See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/249546984

Embaluh Group turbidites in Kalimantan: evolution of a remnant oceanic

basin in Borneo during the Late Cretaceous to Palaeogene

Article  in  Journal of the Geological Society · June 1998

DOI: 10.1144/gsjgs.155.3.0509

CITATIONS READS

47 1,482

1 author:

Steve Moss
Apache Deepwater LLC
20 PUBLICATIONS   834 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Ombilin Basin Research View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Steve Moss on 05 April 2016.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Journal of the Geological Society
Embaluh Group turbidites in Kalimantan: evolution of a remnant oceanic basin in
Borneo during the Late Cretaceous to Palaeogene
STEVE J. MOSS

Journal of the Geological Society 1998; v. 155; p. 509-524

doi:10.1144/gsjgs.155.3.0509

Email alerting click here to receive free email alerts when new articles cite this article
service
Permission click here to seek permission to re-use all or part of this article
request
Subscribe click here to subscribe to Journal of the Geological Society or the Lyell Collection

Notes

Downloaded by Stephen James Moss on 21 October 2008

© 1998 Geological Society of London

Journal of the Geological Society, London, Vol. 155, 1998, pp. 509–524. Printed in Great Britain

Embaluh Group turbidites in Kalimantan: evolution of a remnant oceanic basin in

Borneo during the Late Cretaceous to Palaeogene

STEVE J. MOSS
SE Asia Research Group, Dept. of Geology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW0 0EX, UK
Present address: Robertson Research, 69 Outram Street, West Perth, 6005, WA, Australia

Abstract: Turbidites crop out in large parts of NW Borneo, including Kalimantan and Sarawak. The
strata predominantly comprise the Embaluh Group in Kalimantan and lateral equivalents the Rajang
Group in Sarawak (collectively known as the Rajang–Embaluh Group). Previous interpretation of these
rocks as the product of deep marine deposition and deformation as part of an accretionary prism during
Late Cretaceous to Palaeogene subduction implies south-dipping thrusts, northward stratigraphic
younging, the existence of a complete arc to trench system, and significant deformation and meta-
morphism of the turbidites. However new fieldwork described here established consistent southward
stratigraphic younging in Kalimantan, no evidence for southward-dipping thrusts and a lack of
metamorphism and associated accretionary complex-related deformation features. Furthermore all
available palaeontological and radiometric age data indicate that deposition of the bulk of the
Rajang–Embaluh Group postdates in-board subduction-related magmatism and thus a complete arc-
trench system cannot be demonstrated. Consequently the Rajang–Embaluh Group turbidites are
re-interpreted as having formed in either a post-collisional foreland basin or a remnant ocean basin. The
lack of a identifiable mountain belt and linked thrust system, and probable oceanic affinity of crust
beneath the Rajang–Embaluh Group basin favour the latter interpretation.
Borneo occupies a pivotal position within southeast Asia. This new model of a remnant oceanic basin
setting for extensive turbidite units of Borneo therefore has far-reaching implications for the tectonic
evolution of Borneo, the South China Sea and SE Asia. The new model is compared with older,
Palaeozoic orogenic belts which also contain thick turbidites sequences.

Keywords: Borneo, turbidites, sedimentology, plate tectonics.

Despite its key location in the middle of the SE Asia tectonic
jigsaw puzzle and its significance to our regional understanding
of SE Asia, the geology of Borneo is poorly known. It has
traditionally been interpreted as the product of Mesozoic
accretion of marginal basin fill, island arc and ophiolitic
material to a Palaeozoic continental core in the SW of the
island (the Schwaner Mountains, Hutchison 1989). In par-
ticular the Rajang–Embaluh Group of rocks is frequently
described as an accretionary prism complex formed by the
subduction of a proto-South China Sea in the Late Cretaceous
to early Tertiary (Hutchison 1996 most recently). The Rajang–
Embaluh Group is part of the Rajang–Embaluh belt that
straddles the Sarawak and Kalimantan border (Fig. 1) and
forms the largest tectonic element in Borneo, c. 1100 km long
and up to c. 250 km wide, with mountains up to 2500 m high.
This paper critically assesses the accretionary complex origin
of the Rajang–Embaluh Group and concludes that a remnant
ocean basin setting better explains the character of the Group
deposits. If the Rajang–Embaluh Group does represent a
remnant ocean basin and not an accretionary prism, it has
far-reaching implications for the timing of subduction beneath
Borneo and for the geological evolution of SE Asia in general.
Regional geologic framework
Three marginal oceanic basins and several microcontinental
fragments of south China origin (Holloway 1981; Kudrass
et al. 1986) bound Borneo, with mainland SE Asia (Indochina
and Malaysian Peninsula) to the west and northwest (Fig. 1).
Within this area the Rajang–Embaluh turbidites extend from
the west to the northeast of the island, forming a NE–SW-
trending crescent (Figs 1 & 2). These rocks are called the
Embaluh Group in Kalimantan (Pieters et al. 1993d, e) and
the Rajang Group in Sarawak where they are divided into
the Lupar and Belaga Formations (Haile pers. comm. 1995;
Hutchison 1996). In Sarawak part of the southwestern bound-
ary of the Rajang Group is faulted along the Lupar Line (Fig.
2), juxtaposing the turbiditic rocks against a zone of melange
termed the Lubok Antu melange (Tan 1982). The melange
comprises blocks of chert, sandstone, shale, limestone, gabbro,
basalt and serpentinite of various sizes within a pervasively
sheared and strongly cleaved clay matrix (Tan 1982; Jasin
1996). Cherts from the melange contain radiolaria of three
different ages, including Late Tithonian, mid-Valanginian to
Barremian and Late Albian to Cenomanian (Jasin 1996). The
chert blocks in the Lubok Antu melange may have been
derived from the Sejingkat and Serabang Formations of north-
west Kalimantan and west Sarawak (Jasin 1996). Gabbros and
ultrabasic rocks outcropping to the north of the Lubok Antu
Melange are part of the Pakong Mafic Complex. The east-
southeast extension of the Lubok Antu melange and the Lupar
line into Kalimantan are covered by rocks of the Tertiary
Ketungau and Mandai Basins, but are associated with a
prominent gravity ridge (Williams et al. 1988). In Kalimantan
equivalent zones of melange with cherts, basalts and spilites of
the Kapuas Complex and gabbroic and ultrabasic rocks of the
Danau Mafic Complex crop out within the same geographic

509
510 S. J. MOSS

Fig. 1. (a) Plate tectonic and geologic setting of Borneo. DG, Dangerous Grounds; LL, Lupar Line; LS, Luconia Shoals; MB, Macclesfield
Bank; NPB, North Palawan Block; PRMB, Pearl River Mouth Basin; RB, Reed Bank; ST, Sabah Trough; SVA, Sulu Volcanic Arc;
WBF, West Baram/Tinjar fault line. (b) Political and geographic map of Borneo in SE Asia. BD, Baram Delta.

area of the Embaluh Group. Stratigraphic relationships be-
tween the Kapuas and Danau Mafic Complexes and the
Embaluh Group are discussed later. Collectively the Rajang–
Embaluh Group and the chert and mafic/ultramafic rocks and
melange zones comprise the Rajang–Embaluh belt. To the
south and east of these rocks is a large area of middle Eocene
and younger strata with several depocentres (Fig. 2; Moss et al.
1997a). In Sabah the Rajang–Embaluh Group is interpreted as
unconformably overlain by the West Crocker and Temburong
Formations (Fig. 2; Haile 1992; Hutchison 1992, 1996), although
Tongkul (1994) presents a different stratigraphy for Sabah.
Lack of useful marker horizons, the limited exposure and
the structure make thickness estimates of the Rajang–Embaluh
Group difficult and unreliable. Haile (1974) indicated a figure
of 15 km thickness for the Rajang Group in Sarawak; a more
conservative figure of 5 km was proposed by Pieters et al.
(1993d). Dickinson (1995, table 6.2b) suggests the Danau–
Rajang–Crocker succession is 2–3 km thick. Until a means of
correlation within the Rajang and Embaluh Groups is estab-
lished no accurate determinations of thickness can be given.
Nevertheless, the unit is thick.
Another geological feature of Borneo geology pertinent to
the discussion of Rajang–Embaluh Group rocks is the Semitau
Ridge, a low, east–west-trending topographic feature compris-
ing mainly shallow-marine sedimentary rocks of the Lower to
Middle Cretaceous Selangkai Formation (Fig. 2). Much of
the Selangkai Formation consists of melange referred to as the
‘Boyan melange’ (Heryanto et al. 1993; Harahap 1995). The
Semitau Ridge terminates against two Triassic basement com-
plexes, the Embuoi and Busang Complexes in the west and east
respectively (Pieters et al. 1993a, b; Supriatna et al. 1993; Fig.
2) The Schwaner Mountains to the south of the Semitau Ridge
comprise numerous Lower to Upper Cretaceous granites and
tonalites intruded into older, Palaeozoic metamorphic rocks.
The Schwaner Mountains granites have been radiometrically
dated mainly by K–Ar techniques at 130–80 Ma (Amirruddin
1989; Amirruddin & Trail 1993; Keyser & Rustandi 1993;
Pieters & Sanyoto 1993). The Schwaner Mountains granites
have been geochemically discriminated as volcanic arc granites
(Amirruddin 1989). Five other smaller granitic plutons of
Cretaceous age are located north of the Schwaner Mountains
in Kalimantan. The Lower Cretaceous Menyukung granite
(Fig. 2) is associated with outcrops of Kapuas complex
melange. This granite has been suggested to be an oceanic
ridge granite on the basis of its geochemistry (Amirruddin
1989). The other four granites are leucocratic biotite granites
and adamellites with S-type affinities (Pieters et al. 1993a),
radiometrically dated at 131–75 Ma (Pieters et al.
1993a, b, c, e). They intrude the basic and ultrabasic rocks,
cherts and melange zones and, in one instance, Rajang–
Embaluh Group rocks.
Palaeomagnetic studies of Borneo yield conflicting results
(Fuller et al. 1991; Lumadyo et al. 1993; Moss et al. 1997a).
The available data and arguments from plate reconstructions
(Hall 1996) tentatively suggest a Tertiary counter-clockwise
rotation of between 25 and 45 for the whole of the island.
Although most of the palaeomagnetic work has been carried
out in western part of the island (Fuller et al. 1991), more
recent work has been carried out in east Kalimantan along the
northern margins of the Kutai Basin (Moss et al. 1997a).
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN 511

