Sedimentary Geology, 87 (1993) 195-213 195

Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam

The influence of half-graben syn-depositional tilting

on thickness variation and seam splitting
in the Brunner Coal Measures, New Zealand

D.G. T i t h e r i d g e
Araucarian Geo-ServicesPty Ltd., P.O. Box 46, Tahmoor, N.S.W. 2573, Australia

(Received January 7, 1992; revised version accepted March 16, 1993)

ABSTRACT

The Brunner Coal Measures (Buller Coalfield, New Zealand) comprise a fluviatile sequence of Eocene age that is
generally 30-100 m thick. The sequence rests on basement and is dominated by coarse to granular-very coarse sandstone.
The measures contain one mineable coal seam (the Buller Seam Member) that is laterally extensive and up to 20 m thick. It
is characterized by simple splitting with a thin upper split, a thick lower split and a split separation of up to 30-50 m.
Locally, the Buller Seam Member exhibits splitting to form numerous thin seams. Areas of shale-out comprise thin linear
belts between areas of thick coal with a low ash yield.
The coincidence of faults and maximum thickness of seam isopachs indicates that the thickness and splitting characteris-
tics of the Buller Seam Member were largely controlled by syn-depositional faulting and tilting of small half-graben blocks.
Thickness variation in basal sequences is primarily due to syn-depositional faulting. Syn-depositional tilting of fault blocks
also influenced the migration of river channels and hence the stacking and distribution of sandstone and locally thick
mudstone units overlying coal.

1. Introduction s p a c e d small-scale faults w i t h o u t s c a r p s on t h e

T h e r e have b e e n relatively few s t u d i e s t h a t
have s o u g h t to e v a l u a t e t h e i n f l u e n c e o f syn-de-
p o s i t i o n a l faults o n clastic a r c h i t e c t u r e in sedi-
m e n t a r y basins, a n d in p a r t i c u l a r t h o s e t h a t a r e
coal-bearing. General models based on modern
e n v i r o n m e n t s (e.g. A l e x a n d e r a n d L e e d e r , 1987;
L e e d e r a n d G a w t h o r p e , 1987) a n d s t u d i e s o f an-
cient s e q u e n c e s (e.g. L i n k a n d O s b o r n e , 1978;
H a m b l i n a n d Rust, 1989) have d w e l t o n a single
( h a l f - g r a b e n ) fault o r several m a j o r faults, with
active s c a r p s c o n t r o l l i n g facies d i s t r i b u t i o n in se-
q u e n c e s u p to several t h o u s a n d s o f m e t r e s thick.
S t u d i e s o f m o d e r n rivers (e.g. I ~ e d e r a n d
A l e x a n d e r , 1987) have also n o t e d t h e t e n d e n c y
for rivers to m i g r a t e to sites o f m a x i m u m subsi-
d e n c e . This s t u d y is p r i m a r i l y c o n c e r n e d with t h e
i n f l u e n c e o f relatively n u m e r o u s a n d closely
a r c h i t e c t u r e o f a thin c o a l - b e a r i n g s e q u e n c e in an
e x t e n s i o n a l setting p r i o r to t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f a
major half-graben.
S y n - d e p o s i t i o n a l tilting o f h a l f - g r a b e n fault
blocks is p o t e n t i a l l y a m a j o r c o n t r o l on thickness
v a r i a t i o n a n d s e a m splitting in c o a l - b e a r i n g se-
q u e n c e s a n d in p a r t i c u l a r t h o s e t h a t overly o r a r e
in close p r o x i m i t y to b a s e m e n t . T h e m a i n c r i t e r i a
for t h e r e c o g n i t i o n o f s y n - d e p o s i t i o n a l faults a r e
facies a n d thickness c h a n g e s across faults, rollover
a n d a s s o c i a t e d g r a v i t y - i n d u c e d d e f o r m a t i o n struc-
tures, l i q u e f a c t i o n a n d d e w a t e r i n g s t r u c t u r e s a n d
h y d r o p l a s t i c s l i c k e n s i d e s ( L e e d e r , 1987; P e t i t a n d
Laville, 1987; F i e l d i n g a n d J o h n s o n , 1987; O r d et
al., 1988). I f t h e r e a r e sufficient closely s p a c e d
t h i c k n e s s d a t a a n d g o o d s t r a t i g r a p h i c control, it
m a y b e p o s s i b l e to r e a s o n a b l y infer s y n - d e p o s i -
tional faulting f r o m t h e similarity in t r e n d s o f

0037-0738/93/$06.00 © 1993 - Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. All rights reserved

196 D.G. T I T H E R I D G E

isopachs and the strike of faults. In coal-bearing
sequences, coal seams readily form identifiable
horizons over wide areas.
In sedimentary successions that immediately
overly basement, lateral variation in the thickness
of basal fill may be due to syn-depositional tec-
tonism or palaeotopographic relief. The origin of
thickness variation of the order of tens of metres
may be difficult to determine, particularly if val-
leys have been eroded along faults and the faults
have been subsequently re-mobilised during sedi-
mentation (e.g. Iwaniw, 1984).
Seam splitting and lateral variation in the
thickness of coal seams can be due to many, often
interactive factors. Seam splitting can result from
autocyclic channel migration or increased rates of
subsidence which may be of tectonic origin or due
to differential compaction of underlying peats or
muds. In addition to tectonic or compactional
subsidence, peat thickness may also reflect sub-
strate topography, doming associated with raised
peats and erosion of the top of the peat (Gallo-
way and Hobday, 1983; Ward, 1984; McCabe,
1984).
1.1. General description and setting of the Brun-
ner Coal Measures
The Brunner Coal Measures crop out in up-
lifted blocks throughout North Westland, New
Zealand (Fig. 1). The main areas of outcrop are
the Buller, R e e f t o n - G a r v e y Creek and Grey-
mouth Coalfields. The Buller Coalfield is located
northeast of Westport (Fig. 1). The Brunner Coal
Measures are exposed along the length of the
Papahaua Range from Mt Rochfort to Mt Augus-
tus, and northeast to Seddonville (Fig. 1).
The Brunner Coal Measures are of Eocene
age and in the Buller Coalfield generally com-
prise 30-100 m of quartzose sandstone, basal
conglomerate, minor mudstone and coal seams.
Elsewhere in North Westland some Brunner se-
quences are up to 300 m thick (e.g. Reefton,
Suggate, 1957) or are very thin to absent (e.g.
Punakaiki-Pike River, Laird, 1988; Inangahua,
Nathan, 1978a).
The early Cretaceous of North Westland is
characterized by thick local half-graben fills of
the Porarari Group (Nathan, 1978a; Laird, 1988).

