Sand and Gravel Resources of the Fort McMurray Area

Aggregate materials present in parts of the Fort McMurray (74D) map area were studied in 1987. This study areas covers 1385 square kilometres on four 1:50 000 map sheets at a regional mapping level. The program consisted of compiling existing information, air photo interpretation, field investigation of sites and laboratory analyses. In addition, selected sites, identified as prospects in a previous air photo study, were evaluated. Sand and gravel are distributed unevenly and are of variable quality and quantity. Most of the granular material in the study area is sand. The major sand and gravel deposits in the study area are glaciofluvial in origin (meltwater channel and kame). Major deposits in the northern part of the study area, adjacent to the Clearwater and Athabasca Rivers, are meltwater channel deposits. In the southern part of the study area, aggregate material has been extracted from kames.