Fig. 2. Simplified geological and tectonic map of Borneo, based on references cited and our fieldwork. Numbered boxes are Cretaceous S- and
I-type granite plutons north of the Schwaner Mountains: 1, Menyukung, 126–131 Ma; 2, Alan, 125 Ma; 3, Topai, 76–77 Ma; 4, Era, 75–78 Ma;
5, Pesinduk, intrudes Early–Mid-Cretaceous rocks; 6, Peuh, 80 Ma. Radiometric ages (all K–Ar) are from Pieters et al. (1993a–e). A-CBH,
Adang–Cross Barito High; BC, Busang Complex; BML, Bukit–Mersing/Tatau–Mersing Line; EC, Embuoi Complex; JL, Jerudong Line; KB,
Ketungau & Mandai Basin; LAM, Lubok Antu Melange; MB, Melawi Basin; MP, Mangkalihat Peninsula; SaR, Sarawak Basins; SB, Sabah
Basins; SR, Semitau Ridge; SSZ, Sabah Shear Zone; TL, Tinjar Line; UKP, Upper Kutai Basin.

Embaluh Group rocks in Kalimantan
Rocks of the Embaluh Group were studied along 60 km of the
upper Mahakam river (Figs 3, 4 and 6a, b, c, d). The sections
were studied during the Kalimantan dry season, when water-
levels were low and exposure relatively continuous along
the river banks. These studies were supplemented by refer-
ence to the results of reconnaissance geological mapping in
Kalimantan (Heryanto et al. 1993; Pieters et al. 1993a–e) and
other available literature.
Age
The Rajang–Embaluh Group ranges in age from Late
Cretaceous (Santonian) to Early Eocene (Ypresian, Figs 2 and
5). Embaluh Group strata contain upper Santonian/lower
Campanian nannofossils (Moss & Finch 1998). Middle Eocene
larger foraminifera are reported from outcrops of turbidites
along the Sungai (river) Boh (Fig. 3; Cartier & Yeats 1973).
Ter Bruggen (1935) described Palaeocene to Middle Eocene
benthic foraminifera from the headwaters of the Embaluh
River in Kalimantan. Pieters et al. (1993d) suggest a Late
Cretaceous to mid-Eocene age for these rocks on the basis of
regional correlation, and all available data confirm a Late
Cretaceous (Santonian) to Palaeocene/Early Eocene age for
the bulk of the sediments. In Sarawak the Rajang Group
youngs northward from the Upper Cretaceous Lupar For-
mation and Layer Member of the Belaga Formation to the
Middle Eocene members of the Belaga Formation (Hutchison
1996). The Embaluh Group is unlikely to extend into the
Middle Eocene, at least within the study area, because felsic
agglomerates, flat-lying lava flows and vent-related intrusions
unconformably overlie or intrude the Embaluh Group along
the course of the upper Mahakam river (Fig. 3). Both the
volcanics and lava flows are part of the Nyaan Volcanics
suite radiometrically dated using the K–Ar technique at
48.60.5 Ma (Pieters et al. 1993a) and correlative with other
felsic intrusives across Borneo in the middle Eocene (Moss
et al. 1997a, b). Middle Eocene rocks of the Kutai Basin also
unconformably overlie the Embalah Group in the study area
(Moss & Finch 1998).
Sedimentology
The Embaluh Group comprises coarse- to fine-grained sand-
stones interbedded with siltstones, dark gray shale (Fig. 6a and
b) and light grey shale with thin regular and irregular siltstone
laminae. The sandstones are typically quartz-rich (Fig. 6d) but
also include significant amounts of lithic grains and lesser
amounts of feldspar grains. Clasts of radiolarian chert, ultra-
basic units and other dark, fine-grained (?)metamorphic rocks
are common lithic constituents (Fig. 6d) (see also BRGM 1982;
Pieters et al. 1993c). Sandstone beds vary between 5 and
130 cm thick (Fig. 4a and b), and are typically sharp-based.
Load casts on the base of beds are more common than flute
and groove casts, although load casts appear to have formed
upon and accentuated former erosional sole structures. Un-
modified flute, crescent and groove casts indicate a general
W–E palaeo-transport direction for the Embaluh Group (Fig.
4a and b). The tops of sandstone beds are often gradational
512 S. J. MOSS

S. Topai

Nyaan
S.
114°45'
115°00' 115°15'
Long Tuyo 4b
54° 53° 6c
16° Sungai
48° 56° 41° 27° 79° Boh
20° 48° 05°
62° 16° 6a,
13°
Long 52° 52° 6b
4c 24° Pahangai
20° KUS216 20°
60°
DD 59°
13°
44° LL
Mahakam river

45' 45' 00°45' 45'

114°45' 115°00' 115°15'
58°
9d
KUS148 62°
KUS150
Kiham

S. Alan
Haloq
gorge 54°
20°
Fluvial 72°
channel, Fluvial
trends channel
115°00'
0 5 10 15 20 km 010°-
210°
Danau Complex Selangkai Group Nyaan Volc.s M./L. Eocene Volc.s Late Alan granite
(?)Jurassic Early-Late K M./L. Eocene sediments Mioc.-Pleist. Early Cretaceous
M./L. Eocene Intrusives Topai granite
Kapuas Complex Embaluh Group Haloq Sst Fm Late Cretaceous
Jurassic - earliest Late Cret. / M./L. Eocene sediments L. Olig.-M. Mioc.
Cretaceous Paleocene
= section studied; DD = Data Dawai airstrip LL = Long Lunuk village = strike & dip = horizontal strata; = foliation
Fig. 3. Geology of the upper Mahakam River and its tributaries and location of studied sections. Small inset map shows location Mahakam
river in Borneo. The location of the two logs in Fig. 4a and b, the field photo in Figs 6a, b, c and 8b, and samples KUS148 and KUS150 are
shown. Map based on Pieters et al. (1993a).

with shale. Ripple cross lamination and low amplitude (<2 cm)
current ripples are often present in the top few centimetres
and upon the upper surfaces of sandstone beds. Parallel
laminations are also common within sandstone beds.
Although full Bouma sequences are present, partial Bouma
sequences with either Tabc and Tbcd sub-divisions predominate
(Figs 4a, b and 6a, b, c). Massive ungraded sandstones which
pass up into finer-grained parallel and ripple laminated sand-
stones are common. Normal grading also occurs in many
individual sandstone beds (Fig. 4a and b), and both fining-up
and coarsening-up sequences occur within groups of beds and
within individual outcrops. At locality KUS216 several beds
(40–50 cm thick) of coarse- to medium-grained sandstone at
the base of the outcrop pass up into thinner (5–10 cm) beds of
fine- to medium-grained sandstone over a distance of two
metres, the sequence is repeated several times in the outcrop
(Fig. 6c) with each individual sandstone bed fining up. Amal-
gamated, composite sandstone beds produced by downcutting
of sandstone beds are seen in some sections. Sandstone beds
are composed of coarse- to medium-grained sandstone and are
typically ungraded and structureless. Bouma sequence features
are missing from these amalgamated sandstones.
Siltstone is present as a gradation between the tops of
sandstone beds and shale and as thin, 1–6 cm layers inter-
bedded with shale. More shale-rich sections contain thin,
centimetre thick beds of structureless, sharp-based siltstone
which locally have gradational tops. Irregular siltstone laminae
with internal micro-laminations are also present in the shales.
Disseminated carbonaceous material occurs locally in some
shales.
The sandstone-shale couplets correspond to the C2 facies
class of Pickering et al. (1989) and represent deposition from
turbidity currents (Pickering et al. 1989; Howell & Normark
1982). Amalgamated, structureless sandstone beds correspond
to the B1 facies class of Pickering et al. (1989) representing
rapid suspension collapse of high concentration turbidity
currents. Both these facies classes are consistent with depo-
sition within mid- to outer submarine fan depositional settings.
The shale-siltstone couplets correspond to the D2 facies class
of Pickering et al. (1989) and indicate transport and deposition
from low concentration turbidites or weak bottom currents.
Some of the silt load may have been transported by traction
(Pickering et al. 1989). Coarser grained middle- to upper-fan
channel fill deposits have been reported from localities to the
south of the Sarawak–Kalimantan border and west of the
study area along the Embaluh river (Pieters et al. 1993d, e).
Sedimentary provenance
On average the sandstones have a high quartz content (64%,
Table 1 and Fig. 7) and this argues for deposition adjacent to
or linked to a continental source. Point counts of the total
quartz, lithic and feldspar contents of sandstones from the
Embaluh Group when plotted using the ternary diagram of
Dickinson (1988) and indicate a recycled orogen petrofacies.
Schwab (1986) reviewed sedimentary signatures in foreland
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN 513