BULLER .
.) ~ -
tas=a /
I -., = - -

una=ai=iI. i=e=ivy, /
GreymouthP Coalfield d, Fi s 3 4 / ----: U~:!-:

£
/,s,=o/ / NEW
X "

Mt Augustus i~7":'-.~:~.:" ~ @
:".::(~:;.:(:'~" :,::!:::~
__=

ZEALAND , . r/"
waimanga ca
~:~:"7
V~O.~:~':. - . ~~- ~: - ~ _= :
= ~i?: ~:/-:-" : ---_- -=_ -

Westport i!;:i.:::::..~: :" _~=__

:>'> =
:".... .=~" : 0 5
Lkm
:,:,:,: predominantly Brunner Coal
..i::, Measures and Millerton Sandstone ~ predominantly Kaiata Formation

Fig. 1. Location and lithostratigraphic map, Buller Coalfield (after Bowen, 1964). The section X - Y is illustrated in Fig. 2, and the
section A - A ' and B - B ' in Figs. 6 and 7. The box illustrates the locations of Figs. 3 and 4.
THICKNESS V A R I A T I O N AND SEAM SPL1TFING IN T H E B R U N N E R C O A L M E A S U R E S
North-northeast to south-southwest extension is
indicated by west-northeast to east-southeast
trending isopachs of the Porarari Group, the low-
ermost Paparoa Coal Measures (Greymouth), the
offshore Cretaceous sequence comprising the
Tatukai Half-Graben, and Cretaceous dikes with
a west-northwest-east-southeast orientation (Bi-
shop, 1992a). Basin development has been inter-
preted as continental rifting associated with
opening of the Tasman Sea (Laird, 1981; Nathan
et al., 1986).
A further phase of continental rift develop-
ment, that began in the late Cretaceous, culmi-
nated in the Eo-Oligocene. The basins that de-
veloped have been collectively referred to as the
"Challenger Rift System" (Kamp, 1986). Rifting
was associated with sea-floor spreading in the
Norfolk Basin and mid-ocean Southeast Indian
Ridge (Kamp, 1986). The Challenger Rift System
comprised an 800 km long, 100-200 km wide
zone that included the Pakawau and Taranaki
Basins (northwest Nelson and offshore Taranaki)
and the Paparoa Trough, Murchison and Reefton
Basins (Westland; Kamp, 1986). The Buller Coal-
field is located at the northern end of the former
Paparoa Trough (180 km long, 20 km wide;
Nathan et al., 1986). During the late Cretaceous
to Eocene, inter-basinal areas of the western New
Zealand region were characterized by develop-
ment of a peneplain and extensive chemical
weathering which produced a quartz-rich resi-
duum (Suggate, 1950).
The initial (late Cretaceous) stages of basin
development in the Paparoa Trough were charac-
terized by a change in the direction of extension
and the development of local north-northeast to
south-southwest half-grabens with interior or ax-
ial through drainage (Paparoa Coal Measures at
Greymouth and Pike River; Nathan et al., 1986).
In places grabens were bordered by elevated
scarps. The Eocene Brunner phase of basin de-
velopment was characterized by the development
of local basins along the length of the Paparoa
Trough. Elevated scarps were not present. The
Brunner phase was succeeded by rapid subsi-
dence with the development of a major and nar-
row coastal/marine gulf half-graben with oppo-
site senses of symmetry in the northern and
197
southern parts of the Paparoa Tectonic Zone
(Buller and Greymouth Coalfields, respectively;
see Laird, 1968 and figs. 3.13 and 5.13 in Nathan
et al., 1986; Leeder and Gawthorpe, 1987). Foot-
wall uplands fed submarine fans at bathyal depths.
Burial depths of up to 4000 m occurred on the
deepest parts of the tilted hanging-wall blocks.
Lateral changes in coal rank from sub-bituminous
to low volatile bituminous over fifteen to twenty
kilometres, reflect differences in depth of burial
across the dip slope of the hanging-wall blocks.
Significant features of the Brunner Coal Mea-
sures in the Buller Coalfield that require explana-
tion are: (1) the origin of basement relief as
indicated by the locally thick basal conglomerate
sequence at Mt Rochfort (270 m); (2) the varia-
tion in thickness of the basal sandstone to gran-
ule conglomerate sequence in the Mt William
Mine to Mt Augustus areas (0-70 m); (3) the
relationship between fault trends and isopachs of
the Buller Seam Member; and (4) the thickness
variation and architecture of clastic splits separat-
ing upper and lower splits of the Buller Seam
Member.
The following account indicates that syn-de-
positional faulting and tilting of fault blocks
(half-grabens) provides the best unified explana-
tion of many features of the Brunner Coal Mea-
sures.
2. Structure
The North Westland region, between and in-
cluding the Greymouth and Buller Coalfields, is
characterized by the prevalence of faults with a
north-northeast trend (Nathan, 1975, 1978a, b;
Laird, 1988). Early to mid-Tertiary subsidence
due to normal faulting throughout the Paparoa
Tectonic Zone, was followed by uplift during the
Miocene. Eversion of the Paparoa Trough was
often accompanied by reverse movement along
pre-existing faults (Laird, 1988). In the Grey-
mouth and Buller Coalfields, the areas of highest
coal rank (and deepest burial in the Paparoa
Trough) are approximately coincident with the
crest of the Paparoa and Papahaua Ranges (Sug-
gate, 1959; Laird, 1968).
The structure of the Buller Coalfield is domi-
198 D.G. TITHERIDGIZ

nated by a broad gently arched northeast trend-
ing anticline ("Denniston Anticline"; Fig. 2) and
north to northeast and northwest trending fault
systems (Fig. 3). It is flanked to the west by an
escarpment-forming monoclinal fold and fault
system (Papahaua O v e r f o l d - K o n g a h u Fault)
which separates the elevated Papahaua Range
from a narrow coastal plain (Fig. 2).
For a considerable part of its length, the axis
of the Denniston Anticline is coincident with the
crest of the Papahaua Range and encompasses
the peaks of Mt Rochfort (1040 m), Mt Augustus
(1010 m) and Mt Frederick (1106 m). North of Mt
Augustus (Fig. 3), it plunges at about 10° and the
flanks generally dip at about 5-15 °.
The strike of faults in the Buller Coalfield is
dominantly north-northeast or northwest. Some
faults with a northerly strike also occur (Fig. 3).
North-northeast striking faults are either normal
or reverse faults and have the largest throws. The
most prominent of these, the Mt William Fault, is
at least 10 km long. It has a throw of about 300 m
in the vicinity of Mt William that diminishes to
less than 50 m at its northern end. Other north-
east-trending faults of several kilometres length
include the Kiwi Fault (northern part, base of
Fig. 3) which is normal and has a throw of about
100 m.
The most prominent northwest-striking faults
are the Millerton and Mangatini Faults. They are
several kilometres in length and both have throws
of up to 50 m. Numerous other northwest-trend-
ing faults of lesser throw (up to 10 m) have been
recorded in the northern part of the coalfield.
Some offset north-northeast trending faults and
have a sinistral strike-slip component of up to
several hundred metres (GR 165455, Fig. 3). The
fault trends illustrated in Fig. 3 have been de-
tected during field mapping of lithostratigraphic
units, mining and from aerial photographs. The
Brunner Coal Measures are characterized by
prominent sets of joints, mainly with strikes of
west-northwest and north-northeast (Bishop,
1992b). West-northwest jointing is interpreted as
a response to regional shortening during Neo-
gene uplift of the Papahaua Range. Regional

