Well 4

FACIES ASSOCIATIONS

ENVIRONMENTAL
INTERPRETATION

FA8:

Dominated by medium to coarse, pervasively

bioturbated sandstones with thin layers of
unbioturbated white sandstone.
Overall aggradational
Rare influxes of black mudstone
Planar, trough and high-angle laminated crossbedded
Rootlets, Ophiomorpha, abundant Skolithos
Soft sediment deformation

Presence of rootlets suggests the

influence of a terrestrial environment
Soft sediment deformation suggests a
period of high sedimentation rate
compaction of unlithified sediments
High bioturbation and sandy siliciclastic
facies suggests a near shore/beachfront
environment
Most likely to be delta plain environment,
evidenced by mud flats (rootlets), tidal
channel and near shore depositional
environments

FA7:

Planar, cross-bedded and ripple cross-laminated

medium to coarse sandstones
Overall slightly fining up

Numerous vertical escape burrows

Ripple cross-laminations

Both planar and ripple cross laminations

suggest a unidirectional flow current, in
alternating lower regime (cross-beds and
ripples)-upper regime (planar lamination)
flow conditions
Numerous vertical escape burrows
suggest high sedimentation rate
Possible isolated river/tidal channel
within the delta plain

FA6:

Dominated by bioturbated medium to coarse

sandstones
Ophiomorpha ichnofacies throughout, rare
fragmented bivalve bases
Increasing bioturbation with decreasing grain
size
Partially fining upward at base of association

Sometimes interbedded with mudstones and

clean low-angle cross-laminated siliciclastic
sandstone layers

Massive graded beds of bioturbated

quartz sand, lenses of weakly laminated
clean quartz sand and high angle cross
lamination suggest a shoreface
environment
However, a small layer of mud observed
at the top of the FA has small sand
flasers and lenticular bedding which may
be indicative of a tidal environment.

FA3:

Repetition of FA3
Slightly more pervasively bioturbated
sandstone
Less muds

See FA3 environmental interpretation

below

Well 4 (cont.)

FACIES ASSOCIATIONS
FA3:

Dominantly heterolithic mudstone-rudstone,

some pervasively bioturbated sandstones at
base
Rare mud rip-up clasts
Alternating sandstone, mudstone, carbonate
units
Sharp transitions between rudstones and
mudstones with minor scouring

ENVIRONMENTAL
INTERPRETATION

Higher energy clasts (disarticulated

bivalves) within a mud matrix
dominantly lower energy environment
with periodic high energy influxes below
the wave base (storm event)
Could also possibly be deposited down
slope (muddier facies) from a carbonate
producing platform
Sharp transitions and minor scouring
suggests
Similar depositional environment to FA1,
however transition of rudstone to
floatstones are not observed in this FA.
Delta front slope

FA2:

Dominantly planar-laminated sandstones with

bioturbated tops
Bioturbated heterolithic mudstones and
sandstones in centre of association with mud
rip-up clasts
Woody material scattered throughout
Periodic occurrences of mudstone layers
(variable thicknesses)
Thalassinoides, Diplocraterion

Slight fining up trend at base of association

Dominance of sandy facies with common

muddy laminae and heterolithic
mudstone-sandstone suggests
alternating energy conditions
High sedimentation rate suggested
throughout by presence of Diplocraterion
Mix of woody material (terrestrial) and
Thalassinoides (shallow marine), strong
bioturbation and heterolithic suggests
tidal/estuarine environment

FA1:

Broadly coarsening up, grading from mudstones

to coarse sandstones
Alternating layers of massive mudstones,
bioturbated fine sandstones and carbonates
Carbonate layers transition from rudstones to
floatstones at the top. Disarticulated bivalves at
bases of rudstones
Sharp contacts and pervasive bioturbation in
sandstones

Sea Level Change Interpretation

FA4 - delta plain (higher flow) (skipped delta
platform - erosional surface)

Transition of rudstone bases to floatstone

tops suggest a decreasing energy flow
within the carbonate units
This may suggest that the bivalves
(broken up/disarticulated) have been
flushed into a lower energy, muddier
environment such as a delta slope during
a possible storm event