A collection of regional geochemical data, mainly from stream sediment surveys, gathered from many BGS overseas projects since 1960s. Some areas are well covered and well documented with data available digitally on CD-ROM. Projects from 1960s and 1970s generally have no digital data and information exists only in paper form.

Regional Geochemical data from drainage basin reconnaissance survey carried out as part of a bilateral aid project between the UK Department for International development (DFID) (formerly ODA) and the Indonesian Government. Some 23,000 stream sediment samples collected and analysed (less than 80 mesh fraction) for Copper, Lead, Zinc, Cobalt, Nickel, Manganese, Silver, Arsenic, Molybdenum, Tin and Tungsten (partial extraction) and Lithium, Potassium, Chromium and Iron (total extraction). Samples collected and classified on the basis of 1:250 000 map quadrangle areas. Data gathering completed in two phases: First phase: North of the equator (North Sumatra Project, NSP). Second phase: South of the equator (Southern Sumatra Geological and mineral exploration Project). Sampling and analytical methodology has been consistent throughout. All data is available as on the Sumatra CD-database CD-ROM. North of the equator data published as 1:250 000 single element classified symbol plots and as a monochrome geochemical atlas. South of the equator data published as 1:250 000 single element proportional symbol plots and a geochemical atlas (hardcopy and CD-ROM). Projects also involved regional geological mapping and in Southern Sumatra regional geophysics (gravity). Raw data can be obtained from the Directorate of Mineral Resources, Bandung, Indonesia.

Two geochemical surveys were undertaken in the Solomon Islands between 1976 and 1983 as part of a combined geological mapping and mineral exploration project. The survey of Choiseul and the Shortland Islands was carried out between 1976 and 1979 by the Institute of Geological Sciences (now the British Geological Survey) with support from staff of the Geology Division of the Ministry of Land, Energy and Natural Resources, Solomon Islands. The project produced 12 geological maps at 1:50,000 scale as well as a series of unpublished reports. The survey of the New Georgia Group of islands was undertaken between 1979 and 1983. The project produced 7 geological maps at a scale of 1:100,000 and a regional map of the entire island group at a scale of 1:250,000. A series of multielement geochemical anomaly maps were produced at a scale of 1:100,000 to accompany each of the published geological maps. Master copies of these are held at the Geological Survey in Honiara. Full descriptions of the methods used are described in the margins of the anomaly maps. A total of 8848 stream sediment samples were collected from Choiseul and 7441 from the New Georgia Group, resulting in an average sampling density for the two areas of 2.68 samples per km2 and 1.47 samples per km2 respectively. Sampling in the Shortland Islands was confined to the larger islands, 187 were collected from the Fauro Island group, 148 from Alu and 69 from Mono. The samples were dry sieved and the fraction passing -80 mesh B.S. (177 microns) was analysed. A hot concentrated nitric acid digestion was used prior to analysis by atomic absorbtion spectrophotometry (AAS) for Co, Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Ag, and Mn. Samples from the vicinity of the Siruka Ultramafic Complex were determined for Cr by AAS after digestion by a bisulphate fusion technique. Raw data can be obtained from the Geology Division, Ministry of Mines and Energy, PO Box G37, Honiara, Solomon Islands.

The BGS database of geological maps is an index into BGS holdings of modern and historical published geological maps, geological standards and field slips, and also contains a range of other map series, including geophysical maps, geochemical maps, hydrogeological maps, thematic maps and other small-scale miscellaneous non-series maps. Historical vertical and horizontal sections, as well as indices to colours, are also included. The database comprises map metadata, including the title, theme, survey and revision years, publication years, mapped geological theme, base material, map function, colouration, approval status and the spatial extent of each map sheet. An accompanying file store contains high-resolution JPEG2000 scans for delivery, as well as various digital master and delivery formats. For a small number of maps, no scan exists. In total, the database contains over 240,000 scans of over 130,000 maps and field slips. The majority of the maps in the database cover Great Britain, but other regions are also represented, including a historical series of 1-inch maps of Ireland, 6-inch maps of the Isle of Man, 1:25 000 scale maps of the Channel Islands, and various overseas maps. The database contains a record of all geological maps produced by the British Geological Survey and its predecessors since the commencement of systematic geological mapping in the 1830s. The BGS Maps Database is mostly an archive of previous BGS maps, and is not the same as the latest BGS digital mapping. The maps within the database may differ significantly from BGS digital vector mapping. Further information about BGS digital vector mapping is available on the BGS website, under 'BGS Datasets'. The database has evolved over time, originally being a series of discrete databases. These databases have now been aggregated into a single dataset. BGS published maps, as well as 1:10 560 and 1:10 000 large-scale geological maps of England and Wales, and Scotland, are available through the BGS Maps Portal. Field slips and some thematic maps are not included on the BGS Maps Portal. The information about a map is normally a transcription from the map itself. Sometimes key information such as the title may not be actually printed on the map. Where this is the case the information is supplied in square brackets, e.g. [Kirk Maiden]. Information in square brackets means the information is supplied by the cataloguer and is not transcribed from the item.

The BGS Geochemical Baseline Survey of the Environment (G-BASE) was the national strategic geochemical mapping programme in Great Britain. The project set out to establish the chemistry of the surface environment by the collection and analysis of stream sediment, stream water and soil samples. Beginning in the late 1960s in northern Scotland and moving southwards across the country, the primary focus was mineral exploration, however, the project quickly developed to address important environmental concerns. The final G-BASE samples were collected in southern England in 2014. The outputs from the G-BASE project provide an invaluable, systematic baseline of geochemical information for Great Britain, serving as a marker of the state of the environment against which to measure future change. Stream sediments were the primary sample medium for G-BASE, with an average density of one site per 1.5 km square. The drainage sampling sites cover most of Great Britain. Sediment was collected from the centre of the stream and sieved through two sieves (2 mm and 150 µm) to obtain a fine grain-size fraction of <150 microns. Analytical data (by a variety of analytical methods, including XRF and direct-reading optical emission spectrometry (DR-OES) for the <150 micron fraction of stream sediment samples are available for some or all of the following elements: Ag, As, Ba, Bi, Br, Ca, Cd, Ce, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, Fe, Ga, Ge, Hf, I, K, La, Mg, Mn, Mo, Nb, Ni, P, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sc, Se, Se, Sn, Sr, Ta, Te, Th, Ti, Tl, U, V, W, Y, Zn and Zr. Some stream sediment samples were originally collected as part of the Mineral Reconnaissance Programme (MRP), and later re-analysed for G-BASE. These samples may have been assigned a new sample number, but will plot at the same site. For more information about accessing these samples and their analytical results, contact BGS Enquiries (enquries@bgs.ac.uk).

The London Earth data are part of the Geochemical Baseline Survey of the Environment (G-BASE) dataset, a nation-wide project to determine the distribution of chemical elements in the surface environment. London Earth focuses on the soil of the capital city, the limits of the survey being defined by the Greater London Authority (GLA) administrative boundary. Chemical elements have been determined by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRFS) at the laboratories of the British Geological Survey (BGS) in Keyworth, Nottingham. These results are presented as a Microsoft Excel file.