Kongahu Denniston Anticline

Fault

X / Y
A Rockies Metres A.S.L.)
~ /Mt. looo
// \ / ~ ~ ~ "-----__ J ' S t o c k t o n
" " ~/f~ ^ ~'-~ 6o0
I ! VI /'..1" ~_ _ ~" " "

Ta.sman l - - ~v /~ Papahaua Range A . 2oo

~A~/A ~' ) ! ~ . . ~ 1 ~ Quaternary Marine Sediments

~ : . ~ y ~ ^ ' ~ ^ ~ Upper Tertiary
^ '~ ^ '" ~,*/^ A / ^ ".~--~ Kaiata Formation containing local Torea
~\^ ^ ~" "-"~ Breccia Member
" \ - • Ooo Bri~lnr~er
n CsOaa/dM?oanSUresand

0 4km
A Basement
I i i I

Fig. 2. Cross-section of the Buller Coalfield. The section is based on Laird and Hope (1968) and Applied Geology Associates
(1984). The location of section X - Y is illustrated in Fig. 1.
T H I C K N E S S V A R I A T I O N A N D SEAM S P L I T T I N G IN T H E B R U N N E R C O A L M E A S U R E S 199

shortening is inferred to have reactivated normal The Paparoa Trough is inferred to have been
faults with a northerly or north-northeast strike formed by west-northwest to east-southeast ex-
to form reverse faults. It also reactivated some tension which began in the late Cretaceous and
northwest-striking faults to form sinistr.al strike- continued throughout the Palaeogene. The basis
slip faults (Bishop, 1992b). Faults displacing the of inference is the relationship of isopachs, coal
Brunner Coal Measures may have been initiated rank and the north-northeast faults bounding the
at any stage after deposition of the Brunner Coal Paparoa Trough (Laird, 1968). The similarity in
Measures or they may represent rejuvenated the strike of faults and trends of isopachs in the
faults that were active during or prior to deposi- Buller Coalfield also suggests that faults striking
tion of the Brunner Coal Measures. north to northeast and northwest were active

I i i i i i
1; 14 15 16 17 18 19

52
/
Millerton Fault
0 lkm
| !
51

50
Trig
AH~
Z-,< 49-

I \
48-

Mt Augustus ~"~•~'~1010m Fly Creek

,,,iam
Mine
.if/ Trig
/.' \
ii,' L
/
Mt Frederick

1106m
J//

Fig. 3. Fault trends northern BuUer Coalfield. The fault locations are based on unpublished maps by N.Z. State Coal Mines, field
observations by the author, and an unpublished synthesis by S. Nathan (1980) of geological data in Morgan and Bartrum, 1915 and
aerial photograph interpretation. The grid on this map and grid references of subsequent diagrams are from N.Z. Map Series 260,
1 : 50,000 Sheets K29 and L29, Inangahua and Westport. Note location of Figs. 3 and 4 on Fig. 1.
200 D.G. TITHERIDGE

during deposition of the Brunner Coal Measures, 3. Stratigraphy

and prior to movement on the Kongahu Fault
and the formation of a major half-graben. It is
possible that the faults striking northwest are
small-scale transfer faults (cf. Etheridge et al.,
1988). It is also possible that they represent reac-
tivated basement fractures resulting from the
same phase of extension that produced the west-
northwest trending basins of the Cretaceous Po-
rarari Group.
The Brunner Coal Measures comprise a rela-
tively simple succession that is 30-100 m thick
over most of the Buller Coalfield (Fig. 5). The
succession comprises basal conglomerate overlain
by very coarse sandstone to granule conglomer-
ate, and a thick laterally persistent coal seam (the
Buller Seam Member), that in places comprises
two or more splits. In the central and southern

5 I i i
1 16 I7 18

52-

lkrn It j : ' / , ,, ,,

Seam isopachs
in metres

A, AH

Rocki~
(26) 1

/Ji
48-
Webb/Bayn

1I,
[ 251)

Mt A u g u s t u . ' Fly C r e e k
(11)

Stoc
(£ 46-

Mine 45-
(33)
Mt Frederick
(12)

1 / 44-
@ 7 w3~

°)-//.j,; ,/ ,
# / # # 43-
, / I(I.../,,

Fig. 4. lsopachs of Buller Seam Member, Buller Coalfield. Note location of Figs. 3 and 4 on Fig. 1. Numbers in parentheses
indicate number of drill-holes in general vicinity. Isopachs northwest of the upper Waimangaroa Valley and Trig AH are based on
the seam split comprising the Mangatini Seam Member (as the Matipo Seam Member is absent, see Fig. 6) whereas those in the Fly
Creek, Mt William Mine and upper Waimangaroa Valley (Fig. 7) are based on the entire Buller Seam Member.
THICKNESS VARIATION AND SEAM SPLI'VFING IN THE BRUNNER COAL MEASURES 201

Dominant
FORMATION Lithology Thickness
In many places, the Millerton Sandstone, char-
(metres) acterized by intense infaunal bioturbation rests
KAIATA -- -- directly on the Buller Seam Member. The contact
Mudstone 100+
FORMATION
- -

