Classic hydrocarbon traps and analog structures in the southern Canadian Rockies

摘要

The southern Canadian Rockies is an excellent area in which to examine and discuss compressional hydrocarbon traps for three main reasons: (1) the Foothills host numerous large hydrocarbon fields, many of which were discovered decades ago and continue to produce today, providing a growing subsurface database and documentation of the history of applicable structural models over time; (2) the thrust belt is well exposed and provides many outstanding examples of seismic-scale structures associated with thin-skinned fold-thrust hydrocarbon traps and play types, including surface expression of several of the producing hydrocarbon fields; and (3) many publishedmaps and papers from the Canadian Rockies have contributed significantly over several decades to our evolving understanding of the geometry, evolution, and hydrocarbon prospectivity of thin-skinned fold-thrust belts worldwide.