Fig. 4. (a) Sedimentary log of 2.7 m of the Embaluh Group at locality KUS207-208, upstream from Long Pahangai village (11441.27 E,
0053.01 N) shown on Fig. 3. Strike and dip at the locality are 020/24SE. KUS210/211. GPS is 1447.51 E, 0059.39 N. (b) Sedimentary log
of 2.7 m of the Embaluh Group at locality KUS210-211, downstream from Long Pahangai village (11447.51 E, 0059.39 N) shown on Fig. 3.
Strike and dip at the locality are 041/53SE.

basin sequences and showed that the early fill of foreland
basins is often characterised by quartz-rich sediment recycled
from older orogens.
Two samples, KUS148 and KUS150 (located on Fig. 3)
underwent zircon fission-track analysis in order to constrain
the ages of the source rocks. The results of the analysis are
contained in Table 2, and the distribution of grain ages are
displayed as radial plots in Fig. 8. Both samples contain grains
that are significantly older than the samples depositional ages,
and have therefore not experienced post-depositional anneal-
ing. Fission-track dating of apatite from the same samples and
other samples from the same formation confirm this (Moss
et al. 1997a, b). The population of grain ages present within
both samples are mixed and therefore require statistical analy-
sis using the methods of Galbraith & Green (1990) and
Sambridge & Compston (1994) to separate the main age
components. Following classification of the grain ages into age
components the central ages were recalculated. The results are
given in Table 2. It can be seen that despite similar initial
central ages, the two samples when further analysed both
contain mixtures of two differing source ages. In sample
KUS148 it can be seen that the majority of grains belong to a
mode at 24113 Ma (Early Triassic, Harland et al. 1990),
with only four grains comprising a minor younger mode at
11712 Ma (Early Cretaceous, Harland et al. 1990). In
sample KUS150 there are two more or less equal populations
of zircon at 31122 Ma (Carboniferous, Harland et al. 1990),
and 18010 Ma (Early Jurassic, Harland et al. 1990). Based
on this limited data we can conclude that zircons from the
Embaluh Group were derived from rocks that annealed during
at least four intervals and several different source blocks were
tapped. The zircon fission-track ages of zircons from these two
Embaluh Group samples from the study area are older than
plutonism in the Schwaner Mountains and therefore these two
sandstones cannot have been sourced from these mountains.
The Triassic component could have been sourced from the
Embuoi and Busang granite and metamorphic complexes to
the south of the Rajang–Embaluh Group (Fig. 2) or possibly
from basement complexes of the Sunda Shelf further to the
west. K–Ar analysis of granites, monzogranites, foliated gran-
ites and metamorphic rocks from the Embuoi and Busang
complexes yield ages ranging from 250–200 Ma (Pieters et al.
1993a, b; Supriatna et al. 1993). The source(s) for all the
sediment in the Rajang–Embaluh Group is not clear,
Hutchison (1989) has previously suggested a proto-Mekong
river system fed the Rajang–Embaluh Group basin. Further
work is in progress on the sandstone provenance in Borneo.
Structural development
Southeasterly dips (Fig. 6a) in the western part of the study
area swing progressively to south-southwest toward the east
514 S. J. MOSS

Table 1. Results of point counting four sandstones (sublitharenites from

Period

Epoch Stage Ma Depositional events Igneous events

Mioc. Aquitanian the Embaluh Group

Sintang
Intrusive
Suite
23.3
Oligocene

U Chattian
Sample Quartz-total Lithics Feldspars Petrofacies

Tertiary basins
29.3

W. Crocker &
L Rupelian

Temburong
Formations
in Sabah
35.4 Kus203 45.9% 50.9% 2.7% Recycled orogen

Engkilili Formation,
U Priabonian
(102) (113) (6)

Nyaan, Piyabung
38.6
Kus207 63.5% 27.7% 8.66% Recycled orogen
Paleogene

acidic volcanics
Bartonian
(110) (48) (15)
Eocene

M 42.1
Sarawak

Lutetian
Kus210 67.5% 27.1% 5.3% Recycled orogen
?
(127) (51) (10)
50
Kus217 79.6% 17.3% 2.9% Recycled orogen
Belaga Formation,

L Ypresian ?
(133) (29) (5)
Rajang Group,

56.5

and dykes, Kerabai volcanics

in Sarawak

Schwaner mountains lavas

U Thanetian
Paleocene

Embaluh Group

The petrofacies groups are those of Dickinson (1988, Fig. 1.3).

Mentareng Formation in NE Kalimantan
60.5
L Danian ? Numbers in parentheses are no. of counts.
65
Maastrichtian Pesinduk granites,
Formation, Rajang Group

74 Kalimantan ultrabasic rocks of the Danau mafic Complex are often seen
Topai, Era,
Layer Mbr of Belaga

tectonically intercalated within the same outcrop with cherts

Lupar Formation &

Campanian
of the Kapuas Complex (Fig. 9c). Reactivation of many of
Senonian

83
(Radiolarian cherts blocks)
Cretaceous

Santonian
the structures seen within the Danau Mafic and Kapuas
in Sarawak
Gulf

Schwaner mountains
Lubok Antu melange

86.5
granites & tonalites

Coniacian
?
Complexes on the northern margins of the Kutai Basin during
88.5 the formation of the basin in the late Mid-Eocene is discussed
130-80 Ma

Turonian
Formation

in Cloke et al. (1997). The Selangkai Formation is for much of

Selangkai
Gallic

Kapuas

90.5
Cherts

Cenomanian
its outcrop a melange with stratal disruption, disharmonic
folding and faulting (Fig. 9d) and scaly clays (Heryanto et al.
Fig. 5. Correlation of depositional and igneous activity in Borneo 1993; Harahap 1995). Within the Semitau Ridge area (Fig. 2)
during the Late Cretaceous–Palaeogene. Horizontal spacing of the the Selangkai Formation is the main component of the ‘Boyan
lines has no significance. Based on references in the text. melange’ (Heryanto et al. 1993; Harahap 1995). A traverse
along the Boyan river revealed a pervasive vertical, east–west-
(Fig. 3). Rajang–Embaluh Group rocks young to the south, trending cleavage within the Boyan melange (Moss 1994),
and abundant way-up structures indicate that beds are not indicative of deformation post-dating melange formation.
overturned (Fig. 3). Local northward dips result from small More regionally extensive and detailed studies of the Semitau
scale (<1 m), east-west trending, upright, open, chevron Ridge indicate at least three phases of deformation within the
folds (Fig. 3). Although Hutchison (1996, p. 251) claims the Boyan melange (Heryanto et al. 1993; Harahap 1995).
Embaluh Group is strongly deformed, with overturned bed-
ding and two phases of folding, none of these features was
observed in the study area (Fig. 9a, b and c). Pieters et al. Thermal and metamorphic history
(1993c, d, e) suggest that the Rajang–Embaluh Group is folded
into a large, symmetrical anticlinorium, upon which are Both in the field and in thin-section no evidence of metamor-
smaller wavelength mesoscopic, close to tight, upright folds, phism is seen (Fig. 6a, b, c and d). Fission-track analysis of
and several phases of folding and deformation locally affecting detrital zircons from samples from the study area (Fig. 3)
the Embaluh Group in Kapuas area. We found only one phase reveal zircon ages (see above and Table 2) which are consid-
of folding throughout the Mahakam river study area, and no erably older than stratigraphic age (see above) and indicate no
evidence of thrust faults or fault-bend folds as might be post-depositional annealing. However fission tracks of apatites
predicted in a subduction complex. from the Embaluh Group along the Mahakam river have
Outcrops of other pre-Tertiary units, the Danau Mafic and been partially to totally annealed (Moss et al. 1997a, b).
Kapuas Complexes and the Selangkai Formation, occur within Temperatures experienced by the rocks are indicated to have
the same geographic area of Rajang–Embaluh Group shown been less than c. 200C but greater than 110–120C (Hurford &
on Fig. 3 (their stratigraphic relationships to the Rajang– Carter 1991). Incipient to low-grade metamorphism of the
Embaluh Group are discussed later). The Danau Mafic and Embaluh Group is suggested by Pieters et al. (1993a–e) from
Kapuas Complexes and the Selangkai Formation are more the growth of secondary chlorite, quartz, sericite and graphite.
deformed than outcrops of the Embaluh Group (Fig. 9a, b, c The Embaluh Group probably occupies the poorly defined
and d). Several phases of both brittle and ductile deformation transitional area between high grade diagenesis and low
are typically seen within outcrops of the Danau Mafic and grade metamorphism, sometimes referred to as the anchizone
Kapuas Complexes (Fig. 9a, b and c). Reactivation and several (Yardley 1989).
periods of movement along shears cutting these units is
indicated by cross-cutting relationships and the presence of
ductile deformation and brittle deformation structures and of Lateral equivalents and stratigraphical relationships
certain deformational fabrics such as S–C fabrics within single In terms of facies and stratigraphic range (Fig. 7b) the
outcrops. Primary bedding is preserved in some of the exten- Embaluh Group correlates with the Rajang Group which out-
sive outcrops of cherts of the Kapuas Complex and indicate crops across the border in Sarawak and with the Mentareng
tight to isoclinal folds (Fig. 9b). Fold axes vary from NE–SW Group of NE Kalimantan (Tate 1991; BRGM 1982; Pieters
to E–W. Outcrops of the Danau Mafic and Kapuas Complexes et al. 1993a–e; Hutchison 1996). Although there is a discrep-
are often closely related spatially such that serpentinized ancy in the thermal history and degree of metamorphic grade
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN 515

