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Nash Creek

Zinc-Lead-Silver

SLAM has reported an updated resource estimate for its wholly owned Nash Creek Property located in Lorne, 25 km west of the Belledune smelter and seaport in northern New Brunswick.  Two mills, Brunswick 12 and Caribou, are within 90 kilometres of Nash Creek.  The property currently has 463 claims covering 7,408 hectares of favourable volcano-sedimentary stratigraphy.

Click to view larger image

The Nash Creek deposit contains an indicated resource of 468M lbs zinc, 95M lbs lead and 4.6M oz silver plus an inferred resource of 71.0M tonnes zinc, 14M lbs lead and 0.7M oz silver with recoveries factored in as estimated by Wardrop Engineering Inc. This metal inventory is included in an indicated resource of 7.81M tonnes grading 2.72% zinc, 0.55% lead and 18.26 g/tonne silver and an inferred resource of 1.21M tonnes grading 2.66% zinc, 0.52% lead and 18.00 g/t silver. Gravity and magnetic highs along with zinc soil anomalies coinciding with MegaTEM/VTEM conductivity identify additional priority targets on the property.

The resource estimate was reported by press release 12 February 2009 and the 43-101 compliant Technical Report by Wardrop can be viewed at www.sedar.com. 

Recent Developments - Rare Earth Elements

The rare earth element yttrium and phosphorus have been detected in soil geochemical surveys within the Nash Creek property. High yttrium values occur in 2 parallel trends each 500 metres in length and open along strike. Thse elements indicate potential for apatite mineralization and related rare earth elements similar to mineralization found nearby at Benjamin River.

The Deposit

Zinc-lead-silver mineralization at Nash Creek is associated with sulphide stockworks, sulphide breccias and massive sulphides hosted by flat-lying to shallow-dipping bimodal volcanic sequences intercalated with sediments. The deposit is open to the south and the north along strike. Northward there is a continuation of a resistivity anomaly that appears to be related to the near-surface mineralization in this area.
 

Drill Core Pictures (click thumbnail for full size)
NC07-45-A	NC07-45-B	NC07-45-C
NC07-55-A	NC07-55-B<	NC07-55-C
NC07-55-D	NC07-55-E	NC07-68-A
NC07-68-B	NC07-68-C	NC07-68-D

 

Selected Drill Results - Nash Creek Deposit
Hole	From	To	Metres	Silver g/t	Lead %	Zinc %
NC0401	6.0	15.0	9.0	55.3	0.9	9.3
NC0402	117.5	132.5	15.0	58.7	1.8	11.1
NC0403	109.0	115.8	6.8	7.1	0.0	10.0
NC0506	134.0	137.0	3.0	41.5	1.0	9.1
NC0506	145.0	150.0	5.0	22.9	0.5	6.3
NC0507	85.0	90.2	5.2	18.0	0.7	7.8
NC0508	101.6	128.5	26.9	44.4	1.2	7.2
NC0509	179.0	182.6	3.6	7.8	0.0	7.5
NC0509	205.0	208.0	3.0	25.7	0.7	8.3
NC0509	220.8	226.5	5.7	57.4	1.6	9.4
NC0513	173.0	180.8	7.8	53.9	0.8	8.8
NC0514	195.6	199.0	3.4	59.6	0.5	10.1

 

The first 14 holes of the latest drilling program were drilled in or near the known deposit and the central zone 1600 metres to the east. Holes NC0736, NC0737 and NC0738 were drilled on the Central Zone while the remaining 11 holes were drilled on the known deposit. Selected results for these holes are tabled as follows:

 

Nash Creek Property - Selected 2007 Drilling Results
Hole ID	From	To	Metres	Zinc %	Lead %	Silver g/t
NC0732	132.81	135.33	2.52	5.82	0.44	2.47
NC0733	143.37	147.23	3.86	5.66	0.91	18.58
NC0734	76.35	131.27	54.92	0.25	0.19	4.81
NC0735	151.00	152.83	1.83	2.80	0.90	16.41
NC0736	43.47	47.57	4.10	2.03	0.38	7.82
NC0736	138.50	140.60	2.10	1.88	0.45	14.36
NC0737	12.70	15.24	2.54	3.26	0.61	19.74
NC0739	54.00	55.50	1.50	3.40	1.33	58.74
NC0739	185.70	187.53	1.83	9.36	2.06	69.30
NC0739	194.75	199.50	4.75	4.62	0.59	33.57
NC0740	63.00	78.70	15.70	2.49	0.65	25.56
NC0740	172.00	177.50	5.50	3.62	0.68	29.20
NC0741	24.00	32.42	8.42	1.82	0.41	24.91
NC0741	51.00	52.50	1.50	1.43	0.05	8.71
NC0742	30.00	31.50	1.50	1.83	0.26	14.28
NC0743	24.00	30.00	6.00	2.11	0.25	13.00
NC0744	26.00	28.09	2.09	4.47	0.62	57.82
NC0745	9.00	41.50	32.50	2.24	0.80	24.24
NC0745	34.20	38.80	4.60	5.46	3.75	52.89

