THREE DIMENSIONAL GEOLOGIC MAPPING IN THE DENVER BASIN: A ROBUST FRAMEWORK FOR INTEGRATED STUDIES AND COMMUNICATION TO PLANNERS

The Denver Basin presents an ideal laboratory to examine three dimensional mapping techniques and apply them to regional stratigraphic studies. Using a subsurface data base of over 1500 wells together with detailed geologic maps and field observations, an integrated three dimensional lithostratigraphic data base has been complied.

This new data base allows hybrid maps to be made on which the intersections of projected stratigraphic boundaries with digital elevation models can be used to create detailed geologic maps in areas where surficial cover obscures formation contacts.

Lithofacies information derived from wells and field mapping is used to create detailed paleogeomorphic maps that are compared quantitatively with analog situations in the modern record. The paleogeomorphic reconstructions are considered in the context of the array of vertebrate and leaf fossil collections curated at the Museum of Nature & Science. Landscape reconstructions bringing together observations from the rock and fossil records are used to display integrated and multidisciplinary results to the public.

Chronostratigraphic information derived from radiometric dating, paleontological analyses, and magnetostratigraphy is incorporated into the models to allow the basin to be subdivided into time significant slices. This technique allows paleontological efforts to be focused in areas of specific questions and emphasizes the lateral variability of contemporaneous land surfaces present during the accumulation of the basin filling sediments.

The depositional factors controlling aquifer distribution patterns are made vividly clear in three dimensional fly-through video displays. These are in use in the Denver Basin as tools to assist groundwater resource managers and City Councils in planning future water supply development strategies.