between the Millerton Sandstone and underlying

Burrowed sandstone, o~ °0°0 ' 0-30 facies association of tabular sandstone and mud-
MILLERTON
SANDSTONE / Thin coal; upper split / / x. . x . .x . × x \ stone is gradational. The Brunner Coal Measures
0-1
/ Buller Seam Mbr i~ \ unconformably overlie Greenland Group quartz-
Tabularsandstone,
mudstone i/ * \0-30 ite and phyllite of Precambrian age, hornfels and
BRUNNER
Amalgamated coarse to . granite.
granular very coarse ° 0-50
sandstone units
Two cross-sections, perpendicular to each
COAL Thick coal; lower split(s), ~ 0-20 other and based on field sections and selected
Buller Seam Mbr j ..o drill-hole data, illustrate the variety of splitting
Amalgamated coarse " " 0-120
sandstone to granule . geometries of the Buller Seam Member and cor-
MEASURES conglomerate units *
Pebble - cobble 0 o o relation between the northern and southernmost
conglomerate o o o 0-20
parts of the coalfield (Figs. 6 and 7). Correlation
Fig. 5. Generalized stratigraphy of Brunner Coal Measures, of drill-hole data is facilitated by close spacing of
Buller Coalfield. drill-holes in some areas (several tens to several
hundreds of metres) and laterally traceable out-
crop of the Buller Seam Member or its splits. In
part of the Buller Coalfield, the upper Brunner several areas, data are entirely sub-surface. The
Coal Measures comprise a distinctive succession datum selected for the sections is, where possible,
of tabular sandstone and mudstone units, with the top of the Brunner Coal Measures. Where
minor thin coal seams. The Brunner Coal Mea- this has been removed by recent erosion, the top
sures are overlain by erosional remnants of the of the laterally extensive coal seam has been
marine Millerton Sandstone and Kaiata Mud- used. Mudstone units, by comparison, are rela-
stone (Fig. 5; Titheridge, 1988, 1992). Coal rank tively impersistent and at best can only be traced
in the Buller Coalfield, and the stratigraphic suc- for several hundred metres whereupon they split,
cession of areas to the east and south (upper thin or have been eroded out.
Buller Gorge, Punakaiki, Greymouth), indicate The Buller Seam Member is thick, laterally
about 4000 m of Eo-Oligocene mudstone and extensive and may split into four or more seams.
limestone have been eroded during Quaternary The Buller Seam Member is commonly two to
uplift. twelve metres thick and locally up to twenty me-

A A,
142493 d904 d902 152494 159494 164490 167484 171484 174486 d(MB)
166483 179481 185483 187487
. . . . . .

Mangatini
~eam Mbr
x / ,/ OPENCAST
ROCKIES x\
\ | / NE OF FLY
2Om !
x\\ I/ CREEK MINE
250m xx
\

NW SE
Fig. 6. Splitting of the Buller Seam Member, Rockies area (NW) to Coal Island Opencast (SE). For explanation of symbols see Fig.
7. Location of section A - A ' is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 8.
202 D.G. TITHERIDGE

"-B
d885
d884 dBS7 187462 187487
d690 155459 d666
(a) Mingatini Seam Mbr
NE

continued
v ,--
MItipo Slim Mbr

-'" C O A L I S L A N D OPENCAST
6.J ..... ~.---
MOUNT WILLIAM PUMOHOUSE 20mL~
250m
81197

d1282 d1189 d1334 d1192 d1286

d1182 d1195 d1196

(b)
continued

WAIMANGAROA VALLEY

d1276 dl260 d1282

(c)
continued

\
053357 065364 d563 ~03377

B'--* ]
I ~ l r l l l . Skm to
H3386

COALBROOKDALE

(d)
,,,
/
//
d1035 drillhole
ii
/ 194456 field section; n u m b e r s are 9rid reference of location
on N . Z M S 2 6 0 , 1:50,000 SHEETS K 2 9 & L 2 9

l upper most part of drHIho~e or section not shown

CONGLOMERATE
STREAM
i
t
II
!

-I~iJezts-"2~%t
°-"- °-°e---
B r u n n e r Coal Measures

Bullet S e a m Member
2ore

I
*
f
z
i
i basal c o n g l e m e r a t e 260m
i
/ basement
//
/
/
i
i
t ' SW
1/
1kin

MT ROCHFORT

Fig. 7. Seam correlation of the Buller Seam Member between the northern and southern parts of the Buller Coalfield. Location of
is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 8. B-B'
THICKNESSVARIATIONAND SEAM SPLITI'INGIN THE BRUNNERCOALMEASURES 203

tres thick. T h e r e are, however, some localities
where the seam can be traced laterally into thin
m u d d y coal, c a r b o n a c e o u s m u d s t o n e or a
palaeosol.
In the northern part of the Buller Coalfield,
Morgan and Bartrum (1915) recognised that
seams in the Fly Creek area were u p p e r and
lower splits of the same seam (Figs. 6 and 7a).
They, respectively, n a m e d the u p p e r and lower
splits the " M a n g a t i n i " and " M a t i p o " Seams
(henceforth referred to as the Matipo and Man-
gatini Seam Members). The Matipo Seam Mem-
ber, restricted to the Fly Creek area, was eroded
out to the north and west during deposition of
the Brunner Coal Measures, whereas the Manga-
tini Seam M e m b e r splits again to the northwest.
The lower split of the Mangatini Seam M e m b e r
comprises the mined coal in the W e b b / B a y n e s ,
Millerton and Rockies and Stockton area. The
u p p e r split of the Mangatini Seam M e m b e r rarely
exceeds one metre in thickness and at many local-
ities is represented only by a palaeosol.
The Brunner Seam M e m b e r passes laterally
from areas characterized by thick, low-ash coal to
thin, high-ash coal intercalated with and overlain
by, mudstone to fine sandstone dominated se-
quences that are commonly five to ten metres
thick (e.g. the "Baynes Barren Belt" and "Stock-
ton High Ash Zone", Fig. 4). In these zones of
shale-out of the Buller Seam Member, and where
thin seams are overlain by mudstone, thinning of
seams reflects a relatively small original thickness

100+ t

54

=, 1 5' 50/A
eoe i ~

• data points (drill-holes and outcrop) A

minimum thickness (metres) ,";-3..
-- -- line of section ~ -Ifcf~
+

Mt Augustus A "• _~._

J ~ e- / • e- 46

M t Frederick ~ J / o,- / ~ ' ~ ' ' AF 4.

