Sedimentology and stratigraphy of the Falher C Member, Spirit River Formation, northeastern British Columbia

The Falher C stratigraphic unit of the Falher Member, of the Spirit River Formation, in northeastern British Columbia, is a product of deposition by wave and storm processes along a graveliferous, wave-dominated strandplain. Two parasequences and one sequence comprise the Falher C, forming two mappable shoreline trends that are present in the subsurface. The northern parasequence trend (CO) is an early highstand, sandy shoreface facies association occurring in the subsurface of British Columbia. The southern trend consists of a highstand sandy shoreface facies association (C1 parasequence) and a regressive systems tract stratal sequence (RST; C2 sequence) conglomeratic shoreface. Gravel is introduced to the C2 sequence as bedload from narrow, deeply incised channels during a falling relative sea level. Internal erosional surfaces within C2 are source diastems (SD's) which amalgamate along the basal surface to form a regressive surface of erosion (RSE). Conglomerate with the highest porosity and permeability occurs along the southern edge of the C2 sequence, adjacent to coevally deposited channels.