Fig. 6. (a) Field shot of south-dipping (110/52S) and younging interbedded sandstones and shales of the Embaluh Group. (b) Close up photo
of a Tabc turbidite sandstone bed encased in shales from the same locality as (a). The sandstone bed is 23 cm thick. (c) Field photo showing a
fining-up sequence within an outcrop of the Embaluh Group. Locality KUS216. GPS is 11459.26 E, 0053.60 N. Strike and dip are 045/16SE.
Person for scale. (d) Photomicrograph of Embaluh Group sublitharenite, several lithic grains including cherts can be seen. Scale bar is 2 mm.
See Fig. 3 for locations of (a), (b) and (c).

between the Embaluh Group and the Belaga Formation of the

= one sample, one Total Quartz Rajang Group, Liechti et al. (1960) and Wolfendon (1960)
hundred counts report lower greenschist-facies metamorphism of Belaga
Formation slates and phyllites in Sarawak, in contrast to the
Recycled unmetamorphosed Embaluh Group in Kalimantan. This does
Continental block orogen
provenances with not negate correlation of the two groups, but instead may
sources on stable show a northward increase in metamorphism and deformation
Increasing
cratons or ratio of of correlative strata. Bénard et al. (1990) had suggested that
uplifted basement oceanic to the Rajang–Embaluh Group was continuous with both the
continental East and West Crocker Formation as a single Rajang–Crocker
materials
Group. As Haile (1992) and Hutchison (1992) pointed out this
interpretation is erroneous. The Rajang–Embaluh Group is
equivalent to the East Crocker Formation but is unconform-
Magmatic arc ably overlain by the West Crocker Formation (Haile 1992;
provenances Hutchison 1992, 1996).
Pieters et al. (1993e) recognized an angular unconformity
between the Embaluh Group turbidites and melange units
containing cherts and basic/ultrabasic rocks in the Nangaobat
Total Monocrystalline Total Lithics
feldspar
area, to the west of the study area. Chert and ultrabasic clasts
were also recognized within the Mentareng Group turbidites
Fig. 7. A triangular plot showing the point count data for (BRGM 1982), a lateral equivalent of the Rajang–Embaluh
Emabaluh Group sandstones. Provenance fields based upon Group, and in the Rajang–Embaluh Group of the study area.
Dickinson (1988). The differences in age between the Kapuas Complex cherts in
516 S. J. MOSS

Table 2. Zircon fission track analysis results

Age
Dosimeter Spontaneous Induced dispersion
Lattitude Longitude No. of Age1ó
Field no. N E crystals ïd Nd ïs Ns ïi Ni P (÷2) % (Ma)

KUS 150 0042.36 11505.32 30 0.412 2857 10.75 4620 1.285 552 0 25.8 21814
Age mode A 16 0.412 2857 1.56 2810 2.242 404 96 0 18010
Age mode B 13 0.412 2857 16.42 2753 1.348 226 99 0 31122
KUS 148 0042.66 11503.92 35 0.412 2857 16.11 5941 1.926 710 0 25.6 21214
Age mode A 4 0.412 2857 11.86 526 2.638 117 84 0 11712
Age mode B 31 0.412 2857 10.63 4094 1.129 435 63 7.9 24113

The zircon fission track dating technique is detailed in Hurford & Carter (1991).
(i) Track densities are (106 tr cm
2).
(ii) Analyses by external detector method using 0.5 for the 4ð/2ð geometry correction factor.
(iii) Ages calculated using dosimeter glass CN-2 (zircon); analyst Carter; æCN2=1275 multiple analyses of IUGS apatite and zircon age standards (see
Hurford 1990).
(iv) Dispersion of single-crystal ages given by P(÷2) (probability of obtaining ÷2 value for v degrees of freedom, where v=no. crystals
1) and %
variance.
(v) Central age is a modal age, weighted for different precisions of individual crystals (see Galbraith 1992).
(vi) Extraction of component ages using the procedures of Galbraith (1992) and Sambridge and Compston (1995).

Fig. 8. Radial plots of the zircon fission

track data for samples KUS148 and
KUS150. The data is discussed in the
text.

Kalimantan and Rajang–Embaluh Group turbidites (see Fig.
5), the differences in the structural style of the Danau Mafic
and Kapuas Complexes and the presence of mafic and chert
clasts within Rajang–Embaluh Group turbidites suggest that
there is an unconformity between the Rajang–Embaluh
Group and the older Danau Mafic and Kapuas Complexes.
The Danau Mafic and Kapuas Complexes are also uncon-
formably overlain by Selangkai Formation (Pieters et al.
1993b). Many of the contacts between pre-Tertiary and
Tertiary units in Borneo are often difficult to decipher as they
have often been overprinted, possibly in response to counter-
clockwise rotation of the island (Moss et al. 1997a). Pieters
et al. (1993d) reported many of the contacts appear to have
been faulted and tectonically altered often producing chaotic
zones at the contact. The relationships noted above lead the
author to conclude that the basement rocks beneath the
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN 517

Fig. 9. (a) Field photo of a NW–SE trending sinistral ductile shear zone within polyphase deformed ultrabasics of the Danau Mafic Complex.
Several phases of shearing are suggested by numerous cross-cutting relationships. Locality KUS236, Tabang river. GPS is 11556.02 E,
0038.41 N. Pen for scale, pen top points toward the SE. (b) Tight to isoclinal folded red cherts of the Kapuas Complex. The folds are
orientated NE–SW. Although not visible on this photo two cleavage directions are recognized within the outcrop with transposition of quartz
veins into parallelism with the younger of the two cleavages. Locality KUS279. GPS is 1647.31 E, 0127.31 N. (c) Field photo showing the
close relationship between the Kapuas Complex cherts and ultrabasic units of the Danau Mafic complex. Tightly folded antiform of
porcelaneous chert indicated by person, enclosed within serpentinite. Locality KUS278, 11703.41 E, 0131.44 N. (d) Disharmonically folded
and faulted shales and well-sorted, calcareous quartz arenites of the Selangkai Formation. Locality KUS226, Alan river, 11512.79 E,
0037.31 N. See Fig. 3 for location.