c 1~.," ~+ xHr=-
.-.. o

• oo S ,o
1o lO• .lO mo .q

"" " ~Sullivan M i n U " 38

%
200 100
• ,50 ~ • i 1kin n

B.'&k;1. t Rochf,or
t , , ,o, , ,2, , ,4 , ~6, , ,s, , 20

Fig. 8. Isopachs of basal conglomerate and sandstone, Buller Coalfield. Isopachs between the Sullivan Mine and Mt Rochfort (d563
to 053357, Fig. 7d) are based on the interval between the Bullet Seam Member and basement. Isopachs northeast of the Sullivan
Mine are based on the interval from the upper split of the Buller Seam Member (Mangatini Seam Member) to basement (see Fig.
6). A-A', B-B' and C-C' are the approximate location of sections respectivelyillustrated in Figs. 6, 7 and 9.
204
of peat. In contrast to the simple splitting de-
scribed above, some areas in the northern part of
the Buller Coalfield are characterized by complex
seam splitting, e.g. Rockies and Mt William Mine
areas. In zones of complex splitting seam thinning
has resulted from channel scouring.
4. Depositional environments
The Brunner Coal Measures exhibit a wide
range of lithofacies associations. Vertical profiles
exhibit upward fining, no preferred trend and in
some instances upward coarsening. Coarse-
grained sequences are variously interpreted as
braided and meandering river deposits, and
crevasse sub-deltas of coastal lakes (Titheridge,
1988, 1992).
In general, mudstone and shale comprise in-
terbeds up to several metres thickness within
sandstone-dominated sequences. Various assem-
blages of mudstone, shale and interbedded fine
sandstone facies overlying coal represent lake,
pond, floodplain and crevasse processes, splays
and mouth-bar deltas (Titheridge, 1988, 1992).
The extremely low ash yields of Buller coals (less
than 1%) indicate the presence of high-moor
peats.
5. Relationships between isopachs and faults
5.1. Basal conglomerate and sandstone
Conglomerate-dominated sequences occur lo-
cally at the base of the Brunner succession. Con-
glomerate composition ranges from quartzose to
polymictic types that are dominated by granite or
sandstone clasts derived from the Greenland
Group. Isopachs of basal conglomerate and sand-
stone underlying the Buller Seam Member (Fig.
8) are often a minimum because of erosion and
because drilling targets have generally been to
the base of the coal seam or its lowermost split
(and up to several metres beyond). Data regard-
ing the full thickness of basal conglomerate and
sandstone are therefore relatively sparse.
In the Mt Rochfort vicinity the basal conglom-
erate sequence is about 270 m thick. The lower-
most conglomerate is polymictic and there is a
D.G. T I T H E R I D G E
gradual upward transition to quartzose clasts. The
conglomerate sequence lenses northwards to zero
thickness over several kilometres (Fig. 7d). Lim-
ited thickness data suggest that isopachs have a
northwest orientation (Fig. 8). There are insuffi-
cient data to detect closure of the isopachs north-
west of Mt Rochfort, and to the southeast of Mt
Rochfort the succession has been eroded. Any
possible relationship with the Kongahu Fault and
the Mt William Fault (both associated with a
vertical throw of more than 300 m), is unknown.
North of Mt Rochfort, thin conglomerate se-
quences in the basal part of the Brunner Coal
Measures have a local distribution. Conglomerate
may be present in relatively thin successions
whereas in adjacent thick sections it may,be ab-
sent (Fig. 6). Where present, basal conglomerate
is commonly of the order of two to ten metres
thick (Figs. 6 and 7a-7c). Isopach trends on the
thin isolated conglomerate occurrences cannot be
estimated with existing data.
A thick sequence of coarse sandstone to gran-
ule conglomerate between basement and the
Mangatini Seam Member (or Buller Seam Mem-
ber where the Matipo Seam Member is absent)
extends along the Waimangaroa Valley (Figs. 6, 8
and 9). In the uppermost part of the Waiman-
garoa Valley the basal sandstone sequence bifur-
cates around a basement high southeast of Trig
A l l (Fig. 8). One arm continues to the northeast,
the other (SE side, Fig. 6), extends to the north-
northeast at least as far as the Ngakawau River-
Repo Stream vicinity.
5.2. Buller Seam Member and inter-split clastic
rocks (northern part of Buller Coalfield)
In the northern part of the coalfield, isopach
trends of the Buller Seam Member (Fig. 4) paral-
lel the orientations of faults. (Fig. 3). The thickest
coal occurs in a belt that extends approximately
north to south from the Rockies area through the
W e b b / B a y n e s area, to the Stockton Mine.
Isopachs along this belt have a northwest orienta-
tion superimposed on the generally north to south
distribution of thick coal. A northerly trending
fault system occurs along the margins of the
escarpment from Mt Augustus to south of the
THICKNESS V A R I A T I O N A N D SEAM S P L I T T I N G IN T H E B R U N N E R C O A L M E A S U R E S 205

C C' Seam Member. There are sufficient remnants,

d1193 d1194 d1195 however, to be reasonably certain that this belt of
thin coal extended from at least the Ngakawau
River and Repo Stream vicinities in the north,
x south-southeast to and then southwest along the
\\ upper Waimangaroa Valley. In the northern part
/ / UPPER
MOUNT " WAIMANGAROA of the study area, this elongate belt of thin coal is
FREDERICK •, VALLEY
generally coincident with the thick basal sand-
\\
20m] stone to granule conglomerate-dominated se-
• / VEBB
250m' \ /t TREAM quence described above (Fig. 8).
NW SE The Mangatini and Matipo Seam Members in
interbads of coaly and/or the Fly Creek area merge to the south in the
carbonaceous mudstorte uppermost Waimangaroa River vicinity and can
Fig. 9. Seam correlation between the upper Waimangaroa be traced via drill-holes with a 300 to 500 m
Valley (SE) and Mt Frederick (NW) illustrating the occur- spacing along the Waimangaroa River to the
rences of thick basal sandstone sequence beneath the Buller
Seam Member. Location of section C-C' is illustrated in Fig. southern part of the Buller Coalfield (Fig. 7).
8. The sequence at d1194 contains numerous interbeds of
carbonaceous mudstone. The sequence between d1195 and 6. The geometry and style of stacking of clastic
d1194 is inferred to exhibit progressivenorthwesterlysplitting units enclosed by splits of the Buller Seam Mem-
of the Buller Seam Member (see Fig. 13). ber

The dominant feature of clastic and seam ar-

Stockton Mine. The W e b b / B a y n e s and surround-
ing areas are dominated by northwest-trending
faults. Other belts of thick coals in the Millerton
area are approximately coincident with the north-
west-trending Mangatini Fault and the west-
trending Millerton Fault (cf. Figs. 3 and 4).
Isopachs of the clastic interval dominated by
sandstone between the upper and lower splits of
the Mangatini Seam Member in the W e b b /
Baynes and adjacent areas also exhibit a pre-
ferred northwest trend (Titheridge, 1988).
In marked contrast to the areas described
above, the area southwest from the Mt William
Mine along the upper Waimangaroa Valley has
isopachs with a distinct northeast trend. Both the
Mt William Fault and other faults in close prox-
imity also have a northeast trend (Figs. 3 and 4).
The thick coals of the Waimangaroa Valley are
not coincident with and occur to the southeast of
the thick basal sandstone sequence (described
above, Figs. 8 and 9).
Between the thick coal-bearing areas of
M i l l e r t o n - W e b b - S t o c k t o n and the Mt William
Mines, the Buller Seam Member is generally less
than a metre thick. Throughout much of the area,
present-day erosion has cut down below the Buller
chitecture is simple seam splitting. Multiple split-
ting, shale-out and thinning are local features.
Examples of each, and the geometry and stacking
of clastic units and their relationship to the Buller
Seam Member, are described below.
6.1. Simple splitting (Webb Opencast Mine)
The sequence in the general vicinity of the
Webb Opencast Mine (Fig. 10) exhibits simple
splitting of the Mangatini Seam Member (Fig.
11). The thick lower split passes laterally into thin
zones of shale-out (described below).
The general succession at the Webb Opencast
Mine comprises a thick sandstone (about 50 m),
the lower split of the Mangatini Seam Member
(1-20 m), and a generally coarsening-upwards
sequence comprising mudstone, interbedded
sandstone and mudstone, and sandstone (Figs.
10, 11). Sandstone units overlying mudstone are
characterized by upward fining; several units ex-
hibit epsilon cross-stratification. At the top of the
succession, sandstone units are characterized by
large-scale cross-bedding and do not show pro-
nounced upward fining.
The mudstone unit overlying the Mangatini
206 D.G. T I T H E R I D G E

