Editing Belcher Islands (section)

=== Soapstone ===
The occurrence of very high-quality [[soapstone]] in the Belcher Islands supports a locally significant carving industry.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last=Timlick|first=L.|date=2017|title=Comparative study of the petrogenesis of excellent-quality carving stone from Korok Inlet, southern Baffin Island, and the Belcher Islands, Nunavut|url=https://m.cngo.ca/wp-content/uploads/Summary_of_Activities_2017-P11-Timlick.pdf|journal=Summary of Activities|via=Canada-Nunavut Geoscience Office}}</ref> These soapstone occurrences formed when sedimentary rocks of the Belcher Group were [[Intrusive rock|intruded]] by Haig sills and dykes approximately 1.87 billion years ago.<ref name=":4" /> Most soapstone is quarried from a site on western Tukarak Island where dolomite of the Costello Formation was [[Intrusive rock|intruded]] by hot [[magma]],<ref name=":4" /> with [[Dolomite (mineral)|dolomite]] reacting with [[quartz]] and [[water]] under intense heat to form [[talc]], [[calcite]], and [[carbon dioxide]]:

{{chem2|3CaMg(CO3)2 + 4SiO2 + H2O ->[Heat] Mg3Si4O10(OH)2 + 3CaCO3 + 3CO2}}

Other minerals within the soapstone are largely [[calcite]], [[Dolomite (mineral)|dolomite]], [[talc]], and [[Chlorite group|clinochlore]], with minor amounts of [[ilmenite]].

Although most soapstone has been sourced from two quarries, the relatively widespread occurrence of Haig intrusions within the Belcher Islands suggests that there may be many more possible sources of high-quality soapstone not yet discovered.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Steenkamp|first=H.M.|date=2016|title=Geological mapping and petrogenesis of carving stone in the Belcher Islands, Nunavut|url=https://m.cngo.ca/wp-content/uploads/Summary_of_Activities_2016-P12-Steenkamp.pdf|journal=Summary of Activities|via=Canada-Nunavut Geoscience Office}}</ref>