Classifying mineral potential in support of land-use policy decisions in British Columbia,Canada

British Columbia covers a vast segment of the Cordillera Mountain system that is richly endowed with a diversity of resources. British Columbia's historic patterns of resource development increasingly have been in conflict with demands for greater environmental protection. To avoid such conflicts, a recently legislated process that provides for detailed mineral resource assessments in candidate park areas has stimulated the creation of a mineral potential classification system for use in land-use planning and policy decisions.A mineral potential study of the Chilko Lake Planning Area provided three unique categories of field data on which to build the classification system. These categories are geological setting, geochemistry, and mineral occurrences. Data in each category were compiled independently to provide indicators of mineral potential. The field data were used to develop a widely understood classification of mineral potential. The classification is based on two factors: favorability and degree of confidence.