This report describes and explains the unconsolidated surface materials and landforms of Cape Breton Island, tracing the history of geological processes that shaped the area during the late Cenozoic time and emphasizing the previous interglacial period and the last glacial period. Initial field work was conducted in the summers of 1970 and 1971. Documentation of the surficial geological map units was by ground observation. Most of the coast was studied on foot, with the remainder by boat. Additional incidental observations, local stratigraphic studies, and traverse of new highland forestry access roads were made on an opportunity basis in 1974, 1976, 1982, 1993, and 1994.

"The area comprises two distinct physiographic regions, the Cumberland-Pictou Lowlands and the Cobequid Highlands. Bedrock, till, glaciofluvial, glaciomarine, alluvial, colluvial, marine, and organic sediments make up the surface materials." --

A collection of regional papers on quaternary glaciation arepresented here under the major section headings of WesternCanada, Arctic Canada, and Eastern Canada.

Compendium summarizing information on the distribution, geological context, estimated quantities, and characteristics of Canadian coals. Information was compiled from published and unpublished records of the Geological Survey of Canada, provincial governments, and coal companies. Data is included to the beginning of 1988 and is broken down into regional areas.

The study was prompted by a need for data on terrain conditions, soil materials, and glacial transport, which was required for mineral exploration, for the planning of a hydroelectric transmission corridor, for bedrock mapping, for forest inventory, and for land capability studies. A secondary reason for beginning a program of surficial mapping in this part of Newfoundland was the paucity of Quaternary geological information in a key area about which early reports debated the extent of glaciation, and where airphoto reconnaissance revealed significant new glacial and marine formations.