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There's gold in them there
Inishowen hills
25.10.13
THERE'S gold in them
there Inishowen hills, according to a new survey of
border counties.
Gold occurrences have previously been found in
Glentogher and Glencolumbkille but a number of new
Co Donegal locations have now been identified
including several areas of the Inishowen Peninsula
and Termon.
The results are in the Tellus Border Project – an EU-funded
mapping project which involved the collection of
scientific data on soils, waters and rocks across
the border counties of Ireland. The report,
highlighting "anomalous gold concentrations", was
published yesterday at the project’s 'Results and
Research' conference. |
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Minister Fergus O’Dowd joins
geologist Kate Knights to launch the new gold map
resulting from the significant Tellus Border survey
at the National Museum of Ireland Archaeology
Exhibition. |
Amongst the most
significant results from the project was the gold
map which is the most extensive dataset of gold in
regional stream sediments completed in Ireland to
date.
Minister for Natural Resources, Fergus O’Dowd today
commended “both the world-class science and the
cross-border partnerships that underpinned the
project".
“I am delighted that this new dataset is available
and its results will assist mineral exploration in
the border county region," said Mr O'Dowd.
“Following the Tellus Survey (2004-07), which
produced a gold map for Northern Ireland, mineral
exploration licence applications increased
significantly and it is now estimated that £32
million has been stimulated in inward investment to
the Northern Irish economy.
“Since preliminary data from the Tellus Border
project was released in February 2013, the border
region of Ireland has seen an increase in
prospecting licence applications, with a committed
spend of up to €1m over a six year period in the
Irish economy if the applications are successful,"
he added.
Managed jointly by the Geological Survey of Ireland
and the Geological Survey of Northern Ireland,
Tellus Border is one of the most significant mapping
projects ever to take place in Ireland and, in
conjunction with its forerunner, Tellus, covering
Northern Ireland, makes the region one of the most
surveyed on the planet.
Meanwhile, along with previously known high radon
risk areas in Co Sligo, new areas of potential risk
were identified in parts of Co Donegal and Monaghan.
The survey results are available free of charge to
view and download from the Tellus Border website
www.tellusborder.eu . |
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