| Description | Present: Professor E A Vincent (Chairman); Dr J R Butler; Professor W S Fyfe; Dr A A Moss; Dr D G Murchison; Dr N J Snelling; Dr P A Sabine; Dr A A Smales; Professor J S Webb
1. International Association of Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry (IAGC)
The Chairman explained that the Association had evolved from a feeling widely felt among geochemists that their specialist needs were not adequately catered for in the various international scientific meetings currently held. A Geochemical Society had been formed in the United States which was open to international membership but there was strong opinion outside America that this did not fulfil the need for an international organization. At an informal meeting of geochemists held in New Delhi during the last Geological Congress in 1964 a large majority held the view that a new Association should be formed; as a result of this meeting a working group under the Chairmanship of Dr Earl Ingerson met in Paris in 1965 and drafted statutes. The Chairman further reported that he had been present at this meeting and had provisionally been appointed Treasurer of the newly formed Association.
At a meeting of the IUGS Executive Committee in January 1967 the IAGC had been accepted for affiliations to the Union, for ratification at Prague in 1968. There would be meetings of the Council of IAGC, which he hoped to attend, in Paris on 8 and 11 May during the forthcoming symposium, and in Zurich during the General Assembly of IUGG later in the year. The first General Assembly of IAGC would be held during the International Geological Congress in Prague in 1968.
Formation and terms of reference of the Subcommittee
(a) Minute 9 of a meeting of the British National Committee for Geology on 18 November 1966 was noted as follows:
' International Association for Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry: Letters dated 30 September and 20 October 1966 from the President of the Mineralogical Society and the Secretary General of IUGS, respectively, in connexion with the proposed affiliation of the International Association of Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry to IUGS, were noted (NGL/14 (66). It was agreed that although Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry were inter-disciplinary subjects they were primarily the responsibility of the National Committee for Geology. It was noted that if the Association's application for affiliation to IUGS were accepted by the Executive Committee, it would come up for ratification at the Council Meeting of the Union st Prague in 1968. It was therefore agreed to appoint provisionally a subcommittee of the National Committee consisting of: Professor E A Vincent (Chairman), Dr J R Butler, Professor W S Fyfe, Dr A A Moss, Dr D G Murchison, Dr P A Sabine, Dr AA Smales, Dr N J Snelling, Professor F H Stewart and Professor J S Webb, and to invite comments of the British National Committee for Chemistry. The Executive Secretary was asked to inform the Secretary of IUGS of this action.
(b) Copy of a letter from the Secretaary of IUGS dated 20 October 1966 to the Executive Secretary of the Royal Society was noted. (NGL/1 (67).
(c) The Executive Secretary reported that the appointment of the Subcommittee was referred to the British National Committee for Chemistry at its meeting on 9 December 1966 for comment. The appointment of the Subcommittee and its membership was approved.
(d) It was noted that the main function of the Subcommittee was the promotion of Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry in the UK in relation to the IAGC, to recommend the nomination of delegates to represent the UK at business meetings of the Association and to recommend items for discussion at such meetings including subjects for symposia.
3. Statutes of IAGC
(a) The following documents were noted;
(i) The draft statutes of IAGC, drawn up on 15 November 1965 in Paris (NGL/2/ (67)
(ii) A report by Professor Vincent on the Paris Meeting (NGL/2/(67)
(b) The Chairman reported that the draft statutes had been further considered by a number of interested parties and national representatives, including the Secretaray General of IUGS (Professor van Leckwijck) and two officials of UNESCO, and as a result the following modifications had been proposed in correspondence between Dr Ingerson and other members of the council of IAGC;
I.C Membership
2. Corporate members who may be
(a) National societies, committees or groups of geochemists, one of which in each country shall be designated as the official representative of that country and shall be entitled to a vote in the
General Assembly.
