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During the Cretaceous, the CO2 content of the global atmosphere increased in response to the volcanism associated with the disintegration of the former continents. This led to a considerable rise in global temperatures, leading to a significant rise in the global sea level and the landward movement of coastlines. Cretaceous marine strata transgressed directly on the underlying basement or much older sedimentary strata. Extreme environmental conditions in the Cretaceous involved a possibly more acidic and chemically destructive atmosphere than at present, which favoured widespread deep weathering at that time. The extensive Cretaceous palaeo-seaways played a vital role in transporting and depositing the huge volume of sediments generated during the weathering events, which included economically important placer deposits (e.g., gold, diamond and platinum). A direct consequence of the extreme Cretaceous global warmth was the widespread development of Cretaceous silcretes. Much of the world's heavy oil occurs in Cretaceous reservoir sands. The geological processes responsible for the widespread occurrence of the Cretaceous oil sands can also be traced back to the unique Cretaceous greenhouse climatic condition. The warm climatic conditions imply a higher heat flow regime in the subsurface, which contributed to the thermal maturation of the organic rich sediments that are closely associated with the Cretaceous transgressive sands. The oils were generated as conventional light oil, which later degraded into heavy oils, rather than thermally cracked oils from over-matured source rocks. Oils migrated into shallow warm reservoir sands that were favourable for microbial activities. All the studied Cretaceous oil sands show evidence of hopane degradation without the formation of 25-norhopanes despite diasterane degradation in some of the samples. This strongly implies that biodegradation in these studied Cretaceous oil sands occurred at shallow depths. Pyrite precipitated from an open system by means of microbial sulfate reduction as part of the biodegradation process.

[No abstract available] / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

A completely new Upper Cambrian formational nomenclature is proposed for the southern Rocky Mountains of Alberta. The formations designated as Upper Cambrian are: Corona, and Mount Synge, Dresbachian; Bison Creek, Franconian; and the Mistaya, Trempealeauan. Two additional formations are referred to the Middle Cambrian sequence immediately underlying the Upper Cambrian; the Chephren and the Waterfowl. These latter formations were previously included in the Arctomys formation considered to be Upper Cambrian in age. The lowest Lower Ordovician formation is designated as the Howse River formation. In addition to the above mentioned new formations, the Arctomys, Sullivan, Lyell, Mons, Bosworth, Paget, Sherbrooke, Tangle Ridge, and Sabine formations are discussed in detail. All are considered obsolete, except the Sabine formation, the use of which, it is recommended, be confined to the Canal Flats area, British Columbia. The limits of the Upper Cambrian series in Alberta are more precisely determined, and tentative correlation of the Upper Cambrian of Alberta, Montana, and British Columbia is outlined. Trilobite faunas from all the Upper Cambrian zones, except the Crepicephalus zone, are described and illustrated. The Cedaria zone faunas contain fifteen genera and eighteen species, among them Bolaspidelia wellsvillensis, Nixonella montanensis, several species of Arapahoia and Cedarina, and Kingstonia mucro. Abundant topotype material of K. mucro has made redefinition of this species possible. The Aphelaspis zone is recognized by the discovery of Aphelaspis walcotti, and one questionable species of Aphelaspis. The Franconian zones are represented by Irvingella major, Taenicephalus shumardi, Parabolinoides cordiIlerensis, Maustonia nasota, KendalIina eryon, Ptychaspis striata, Prosaukia lonqicornis and Prosaukia curvicostata, to mention only the more important index species. The Saukia zone of the Trempealeauan is represented by species of Eurekia, StenopiIus, Bynumiella. Hardyia and IlIaenurus. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

The Red Mountain formation (Lower Pennsylvanian?) of the Chilliwack group (Carboniferous) was mapped in five areas of northwestern Washington. Except for a few outcrops of Devonian strata, the formation represents the oldest known sedimentary rocks in this region. It consists primarily of argillite, graywacke, chert, tuff and limestone, and is overlain by conglomerate of the Black Mountain formation (Lower Permian). The base of the formation is nowhere exposed. Correlation of the Red Mountain formation is dependent essentially on the presence of large crinoid stems, foraminifera, and similarity of stratigraphic relationships. Limestones of the upper portion of the formation represent deposition under conditions of marked tectonic stability, whereas enclosing strata are indicative of deposition in an unstable, subsiding realm. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

