Indonesian Journal on Geoscience

6

Authors: A. Idrus, I. Nur, I. W. Warmada, and Fadlin

In 2008, placer gold was discovered in Langkowala area (Bombana Regency), Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia, and more than 60,000 traditional gold miners in the early 2009 have been operating by digging vertical pits and panning active stream sediments. The grade of placer gold ranges from 50 to 140 g/t. Local geological framework indicates that the placer gold is not related to volcanic rock-related hydrothermal gold deposit, e.g. epithermal, skarn or porphyry. This paper describes a preliminary study on possible primary deposit type as a source of the Langkowala (Bombana) secondary placer gold. A field study indicates that the Langkowala (Bombana) placer/paleoplacer gold is possibly related to gold-bearing quartz veins/veinlets hosted by metamorphic rocks particularly mica schist and metasediments in the area. These quartz veins/veinlets are currently recognized in metamorphic rocks at Wumbubangka Mountains, a northern flank of Rumbia Mountain Range. Sheared, segmented quartz veins/veinlets are of 2 cm to 2 m in width and contain gold in a grade varying between 2 and 61 g/t. At least, there are two generations of the quartz veins. The first generation of quartz vein is parallel to foliation of mica schist and metasediments with general orientation of N 300oE/60o; the second quartz vein generation crosscut the first quartz vein and the foliation of the wallrock. The first quartz veins are mostly sheared/deformed, brecciated, and occasionally sigmoidal, whereas the second quartz veins are relatively massive. The similar quartz veins/veinlets types are also probably present in Mendoke Mountain Range, in the northern side of Langkowala area. This primary gold deposit is called as ‘orogenic gold type’. The orogenic gold deposit could be a new target of gold exploration in Indonesia in the future. Keywords: placer gold, orogenic gold deposit, Langkowala, Bombana, Southeast Sulawesi

13

Authors: E. Usman and I W. Lugra

Result of grain size analysis of the sea floor sediments from the study area indicates four sediment types, those are silt, sandy silt, silty sand, and sand. The silt unit has the widest distribution that is around 127.2 km2, sandy silt 12.65 km2, sand 1.176 km2, and silty sand 0.44 km2. Result of gold and silver content analysis from some selected samples indicates that the highest gold and silver amount are at PMK-08 location in northern part of the study area with gold content of 0.21 ppm and silver 13.36 ppm; both are silt sediment types. The highest gold and silver content occur within medium - coarse sediments containing subrounded grains of quartz and pyrite, at northern part of the study area. The presence of silver and gold is suggested to be controlled by a north-south longshore current pattern. The source of sediments from Sambas Besar River follows the longshore current, e.g. in northern estuary from south to north, and at southern estuary from north to south direction. Keywords: gold, silver, silt - sand, longshore current, river, quartz, Sambas Besar River

17

Authors: Panuju

The massive change in calcareous nannoplankton assemblages throughout Cretaceous/Tertiary (K/T)boundary (65.5 M.a.) has been illustrated by several authors. The diverse and abundant assemblage disappears suddenly above the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary. This event is related to the most dramatic environmental changes in the Earth's history due to the catastrophic events, those are meteorite impact (Chicxulub) and supervolcano eruption (Deccan) occurring at the end of Cretaceous. The succeeding age was a time of rapid evolution of nannoplankton during Paleocene. A quantitative method analysis of nannoplankton throughout Maastrichtian to Paleocene of “P” well section, Santos Basin, Brazil, indicated that the nannoplankton assemblages abruptly decrease in diversity and abundance and mostly change in species composition. The various complex shapes of species at Maastrichtian also underwent changing to simple plain shapes and small at Paleocene. The sedimentary section ranges from the top of zone CC23 (Coccolith Cretaceous 23) to NP9 (Nannoplankton Paleogen 9). It is bounded by the Last Occurrence (LO) of Tranolithus pachelosus at the base and Fasciculithus tympaniformis at the top. The biostratigraphic discontinuity characterized by the absence of zone CC26 to NP4 is an indicator for the presence of an unconformity at K/T boundary within analyzed section. The Cretaceous nannoplankton assemblages are dominated by Genera Watznaueria, Micula, Arkhangelskiella, Cribrosphaerella, Eiffellithus, Predicosphaera, and Retecapsa, whilst the Paleocene assemblages are dominated by Genera Toweius, Ericsonia, and Coccolithus. Survivor Cretaceous species recovered into Tertiary sediments consist of Braarudosphaera bigelowii, Biscutum melaniae, Neocrepidolithus neocrassus, Placozygus sigmoides, Cyclagelosaphaera reinhardtii, Markalius inversus, and Scapolithus fossilis. Keywords: biostratigraphy, nannoplankton, Cretaceous/Tertiary (K/T) boundary, Santos Basin, Brazil