Burrowed sandstone
(Miller ton Sandstone)
Both the upper and lower mudstone units split
again. Splitting of the lower mudstone is accom-
Thin coal or
paleosol (0-1m) panied by a 30 m separation over about 300 m
(Fig. 11).
Amalgamated coarse
to granular very
coarse sandstone
6.2. Multiple splitting
units, thin mudstone,
10-30m
In the Rockies area and central and northern
Alternating fine to part of the "Baynes Barren Belt", the Mangatini
very coarse sandstone,
and mudstone, 0-15m Seam Member encloses several clastic units in a
zone that is about 500-800 m wide (Figs. 6, 12;
Carbonaceous mudstone also upper Waimangaroa Valley, Fig. 7). Seam
0 2m
splitting is complex. Enclosed clastic units com-
Mangatini Seam prise one to several cycles of interbedded sand-
Member, 1-20m stone and mudstone that are locally capped by
thin dirty coal beds.
Amalgamated coarse
At the entrance to the Mt William Mine (now
sandstone to granule abandoned), the Matipo Seam Member is 7 - 9 m
conglomerate units
5-50m
thick. More or less continuous exposure in gullies
and along the access road to the mine over about
A A A basement (granite)
1 km, indicate that it splits northward into an
Fig. 10. Geometry and stacking o f clastic units associated with upper and lower seam. These also split into up-
simple splitting of the Mangatini Seam Member at the Webb
per and lower splits to the north, and in the
Opencast Mine.
vicinity of the Mt William Fault the sequence
contains numerous seams often only of centime-
Seam Member (Fig. 10) also exhibits a progres-
tre thickness (Fig. 13; see also upper Waiman-
sive northeast to southwest splitting geometry that
garoa Valley, Fig. 9). Clastic units between coal
encapsulates thick amalgamated sandstone units
beds are dominated by sandstone (cf. shale-out,
(Fig. 11). Proceeding generally westward from the
below).
entry to the Webb Opencast Mine (1981) and
around the high-walls, the 6 m thick mudstone 6.3. Shale-out and thinning
splits into two beds (Fig. 11). Over about 100 m,
the upper and lower mudstone splits are sepa- Southwest of the Webb Opencast Mine, the
rated by 15 m of amalgamated sandstone units. Mangatini Seam Member thins and shales out via

SW Webb Oponcas~
NE
16148~ ~63488 1674~ ]6749(I
dH4~
"Stockton High (d702) ~0700} -- . .... "--~ J - - - - ~I....L
•. " . . - . . . " .. •
Ash Zone" Id755) (d583i . . . . .
[d589) . . . . . "•" .*. "* - • "- "-" *" - ' - ' ' " *•

to ~asement
d732 d719 d717 " • - • " •

d ~ ~ °''" ° ' " ' ' ° ' ' " approximately 50m
l ~ Ooab
',ml High as~ coal
Modstone
20~-, Sansstoae

several metres J/(121 nearest dr, II nolo to satires

to basement measured in nigh ~alls of we~o O~encast

Fig. 11. Upward coarsening in the clastic sequence overlying the lower splits of the Mangatini Seam Member at the Webb
Opencast Mine.
T H I C K N E S S V A R I A T I O N A N D SEAM S P L I T I ' I N G IN T H E B R U N N E R C O A L M E A S U R E S 207

SW NE

Rockies Millerton Mine

145490 d896 d910 d8B3 d912 152494 d1327 d1328 de100 d1087
• . t Millerton Sandstone •
I . . . . . ]
~ - ~ - - ~ ' - - " "---- "-- " Mangatini Seam
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -,~-vv-,,, v v vvv ............... ~ Member

20
ml NO°a' T h i n l y interbedded sandstone and m u d s t o n e

- - 1
200m
Fig. 12. Geometry and stacking o f elastic units associated with multiple splitting of the Mangatini Seam M e m b e r in the Rockies and
M i l l e r t o n areas.

a sequence of intercalated clean coal, muddy more than ten metres thick. The increase in
coal, mudstone and shale (vicinity of drill-hole thickness of basal conglomerate from 0 to 270 m
732; Fig. 11). in the Sullivan M i n e - M t Rochfort area (Figs. 7d,
8) over 3 - 4 km is exceptional and inferred to
7. Controls on the thickness and distribution of
represent a half-graben fill. The location of the
clastic facies and peat
fault is not known. This early Brunner half-graben
Conglomerate-dominated sequences at the appears to be slightly offset from an early Creta-
base of the Brunner Coal Measures in the Buller ceous half-graben system represented by the
Coalfield are generally of local extent and seldom Hawks Crag Breccia which thickens from a true

0194463 194467

Mt William
193463 Fault Zone

d1011
193461
Mt William Mine

lom]
194459
1~om
]~ • coal

[] sandstone dominated
194457

Fig. 13. Progressive multiple splitting of the Matipo Seam Member in the vicinity of the Mt William Mine and Mt William Fault.
Note the progressive northward splitting of the seam and the lateral transition from a thick coal to a sequence dominated by
sandstone with numerous very thin seams.
208 D.G. TITHERIDGE

paleotopographic depression on peneplain

with p e b b l e - c o b b l e conglomerate fill

2 - 10m
A A A basement

Reference datum (Buller Seam Member)

A -- • " . "
~ m ~ i "~ " " . . .sandstone'
. to' granular
conglomerate dominated
sequence ," •

A A A A A

i n f e r r e d f a u l t or f a u l t z o n e
Fig. 14. O c c u r r e n c e o f t h i n b a s a l c o n g l o m e r a t e a n d t h i c k b a s a l s a n d s t o n e s e q u e n c e s a n d t h e i r r e l a t i o n s h i p to s y n - d e p o s i t i o n a l
faults.

