
Sphalerite: Traces of sphalerite were noted by several workers.
Sulfur: Tuach (1996) reported native sulfur with pyrite and molybdenite in a specimen of vein quartz.
Titanite: This was reported only by Dickson (1982), who reported “sphene” as an accessory mineral in intrusive rocks.
Tourmaline group: Dickson (1982) reported that “in addition, dikes of garnetiferous aplite, tourmaline-garnet pegmatite, tourmaline, and quartz veins cut Unit 4 [biotite granodiorite, minor biotite-muscovite granodiorite and biotite-hornblende tonalite].” Tuach (1996) wrote that “In tonalite, fine-grained tourmaline occurs as fracture coatings (less than 1 cm wide), in vein selvages, and as a fine-grained matrix to thin gas-breccia veins (< 5 cm wide).” Neither author provided more specific mineral data.
Zircon: Both Dickson (1982) and Tuach (1996) reported zircon as an accessory mineral in intrusive rocks.
Giles Peatfield comments on the rock types reported:
With a few exceptions – specifically noted – the rock types listed were reported by Dickson (1982). Note that Dickson’s mapping involved two 1:50,000 scale (half) sheets. The area covered included the locations of many of the mineral occurrences of economic interest. A few comments are considered appropriate:
Diabase: Dickson (1982) noted that only one small diabase dyke was located in the course of his mapping.
Greisen: This rock type was reported, often as part of pegmatitic veins, by several later workers.
Quartz diorite: Tuach (1996) noted that in the tonalite intrusive unit, “Rocks having abundant mafic minerals could be described as quartz diorite; . . . .”
Syenite: Tuach (1996) noted that tonalite and granite have been locally altered to metasomatic syenite.

Giles Peatfield
BASc. (Geological Engineering) University of British Columbia 1966.
PhD Queen's University at Kingston 1978.
Worked for Texas Gulf Sulphur / Texasgulf Inc. / Kidd Creek Mines - 1966 to 1985.
Consultant 1985 to 2016

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References