Rajang–Embaluh Group are the deformed cherts, siliceous
mudstones and ophiolitic rocks of the Kapuas and Lubok
Antu melanges and Danau and Pakong Mafic complexes
respectively, indicating that the Rajang–Embaluh Group
was deposited upon oceanic crust. Wain & Berod (1989)
have already suggested that vast areas of the Kutai Basin to
the southeast of the Rajang–Embaluh Group is floored by
oceanic crust on the basis of geophysical data.
Gently dipping Middle Eocene sandstones and conglomer-
ates on the NW edge of the Kutai Basin overlie the Embaluh
Group (Fig. 3). From the discordance in dip an angular
unconformity is interpreted to exist between the Embaluh
Group and the Middle Eocene rocks, although the contact is
not exposed. Wain & Berod (1989) have described the same
unconformity from seismic data across the northwest corner of
the Kutai Basin. In northeastern Kalimantan Middle to Upper
Eocene Sebuku Formation conglomerates and carbonates like-
wise rest with marked angular unconformity upon folded
Mentareng Formation turbidites (BRGM 1982).
Comparison of the Rajang–Embaluh Group with
turbiditic rocks in Sabah
Turbiditic rocks also outcrop in Sabah (Fig. 1), although
the stratigraphy of these units is not so clear. Hutchison
(1996) shows ?Eocene to Lower Miocene West Crocker and
Temburong Formations resting unconformably on top of
the Upper Cretaceous to Lower Eocene East Crocker and
Trusmadi Formations. Tongkul (1990, 1991, 1994) in a differ-
ent litho-stratigraphy for NW Sabah draws no distinction
between East and West Crocker Formations which he calls
simply the Crocker Formation. The Crocker Formation and
associated Kudat Formation are suggested to be late Mid-
Eocene to Early Miocene in age and in northwest Sabah rest
unconformably upon the Chert–Spillite Complex (Tongkul
1990, 1991, 1994). The structure of this unit is complex
(Hamilton 1979; Tongkul 1990, 1991, 1994) and includes
diapirism, north vergence of thrusts, stratigraphic repetition
and thrust imbrication, slaty cleavage, overturned beds and
518 S. J. MOSS
recumbent folds, stratal disruption and tight asymmetric
folding (Tongkul 1990, 1991, 1994). Three phases of tectonism
affected northwest Sabah during the Tertiary (Tongkul 1994).
The first of these was in the Eocene and is manifested by
extensional structures and the formation of a northeast-
southwest trending basin in which the Crocker and Kudat
rocks accumulated. The second and third deformation phases
are associated with NW–SE- and N–S-orientated shortening
respectively. These two latter phases occurred in the Late
Oligocene to early mid-Miocene and were responsible for
imbricating, deforming and gradually uplifting basement
Chert–Spillite Complex units as well as Crocker and Kudat
rocks. Rangin et al. (1990), based on field observations in
Sabah, observed no evidence for continuous deformation
during the Palaeogene, as could have been expected if the area
was an accretionary wedge during this period.
Tectonic setting of the Rajang–Embaluh Group
Previous interpretations of Rajang–Embaluh Group
rocks
Two previous interpretations of the setting in which the
Rajang–Embaluh Group was deposited suggest either (1)
subduction of a large proto-South China Sea along the
northwest margin of Borneo through most of the Late
Cretaceous, Palaeogene and parts of the Neogene (accretion-
ary complex model); or (2) subduction ending in the Late
Cretaceous with (micro?) continental collision, followed by
erosion of the orogen, deposition of the Rajang–Embaluh
Group and later Oligocene–Miocene subduction offshore
northwest Sabah of a much smaller proto-South China Sea
(peripheral foreland basin model). The Rajang–Embaluh
Group has previously been interpreted as part of an accre-
tionary complex and subduction trench-fill formed during the
southward-dipping subduction of oceanic crust along the
northwestern margin of Borneo in the Early Tertiary (Bénard
et al. 1990; Haile 1968, 1974, 1994; Hamilton 1979; Holloway
1981; Hutchison 1973, 1989, 1991, 1996; Katili 1971, 1973;
Lee & Lawver, 1994; 1995; Williams et al. 1988, 1989). It is
invariably ascribed to subduction of a large proto-South
China Sea, with the Schwaner Mountain granites marking
the position of the former volcanic arc. This interpretation is
based on the turbiditic nature of the rocks, their style of
deformation and metamorphism in Sarawak, the presence of
the Lubok Antu melange and the northerly younging of the
Rajang Group turbidites in Sarawak (Fig. 2). It should be
noted that the many of the above studies were not based
upon the results of systematic fieldwork and study of the
Rajang–Embaluh Group and many of the recent references
have been primarily based upon earlier work, particularly
that of Hamilton (1979). The foreland basin model has been
less widely publicised and has only been tentatively proposed
by Pieters et al. (1993a–e) and Pieters & Sanyoto (1993) in a
series of maps produced by reconnaissance level mapping by
the Indonesian and Australian geological surveys.
The evidence for and against these interpretations is now
considered in more detail, and a third scenario, which explains
the field observations, is proposed. Before considering the
accretionary complex interpretation, it is useful to reiterate
some of the key characteristics which might be expected in
this setting.
Sedimentary and structural features within accretionary
complexes
Excellent descriptions of the sedimentation and structural
patterns in modern and ancient accretionary complexes are
given in Charvet & Ogawa (1994), Pickering et al. (1989) and
Underwood & Moore (1995). Sedimentation sites include
trench-slope basins ponded by tectonic ridges, the slope apron,
the outer trench slope and the trench axial zone (Underwood
& Moore 1995). Criteria required to support the accretionary
complex interpretation of the Rajang–Embaluh Group would
include: (1) the presence of southward dipping thrusts, in
which the stratigraphy in each thrust slice youngs to the south
but with general younging across the whole belt to the north as
a result of progessive incorporation of younger strata at the tip
of the orogenic wedge; (2) northward vergence of structures;
(3) the presence of a complete arc–trench system which can be
mapped out and reconstructed (allowing for tectonic disrup-
tion); (4) the presence of features recognised in modern and
ancient accretionary complexes, including polyphase folding
and faulting, tight asymmetric folding, overturning of beds,
microfaults, stratal disruption, increased shearing towards
contacts, cataclastic fabrics, scaly fabrics, vein structures, kink
bands and mud diapirism. Spilites and oceanic cherts are also
to be expected. Blueschists and high-pressure/low-temperature
metamorphic assemblages are suggested to form within the
basal part of subduction complexes and may eventually be
uplifted and exhumed to outcrop at the surface (Platt 1986).
Ancient subduction complexes are characterized at all struc-
tural levels and at all scales by a broad spectrum of defor-
mation styles reflecting the effects of various deformation
mechanisms and complicated polyphase deformation histories
(Charvet & Ogawa 1994; Underwood & Moore 1995). Gradual
coarsening-up and thickening-up of depositional systems as a
result of progressive uplift and shoaling may be useful for
identifying trench-slope basins (Underwood & Moore 1995).
Sedimentary provenance or petrofacies may also be used to
characterize tectonic settings such as subduction complexes
(Dickinson 1988), although as Underwood & Moore (1995)
point out assumptions regarding sediment provenance and
dispersal pathways within subduction zones are seldom valid.
The Rajang–Embaluh Group accretionary complex?
The actual sedimentary evidence for the Rajang–Embaluh
Group being part of an accretionary complex, and the relative
location of the rocks within an accretionary complex has not
been explored by previous authors (Bénard et al. 1990; Haile
1968, 1974, 1994; Hamilton 1979; Holloway 1981; Hutchison
1973, 1989, 1991, 1996; Katili 1971, 1973; Lee & Lawver 1994;
1995; Williams et al. 1988, 1989). No-one has yet demonstrated
coarsening-up, thickening-up, progressive uplift and shoaling
within the Rajang–Embaluh Group, criteria which might
usefully be used to identify deposition within an accretionary
complex.
Further evidence against an accretionary complex setting for
these rocks includes the lack of south dipping thrusts, the lack
of evidence for overall younging of supposedly offscraped
tracts in a northerly direction in Kalimantan where a south-
ward stratigraphic younging direction is dominant and lack
of marked deformation and, more significantly, a lack of
deformational structures and low temperature/high pressure
metamorphism characteristic of accretionary complexes. On
the basis of facing criteria the Embaluh Group turbidites of
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN
Kalimantan young to the south (this study and Pieters et al.
1993a–e) and not to the north. Although this is insufficient in
itself without further biostratigraphic data to dispel the idea of
northerly younging tracts, the presence of Palaeocene to
(?)Middle Eocene foraminifera (Ter Bruggen 1935; Cartier
& Yeats 1973) in some sections of the Embaluh Group in
Kalimantan does not fit with idea that the entire Rajang–
Embaluh Group youngs to the north which is often used as an
argument in favour of the accretionary complex model. Small-
scale features typical of accretionary complexes, including
microfaults, stratal disruption, cataclastic fabrics, scaly fabrics,
vein structures, kink bands and mud diapirism (Charvet &
Ogawa 1994; Pickering et al. 1989; Underwood & Moore 1995)
are not seen in the Embaluh Group. Bénard et al. (1990)
suggested the presence of north directed thrusts in Sarawak on
the basis of morphological criteria of LANDSAT images at a
scale of 1:1 000 000. The presence of thrusts is however not
conclusive proof of an accretionary prism origin as other
tectonic settings such as foreland basins may also contain
thrusts. The LANDSAT images, such as those shown in
Bénard et al. (1990), are difficult to interpret in the tropics due
to cloud cover and heavy vegetation. Since no LANDSAT
images from Sarawak are reproduced in Bénard et al. (1990)
assessing the reliability of their structural map (their Fig. 3) is
not easy. The thrusts they show have yet to be verified by field
work. There is therefore some doubt concerning the validity of
the interpretation of south-dipping thrust faults and stratal
imbrication in Sarawak since it has yet to be fully documented.
The structural details and interpretation by Pieters et al.
(1993a–e) and the author are indicative of a basin that was
shortened in a north–south to northwest–southeast direction
from both sides after deposition of the Rajang–Embaluh Group.
Proponents of the accretionary complex model suggest that
the Selangkai Formation is the fore-arc basin to the Rajang–
Embaluh Group accretionary complex (Hutchison 1996, fig.
2). The Selengkai Formation therefore should be younger or
the same age as the Embaluh Group as it would have been
deposited on the arc-side of the Rajang–Embaluh Group
accretionary complex. However the Selangkai Formation is
Valanginian to Cenomanian in age (Heryanto et al. 1993;
Moss & Finch 1997) and the Embaluh Group is Santonian
(Late Cretaceous) to Palaeocene/possibly Early Eocene
(Pieters et al. 1993a, c; Moss & Finch 1997). Recent hydro-
carbon exploration in the Melawi Basin of West Kalimantan
indicates that the Selangkai Formation is of Early Cretaceous