 

Past Exploration Activities

SLAM uses innovative technology to evaluate the potential of Nash Creek. Advanced systems such as MegaTEM II and VTEM airborne surveys have been combined with ground-based surveys including soil geochemistry and gravity to explore for extensions and other potential base metal targets. Along with drill results, these tools corroborate the conductive material on the property is most likely associated with sulphide mineralization.

Most of SLAM’s drilling has been in proximity to the known deposit. Three holes have tested airborne MegaTEM/VTEM responses at sites outside of the known mineralized zone. These test holes resulted in two additional zinc discoveries. One lies 900 metres to the north and may be an extension of the deposit. The other, situated 1.6 kilometres east of the deposit, has been named the Central Zone. Selected intervals are listed below.
 

New Discoveries 2005
Hole	From	To	Metres	Silver g/t	Lead %	Zinc %
NC0505	133.5	136.0	2.5	15.5	0.4	3.9
NC0510	90.1	94.0	3.9	44.9	0.6	4.8
includes	92.0	94.0	2.0	39.0	0.7	6.0

The relatively flat lying conductive zone of 1500 hectares initially defined by MegaTEM was expanded to 4000 hectares of conductivity in a broad sheet extending east from the known mineralization of the Nash Creek deposit upon completion of the VTEM survey in 2005. The Nash Creek deposit and the Central Zone lie within a large conductive sheet. Drilling confirms that base metal sulphides are associated with the conductive sheet. Geochemical responses indicate a close correlation between zinc in soils, MegaTEM-VTEM conductivity, gravity, and drilled intercepts of base metal sulphide mineralization.
 

In fall of 2005, SLAM tested the ground east and south of the deposit with an MMI soil geochemical survey designed to detect base metals emanating from mineral deposits even when hidden deep below surface. The survey indicates a zinc-lead response above and up-dip from the Nash Creek deposit. Responses also occur at the southern edge of the deposit where mineralization has been intersected at depth. This anomalous signature is open to the south where it remains untested.

Five other anomalous zinc-lead signatures were discovered. Two of the zinc-lead anomalies occur as far as four kilometres from the deposit on a single test line that extends eastward. These targets are associated with MegaTEM/VTEM conductors and airborne gravity anomalies.

Sixteen drill holes were completed in 2006. In addition, the University of Toronto completed research on the geophysical properties of the Nash Creek deposit. This included a gravity survey over the deposit which confirmed the sulphide system is associated with a measurable gravity anomaly and that gravity is an effective tool to identify potential extensions of the deposit. Based on these positive results, a larger gravity survey was completed early in 2007.

The University of Toronto research project verified the deposit has a positive gravity signature. A more extensive ground gravity survey was completed by M.E.G. Systems of Calgary, Alberta in the spring of 2007. This survey indicates additional high priority gravity targets on the property that coincide with the 4000 hectare MegaTEM/VTEM conductive zone as illustrated in the following maps: 
 

These surveys highlight the tremendous upside potential to expand the Nash Creek zinc deposit which is open to the south and only partially drilled off to the north with targets in proximity to known mineralization. In addition, the known deposit presents a potential cash flow opportunity with potential for development once the 43-101 study is published.  

Summary

The multi-disciplined approach of exploration on the Nash Creek property shows there is significant potential to expand the deposit.   Coincident soil-gravity-EM targets which occur in proximity to known mineralization remain untested by drilling. The deposit comprises an indicated resource of 7.81M tonnes grading 2.72% zinc, 0.55% lead and 18.26 g/t silver plus an inferred resource of 1.21M tonnes grading 2.66% zinc, 0.52% lead and 18.00 g/t silver.  This resource, sitting at the western edge of a large mineralized system, has the potential to expand to a 15 million tonne deposit of zinc, lead and silver.