Abstract:

The Task Group on Global Geochemical Baselines, operating under the auspices of both the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) and the International Association of Geochemistry (IAGC), has the longterm goal of establishing a global geochemical database to document the concentration and distribution of chemical elements in the Earth’s surface or nearsurface environment. The database and accompanying element distribution maps represent a geochemical baseline against which future humaninduced or natural changes to the chemistry of the land surface may be recognized and quantified. In order to accomplish this longterm goal, the activities of the Task Group include: (1) developing partnerships with countries conducting broadscale geochemical mapping studies; (2) providing consultation and training in the form of workshops and short courses; (3) organizing periodic international symposia to foster communication among the geochemical mapping community; (4) developing criteria for certifying those projects whose data are acceptable in a global geochemical database; (5) acting as a repository for data collected by those projects meeting the criteria for standardization; (6) preparing complete metadata for the certified projects; and (7) preparing, ultimately, a global geochemical database. This paper summarizes the history and accomplishments of the Task Group since its first predecessor project was established in 1988.

Key words: Geochemical baseline, Global scale, Geochemistry, Geochemical mapping, Geochemical survey