METHODS IN BASINAL ANALYSIS

Exploration for coal is based largely on an understanding of depositional environments

and the structural configuration of basins. Basins are lenticular to oval, wedge- or trough
shaped accumulations of thick (to several thousand feet) sedimentary piles that tend to
thin or pinch out toward their margins. A geologic cross-section through the Powder River
basin of the northern Great Plains of the United States aptly shows the geometry of a
basinal wedge of sediments. Basins are, in fact, erosional remnants of once more
substantial stratigraphic sequences. Basins connote a certain paleogeographic setting
and geologic history, depositional environment(s), tectonic framework and structural
geometry, and lithologic and stratigraphic characteristics. In general, a coal basin is
affected by many geologic factors during its evolution. These factors include: 1)
subsidence history; 2) geologic time period influencing coal formation; 3) temperature and
pressure regimes; and 4) the deposition of other sediments. In recent years, exploration
programs have been geared toward locating deposits appropriate for surface mining.
Geological information (particular stratigraphic character and sequence), seismic
surveys, borehole drilling, and structural framework are used to test and evaluate coal
prospects. Bouguer gravity maps are important in defining the location and extent of
basinal confines. Simply stated, the challenge lies in finding those stratigraphic intervals
in basins that were the sites for the prolific accumulation and preservation of organic
matter and that now are structurally amenable to mining.