THE GEOLOGY, PETROGRAPHY AND PALYNOLOGY OF TERTIARY COALS FROM THE EUREKA-SOUND-GROUP AT STRATHCONA FJORD AND BACHE PENINSULA, ELLESMERE ISLAND, ARCTIC CANADA

Coal seams of substantial thicknesses and lateral continuity are devel oped in the Expedition and Iceberg Bay Formations at Strathcona Fiord and in the Expedition Formation at Bache Peninsula. The coals are lign ite/subbituminous in rank and have low to moderate sulphur and variabl e ash contents. At Strathcona Fiord resources have been estimated to b e in the order of 1 billion tonnes, whereas at Bache Peninsula estimat ed resources are 100 million tonnes. The coals at Strathcona Fiord are characterized by the dominance of wood-derived macerals of the humote linite group, whereas at Bache Peninsula the coals have high amounts o f detrital macerals (humodetrinite) and also have significant amounts of inertinite macerals. Pollen and spore assemblages in coals from the Iceberg Bay Formation at Strathcona Fiord are dominated by Taxodiacea e pollen with less and variable amounts of Pinaceae pollen, pteridophy te spores and angiosperm pollen. The pollen and spore assemblages indi cate a Late Paleocene-Early Eocene age of the Iceberg Bay Formation co als. The Expedition Formation coals at Bache Peninsula have in general a somewhat less diverse pollen and spore assemblage and show a larger input of fern and Sphagnum spores. The pollen and spore assemblages i n Expedition Formation coals at Bache Peninsula are indicative of (Ear ly?) Paleocene age. The depositional environment for Iceberg Bay Forma tion coals at Strathcona Fiord is that of a forested swamp, which form ed on a broad coastal plain. At Bache Peninsula peats formed in broad valleys, in which a fluviatile-lacustrine environment of deposition pr evailed. The mires were likely less forested than at Strathcona Fiord as indicated by the abundance of ferns and sphagnum spores and the ver y low content of wood-derived macerals of the humotelinite group. The pollen assemblages in both Expedition and Iceberg Bay Formation coals indicate a temperate climate and moderate precipitation during peat ac cumulation.