Abstract Georges Bank is a shallow part of the Atlantic Continental Shelf southeast of New England (Emery and Uchupi, 1972, 1984). This bank, however, is merely the upper surface of several sedimentary basins overlying a block-faulted basement of igneous and metamorphic crystalline rock (Figs. 1 and 2). Sedimentary rock forms a seaward-thickening cover that has accumulated in one main depocenter and several ancillary depressions, adjacent to shallow basement platforms of Paleozoic and older crystalline rock. Georges Bank basin contains a thickness of sedimentary rock greater than 10 km, whereas the basement platforms that flank the basin are areas of thin sediment accumulation (less than 5 km). We will discuss the structural, stratigraphic, and tectonic framework of the Georges Bank area, presenting a synthesis of geophysical and geologic data, much of which has been collected over the past decade (Austin and others, 1980; Klitgord and others, 1982; Schlee and Fritsch, 1982; Klitgord and Schlee, 1986). In particular, we shall be concerned with the crustal foundations of Georges Bank, the main stages of sedimentary buildup, and the forces that we think have influenced the evolution of the basin. A general outline of the geology of Georges Bank basin has been given by Drake and others (1959), Maher (1971), Emery and Uchupi (1972), Schultz and Grover (1974), Mattick and others (1974), Ballard and Uchupi (1975), and Schlee and Klitgord (1982). More detailed studies of the character and distribution of basement structures have been given by Klitgord and Behrendt (1979), Austin and others (1980), Klitgord and others (1982), and Klitgord and Schlee (1986). The character and deposition patterns of the overlying Mesozoic and Cenozoic sedimentary wedge have been studied in detail by Schlee (1978), Valentine (1981), Poag (1982a, 1982b), Klitgord and others (1982), and Schlee and Fritsch (1982). Quaternary evolution of the bank has been described by Emery and Uchupi (1972), Oldale and others (1974), Lewis and Sylwester (1976), and Schlee and Fritsch (1982).

Abstract The commercial development of Utah’s state rock, coal, by the Union Pacific and Denver and Rio Grande Western railroads began in the late 1800s. Ninety-five percent of the coal produced in Utah today is used to generate electricity, and recent developments in coal-bed methane characterization and extraction are promising for the state’s economy . The Emery coalfield in central Utah consists of sediments deposited along the western margin of the Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway and subsequently deformed during the Laramide orogeny and Basin and Range deformation. The coal-field contains important methane and bituminous deposits in the Ferron Sandstone Member of the Cretaceous Mancos Shale . Ferron coal beds exposed on the northwest-dipping western flank of the San Rafael Swell have been burning for decades. The collapse of strata overlying the Ferron as a consequence of burning provides conduits for the circulation of oxygen, thereby promoting the smoldering that can be observed today. Dating clinker in the Emery coalfield would provide useful information about the timing of certain geologic events in Utah on a local and perhaps regional scale . Federal agencies and laws help safeguard coal mining in the United States today. The environmental effects of Utah’s natural burning and mine-related coal fires are unknown. However, such fires elsewhere are responsible for pollution, including acid rain, and they are responsible for a variety of human diseases .

Abstract Since their initial publication by Wilgus et al. (1988), the concepts of sequence stratigraphy have become widely accepted and applied by the geological community to a broad range of data bases, including conventional and high-resolution seismic data, wireline logs, outcrops, cores, and paleontologic and geochemical data. Much has been written recently about sequence stratigraphy, and numerous papers in the recent literature have applied these concepts or a variation of them (e.g., Einsele et al., 1991; MacDonald, 1991; Posamentier et al., 1993; Dalrymple et al., 1994; Johnson, 1994; Weimer and Posamentier, 1994; Saito et al., 1995; Van Wagoner and Bertram, 1995). The sequence stratigraphic approach has been applied to rocks ranging in age from Proterozoic (Christie-Blick et al., 1988) to modern (Posamentier et al., 1992a). Recent reviews of sequence stratigraphic concepts have been published by Christie-Blick and Driscoll (1995), Emery and Myers (1996), and Miall (1995). In particular, Emery and Myers (1996) provide a comprehensive review of sequence stratigraphic concepts and their application in various depositional environments, with a strong emphasis on the latter. In this text we will focus more on the fundamentals of sequence stratigraphy in order to provide a clear understanding of the basic building blocks of this type of analysis. We have taken this approach so that readers can then develop sequence stratigraphic models specifically adapted to their geological conditions rather than memorize and apply static "models" or templates. We believe that this approach will result in a better and more efficient application of sequence stratigraphy.