The lower Rocky Mountain Supergroup of Pennsylvanian age contains five formations which in ascending order are: Todhunter, Tyrwhitt, Storelk, Tobermory and Kananaskis. All except the Kananaskis are new formations that are equivalent to the Tunnel Mountain Formation. The Todhunter, Tyrwhitt and Tobermory consist mainly of brown weathering, dolomitic and quartzitic, very fine- to fine-grained, pure, quartz-chert sandstones with some interbedded, locally f ossiliferous, sandy dolomite. The Storelk is quartzitic, very fine- to medium-grained, very massive, cross-bedded, white wheathering quartzi-chert sandstone. All these formations contain varying amounts of scattered medium and coarse sand. The Kananaskis consists of sandy and cherty, dense, microcrystalline, grey dolomite. The Todhunter, Tyrwhitt and Storelk Formations are interpreted as being Early Pennsylvanian (Morrowan) in age, and the Tobermory and Kananaskis Formation, which regionally may be facies equivalents, as early Middle Pennsylvanian (Atokan) in age. The contact between the lower Rocky Mountain and the underlying Etherington Formation (Late Mississippian Chesterian) is conformable and locally gradational. Contacts between the Todhunter and Tyrwhitt, and between the Storelk and Tobernory are unconformable, whereas that between the Tyrwhitt and Storelk may be conformable or unconformable. The lower Rocky Mountain is unconformably overlain by Permian, Triassic or Jurassic strata. The lower Rocky Mountain sediments were deposited in a structural basin which may have been partially isolated from adjacent basins to the north, west and south by low barrier arches. Individual formations in the succession thin in a northwesterly and southwesterly direction towards the basin flanks, where as little as 160 feet of the five formations was deposited and remains, whereas at least 1,175 feet of equivalent strata is preserved in the central part. The quartz sand was probably transported by rivers and longshore marine currents from a source lying to the east within the continental interior. Chert and phosphorite fragments ranging up to pebble size were probably locally derived. The strata of Chesterian and Morrowan age represent a regressive sequence. After Morrowan time, gentle warping, emergence, and erosion caused truncation of Lower PennsyIvanian and Upper Mississippian strata towards the east. Angular truncation, and local conglomerates composed of chert, phosphorite, sandstone and dolmite granules and pebbles mark this unconformity. Strata of Atokan age thicken westward and represent a transgressive, sequence which onlaps and truncates the underlying strata. The Pennsylvanian sandstones are a potential source of pure silica sand. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

Glacial, stratigraphic, mineralogical, structural and palynologic studies were carried out in the Princeton coalfield, B. C. Three late Pleistocene lakes on the Tulameen River, Whipsaw Creek and Granite Creek are described for the first time. Previous workers have described the Princeton Group as being made up of three units, an upper and lower volcanic rock unit separated by a sedimentary unit. Shaw (1952) names these units; the Lower Volcanic Formation (oldest), the Allenby Formation (sediments), and the Upper Volcanic Formation (youngest). The present work indicates that the Upper Volcanic Formation is interbedded with basal Allenby Formation sediments and is transitional downward into the Lower Volcanic Formation. The revised stratigraphic sequence herein proposed is the Lower Volcanic Formation (oldest), the Upper Volcanic Formation, and the Allenby Formation (youngest). The Allenby Formation is composed of interbedded conglomerates, arkosic and tuffaceous sandstones, shale, coaly shale, coal, and minor amounts of limestone, bentonite, diatomite and ash. Except for the basal Allenby Formation sediments which apparently formed as talus accumulations, the bulk of the coarse clastic sediments were derived from a granitic terrane. The shales contain silt size grains of microcline, quartz and plagioclase similar to the coarser clastics, suggesting that they are fine grained equivalents of the coarser elastics. Evidence is presented to show that the arkosic sediments were derived from the Osprey Lake Intrusion. A section of the Allenby Formation at Vermilion Bluffs is unique in that it is composed of a basal silicified diatomite overlain by a silicified dolomitic limestone and shale. Evidence is presented to show that the sequence represents an ancient spring deposit. The Princeton coalfield consists of two structural lows, separated by a small transverse anticline. Ninety-three plant microfossil species are described and illustrated. Some of these are identical with previously described material from the Green River Formation and the Fort Union Formation of the United States, and the Burrard Formation of British Columbia. Forty species of spores and pollen are abundant in the Princeton material. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

