SCIENCE REVIEW 1987 - Bedford Institute of Oceanography

Summary
The foregoing paragraphs do not describe
all the work of the Science Sector, but are
intended to indicate the diversity of the
science program of Scotia-Fundy Region.
The program ranges from mission oriented
fundamental or basic research, to targetted
basic research, to applied research, to the
application of engineering and technology
principles. The science program is intended
to fulfill the research mandate of the
Department and it’s client base within the
regional areas of interest, as well as to
enhance ocean science knowledge on a
global scale.
The Geological Survey of Canada Frontier Geoscience Program
offshore eastern Canada
D.I. Ross
Introduction
D.I. Ross
THE Frontier Geoscience Program was
established in June 1984 as part of the
Geological Survey of Canada’s program in
the oil and gas frontier regions of Canada.
The program is designed to substantially
expand our knowledge of the earth in the
frontier areas, i.e. the Arctic and offshore
regions of Canada, from the base of the
crustal layer through to the sediment/water
interface. The emphasis is on gaining new
knowledge to stimulate petroleum exploration
and assist government regulatory
bodies in policing these operations. The
span of activities is wide, ranging from the
design of new scientific projects, through
new data collection to publication of
results. The activities fully complement and
build on other national geoscience programs.
For example; the Lithoprobe
Project, a national collaborative geoscientific
research program to investigate
fundamental questions concerning the
nature and evolution of the lithosphere in
Canada; the energy research and development
projects, particularly Task 6 with its
objective of improving the understanding
of petroleum reservoirs and geological
hazards faced in hydrocarbon developments;
and of course the activities of the
petroleum industry itself.
The program is divided into five tasks -
an Arctic logistics task and four regional
tasks: East Coast; West Coast; Arctic
Islands; and Western Arctic. The regional
tasks are sub-divided into components
reflecting the major sedimentary basins.
This paper summarizes the scientific studies
being carried out by staff of the Atlantic
Geoscience Centre, a Division of the
Geological Survey of Canada at the
Bedford Institute of Oceanography, under
the East Coast Task and highlights the
main scientific results obtained in the four
years from 1984 to the end of 1987.
Scientific Extent of the East Coast Task
The East Coast Task is divided into six
regional components, viz. Scotian Shelf
and Margin, Grand Banks and Margins,
Labrador Sea, Baffin Bay, Gulf of St.
Lawrence, and Hudson Bay (Figure 1).
The planning and scheduling of specific
studies in these six regions is developed on
the basis of the scientific questions that
must be solved if we are to understand the
history and evolution of the east coast
region as a whole, as well as the potential
for oil and gas discoveries. Program
managers, guided by a Technical Advisory
Committee representing industry, university
and government bodies across Canada,
have been particularly aware of the need to
look at the framework of the sedimentary
basins - the earth processes outside the
basins themselves - in attempting to
decipher the history of these basins. Thus
the program looks at the frontier basins in
the context of the continental lithosphere
on the one hand, and the bounding ocean
basins on the other, so that a complete
synthesis will emerge. In this way the
program builds on the detailed exploration
studies of the petroleum industry, providing
a framework within which industry’s
future exploration efforts can be focussed.
In each of the six regions, projects
address three major scientific issues:
1. The deep structural controls which
have played an important role in the
development of the sedimentary
basins;
2. The internal geology and evolution of
the basins, and the process of generation,
accumulation and preservation of
hydrocarbons; and,
3. The physical properties of the seafloor
and their potential effect on development
of resources.
Deep Controls on the Development of
the Sedimentary Basins
Deep seismic reflection and refraction
studies, supplemented with potential field
studies where appropriate, are used to
decipher the deep structure of the boundary
between the east coast continental
landmass and the adjacent ocean basin.
These studies have provided the controls
for developing theoretical models of the
sedimentary basins formed along this east
coast continental margin. In the first three
years of the program the emphasis has been
on the Grand Banks and margins offshore
Newfoundland, including the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, for the following reasons:
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