The distribution of halite (rock-salt) in the Mercia Mudstone Group (mid to late Triassic) in south-west England

Gallois, Ramues W. 2004 The distribution of halite (rock-salt) in the Mercia Mudstone Group (mid to late Triassic) in south-west England. Geoscience in south-west England : proceedings of the Ussher Society, 10 (4). 383-389.

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Abstract/Summary

The subdivision of the Mercia Mudstone Group in south-west England into four formations (the Sidmouth, Dunscombe and Branscombe mudstones and the Blue Anchor Formation) and nine members, each with a distinctive suite of geophysicallog signatures, has made it possible to identify lateral lithological variations within the group. Prominent among these are halite-rich beds that are almost wholly confined to the Dunscombe Mudstone Formation. Their distribution is related to major faults in the underlying Variscan basement that gave rise to differential subsidence during the deposition of the Mercia Mudstone Group. Up to 30 m of halite is present within the Dunscombe Mudstone Formation in the Central Somerset Basin between the Quantock Hills and Mendip Hills structural highs, and up to 130 m of halite is present in the Wessex Basin on the south side of the Cranborne–Fordingbridge structural high. Thick beds of halite are absent from the Dunscombe Mudstone Formation over these structural highs and over a subsidiary structure that runs from the Quantock Hills to the east Devon coast between Sidmouth and the Axe Valley. Thin beds of collapse breccia in the Dunscombe Mudstone Formation in coastal exposures in east Devon may be residues derived from thin beds of halite.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Programmes:	BGS Programmes > Other
ISSN:	0566-3954
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	Work on this paper was completed whilst the author was a member of NERC staff
Additional Keywords:	Halites, Mudstones, Triassic, Southwest England
NORA Subject Terms:	Earth Sciences
Date made live:	07 Aug 2008 13:43 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/3782

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Programmes:

BGS Programmes > Other

ISSN:

0566-3954

Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:

Work on this paper was completed whilst the author was a member of NERC staff

Additional Keywords:

Halites, Mudstones, Triassic, Southwest England

NORA Subject Terms:

Earth Sciences