This paper serves as an update to an earlier paper published by the Yukon Geological Survey: New mineral potential mapping methodology for Yukon: case studies from the Beaver River and Dawson regional land use planning areas (Bullen, 2020). Since the release of the earlier paper, a number of the methods have been modified, and new techniques introduced. These are incorporated into this update paper — the reader is referred to the earlier paper for details of the method itself.
Mineral potential maps have thus far been completed for the Beaver River watershed, and the Dawson, Teslin, Na-Cho Nyäk Dun, and Ross River regions. There have been significant updates made to the mineral potential mapping method:
1. Modifications to buffer distance and factors (these are an important fuzzy logic (i.e., non-Boolean) component of the mineral potential mapping process) to enhance mapping outcomes.
2. The introduction of an in-house generated, machine learning algorithm (unsupervised, clustering-type) to classify mineral potential in order to remove the potential for human bias. The method replaces the statistical, areas-under-the-curve approach used previously.
3. A new method for delineating anomalous stream sediment data based on the lithological makeup of each watershed basin. The method computes and compares expected assay values to actual assay values, with values exceeding a certain threshold taken as anomalous. The previous method did not take lithology into account, relying on simple percentile methods only, and was considered insufficiently robust.
4. A new method for categorizing mineral potential confidence. Mineral potential maps produced by the Geological Survey contain measures of bedrock mapping confidence to facilitate land use planning. The updated method is significantly more robust than that used previously.
5. Revisions to the map legend to account for the new, machine learning-based mineral potential categorization methodology.
6. Revisions to the map colour scheme to make them colour blind-safe.