ABSTRACT

A detailed summary of the physical characteristics of over 1452 fault cuts representing 312 faults is given.

As a preface to the origin of South Louisiana faulting a pre-Cenozoic history of the Gulf Coast is constructed. In this respect it is suggested that the basement rocks of the South Louisiana area were an extension of the continental area of North America and were not oceanic in origin. The area was positive through all of the Paleozoic and was not submerged by marine waters until after salt deposition. The first stages of geosynclinal development, the geology of the domeless area of central Louisiana, the Eocene fault trend and the Oligocene domal trend are discussed.

Growth faults are defined as those faults which have a substantial increase in throw with depth and across which, from the upthrown to the downthrown block, there is a great thickening of correlative section. Trend growth faults are regionally sustained growth faults. A theory of origin and development of these trend growth faults is made in which it is maintained that the faults originated as a result of folding and later developed their growth characteristics along an inner to middle shelf area (similar to our present continental shelf) in an environment of rapid, fairly shallow water deposition. Evidence for this concept is given in detail in which it is shown that growth faulting could have developed contemporaneously with sedimentation only in an environment where the sea floor was undergoing vigorous, nearly constant agitation by shallow water disturbing agents.

A reference area is shown in which the theoretical concepts are evaluated with respect to known phenomena.

The economic implications of the paper with respect to the entrapment of gas and oil are given.