View source for Earth:Cardium Formation

{{Short description|Stratigraphic range in western Canada}}
{{Infobox Rockunit
| name           = Cardium Formation
| image          = Cardium SS.JPG
| caption        = Photomicrograph of [[Earth:Drill cuttings|drill cuttings]] from Cardium Formation sandstone.
| type           = [[Earth:Geological formation|Geological formation]]
| age            = {{fossil range|Turonian|Coniacian|[[Earth:Turonian|Turonian]] to [[Earth:Coniacian|Coniacian]]}}
| period         = Late Cretaceous
| prilithology   = [[Earth:Sandstone|Sandstone]]
| otherlithology = [[Chemistry:Shale|Shale]]
| namedfor       = [[Biology:Cockle (bivalve)|Cardium]] shells
| namedby        = James Hector, 1895<ref name=hector/>
| region         = Western Alberta, and<br>northeastern British Columbia
| country        = {{flag|Canada}}
| coordinates    = {{coord|51.14101|N|114.99446|W|name=Cardium Formation|display=inline,title}} 
| unitof         = Alberta Group, Colorado Group, Smoky Group
| subunits       = Sturrock Member, Leyland Member, Cardinal Member, Kiska Member, Moosehound Member, Ram Member.
| underlies      = [[Earth:Wapiabi Formation|Wapiabi Formation]]
| overlies       = Blackstone Formation, [[Earth:Kaskapau Formation|Kaskapau Formation]]
| thickness      = {{convert|22|m|ft|-1}} to {{convert|109|m|ft|-1}}<ref name=lexicon>{{Cite web|url=http://cgkn1.cgkn.net/weblex/weblex_litho_detail_e.pl?00053:002448 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120707181825/http://cgkn1.cgkn.net/weblex/weblex_litho_detail_e.pl?00053:002448 |url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-07-07 |title=Cardium Formation |author=Lexicon of Canadian Geologic Units |accessdate=2009-02-07 }}</ref>
| extent         = 
| area           = 
| map            = 
| map_caption    = 
}}
The '''Cardium Formation''' is a [[Earth:Stratigraphy|stratigraphic]] unit of [[Earth:Late Cretaceous|Late Cretaceous]] [[Physics:Geochronology|age]] in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. It takes the name from the fossilized heart-shaped [[Biology:Cockle (bivalve)|cockle shells]] in the family [[Biology:Cockle (bivalve)|Cardiidae]] (from [[Social:Ancient Greek|Greek]] {{lang|grc|καρδίᾱ}} ''kardiā'', "heart") present. It was first described along the Bow River banks by James Hector in 1895.<ref name=hector>as reported in Whiteaves, J.F. 1895, Some of the Cretaceous fossils collected during Captain Palliser's explorations in British North America in 1857-60. Proc. and Trans., Royal Society of Canada, 2nd Ser., vol. 1, pp. 110.</ref> It is present throughout western Alberta and in northeastern British Columbia, and it is a major source of [[Chemistry:Petroleum|petroleum]] and [[Chemistry:Natural gas|natural gas]].<ref name="AGS" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://csegrecorder.com/articles/view/cardium-microseismic-west-central-alberta-a-case-history|title=cardium microseismic alberta A case history|accessdate=October 19, 2021}}</ref>

==Lithology==
[[File:Fossil Shells in Cardium Formation.jpg|thumb|left|Fossil [[Biology:Cardiidae|Cardiidae]] shells in Cardium Formation sandstone.]]The Cardium Formation is composed primarily of beds of massive, fine-grained to conglomeratic sandstone, which are separated by thick layers of [[Chemistry:Shale|shale]]. The formation is subdivided into the following members from top to base:
*Sturrock Member (sandstone)
*Leyland Member (shale)
*Cardinal Member (sandstone)
*Kiska Member (shale)
*Moosehound Member (shale)
*Ram Member (sandstone)

In central Alberta, the formation is divided into the Pembina River Member and Cardium Zone.

==Distribution==
The Cardium Formation was deposited during the [[Earth:Turonian|Turonian]] and [[Earth:Coniacian|Coniacian]] stages of the [[Earth:Late Cretaceous|Late Cretaceous]] along the western edge of the Alberta Foreland Basin.<ref name=AGS>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ags.gov.ab.ca/publications/wcsb_atlas/a_ch23/ch_23.html|title=Cretaceous Cardium Formation of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin|author=Alberta Geological Survey|accessdate=2009-03-06}}</ref> It extends northward from the {{wipe|Canada}}-{{wipe|United States}} border to northeastern British Columbia near Dawson Creek, and eastward from the foothills of the Canadian Rockies into the plains of southern and central Alberta. Beyond there, the sandstones grade into shale. Thickness of Cardium sand varies between 5 and 30 meters in Alberta, Canada.<ref name=lexicon/>

