March

Surficial Geology, Halifax Harbour (Bedford Bay to Chebucto Head)

Organization
Natural Resources Canada

Author
Gordon B. J. Fader and Robert O. Miller

ESRI Software
ArcInfo Desktop 8.3 and 9.0, Spatial Analyst

Data Sources
Natural Resources Canada and Canadian Hydrographic Service

Description
This is a seabed geological map of Halifax Harbour. This marine map is one of the first of its kind in illustrating two unique data sets. Firstly, it shows the distribution of materials at the seabed including sediments and bedrock. Underlying the interpreted bottom type is multibeam bathymetric shaded relief imagery. This second data set shows many of the structural, topographic and feature aspects of the seabed not normally conveyed in interpreted geological maps. Large areas of the Halifax Harbour bottom are covered in muddy sediments while in the outer Harbour the seabed is largely bedrock in the east and sand in the west. Combining interpreted geological maps of materials, with topographic imagery from multibeam bathymetry in marine areas is a relatively new way of mapping the seabed and this map represents one of the first.

Acknowledgements
Digital cartography by Kevin Cormier, Atlantic Air Survey; Phil O'Regan, Geological Survey of Canada (GSC), Atlantic; GIS help from Sheila Hynes, Geological Survey of Canada, (GSCA)