age and unconformably overlain by low energy shelfal deposits
of Late Cretaceous to Paleocene age (D. Winter pers. comm.
1996). The Schwaner Mountains granites were intruded by the
Early Campanian (Amirruddin 1989; Amirruddin & Trail
1993; Keyser & Rustandi 1993; Pieters & Sanyoto 1993) and
the next major phase of magmatism occurred during the Late
Oligocene to Miocene with the Sintang Intrusive Suite (see Fig.
5) although this unlikely to be arc-related (Tanean et al. 1996;
Moss et al. 1997b). Thus the Rajang–Embaluh Group was
deposited during a period when there was no demonstratable
arc-related volcanicity and a complete arc-trench system can-
not be reconstructed for the Rajang–Embaluh Group. The
presence of small S-type granite plutons north of the Schwaner
Mountains, cropping out in the same area as the Embaluh
Group (Figs 2 & 3), and the overlap between emplacement of
these plutons and deposition of the Embaluh Group does not
conform with the accretionary complex model where granites
would be predicted to be located further to the south within
the volcanic arc.
519
Differences in deformation experienced by the Embaluh
Group and the basic/ultrabasic rocks of the Danau Complex
and the cherts and spillites of the Kapuas Complexes suggest
an unconformity between the Rajang–Embaluh Group and
these two complexes. This is supported by the presence in
Embaluh Group rocks of clasts of chert and basic/ultrabasic
rocks (BRGM 1982; Pieters et al. 1993c) (Fig. 6d), indi-
cating possible erosion and derivation from the Danau and
Kapuas Complexes. The Danau and Kapuas Complexes are
unlikely to have supplied detritus to the Rajang–Embaluh
Group if the latter formed within an accretionary complex in
which the Danau and Kapuas Complexes were also being
imbricated.
An Eocene timing for the end of subduction was based upon
the dating of limestones (Engkilili Formation) in the south part
of the Lubok Antu melange (Fig. 2) that apparently con-
strained the timing of the end of subduction in the Late Eocene
(Tan 1982; Hutchison 1989, 1996). These limestones, recently
re-dated as Middle Eocene (Jasin & Ahmad 1995), are now
known to rest unconformably on the melange (Haile, in press),
which therefore must have formed earlier. The melange con-
tains radiolarian cherts, of which the youngest is Cenomanian
in age (Jasin 1996), i.e. older than the Embaluh Group. The
presence of lavas of the Nyaan Volcanics radiometrically dated
at 48.60.5 Ma (Pieters et al. 1993a) and the Middle Eocene
rocks of the Kutai Basin, both unconformable upon the
Embaluh Group, preclude any involvement of Rajang–
Embaluh Group turbidites in middle Eocene or younger
subduction or deformation.
The Rajang–Embaluh Group foreland basin
Pieters et al. (1993a–e) and Pieters & Sanyoto (1993) tenta-
tively suggested an alternative model for the Embaluh Group
of Kalimantan, with deposition in a large, foreland basin
related to collision of a micro-continental block(s) (essentially
Sarawak) and subsequent loading, in the mid-Cretaceous.
S-type granites in Kalimantan near and within the Embaluh
Group outcrop both predate and overlap in age with the
Embaluh Group and may have developed in response to
overthickening of the crust, whilst a deep basin, centred on the
downflexed southern margin of the northern microcontinent
formed through flexure. Pieters et al. interpreted these as
granitic melts formed near the suture after collision had
occurred, in response to overthickening of the crust. Problems
with this model are the lack of an identifiable load and thrust
belt to form the foreland basin and the lack of isostatic uplift
of the area of inferred crustal thickening and granite gener-
ation (the belt of small granite plutons north of the Schwaner
Mountains).
Comparison to other extensive turbidite units with
orogenic belts
Several older orogenic belts, including the Palaeozoic Lachlan
fold belt in southeast Australia, show many similarities to the
present-day Rajang-Embaluh belt (Ferguson & Glen 1992;
Ferguson & Coney 1992). The Lachlan fold belt comprises
three litho-tectonic units, which mirror those in Borneo. The
oldest unit in the Lachlan fold belt consists of Cambrian mafic
volcanic and sedimentary rocks of oceanic affinity, to which
the Borneo equivalent would be the Jurassic–Early Cretaceous
oceanic crust type rocks and Radiolarian chert bearing
520 S. J. MOSS
melange zones. The second Lachlan fold belt unit is an
Ordovician to lower Silurian deep-marine succession inter-
preted as representing a huge submarine turbidite fan (Coney
1992; Ferguson & Coney 1992), broadly analogous to the
Rajang–Embaluh Group turbidites of Borneo. The third and
final litho-tectonic unit in the Lachlan fold belt is a complex
unit of middle Silurian to lower Carboniferous clastic, carbon-
ate, volcanic and plutonic rocks. This unit is comparable to the
middle Eocene to Recent clastic and carbonate sedimentary
rocks, volcanic and intrusive rocks of Borneo. Ordovician to
lower Silurian turbidites of the Lachlan foldbelt range up to
4 km thick, over an area of 1.2106 km2 (Ferguson & Coney
1992) making them equivalent to the modern day Bengal and
Indus fans. To deposit such a thick and extensive unit on
normal 35 km thick continental crust is viewed as unlikely, and
the Lachlan turbidites were probably deposited on either thick
oceanic crust or ‘quasi-continental’ crust (Coney 1992) or the
continental rise (Ferguson & Coney 1992). The Ouchita-
Marathon belt on the southern margin of north America is
another Palaeozoic example of a thick turbidite sequence
deposited upon oceanic crust (Ingersoll et al. 1995) within a
remnant oceanic basin which was subsequently highly de-
formed. These occurrences of thick turbidite successions in
ancient orogenic belts suggest an alternative setting for the
Rajang–Embaluh Group turbidites which is now expanded in
more detail.
An alternative model: the Rajang–Embaluh Group as the
fill to a remnant ocean basin
The new interpretation evokes a remnant oceanic basin setting
located forward of a magmatic arc, with the Rajang–Embaluh
Group representing deposition on a large submarine fan,
similar to but probably smaller than the modern-day Bengal
fan. The submarine fan was fed by an extensive river system, a
proto-Mekong river, draining Indochina and the Sunda Shelf
and was underlain by a substrate of already deformed oceanic
crust. This basin was closed in the Palaeocene/Early Eocene
and subsequently deformed into a large anticlinorium by the
mid-Eocene, predated the extrusion of Nyaan Volcanics and
formation of the overlying Tertiary basins (Moss et al. 1997a,
Fig. 10a, b & c). This explains the absence of stratigraphic
repetition expected by the inferred presence of south-dipping
thrusts, southward younging of the Embaluh Group in
Kalimantan, northward younging of the Rajang Group in
Sarawak, marked discrepancy in deformation between the
Embaluh Group and the melange zones, chert and basic/
ultrabasic rocks, and inferred unconformity between the two.
Provenance studies suggest deposition of the Embaluh–Rajang
Group rocks occurred in a large post-collisional basin sourced
from a recycled orogen suggesting a continental source.
The proposed change in interpretation from accretionary
prism to a remnant ocean basin changes the regional tectonic
setting from subduction along the northwest margin of
Borneo through most of the Late Cretaceous, Paleogene
and parts of the Neogene to subduction ending in the Late
Cretaceous, followed by deposition of a thick sedimentary fill
upon a substrate of previously deformed oceanic crust. Later
Neogene subduction occurred offshore northwest Sabah. This
fundamental change has far-reaching implications not only
for academic purposes of plate reconstruction, but also for
the thermal and tectonic history of natural resources in the
region.
A simple evolutionary scenario for the Rajang–Embaluh
Group is shown in Fig. 10a, b and c. Mid- to Early
Late-Cretaceous event stopped subduction and caused thick
turbidite sequences to be deposited upon deformed oceanic
crust. The nature of this event is unclear; one possibility is that
collision or impingement occurred between two micro-
continental fragments, Kalimantan to the south and part of
the Sunda craton and Sarawak-Luconia Shoals to the north
(Fig. 10a). This collision may have trapped oceanic crust
within a continental embayment between two continental
crustal blocks, if the oceanic crust was relatively young in age
subduction of this trapped crust may have not been possible.
Another possibility is that a change in plate boundary
character was brought about by changes in global plate
motions (R. Hall, pers. comm. 1997) and led to a piece of
oceanic crust being trapped. The discrepancy in deformation
between the oceanic crustal rocks (mafics, ultramafics and
cherts) and the Rajang–Embaluh Group suggests the former
was deformed prior to the deposition of the Rajang–Embaluh
Group. The Early to Mid-Cretaceous Selangkai Formation is
interpreted as a forearc deposit formed prior to the collision of
a micro-continental block in mid-Cretaceous times, explaining
why much of this formation is melange and broken formation,
a common feature of forearc/accretionary complexes (Charvet
& Ogawa 1994). The Late Cretaceous to Palaeocene low
energy shelfal deposits unconformably overlying the Selangkai
Formation in the Melawi Basin could well be the shallow
marine lateral equivalents of the Embaluh Group. The
Schwaner Mountains still represent a volcano-plutonic arc
with the Selangkai Formation to the north as a subduction
complex-forearc basin. The presence of Late Cretaceous S-type
granites north of the Schwaner Mountains is less easy to
explain, especially since these overlap in age with the time
range for the deposition of the Rajang–Embaluh Group and
intrude the part of the Rajang–Embaluh Group. One sugges-
tion is that slab roll back occurred in the Turonian (Tim
Lawton pers. comm. 1997) causing a belt of granites north of
the Schwaner Mountains to form. The remnant ocean basin
was closed and deformed into a large anticlinorium by the start
of the Mid-Eocene (Fig. 10b). More detailed geochemistry
and radiometric dating is required on these granitic rocks.
Although equivocal, Tertiary counter-clockwise and/or any
rotation of Borneo will have disrupted many of the original
contacts (Fuller et al. 1991; Lumadyo et al. 1993; Moss et al.
1997a). Counter-clockwise rotation during the Tertiary makes
the limited palaeocurrent data and the sandstone composition
data more understandable and makes the proto-Mekong river
drainage system more plausible (Fig. 10b).
Northward increase in deformation and metamorphism of
the Rajang–Embaluh Group may be related to the collision
of South China-derived fragments with closure of the proto-
South China Sea (Fig. 1). The Chert–Spillite complex of
Palawan-Sabah and the imbricated Crocker and Kudat
Formations represent an accretionary complex formed during
that subduction event (Tongkul 1990, 1991, 1994). In compari-
son to the older Embaluh Group rocks of the study area, the
Crocker and Kudat Formations, show many of the features
indicative of deformation in an accretionary complex: thrust
imbrication of turbiditic sands, tight asymmetric folding and
a marked northward vergence (Tongkul 1990). On the other
hand the accretionary complex model does not appear to be
substantiated by the geological evidence from Rajang–
Embaluh Group rocks. The closure of the proto-South China
Sea was driven by the opening of the South China Sea in
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN 521