==Relationship to other units==
Due to its large areal extent, the Cardium Formation falls within different stratigraphic groups in different regions (Alberta Group, Colorado Group, and Smoky Group). It is conformably overlain by the [[Earth:Wapiabi Formation|Wapiabi Formation]] and underlain by the Blackstone Formation. The formation is partly equivalent to the [[Earth:Kaskapau Formation|Kaskapau Formation]].<ref name=lexicon/>

==Hydrocarbon production==
[[Chemistry:Natural gas|Natural gas]] is produced from the Cardium Formation in the Athabasca River area and the foothills in western Alberta, and [[Chemistry:Petroleum|oil]] is produced in the Pembina oil field of central Alberta.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ags.gov.ab.ca/graphics/atlas/fg23_02.jpg|title=Cardium Formation isopach map with distribution of major Cardium Formation oil and gas fields|author=Alberta Geological Survey|accessdate=2009-03-06}}</ref> The sandstones of the formation have good storage potential and stratigraphic traps are formed by the thick overlying [[Chemistry:Shale|shale]]s of the [[Earth:Wapiabi Formation|Wapiabi Formation]] and [[Earth:Muskiki Formation|Muskiki Formation]], while the underlying black shale of the Blackstone Formation and [[Earth:Kaskapau Formation|Kaskapau Formation]] are good [[Earth:Source rock|source rock]]s.<ref name=AGS/>

The Cardium Formation had an initial established recoverable [[Chemistry:Petroleum|oil]] reserve of 305 million m³, with 220.9 million m³ already produced as of 2008.<ref name=Atlas>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ags.gov.ab.ca/publications/wcsb_atlas/a_ch32/tb32_01.html|title=The Geological Atlas of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin - Summary of oil reserves and production data|author=Mossop, G.D. and Shetsen, I - Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists|year=1994|accessdate=2009-03-06}}</ref> [[Chemistry:Natural gas|Gas]] reserves totaled 88.3 million e³m³, with 30.8 million e³m³ already produced.<ref name="Atlas" />

Drilling for oil in the Cardium Formation rebounded in 2009 when horizontal drilling and multi-stage fracturing technology increased the oil recovery factor.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://chinookconsulting.ca/News/Cardium.html|title=Cardium Fairway|date=4 March 2010 |accessdate=2010-03-26}}</ref> Driven by technology, drilling in the four decades old Pembina oil field increased, re-launching the field to the center of Alberta's oil economy.

==Hydraulic fracturing in Canada==
Massive hydraulic fracturing has been widely used in Alberta since the late 1970s.<ref>{{citation |first1=Douglas J. |last1=Cant |first2=Valerie G. |last2=Ethier |title=Lithology-dependent diagenetic control of reservoir properties of conglomerates, Falher member, Elmworth Field, Alberta |journal=Bulletin of the [[Organization:American Association of Petroleum Geologists|American Association of Petroleum Geologists]] |date=August 1984 |volume=68 |number=8 }}</ref>{{rp|1044}} The method is currently used in development of the Cardium, [[Earth:Duvernay Formation|Duvernay]], [[Earth:Montney Formation|Montney]] and [[Earth:Viking Formation|Viking]] formations in Alberta, [[Earth:Bakken Formation|Bakken]] formation in Saskatchewan, [[Earth:Montney Formation|Montney]] and [[Earth:Horn River Formation|Horn River]] formations in British Columbia.

===Public companies===
The year 2009 saw consolidation, with land sales, corporate transactions, and public companies with Cardium assets acquired by those intending to apply newer recovery-techniques to improve field economics.  Oil-and-gas companies participating in this activity include:

* PetroBakken ({{tsx2|PBN}}, through its acquisitions of Berens Energy, Result Energy and Rondo Petroleum)
* Daylight Resources Trust ({{tsx2|DAY}}, through its acquisition of Highpine Energy and merger with West Energy, {{tsx2|WTL}})
* PennWest ({{tsx2|PWT.UN}}, with a large land base)
* Paramount Resources ({{tsx2|POU}} through its acquisition of Profound Energy)
* Bonterra Energy
* [[Company:Crescent Point Energy|Crescent Point Energy]] ({{tsx2|CPG}}, through its acquisition of TriAxon Resources)

and the smaller Bellatrix ({{tsx2|BXE}}), Delphi Energy ({{tsx2|DEE}}), Peyto Energy Trust ({{tsx2|PEY.UN}}). Dozens of other companies have land leases in the Cardium fairway, but have not employed horizontal drilling in the Cardium.  Exxon Mobil recently{{When|date=March 2017}} started testing the Cardium Formation.<ref>
{{Cite web
|url= http://www.oilshalegas.com/cardiumshale.html
|title= Exxon Mobil testing the Cardium Shale
|accessdate= 2012-02-18
}}
</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}


[[Category:Geologic formations of Alberta]]
[[Category:Coniacian Stage]]
[[Category:Santonian Stage]]
[[Category:Turonian Stage]]
[[Category:Shale formations]]
[[Category:Reservoir rock formations]]

{{Sourceattribution|Cardium Formation}}