Geogratis: Geospatial Data Worth Its Weight In Gold

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Search for gold spurred on by Geogratis

Does the Gold Rush of 1897–1898 mean anything to you?  Well, believe it or not, a whole century later, the search for gold continues in Canada!  At least for some mining exploration companies such as Kodiak Exploration Limited.

Indeed, Trevor Bremner, a consultant to Kodiak Exploration, recently told us that more than $18 million was spent on the search for gold in Canada between January and September 2008, and that this investment was spurred directly by geospatial data that can be accessed on the GeoGratis portal.  Yes indeed, gold is still being discovered in Canada and geospatial data provided by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is an essential source of information for many prospectors.

A multi-faceted portal

Established in 1999, NRCan’s GeoGratis portal offers a simple way to disseminate Canadian geospatial data by making it accessible at no charge or restriction to Web users.

The portal provides topographic maps, demographic information and many other things. The data it contains has the great advantage that it can be used not only by hunters and fishers planning a trip but also by prospectors wishing to examine a specific area before exploring there.

For example, Kodiak Exploration has combined topographic maps with on-line drilling data from the Ontario Geological Survey to define the extent of the area to be prospected in its Hercules Gold Property project.  In fact, according to Trevor, NRCan’s digital data is the starting point for the vast majority of  Kodiak’s prospecting projects.

From recognition of users to recognition of a product

“I must admit that I could never have imagined how useful the resources you have made available to industry would be or how carefully the topics have been thought out,” says Trevor. “I fail to see how any exploration program in Canada could be carried out without your data.”

For employees of the Mapping Information Branch of NRCan’s Earth Sciences Sector, this response shows the great importance not only of continuing and finishing the mapping of Canada but also of keeping the data up to date.  The economic growth of this country will be fostered by its natural resources, as is clearly shown by the example set by Kodiak Exploration.

For more information about the GeoGratis portal, visit www.geogratis.ca.

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