THE ST. BEES EVAPORITES—A CARBONATE-EVAPORITE FORMATION OF UPPER PERMIAN AGE IN WEST CUMBERLAND, ENGLAND

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Abstract
Summary: Three cycles of carbonate-evaporite rocks, principally dolomite and anhydrite, were formed in the St. Bees Head–Egremont area of West Cumberland in Upper Permian times. Miospores and macrofauna from the lower two cycles indicate an approximate correlation with the EZ 1 , and EZ 2 cycles of the English Zechstein. The deposits appear to have been laid down on a tectonically active platform of Carboniferous rocks flanking the Lower Palaeozoic Lake District massif, and marginal to the Manx–Furness sedimentary basin. In each cycle a transgressive and a regressive phase are recognized. The criteria upon which this recognition is based are described and discussed, along with those employed in the interpretation of sedimentary environment. The case for a thickening of the formation towards the centre of the Manx–Furness basin is argued.