A review of regional mineral resource assessment methods

Over 100 papers on regional mineral resource assessment of nonfuels are classified according to method(s) used and form(s) of product in order to help identify possible methods for future assessments. Types of products that have been used include: tons of metal; tons of rock and associated grade; gross value; potential; number of deposits; probability of one or more deposits; tons of rock, grade, and number of deposits by type; potential supply; and net value. Assessment methods considered are: time-rate, crustal abundance, cumulative tonnage versus grade, simple subjective, complex subjective, Bayesian, frequency, trend, geometric probability, multiple regression, discriminant analysis, modified component, multivariate logistic, cluster analysis or pattern recognition, and simulation.Selection of a method to be employed in an assessment should be based on: (1) appropriateness of the product to the problem, (2) limitations in resources, such as information or time available for the assessment, (3) the level of uncertainty and acceptability of biases in the assessment, and (4) the need for verification of results and acceptance of the method.