Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock made of minerals called calcite and dolomite. Calcium is an important chemical element found in limestone, which gives it a chalky appearance and feel. Limestone forms at the bottom of oceans and seas, where mud, debris and dead animals accumulate. This oozy mud at the bottom of the ocean eventually becomes buried deep below the ocean. High heat and pressure turns the mud into the hard rock we know as limestone. Dead animals from ancient marine environments where limestone forms are sometimes preserved as fossils. Shells, bones, skeletons and impressions of footprints can give us clues about extinct animals that lived many years ago.
Where is it found?
Limestone is found all over southwestern Manitoba and occurs in many places around Lake Winnipeg, Lake Manitoba, Lake Winnipegosis, and as far north as the Flin Flon and Snow Lake areas. Much of northeastern Manitoba, including the Churchill area, contains abundant limestone outcrops along rivers and the Hudson Bay shoreline. Limestone is very important to Manitoba’s economy. It is used for making concrete and crushed limestone in road construction and maintenance. Tyndall StoneTM is a special type of limestone known for its uniquely beautiful colour and texture. It is quarried or excavated in the Garson area northeast of Winnipeg and can be found on the Manitoba Legislative Building, in school buildings in our province, at the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, and abroad.