Archaeocyatha from the Lower Cambrian of Wolf Lake and Quiet Lake areas in the Yukon Territory are described and illustrated. The fossils occur in carbonate rocks and are well preserved. Much of the necessary structural detail of the fossils is clearly observed in thin-sections and on polished surfaces of the specimens. The collection contains twenty-three species, twelve of which are new species. The new species described are: Ajacicyathus yukonensis, Coscinocyathus multiporus. Coseinocyathus cassiariensis, Coscinocyathus inequivallug, Coscinocyathus serratus, Coscinocyathus veronicus, Coscinocyathus tubicornus, Carinacyathus perforatus, Pyenoidocyathus solidus, Loculicyathus elliptieus, Metacoscinus poolensis, and Claruscyathus ketzaensis. The genera Carinacyathus and Loculicyathus are reported for the first time in North America. The Yukon fauna is dominated by Coscinocyathidae and Pycnoidocyathidae, showing close relationship to faunae in the Cordilleran region of British Columbia. It also shows relationship to Siberian and Australian faunae. This fauna is very different from the archaeocyathid assemblages in Nevada and California, where the dominant forms are Ethmophyllidae and Ajacicyathiclae. Arehaeocyatha have been instrumental in determining the age of rocks underlying a large area of the Yukon Territory. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

The thesis represents a field and paleontological study of Devonian strata exposed in the Ram River Area west of Nordegg Alberta, and is intended to present information which will supplement data obtained from exploration drilling of the Great Plains basin. Certain structural phenomena are discussed in relation to the problems of the Rocky Mountain overthrust belt. It is concluded that overfolding in many cases preceeded thrust fault development, that modification of Lawson’s equation may be necessary in the consideration of low-angle thrust faults, and that the Eastern Ranges may have suffered less displacement than those of the western Rockies. The principles of regional and interregional correlation are discussed with a view to evaluation of the criteria and limitations of biostratigraphic correlation. Previous stratigraphic work is reviewed, and detailed descriptions of the Flume, Perdrix, and Cheviot Formations are submitted. The Perdrix Formation is recognized as being divisible into two new members, the Blackface and Whitegoat Members. Faunal description, revision, and illustration of five species of corals and thirty species of brachiopods constitute the main part of the work. Revision shows that Leiorhynchus albertense Warren is referable to Calvinaria, and that Bellerophon neleus Hall and Whitfield is referable to Aglaeoglypta. One variety, Calvinaria albertense var. plicata is recognized as new. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate

The Thompson Valley between Spences Bridge and Lytton, where it joins the Fraser, merits attention because of the abundance of clear sections of late glacial and postglacial deposits in road and rail cuts, and its position as an important transition zone between the glacial lake deposition of the southern Interior and the dominantly fluvial aggradation of the Fraser. Most attention was paid to the stratigraphy of road and rail cuts, as the only morphological features preserved in the steep and narrow valley are terraces, fans, landslides and talus slopes. Quaternary deposits yield little evidence of the depositional environment prior to the last major advance of ice, but there is a good record of conditions during and following deglaciation. The last ice sheet, which wasted away by down-melting, left a thin mantle of till over the uplands and till deposits up to 50 ft. thick in the valley. The Lower Thompson Valley, close to the glacier sources of the Coast Mountains, was one of the last areas to be free of ice. Consequently major lakes developed in the Thompson and Nicola Valleys and were forced to drain into the Okanagan Valley. When the ice plug south of Spences Bridge failed, some time before 9,000 B.P., drainage was resumed down the Thompson Valley to the Fraser. During deglaciation, up to 300 ft, of silts and deltaic gravels were deposited in the l,230 ft. stage of Lake Deadman, which was dammed by ice south of Spences Bridge. Between Skoonka Creek and Seddall, respectively 4 and 7 miles south of Spences Bridge, are deposits of collapsed silt and flow till and it is suggested that an ice plug remained here separating lacustrine deposition north of Skoonka Creeks from fluvial aggradation south of Seddall, where the valley was by then largely ice-free. Aggradation, which was due to the large supply of material from lateral sources resulting from recent glaciation and weathering, was extremely rapid; more than 500 ft. of cross-bedded and horizontal gravel and sand were deposited in probably little more than 1,000 years. Aggradation ceased well before 7,530 B.P. With amelioration of the climate and stabilization of the slopes, the load of the river was considerably reduced and it degraded its former valley fill creating a series of terraces, with a veneer of imbricate cobbles, from 500 ft. down to 30 ft. above present river level. Most terraces are non-cyclic, but paired terraces, approximately l4O ft. above the river, mark a period of relative stability prior to 7,530 B.P. The river was probably within 50 ft. of its present level by 6,600 B.P., and since then downcutting appears to have proceeded relatively slowly. At least three phases of alluvial fan formation occurred during this period of dominant degradation, the terraces acting as temporary base levels for the mudflows. Mazama ash, deposited on the terraces and fans approximately 6,600 years ago, provides a useful marker horizon. Apart from slow down-cutting by the river and some alluvial fan formation, the dominant processes affecting the topography since 6,600 B.P have been landsliding and slumping. The largest slide, the Drynoch Earthflow, has been active for at least 3,175 years and slumping due to seepage and river erosion has occurred intermittently along the river banks. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate