The lower carboniferous (dinantian) of the Swords area: Sedimentation and tectonics in the Dublin Basin, Ireland

Abstract

The litho‐ and biostratigraphy of the Lower Dinantian succession in a deeper part of the Dublin Basin is described. The sub‐Waulsortian Malahide Limestone Formation (emended) is described fully for the first time, and has proved to be very much thicker than was previously suspected, in excess of 1200 m. Succeeding the ‘Lower Limestone Shale’ unit, which is transitional from the underlying Old Red Sandstone facies, the following six new members are recognized: Turvey Micrite Member, Swords Argillaceous Bioclastic Member, St. Margaret's Banded Member, Huntstown Laminated Member, Dunsoghly Massive Crinoidal Member and Barberstown Nodular Member (top). The Malahide Limestone Formation is overlain by ‘Waulsortian’ limestones of the Feltrim Limestone Formation (new name) which form overlapping and isolated mudmounds with complex relationships with their enclosing non‐mound facies. Though very much thicker, the Courceyan succession is comparable with that elsewhere on the south side of the Basin, and is part of the Kildare Province (Strogen and Somerville 1984). Isopach maps for the region show that this province and the North Midlands are separated by the deepest part of the Dublin Basin, named the ‘East Midlands Depocentre’, in which a shale‐dominant facies is present. The top of the ‘Waulsortian’ is of early Chadian age. Formations younger than this are dominated by basinal calcareous shales (Tober Colleen Formation) and by storm deposits and calciturbidites with appreciable terrigenous input from the east (Rush Formation). The Courceyan main shelf conodont biozones are also greatly thickened in this area. The Pseudopolygnathus multistriatus Biozone (> 300 m thick) is succeeded by a very thick (> 900 m) Polygnathus mehli Biozone. The base of the Chadian is considered to occur below the top of the Feltrim Limestone Formation and, although equivocal, may be diagnosed in the Dublin Basin by the first appearance of the problematic microfossil Sphaerinvia piai and a primitive form of the calcareous alga Koninckopora. In the late Courceyan, the Swords area was part of a gently sloping shelf extending northwards into the basin. During deposition of the Feltrim Limestone Formation there was major deepening and there is evidence of initial break up of the Dublin Basin by faulting into separate blocks. By Chadian time the Basin was definitely subsiding by fault displacements and basinal limestones contain shallow water faunas and littoral sand and pebbles derived by turbidite flows from the margins of the higher blocks. The early subsidence was apparently by pure flexure, but in the Viséan the Dublin Basin was fault‐controlled, differing from the adjacent Shannon Basin in having both margins strongly faulted.

Permeability of rock discontinuities and faults in the Triassic Sherwood Sandstone Group (UK): insights for management of fluvio-aeolian aquifers worldwide

“…Examples of such continental deposits are especially well preserved in Permo-Triassic successions due to the initial phase of rifting of Pangaea. These syn-rift deposits are globally widespread, and are represented in North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia (Jones et al 1988;Waugh 1973).…”

Investigating property damage along Dublin Port Tunnel alignment

“…This phase caused (Cooper et al, 1996;Gill, 1962;Jones et al, 1988;Nolan, 1989; see also Geological Survey of Ireland (1995Ireland ( , 1999 map no. 13 and no.…”

Controls on the evolution and demise of Lower Carboniferous carbonate platforms, northern margin of the Dublin Basin, Ireland

“…The major faults in the north-eastern part of the Dublin Basin have predominantly W -S E to " W -S S E and ENE-WSW to NE-SW trends (Figure 1) and define a number of structural blocks known to have been active during the late Dinantian (Nolan 1986;Rees 1987;Jones et al 1988;Pickard et al 1992). Figure 9 shows the main late Dinantian structural elements in the north-eastern Dublin Basin.…”

“…Shallow water carbonate sedimentation was established on the Balbriggan Block during latest Courceyanearly Chadian time with the deposition of the Yellowbatter and McGuinness Formations, respectively (Figures 3 and 8). These probably formed as a narrow fringe of shallow water sediments around pre-existing land masses and represent the nearshore (inner ramp) equivalents of the deeper water Waulsortian buildups (Feltrim Limestone Formation) which accumulated in a down-ramp situation (Figure 1 la; Nolan 1986;Rees 1987;Jones et al 1988;Somerville et al 1992b). Similar aged shallow water facies are known from the Kingscourt Outlier (Kilbride Formation) where Waulsortian build-ups are absent (Strogen et al in preparation).…”