Since 2000, the Exploration and Mining Division has been progressively making available all of its non-confidential exploration data holdings. Wherever possible, this data is published online, although the large size of certain data-sets necessitates that in some cases, data has to be released on CD or DVD. All data is free. The types of exploration data made available by EMD includes:
- Exploration Company Reports.
- Geospatial (GIS) Data
- Airborne Geophysics Data
- Prospecting Licence Map
- Bibliography of Irish Mineral Resources
- ‘Target Areas’ Initiative
Exploration Company Reports
All exploration companies holding Prospecting Licences (PL) in Ireland are required to submit reports which summarize the results of their exploration activities. These reports are normally submitted every two years, although EMD occasionally request companies to provide reports on an annual basis. Reports are held confidential for a period of six years or until surrender of the licence, if earlier. To date, in excess of two thousand company reports relating to over 800 PL Areas have been made available online. To view these reports, please click here.
Geospatial (GIS) Data
The Exploration and Mining Division have published large volumes of exploration, mining, environmental and location/permit status geospatial data on its industry focused website (http://www.mineralsireland.ie/). This data is free to download or alternatively can be visualised on screen using a user-friendly, map viewer tool. To find out more about the types of spatial data that are available and how you can access it, please click on the following link: Geospatial Data Available From EMD.
Airborne Geophysics Data
Over the last few decades, exploration companies have increasingly utilised high resolution airborne geophysics in the search for mineral deposits. EMD is the custodian of all airborne survey data flown in Ireland, by industry, since 1995. Much of this specialist data is made available to exploration clients on request. To learn more about EMD’s ‘Airborne Data Release Initiative’ and identify those areas for which airborne survey data is available, please click on the following link (The Airborne Data Release Initiative).
Much of the high resolution airborne data covering the Central Ireland Basin has recently been re-processed and re-interpreted as part of a Public-Private Partnership between EMD and PGW Europe Ltd. As part of this project, geophysical interpretation and total field magnetic maps have been produced, which are also available from EMD, free of charge. More background information on the EMD-PGW ‘Airborne Magnetic Interpretation Initiative’ can be obtained by clicking here.
Prospecting Licence Map
Twice yearly, EMD produces hard copy versions of its ‘Prospecting Licence Area Map’, which shows the status of exploration ground in Ireland. Hard copy maps can be ordered by emailing EMD.info@dcenr.gov.ie. The status of exploration ground can additionally be determined online though EMD’s Location / Permit Status web mapping service.
Bibliography of Irish Mineral Resources
EMD have recently made available a bibliography of publications and selected reports concerning Irish mineral resources (1750-2007). The references themselves are not available from EMD. Should any one identify any erroneous or missing mineral resource references, please feel free to advise EMD by emailing EMD.info@dcenr.gov.ie.
Target Areas Initiative
In order to stimulate exploration interest in specific areas of the country or in particular commodities, EMD periodically release compilations of digital data on CD or DVD. Four such ‘Target Areas’ digital products have been released since 2002.
- Gold in Ireland
- The Ballinalack Zn-Pb Deposit
- Cregganbaun and Adjacent Gold Target Areas
- The Silvermines Zn-Pb District
Each digital product contains GIS data (together with a free viewer for visualising the data), plus collections of relevant company exploration reports and technical papers. Free copies of these products can also be ordered from EMD.info@dcenr.gov.ie.
In addition to specialist exploration data, EMD has also produced a number of more general publications on exploration and mining in Ireland. To view the full range of publications available for download, please visit our publications page.