The lithofacies analysis of the Tertiary rocks reveals two ancient subbasins at the north and southeast of the northeastern district, Western Desert. The southeastern subbasin seems deeper than the northern one as it received relatively thicker Paleocene and early and middle Eocene rocks. The lithofacies of the Paleocene and early and middle Eocene sections are mainly calcareous. The clastic ratio ranges from 0.05 to 1. Shale predominates in the late Eocene rocks. The clastic ratio is more than one everywhere. The Paleocene rocks seem to have accumulated in a lagoonal environment of epineritic depths. Semi-restriction of water circulation at the southeastern subbasin was caused by an elongated ridge, separating the two subbasins. The Paleocene rocks of the northern subbas n indicate accumulation on an unstable shelf, i.e., slow deposition in a rapidly subsiding basin or at least slow deposition in an overall carbonate aerobic environment. Widening of the northern subbasin occurred during the early Eocene. The Paleocene environmental conditions seem to have prevailed during the early and middle Eocene. During the late Eocene, rocks of shallow-water and current-agitated environments accumulated. The lower clastic layers of the Oligocene, having a sand/shale ratio less than one, indicate a clastic shoreline environment-lagoonal subenvironment. The sediments of such an environment are brought down by rivers and reworked by waves and currents. The Oligocene clastics are overlain by a basaltic sheet at the eastern part of the district. The depocenter of the nor hern middle Miocene subbasin lies farther north. The sand/shale ratio increases to the south, being more than one. The middle Miocene lithofacies indicate rock accumulation in a contemporaneously subsiding basin under lagoonal or delta-front conditions at the southern part of the district. Marine stagnant-bottom-water conditions prevailed during the accumulation of the middle Miocene rocks at the northern parts. The Pliocene shoreline shifted farther northward. The Pliocene rocks seem to have accumulated in lagoons, where the inflow exceeded evaporation and alternating periods of exposure and flooding by either fresh or saline water of poor circulation prevailed. The tectonic instability of the district was initiated by volcancity during the late Oligocene. This volcanic activity was acc mpanied by uplifting, folding, and faulting of Oligocene and older rocks. The uplifting of the southern part was accompanied with subsidence of the northern one. The subsidence was associated with vertical block movements of the basement rocks. Basaltic magma climbed along faults. The folds are of the brachyanticlinal type, affected by faulting forming a median horst block. This block remained high for a great period of time. The axes of folding are parallel to the fault trends due to their association with the vertical block movements of the basement. The northern flanks of the folds are relatively steeply dipping. The middle Miocene and Pliocene rocks are not affected by faulting. The source lands of those sediments are deduced as nearby low elevated lands affected by the same tectonic events that affected the depositional basin itself during different epochs.

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