II. Administration
A. General Assembl;y
2. At a business meeting of the Association, the voting members of the General Assembly shall consist of one delegate from each of the organizations representing the countries adhering to the
Association. Representatives of other organizations that are corporate or sustaining members may attend meeting and take part in discussions, but shall have no vote.
3. In the case of elections and at other times if it should become necessary to take postal ballots between regular meetings, all the corporate members representing their respictive countries
shall be polled.
III. B. Ballots
Delete present statute and replace by;
Election of Officers and Councillors shall be by majority vote of the General Assembly and term of office shall be the period until the next regular meeting of the General Assembly.
IV. Finances
2. Corporate members shall pay annual dues in proportion to the number of Geochemists they represent.
(c) The above modifications were agreed and Professor Vincent undertook to support them at the Council meeting of IAGC in Paris in May 1967.
(d) The question arose as to how to assess the number of geochemists in the UK (Statute IV - Finance) for the purpose of voting powers. After some discussion it was agreed that this figure might be based on the membership of the Mineralogical Society, taking into account that not all geochemists belonged to the Mineralogical Society and not all members of the Society were geochemists. Dr A A Moss, Treasurer of the Mineralogical Society explained that the Society paid an annual subscription to the IMA of 90,00 dollars per annum in Category D, ie 6 units at 15 dollars a unit. It was agreed that this would be a reasonable basis for the UK subscription to the IAGC. It would put the UK in the 200/500 bracket which would be on a par with France and Japan, leaving USA and USSR in a higher category of membership.
On the question of individual membership to the Association, some members of the Subcommittee were not in favour but if it were included an annual subscription of 3.00 dollars would be adequate.
4. Commissions
The Chairman reported that the following Commissions had been proposed:
(a) Analytical Methods and Standards
(b) Biogeochemistry
(c) Geochemical Nomenclature and Documentation (including data storage and retrieval and automatic processes)
On the proposal of the Chairman, Dr AA Smales and Professor J S Webb agreed to act as chairmen of (a) and (b) respectively, should they be invited to do so by the Associationand should their terms of reference be satisfactory. It was also thought that a Commission on Applied Geochemistry was desirable, and the Chairman undertook to make this proposal at the forthcoming meeting in Paris. Should this proposal be accepted, this Commission might be more appropriate to Professor Webb, rather than (b) above.
5. International Association of Volcanology
Copies of correspondence between the President of IAV (Professor H Kuno) and the Secretary General (Professor P Everard) concerning the IAGC was noted (NGG/17/67). It was also noted that the IAV had changed to IAVCEI: International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's interior. It was evident that there was some confusion in relation between the IAVCEI and the IAGC. It was agreed that the situation needed watching, particularly in regard to the danger of prolilferation of meetings, and that close lilaison was essential between the LAVCEI and IAGC.
6. Symposium on Origin and Distribution of the Elements
The tentative programme for a symposium to be held in Paris from 8/11 May 1967 on the origin and distribution of the Elements, to be organized by the IAGC, was noted.
The Chairman reported tht at least 150-200 participants had so far registered for the Symposium. Due to difficulties first in reserving a conference hall at UNESCO headquarters, and then in obtaining the co-operation of a local organising committee in France, the wrong dates had been advertised in Geochimica Acta and other journals. The programme organisation was in the hands of the vice President of IAGC - Professor Ahrens, in Cape Town, and again insufficient information had been available. It appeared that rather few geochemists from the UK would be attending, slthough Dr Smales' group at Harwell were contributing papers.
It was generally agreed that, if IAGC were to be a successful Association, its future organisation would have to be much better than that evidenced by this first symposium.
7. Report from UK
It was agreed that a brief report on the views of the Subcommittee on the points discussed above should be made to the Council of IAGC and the Chairman undertook to write to Dr Ingerson outlining the various proposals and views expressed.
8. Next meeting
It was agreed that another meeting of the Subcommittee should be held in late May or early June when Professor Vincent could report on the May meeting in Paris and on the symposium; further points could then be raised if desirable before the next Council meeting of IAGC in September. |