MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE HIGH FOLDED ZONE

Abstract

The High Folded Zone is one the main Metallogenic Zones in Iraq; it is rich in non- metallic deposits and industrial rocks. All the mineral deposits in this zone are sedimentary in origin including marine and continental sediments. They range in age from Triassic to Pleistocene, occurring mostly as bedded thick sedimentary strata deposits. Previous work in the area indicates that all of these economic deposits are building raw materials such as limestone, gypsum, clays, sand, gravels and orthomarble. The formation of the mineral deposits and industrial rocks in the High Folded Zone was controlled by paleogeographic, tectonic and structural factors.This study gives the type, location, specification, reserves of the main mineral, industrial rock deposits, and their chemical composition. These mineral deposits provide a very promising potential for future development of the region.