LATE PLEISTOCENE REWORKED LOESS IN PA BAY, BANKS PENINSULA

With the exception of primary loess deposits, the sedimentology of Banks Peninsula, New Zealand has remained largely unexamined. This study aims to determine the depositional history of an outcrop in Pa Bay, eastern Banks Peninsula that contains sedimentary structures consistent with secondary loess that has undergone subaqueous reworking. Exploratory field work was conducted and facies element analysis was applied to representative stratigraphic columns. The outcrop was split into the “left” and “right” sides for convenience. The left contained a progression of muds, massive conglomerates, and crossbedded fine sandstones. Conversely, the right side was dominated by convolute bedded muds with an incursion of laminar and faintly bedded sandstones. Thus, it was determined that the Pa Bay area once contained a small lacustrine system that evolved into a low-energy meandering fluvial system.