Description
This open-file report for Pueblo County is an introduction to the geology and mineral resources of the county along with an index map of tract locations, as well as maps of oil and gas test wells with oil field locations, and industrial mineral prospects. Maps for coal resources and metallic mineral prospects are not applicable in this county. The main body of the report is an evaluation of each individual tract, which includes text as well as corresponding topographic and geologic maps. Digital ZIP download. OF-02-22D
Four general categories of resources are included in this inventory:
- oil and gas
- coal
- metallic minerals
- industrial minerals and construction materials
Each individual tract evaluation includes:
- A bar graph which ranks each tract’s resource potential for each of the four mineral categories. An explanation of the categories may be found at the end of this introduction
- Tract identifier number, county name, and county location map
- Tract location on a 7-1/2-minute United States Geologic Survey topographic map
- Tract location on a United States Geologic Survey surface outcrop map
- Location as to section, township, and range and approximate acreage
- Overview of tract geology
- Specific assessment of the resource potential for the four resource categories
- References used in assessing tract potential
From the Introduction:
Pueblo County is located in south-central Colorado, and is geologically situated on the High Plains. This evaluation of the mineral and mineral fuel resource potential was conducted for the nearly 253,000 acres of state mineral lands within the county. It was conducted as part of its long-term evaluation of approximately 4 million acres of state lands administered by the State Land Board. For evaluation purposes, the county was divided into 117 individual tracts that range from approximately 25 to over 18,000 acres in size.
Pueblo County is not well endowed with mineral resources. There has never been oil, gas, coal, or significant metal production in the county. However, a small uranium mine in the Dakota Sandstone operated with production records in 1971. However, there are resources of low unit value industrial minerals in the county. Sand and gravel, clay, sandstone, and limestone are the most important mineral resources known in the county at the time of this writing. Pueblo County contains large resources of clay and continues to be one of the top clay mining areas in Colorado.
