Sequence Stratigraphy and Depositional Response to Eustatic, Tectonic and Climatic Forcing

The new paradigm of sequence stratigraphy attempts to discern the migration of facies resulting from changes in eustatic, tectonic and sedimentary regimes in order to anticipate the locus and type of sediment deposition. It is rapidly becoming an indispensable tool for the prediction of facies in exploration and production geology and for discerning internal stratal architecture through high-resolution studies of oil fields for enhanced hydrocarbon exploitation. The discipline is in a state of rapid expansion. New case studies of its application are vital to an appreciation of the full potential of the methodology. The variety of studies published here collectively exemplify the response of the depositional systems to various governing factors that create or destroy accommodation space, modify sediment flux, and/or alter coastal and offshore productivity in a number of depositional environments and temporal scales. The volume contains articles that emphasize sequence biostratigraphy, sequence ecostratigraphy, the peculiarities of reefal and non-reefal carbonate platforms, computer simulation of basin sediment fill, global rates of coal deposition in terms of eustatic changes and the behavior of mixed siliclastic-carbonate systems. The papers also cover documentation of sequences in intervals ranging from the Paleozoic to Miocene. One article identifies a previously ignored, but potentially significant, mechanism of eustatic change during non-glacial periods and the possible anthropogenic component of sea-level rise during the twentieth century. Finally, a more speculative article presents the case for an extraterrestrial connection as a source for third-order eustatic cycles. The case studies go a long way to further document the variations on the basic themes of sequence stratigraphy and enhance its value as a predictive tool in exploration and production geology.