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Doig Formation
Doig Formation
Stratigraphic range: middle Anisian-Ladinian; ~245–237 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Type	Geological formation
Underlies	Halfway Formation
Overlies	Montney Formation
Thickness	up to 190 metres (620 ft)
Lithology
Primary	Siltstone, shale
Other	Phosphate, sandstone
Location
Coordinates	55°42′N 121°18′W / 55.7°N 121.3°W
Approximate paleocoordinates	25°06′N 35°00′E / 25.1°N 35.0°E
Region	NW Alberta; NE British Columbia; SE Yukon
Country	Canada
Extent	Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin
Type section
Named for	Doig River
Named by	J.H. Armitage
Year defined	1962
	Doig Formation (Canada) Doig Formation (British Columbia)

The Doig Formation is a geologic formation of middle Triassic age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. It takes the name from Doig River, a tributary of the Beatton River, and was first described in the Texaco N.F.A. Buick Creek No. 7 well (located north-west of Fort St. John, east of the Alaska Highway) by J.H. Armitage in 1962. .^[2]

Lithology

The Doig Formation is composed of fine grained, grey argillaceous siltstone and dark calcareous shale. ^[1] Phosphate nodules occur at the base of the formation. Anomalously thicker, porous sandstone channels and bars are present locally in the upper units of the formation.^[3] The formation has provided fossils of various species of conodonts; Magnigondolella alexanderi, M. cyri, M. julii, M. nebuchadnezzari, M. salomae, Neogondolella curva, N. hastata, N. panlaurentia and N. ex gr. shoshonensis.^[4]

Distribution

The Doig Formation reaches a maximum thickness of 190 metres (620 ft) in the Canadian Rockies foothills it thins towards the north and east. It occurs in the subsurface in north-western Alberta, north-eastern British Columbia and southern Yukon, from 53°N and 118°W to the Canadian Rockies.^[1]

Relationship to other units

The Doig Formation is unconformably overlain by the Halfway Formation of the Schooler Creek Group; the contact is marked by a dolomitic bed and a chert and quartz conglomerate bed.^[5] To the west it is overlain by younger Jurassic beds. It conformably overlies the Montney Formation and the contact is marked by a phosphate pellet bed in the base of the Doig.^[1]

The formation correlates with the lower Llama Member of the Sulphur Mountain Formation in the southern ranges of the Canadian Rockies, with the Whistler Member of the Whitehorse Formation in the Muskwa Ranges, and with the Toad Formation in the upper Liard River area.^[1]

Petroleum geology

The Doig formation is an important source rock for the Triassic Halfway and Charlie Lake formations.^[6] Total organic carbon values in the "phosphate zone" at the base of the Doig are commonly greater than 4% by weight and can reach up to 11%. The "phosphate zone" is also a potential undeveloped shale gas reservoir with as much as 400 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in place.^[7] Oil and gas is also extracted from the Doig Formation in conventional reservoirs along the western Montney trend and in the Peace River Arch.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Lexicon of Canadian Geologic Units. "Doig Formation". Archived from the original on 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
^ Armitage, J.H., 1962. Triassic oil and gas occurrences in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. J. Alberta Society of Petroleum Geologists, v. 10, p. 35-36.
^ Glass, D (1997). "Lexicon of Canadian Stratigraphy". 4 (Western Canada, Including Eastern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Southern Alberta). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
^ Golding, M. L.; Orchard, M. J. (2018). "Magnigondolella, a new conodont genus from the Triassic of North America". Journal of Paleontology. 92 (2): 207–220. Bibcode:2018JPal...92..207G. doi:10.1017/jpa.2017.123. S2CID 133681181.
^ Lexicon of Canadian Geologic Units. "Halfway Formation". Archived from the original on 2012-07-15. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
^ Riediger, C.L. (December 1990). "Lower and Middle Triassic source rocks, thermal maturation, and oil-source rock correlations in the Peace River Embayment area, Alberta and British Columbia". Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology. 38 A: 218–235.
^ Walsh, Warren (2006). "Regional "Shale Gas" Potential of the Triassic Doig and Montney Formations Northeastern British Columbia". British Columbia Geoscience Petroleum Geology Open File 2006-02.