thickness of several metres at Mt Rochfort to an Variation in thickness between Mt Augustus-

erosional minimum of at least several hundred Mt Frederick and the Mt William M i n e -
metres, 5 km to the south at Trig M. Waimangaroa Valley areas (Fig. 6) is of the order

general increase in rate of subsidence

toward fault

-____----"~ - - ~ ~ r_

100 to 250metres

T
axis of simple split
multiple splitting
LATERAL CHANGES1

IN SEAM GEOMETRY,- general increase in thickness of coal high ash thin coal and/or
carbonaceous mudstone
with low ash yield or paleosol

LATERAL CHANGESq thick amalgamated sandstone "wings" interbedded

! sandstone units with mudstone
IN MAJOR CLASTIC F
SPLIT J channel belt crevasse discharge to flood-basin or lake

Fig. 15. Summary of the main architectural elements of the Brunner Coal Measures associated with simple splitting, and their
relationship to syn-depositional faulting and subsidence.
T H I C K N E S S V A R I A T I O N A ND SEAM SPLrVFING IN T H E B R U N N E R C O A L M E A S U R E S
of 50-70 m. It is part of a trough that is several
kilometres wide and extends at least ten kilome-
tres north-northeast of the upper Waimangaroa
Gorge (GR 150430, Fig. 8). The southern part of
the trough is approximately coincident with the
Kiwi and Mt William Faults (Fig. 3). In the north-
ern part of the trough many faults are known but
thickness data are too scarce to establish any
relationships between specific faults and isopachs.
Between Mt William Mine and Mt Frederick
(Figs. 3 and 4), the Mangatini and Matipo Seams
have a split separation of up to 50 m (Titheridge,
1988; Fig. 6). Whilst repeated autocyclic incursion
of channels into peats may provide a ready expla-
nation of multiple splitting (Figs. 12, 13) it is
difficult to explain large simple split separations
by any cause other than differential subsidence
associated with tilting (Figs. 6, 11, 15). The thick-
ness variation of clastic units between upper and
lower splits of the Buller Seam Member is often
related to the thickness of a lower split and could
be attributed to syn-depositional compaction of
peat. However, there are many instances where
there is no relationship between the thickness of
a clastic unit and an underlying split of the Buller
Seam Member. Even if syn-depositional com-
paction does provide a satisfactory explanation of
local thickness variation in clastic splits (and it
may be difficult to separate this from other
causes), the origin of thickness variation in the
underlying coal needs to be explained.
Basal conglomerate of several to ten metres
thickness and tens to several hundred metres
extent often occur in the thickest parts of the
basal succession (e.g. Waimangaroa Gorge,
Titheridge, 1988). They appear to fill hollows of
minor undulations of basement. However, in other
instances, conglomerate is locally absent from the
basal part of thick sections and basal conglomer-
ate may be relatively close to the Millerton Sand-
stone datum (Fig. 6). The local occurrence of
basal conglomerate on basement highs, in associ-
ation with large thickness changes of basal sand-
stone sequences is best explained by syn-deposi-
tional faulting during deposition of the Brunner
Coal Measures (Fig. 14).
Large increases in thickness of seams over
short lateral distances and the pattern of isopachs
209
are difficult to account for other than by local
subsidence in the vicinity of fault zones, and
tectonic tilting. At the Webb Opencast Mine, the
Mangatini Seam Member increases in thickness
from several to nearly 20 m over a lateral dis-
tance of 400 m (SW side, Fig. 11). Thickening is
not accompanied by simple splitting (cf. NE side,
Fig. 11), or multiple splitting (cf. Figs. 12, 13) and
it is not related to an intercalatory contact with
roof or floor mudstones.
The extremely low ash yields of the Mangatini
Seam Member between the Stockton High Ash
Zone and the Baynes Barren Belt (Fig. 11) indi-
cate development of a high-moor peat (Titheridge,
1988). High-moor peats may attain a relief of up
to 10 m from the centre to the margins (McCabe,
1984) but with compaction during peat to coal
transformation, doming is unlikely to account for
more than several metres of thickness variation in
the roof of the seam. The floor mudstone is thin
(less than several metres), always present and
uniform in thickness. This precludes palaeotopo-
graphic relief on the floor of the seam as a
significant factor affecting variation in seam
thickness.
In several instances local trends of isopachs of
the Buller Seam Member almost parallel north-
west or northeast trending faults (Figs. 3 and 4).
For example, in the Millerton Mine area (vicinity
of GR 160490, Fig. 4) an area of thick coal with a
generally northwest elongation of isopachs occurs
immediately northeast of the northwest-trending
Mangatini Fault. Similarly, southeast of Mt Au-
gustus (vicinity of GR 155465, Fig. 4) a narrow
elongate area of thin coal (Stockton High Ash
Zone), that separates areas of thick coal (Stock-
ton and Webb Opencast Mines), is coincident
with a northwest-trending fault system. In the
upper Waimangaroa area (vicinity of GR 170440,
Fig. 4), and unlike the Millerton and Webb Mine
areas, isopachs have a northeast orientation and
are coincident with the strike of the Mt William
Fault. Further north in the vicinity of the Mt
William and Fly Creek Mines a zone of multiple
seam-splitting is coincident with the Mt William
Fault (above).
Thickness and isopach trend data outlined
above indicate movement on both northwest and
210
northeast trending fault systems during deposi-
tion of the Brunner Coal Measures. Synchronous
or nearly synchronous movement of several faults
with different strike, differences in rate and
amount of movement along faults, and subsi-
dence of adjacent areas at different times, have
the potential to produce a variety of splitting
scenarios and isopach patterns. For example,
isopachs of the Mangatini Seam Member in the
Webb Mine, Baynes Barren Belt and Millerton
Fire areas are characterized by both a northwest
trend with extreme local thickenings (Fig. 4) and
general thinning to the southeast. This suggests
tilting to the northwest in addition to the stronger
and local influence of northwest-striking faults.
The axis of the clastic split in the W e b b /
Baynes area (GR 167490, Fig. 11) is coincident
with the Mangatini Fault. An elongate belt of
very thick coal occurs immediately to the north-
east of the Mangatini Fault (Figs. 3, 4, 11). It
would appear that when downthrow on the north-
eastern side of the Mangatini Fault ceased, move-
ment on an unidentified fault to the southwest,
and tilting to the southwest, began. The north-
eastern limit of the tilt block and axis of splitting
was the Mangatini Fault. This illustrates that
subsidence of adjacent half-graben blocks (with
similar senses of symmetry) at different times,
can influence the style of splitting.
In the Millerton and W e b b / B a y n e s area,
where the Buller Seam Member rests on or close
to basement, it may exhibit thickening from ten
to twenty metres over less than several hundred
metres. Such large thickness variation over small
lateral distances is virtually unknown in seams in