Fig. 10. (a) Palaeogeographic map for the Mid-Cretaceous. In this and Fig. 8b Borneo is shown with c. 44 of counter-clockwise rotation
removed based on the plate reconstructions of Hall (1996). A–A is approximate line of section in (c). (b) Palaeogeographic map for the
Mid-Eocene. (c) Plate-tectonic cross-sections for the Cretaceous to Eocene, line of section is roughly north–south. Modified from Pieters et al.
(1993a). The upper section shows south directed subduction; and formation of a subduction/accretionary complex. The lower section shows
possible collision (not shown in line of section) leads deformation of oceanic crust and chert and trapping of oceanic crust. Possible slab roll
back produces granitic melts north of the Schwaner Mountains. Turbidites (Embaluh–Rajang Group strata) from proto-Mekong river and
sediment derived from Indochina and the Sunda Shelf are deposited within a trapped remnant oceanic basin upon a substrate of deformed
oceanic crust (basic/ultrabasic rocks and chert). The ocean crust is possibly trapped between two continents which continue to impinge upon
each other with counter-clockwise rotation of Borneo causing uplift, deformation and progressive closure of the basin in a northwest direction.
522 S. J. MOSS
the Oligo-Miocene (c. 32–14 Ma; Briais et al. 1989, 1993).
The Late Oligocene to mid-Miocene accretionary prism this
subduction phase is represented by the West Crocker Forma-
tion (Tongkul 1990, 1991, 1994; Tan & Lamy 1990; Fig. 10b).
The Sabah Trough (Figs 1 & 10b) may be the foredeep created
by collision between the Dangerous Grounds Region and
northwest Sabah following closure of the proto-South China
Sea (Milsom et al. 1997). This trough is terminated at its
southwest end by the northwest–southeast-trending West
Baram/Tinjar fault line (Fig. 2). The Luconia Shoals (Figs 1
and 10a, b) are therefore continuous with Sarawak, although
submerged below sea level. This is supported by all available
geophysical and geological data in which there is no evidence
for a trench or palaeo-trench between the Luconia Shoals and
mainland Sarawak.
It should be borne in mind that much of the above discus-
sion and interpretation of the Rajang–Embaluh Group is
based on long-distance correlation, in an arcuate and non-
uniform orogenic belt such as the Rajang–Embaluh. There-
fore, there exist possibilities for mis-correlation; however it is
hoped that this work will stimulate further investigations into
the Rajang–Embaluh belt, the geology of Borneo and also into
thick turbidite sequences in orogenic belts and the role they
play in the growth of continental crust. The interpretation of
an oceanic crust substrate for deposition of the Rajang–
Embaluh Group is also central to the remnant ocean basin
model. Given the abundance of layered gabbros, serpentinites,
harzburgites, cherts etc and the absence of continental-style
crustal material and the evidence from hydrocarbon explor-
ation (Wain & Berod 1989) an oceanic crust basement for the
Rajang–Embaluh Group seems justified.
Conclusions
The Rajang–Embaluh Group of Sarawak–Kalimantan is re-
interpreted as the fill of a remnant oceanic basin created by the
deposition of an extensive Santonian-Paleocene submarine fan
upon oceanic crust. Dispersal was eastwards in present-day
coordinates, southeast to south in Palaeogene coordinates
(assuming provisional palaeomagnetic for counter-clockwise
rotations are accepted). Provenance studies suggest that the
sands were derived from a recycled orogen and fission-track
dating of zircons from the Embaluh Group suggest they derive
from rocks that have zircon fission-track ages of 24013 Ma,
11712 Ma (minor), 31122 Ma, and 18010 Ma. A rem-
nant ocean basin setting for the Rajang–Embaluh Group is in
accord with the geological data assembled to date and is
consistent with observations in other orogenic belts (e.g.
Palaeozoic Lachlan Foldbelt of SE Australia and the Ouchita–
Marathon belt of the southern USA, both of which formed in
a similar manner with the closure of a remnant ocean basin).
The known features of the Rajang–Embaluh Group (discussed
above) are inconsistent with either an accretionary complex or
a foreland basin model. The Rajang–Embaluh Group lacks
the deformational features consistent with an accretionary
complex origin and deposition postdates subduction-related
magmatism.
Funding from the Southeast Asia Consortium (Arco, Canadian
Petroleum, Exxon, LASMO, Mobil and Union Texas) is
acknowledged. I. Bahar, the Director of the Geological Research
and Development Centre, Bandung, Indonesia, is gratefully
acknowledged for his help and assistance in the organisation of
this project. Dharma Satria Nas, Amirruddin, H. Panggabean and
I. Cloke are thanked for their help and friendship in the field. A.
Carter is thanked for his help with the zircon fission-track dating
of samples. T. Barber, P. Cawood, C. Elders, N. Haile, N. Harbury,
C. Hutchison, M. Keep, J. Milsom, G. Nichols, D. Winter and JGS
editor P. Haughton are thanked for discussing and commenting
upon aspects of this work. R. Hall and T. Lawton deserve a special
thanks for their incisive and instructive comments on this work. Any
remaining errors are those of the author.
References
A 1989. The Preliminary Study of the Granitic rocks of West
Kalimantan, Indonesia. MSc thesis Wollonggong University, Australia
(Project B-geol. 951).
—— & T, D.S. 1993. Geology of the Nangpinoh Sheet Area, Geological
Research and Development Centre, Bandung.
B́, F., M, C., L, J., R, C. & T, S. 1990. Evidence
of multistage deformation in the Rajang-Crocker Range (northern Borneo)
from Landsat imagery interpretation: geodynamic implications. Tectono-
physics, 183, 321–339.
BRGM 1982. Geological Mapping and Mineral Exploration in Northeast
Kalimantan, 1979–1982. Final Report. Report du Bureau de Recherches
Géologiques et Minières, Orléans, France, 82 RDM 007 AO.
B, A., T, P. & P, G. 1989. Constraints of Sea Beam data on
crustal fabrics and sea floor spreading in the South China Sea. Earth
Planetary Science Letters, 95, 307–320.
——, P, P. & T, P. 1993. Updated interpretation of magnetic
anomalies and sea-floor spreading stages in the South China Sea: implica-
tions for the Tertiary tectonics of Southeast Asia. Journal of Geophysical
Research, 98, 6299–6328.
C, E.G. & Y, A.K. 1973. The Lower Tertiary in Kaltim Shell Contract
area, East Kalimantan. Results of 1972–1973 Field Surveys. Kaltim Shell
Balikpapan.
C, J. & O, Y. 1994. Arc-trench tectonics. In: H, P. (ed.)
Continental Deformation. Pergamon Press, Oxford, 180–199.
C, I.R., M, S.J. & C, J. 1997. The influence of basement reactivation
on the extensional and inversional history of the Kutai Basin, Eastern
Kalimantan. Journal of Geological Society, London, 154, 157–161.
C, P.J. 1992. The Lachlan belt of eastern Australia and Circum-Pacific
tectonic-evolution. Tectonophysics, 214, 1–25.
D, W.R. 1988. Provenance and sediment dispersal in relation to
paleotectonics and paleogeography of sedimentary basins. In: K,
K.L. & P, C. (eds) New Perspectives in Basin Analysis. Frontiers in
Sedimentary Geology, Springer-Verlag, New York, 3–25.
—— 1995. Forearc Basins. In: B, C.J. & I, R.V. (eds) Tectonics of
Sedimentary Basins. Blackwell Science, Oxford, 221–261
F, C.L. & C, P.J. 1992. Implications of a Bengal Fan-type deposit
in the Palaeozoic Lachlan fold belt of southeastern Australia. Geology, 20,
1047–1049.
—— & G, R.A. (eds) 1992. The Palaeozoic eastern margin of Gondwana-
land: tectonics of the Lachlan fold belt, Southeastern Australia and related
orogens. Tectonophysics, Special Issue, 214.
F, M., H, R., L, J.-L., R, B., S, E. & A, J.
1991. Tertiary palaeomagnetism of regions around the South China Sea.
Journal of Southeast Asian Earth Sciences, 6, 161–184.
G, R.F. & G, P.F. 1990. Estimating the component ages in a finite
mixture. Nuclear Tracks Radiation Measurement, 17, 197–206.
H, N.S. 1968. Geosynclinal theory and organization pattern of the N.W
Borneo Geosyncline. Quarterly Journal of Geological Society of London,
124, 171–195.
—— 1974. Borneo. In: S, A.M. (ed.) Mesozoic–Cainozoic Orogenic Belts:
Data for Orogenic Studies. Geological Society, London, Special Publica-
tions, 4, 333–347.
—— 1992. Evidence of multiphase deformation in the Rajang-Crocker Range
(northern Borneo) from Landsat imagery interpretation: geodynamic
implications—Comment (2). Tectonophysics, 204, 1–2, 178–180.
—— 1994. The Rajang accretionary prism and the Trans-Borneo Danau suture
In: Tectonic Evolution of SE Asia. Conference abstract volume, London
December 7–8 1994, 17.
—— In press. Note on the Engkili Formation and the age of the Lubok Antu
Melange, West Sarawak, Malaysia. Warta Geologi.
 EMBALUH GROUP TURBIDITES, KALIMANTAN
H, R. 1996. Reconstructing Cenozoic SE Asia. In: H R. & B,
D.J. (eds) Tectonic Evolution of SE Asia. Geological Society, London,
Special Publications, 106, 153–184
H, W. 1979. Tectonics of the Indonesian region. USGS Professional
Paper, 1078.
