Paleclimate, the Stratigraphic Record, and Implicaions for Energy Exploration

Judith Totman Parrish
Geological Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID

Energy exploration has evolved from a focus on and exploitation of visible resources (coal outcrops and oil seeps), to structure (especially in the case of oil and gas), to stratigraphy (coal, oil, and gas). Ever since energy exploration began concentrating on stratigraphic control of the distribution of energy resources, there has been a strong interest in the role of paleoclimate. The stratigraphy of sedimentary basins was studied as an interplay between tectonics and sedimentation, but it has become increasingly apparent that paleoclimate has an important, if not overriding influence on sedimentation, particularly on shorter time scales, although even climate change on tectonic time scales can be influential. Much effort in the past couple of decades has gone into understanding the balances among tectonics, climate, and sedimentation in various basins. The best approaches use multiple sources of information on processes that operate on different time scales. In addition to the stratigraphic influences on distribution, there are also influences that might be termed “richness”, which may also be related to climate. In oil and gas resources, these are related to the richness and nature of the source rocks; in coal, these may be related to the thickness and quality of coal. Examples are provided from the Triassic Ischigualasto Basin of Argentina and the Triassic and Cretaceous of the North Slope of Alaska.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90078©2008 AAPG Annual Convention, San Antonio, Texas