Geological features of the kinta valley
Résumé
Kinta Valley was one of the most productive tin mining areas in the world towards the end of 19th century and
continued to be so for another century. Due to its thriving economy and affluence, there was rapid development in
the valley. The geology of the valley has been studied in detail for the purpose of prospecting for new tin deposits and
more recently, for town planning and urban development. The various rock types and geological structures have been
mapped but, there was no proper correlation between geology and the geological structures which is important for
the reconstruction of the regional geological history of the area. This paper will highlight the various rock types present
in the valley, demarcate the geological structures and study the deformation history of the rocks. Five major lithologies
(rock types) have been observed, and they are interbedded sandstone and mudstone, shale, limestone, granite and the
recent alluvium. The age of the former four rock types range from Devonian (400 million years ago/Ma) to late Triassic
(200Ma) whilst the Quaternary alluvium is very much younger, with an age of less than 2.5Ma. A tectonic event which
gave rise to compressional force (sometime in late Triassic) resulted in the formation of tight folds and thrust faults in
the interbedded sandstone and mudstone, shale and limestone. Soon after this, there was a reversal of the forces to
become extensional. This event is supported by the existence of numerous normal faults along valley which are present
as long linear features in the Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and also the blind faults found in the drainage anomalies.