H, B.H. 1995. The Boyan melange West Kalimantan origin and tectonic
environment. Bulletin of the Geological Research and Development Centre,
Indonesia, 18, 1–21.
H, W.B., A, R.L., C, A.V., C, L.E., S, A.G. &
S, D.G. 1990. A Geologic Time Scale 1989. Second Edition, Cambridge
University Press.
H, R., W, P.R., H, B.H. & P, P.E. 1993. Geology
of the Sintang sheet area, Kalimantan, 1:250 000. Geological Research and
Development Centre, Bandung, Indonesia.
H, N.H. 1981. The stratigraphy and relationship of Reed Bank, north
Palawan, and Mindoro to the Asian mainland and its significance in the
evolution of the South China Sea. American Association of Petroleum
Geologists Bulletin, 66, 1355–1383.
H, D.G. & N, W.R. 1982. Submarine Fans. In: S, P.A.
& S, D. (eds) Sandstone Depositional Environments. American
Association of Petroleum Geologists Memoirs, 31, 365–404
H, A.J. 1990. Standardization of fission-track dating calibration: recom-
mendation by the Fission Track Working Group of the I.U.G.S Sub-
commission on Geochronology. Chemical Geology Isotope Section, 80,
171–178.
—— & C, A. 1991. The role of fission track dating in discrimination of
provenance. In: M, A.C., T, S.P. & H, P.D.W. (eds)
Developments in Sedimentary Provenance Studies. Geological Society,
London, Special Publications, 57, 67–78.
H, C.S. 1973. Tectonic evolution of Sundaland: a Phanerozoic syn-
thesis. Geological Society of Malaysia Bulletin, 6, 61–86.
—— 1989. Geological evolution of South-East Asia. Oxford Monograph on
Geology and Geophysics 13, Oxford University Press.
—— (ed.) 1991. Studies in East Asian Tectonics and Resources (SEATAR)
Crustal Transect VII: Jawa-Kalimantan-Sarawak-South China Sea. CCOP
Technical Publication, 26.
—— 1992. Evidence of multiphase deformation in the Rajang-Crocker Range
(northern Borneo) from Landsat imagery interpretation: geodynamic
implications—Comment (1). Tectonophysics, 204, 175–177.
—— 1996. The ‘Rajang Accretionary Prism’ and ‘Lupar Line’ problem of
Borneo. In: H, R. & B, D.J. (eds) Tectonic Evolution of SE
Asia, Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 106, 247–261.
I, R., G, S.A. & D, W.R. 1995. Remant Ocean Basins.
In: B, C.J. & I, R.V. (eds) Tectonics of Sedimentary Basins.
Blackwell Science, Oxford, 363–391.
J, B. 1996. Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous Radiolaria from chert blocks in
the Lubok Antu melange, Sarawak, Malaysia. Journal of Southeast Asian
Earth Sciences, 13, 1–11.
—— & A, T.M.T. 1995. Some Paleogene planktonic foraminfera from the
Lubok Antu Complex, Sarawak. Warta Geologi, 21, 147–151.
K, J.A. 1971. A review of the geotectonic theories and tectonic maps of
Indonesia. Earth Science Reviews, 7, 143–163.
—— 1973. Geochronology of W, Indonesia and its implications for plate
tectonics. Tectonophysics, 19, 195–212.
K, F. . & R, E. 1993. Geology of the Ketapang Sheet area,
Kalimantan. Geological Research and Development Centre, Bandung,
Indonesia.
K, H.R., H, M., C, P., K, H. & M, P. 1986.
Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks dredged from the South China Sea (Reed
Bank area) and Sulu Sea, and their significance for plate tectonic recon-
structions. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 3, 19–30.
L, T.-Y. & L, L.A. 1994. Cenozoic plate reconstruction of the South
China Sea region. Tectonophysics, 235, 149–180.
—— & —— 1995. Cenozoic plate reconstruction of Southeast Asia. Tectono-
physics, 251, 85–138.
L, P., R, F.W. & H, N.S. 1960. The geology of Sarawak, Brunei and
the western part of North Borneo. Geological Survey, Department for the
British Territories in Borneo, Kuching, Bulletin, 3.
L, E., MC, R., H, S. & L, T. 1993. Borneo: a stable portion
of the Eurasian margin since the Eocene. Journal of Southeast Asian Earth
Sciences, 8, 225–231.
M, J., H, R., A, D. & S, R. 1997. Gravity anomalies and deep
structural controls at the Sabah-Palawan margin, South China Sea. In:
F, A., M, S. & M, R.W. (eds) Petroleum Geology of
Southeast Asia. Geological Society, London Special Publications, 126,
417–427.
523
M, S.J. 1994. Report on fieldwork in Kalimantan July–September 1994.
University of London Group for Geological Research in Southeast Asia.
Report # 133.
—— & F, E.M. 1998. New Nannofossil and Foraminiferal determinations
from East and West Kalimantan and their implications. Journal of South-
east Asian Earth Sciences,, in press.
——, C, J., C, I., C, A., D S, A, J.R. & B,
S. 1997a. New Observations on the Sedimentary and Tectonic Evolution of
the Tertiary Kutai Basin, East Kalimantan. In: F, A., M, S.
& M, R.W. (eds) Petroleum Geology of Southeast Asia. Geological
Society, London, Special Publications, 126, 395–416.
——, C, A., H, A. & B, S. 1997b. A Late Oligocene
tectono–volcanic event in East Kalimantan and the implications for
tectonics and sedimentation in Borneo. Journal of the Geological Society,
London, 154, 177–192.
P, K.T., H, R.N. & H, F.J. 1989. Deep Marine Environments:
Clastic sedimentation and tectonics. Unwin Hyman, London.
P, P.E. & S, P. 1993. Geology of the Pontianak/Nangataman Sheet
area, Kalimantan. Geological Research and Development Centre, Bandung,
Indonesia
——, A, H.Z. & S, D. 1993a. Geology of the Long Pahangai sheet
area, Kalimantan, 1:250 000. Geological Research and Development
Centre, Bandung, Indonesia.
——, S & N, Y. 1993b. Geology of the Puttissibau sheet area,
Kalimantan, 1:250 000. Geological Research and Development Centre,
Bandung, Indonesia.
——, B & M, S.A. 1993c. Geology of the Long Nawan sheet
area, Kalimantan, 1:250 000. Geological Research and Development
Centre, Bandung, Indonesia.
——, S & N, Y. 1993d. Geology of the Kapuas sheet area, Kalimantan,
1:250 000. Geological Research and Development Centre, Bandung,
Indonesia.
——, S & N, Y. 1993e. Geology of the Nangaobat sheet area,
Kalimantan, 1:250 000. Geological Research and Development Centre,
Bandung, Indonesia.
R, C., B, H., B, F., L, J., M, C. & S, T.
1990. Neogene arc-continent collision in Sabah, North Borneo (Malaysia).
Tectonophysics, 183, 305–319.
S, M.S. & C, W. 1994. Mixture modelling of multi-component
data sets with application to ion probe zircon ages. Earth and Planetary
Science Letters, 128, 373–390.
S, F.L. 1986. Sedimentary ‘sequences’ of foreland basin assemblages: real
or counterfeit? In: Allen, P.A. & Homewood, P. (eds) Foreland Basins.
Blackwell Scientific Publishing, Oxford, 393–410
S, S., M, U., S,  K, F., L, R.P.
& T, D.S. 1993. Geology of the Sanggau Sheet area, Kalimantan.
Geological Research and Development Centre, Bandung, Indonesia
T, R. 1991. Correlation of Sarawak and Kalimantan. Bulletin of the
Geological Society of Malaysia, 28, 63–95.
T, H., P, D.W. & E, M. 1996. Source provenance
interpretation of Kutei Basin Sandstones adn implications for the tectono-
stratigraphic evolution of Kalimantan. Indonesian Petroleum Association,
Proceedings 25th annual convention, Jakarta, 1996, 333–345.
T, D.N.K. 1982. The Lubok Antu melange, Lupar Valley, West Sarawak:
a lower Tertiary subduction complex. Bulletin Geological Society of
Malaysia, 15, 31–46.
—— & L, J.M. 1990. Tectonic evolution of the NW Sabah continental
margin since the Late Eocene. Bulletin of the Geological Society of
Malaysia, 27, 241–260.
 B, G. 1935. De eocene fylliet formatie in Central Borneo. De ingenieur
in Nederlandsch Indië, IV, 124–127. In: Haile, N.S. (ed.) Geological accounts
of West Borneo translated from the Dutch. Geological Survey Department,
British Territories in Borneo, 1955, Bulletin 2, 139–145.
T, F. 1990. Structural style and tectonics of Western and Northern
Sabah. Geological Society of Malaysia Bulletin, 27, 227–239.
—— 1991. Tectonic evolution of Sabah, Malaysia. Journal of Southeast Asian
Earth Sciences, 6, 395–405.
—— 1994. The geology of Northern Sabah, Malaysia: its relationship to
the opening of the South China Sea Basin. Tectonophysics, 235,
131–137.
U, M.B. & M, G.F. 1995. Trenches and trench-slope basins. In:
B, C.J. & Ingersoll, R.V. (eds) Tectonics of Sedimentary Basins.
Blackwell Science, Oxford, 179–219
W, T. & B, B. 1989. The tectonic framework and palaeogeographic
evolution of the upper Kutei Basin. Indonesian Petroleum Association,
Proceedings 18th annual convention Jakarta, 1989, 55–78.
524 S. J. MOSS

W 1960. The geology and mineral resources of the Lower Rajang Valley
and adjoining areas, Sarawak. Geological Survey, Department for the
British Territories in Borneo, Kuching, Memoir, 11.
W, P.R., J, C.R., A, R.A. & S, W.H. 1988. Late
Cretaceous to Early Tertiary structural elements of West Kalimantan.
Tectonophysics, 148, 279–298.
W, P.R., S, S., J, C.R., A, R.A. & S,
W.H. 1989. A Late Cretaceous to Early Tertiary accretionary complex in
West Kalimantan. Bulletin of the Geological Research and Development
Centre, 13, 9–29.
Y, B.W. 1989. An Introduction to Metamorphic Petrology. Longman
Earth Science Series, Essex.

Received 11 September 1996; revised typescript accepted 26 September 1997.

Scientific editing by Peter Haughton.

View publication stats