sequences hundreds of metres above basement
(e.g. Brunner Seam, Greymouth Coalfield). This
is probably because the influence of syn-deposi-
tional faulting in basement can be obscured by
the effects of differential compaction in overlying
sandstone and mudstone sequences particularly if
sandstone deposition is concentrated in the areas
of highest subsidence. It would appear that the
strong relationship between fault and seam
isopach trends in the Buller Coalfield reflects the
proximity of seams to basement and is enhanced
by the scarcity or absence of thick mudstone
beneath the Bullet Seam Member.
D.G. ' I T F H E R I D G E
The occurrence and thickness of coal and the
distribution of clastic facies were largely deter-
mined by different rates of subsidence associated
with different parts of a tilt block. Thick seams
accumulated between the axis of splitting and
active faults where subsidence rates were at a
maximum yet not exceeding the upward growth
of peat. Areas in which subsidence exceeded the
upward growth of peat are characterized by mul-
tiple sandstone splits (e.g. in the vicinity of Mt
William Fault zone near Mt William Mine; see
Fig. 13) or an absence of coal (e.g. Waimangaroa
Valley, Fig. 9). Areas which did not subside, or
subsided very slowly relative to adjacent blocks
are characterized by thin coals interbedded with
mudstone a n d / o r rootlet-bearing palaeosols.
These include the north-northeast trending belt
which extends from the Repo Stream vicinity in
the north, southward to and along the upper part
of the Waimangaroa Valley (which had previously
been a site of high rates of subsidence, Fig. 6),
the northwest-southeast trending Baynes Barren
Belt and Stockton High Ash Zone (Figs. 4, 11). In
at least some instances the axis of tilting is ap-
proximately coincident with the footwall block of
a fault separating two half-grabens with similar
senses of symmetry.
In the W e b b / B a y n e s area (Figs. 10, 11) the
thickest part of a clastic succession between the
upper and lower splits of the Mangatini Seam
Member comprises amalgamated sandstone units;
the lower sandstone units are in erosive contact
with the seam roof. Toward the axis of seam
splitting the lowermost sandstone units pass later-
ally into, and are intercalated with mudstone
overlying the lower coal. It would appear that the
pattern of clastic facies distribution in the
W e b b / B a y n e s area (summarized in Fig. 15 along
with examples of coal splitting) is due to syn-de-
positional faulting and tilting of fault blocks, in
combination with the migration behaviour of
channels. The lower coal split in the W e b b /
Baynes area (Fig. 11), is generally overlain by
mudstone up to several metres thick that is in-
ferred to represent lake and overbank deposition
following drowning of peat. The local absence
a n d / o r erosional thinning of this mudstone and
the locally thick sequence of overlying sandstone,
THICKNESS V A R I A T I O N A N D SEAM S P L I T T I N G IN T H E B R U N N E R COAL M E A S U R E S
suggest that channel incursion began furthest
from the axis of splitting in areas with the highest
rates of subsidence. Sandstone "wings" repre-
senting crevasse sands were intercalated with
overbank mudstone toward the axis of splitting.
Continued high rates of subsidence are inferred
to have maintained the channel belt in the same
general location following incursion; this allowed
the preservation of sandstone "wings" which
would otherwise have been eroded during chan-
nel-belt migration. Channel sandstone units un-
derlying the upper coal seam split extend to the
axis of seam splitting. This indicates that prior to
channel abandonment and accumulation of peat,
the active channel belt increased its width, per-
haps as a result of lower rates of subsidence. The
facies distribution in the Webb/Baynes area con-
trasts with fault block movement without tilting
where sandstone and mudstone units on either
side of a fault are of different thickness but are
essentially tabular (e.g. Horne et al., 1978; Pad-
gett and Ehrlich, 1978).
Sedimentary models encompassing the influ-
ence of tilting on clastic architecture have cen-
tred on an entire basin that has been dominated
by a single major fault with prominent scarps, and
in some instances, lakes adjacent to the scarp
(e.g. Leeder and Gawthorpe, 1987). In contrast,
deposition of the Brunner Coal Measures was
accompanied by movement on numerous rela-
tively small-scale faults with several orientations.
Fault scarps were not present and the influence
of individual faults was local.
The general models have focussed on sand-
stone bodies of meander belts enclosed within
fine-grained lithologies and the tendency for these
to be stacked toward a major fault as a result of
channel migration toward the area of most rapid
subsidence (Bridge and Leeder, 1979; Alexander
and Leeder, 1987; Leeder and Alexander, 1987).
The Webb/Baynes area offers an example of a
sequence dominated by channel sandstone in
which local rates of subsidence, that varied ac-
cording to position on a tilt block, and over time,
influenced the behaviour of channel-belt migra-
tion and hence the local preservation of overbank
facies overlying coal. However, this style of
preservation of fine-grained lithologies is a local
211
example and not always applicable to other parts
of the Brunner Coal Measures. The complexity
and local influence of faults on deposition suggest
that models of the Brunner Coal Measures may
have little application to fluvial and coal-bearing
sequences in general.
8. Conclusions
(i) The Brunner Coal Measures were de-
posited directly on basement in a basin character-
ized by extension. They are characterized by lo-
cally thick basal conglomerate (Mt Rochfort) and
sandstone (Waimangaroa Valley), locally thick
coal seams and a simple seam-splitting geometry
with split separations of up to 50 m.
(ii) The close relationship between seam
isopachs, and faults with north-northeast and
northwest orientations, indicates that the faults
were active during deposition of the Brunner
Coal Measures. Thickness variation in basal con-
glomerate and sandstone is also due to syn-de-
positional fault movement.
(iii) Lateral thickening of coal seams and clas-
tic sequences between simple seam splits in the
Brunner Coal Measures largely reflects lateral
variation in amount of subsidence associated with
syn-depositional tilting of half-graben blocks.
(iv) The differences in local rates of syn-de-
positional subsidence associated with tilting of
fault blocks influenced the migration of river
channel belts and hence the occurrence and split-
ting characteristics of coal, and in some instances
the local preservation of overbank facies overly-
ing coal in sequences dominated by channel sand-
stone.
Acknowledgements
The author gratefully acknowledges the contri-
bution of B.G. Jones and referees, M.G. Laird,
M.R. Gibling, T.A. Cross and E.S. Belt whose
suggestions have improved the manuscript, and
the assistance and forbearance of Jae-Eun
Titheridge. The author also gratefully acknowl-
edges use of some of the diagrams published by
the Ministry of Commerce, New Zealand, in
Titheridge, 1992.
212
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