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The Zn–Pb mineralization of Florida Canyon, an evaporite-related Mississippi Valley-type deposit in Bongará district, northern Peru

November 19, 2019

The Florida Canyon evaporite-related Zn–Pb sulfide deposit, in northern Peru, is one of the largest Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) deposits in South America. Triassic carbonate and former evaporite-bearing rocks of the Pucará Group host the ore bodies that comprise two different styles: (i) predominantly stratabound ore associated with hydrocarbon-rich porous dolostones and evaporite dissolution breccias; and (ii) high-grade ore associated with evaporite breccias representing diapiric injections along faults. A dome structure that controls the location of the ore deposit was defined by drillhole spatial data; the dome likely resulted from halokinetic processes during Andean deformation. NNE-trending steeply dipping secondary faults linked to major NW structures appear to control the distribution of ore grades in the deposit. Mineralization post-dated hydrocarbon migration and accumulation. Strontium, carbon, and oxygen data isotopic signatures allow distinction between pre-and syn-mineralization carbonate stages. The sulfur isotopic composition of sulfides in the deposit suggests they precipitated as the result of mixing of a metal-rich fluid with resident hydrogen sulfide in the dome. Local thermochemical sulfate reduction (TSR) may have contributed to the reduced sulfur budget during mineralization.

Publication Year 2019
Title The Zn–Pb mineralization of Florida Canyon, an evaporite-related Mississippi Valley-type deposit in Bongará district, northern Peru
DOI 10.5382/econgeo.4690
Authors Saulo B de Oliveira, David L Leach, Caetano Juliani, Lena VS Monteiro, Craig A. Johnson
Publication Type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Series Title Economic Geology
Index ID 70206722
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse
USGS Organization Central Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center