Geology of the McMurray Formation. Part III, General geology of the McMurray area

This report describes the geology of an area located in the northeastern quarter of Alberta. In this area, the Mesozoic strata which outcrop in the Athabasca River Valley hold the world�s greatest known reserve of oil and the underlying Paleozoic strata contain notable deposits of halite and gypsum at moderate depth. A description of the geology of the rocks that contain these valuable resources has considerable interest from the economic view.

Inferences about the geology of the McMurray area have been drawn from the information obtained from Wildcat oil wells drilled in a contiguous area bounded by latitudes 55 and 59 degrees north and longitudes 110 and 114 degrees west.