Correlation of Mesozoic strata in Northern Vancouver Island to West Coast sedimentary basins

Mesozoic sedimentary strata exposed throughout Northern Vancouver Island (NVI), British Columbia, Canada records periods of deposition from the Triassic to the Paleogene. Sections of these strata have been correlated to west coast sedimentary basins based on lithological and sparse biostratigraphic evidence found therein. However, the ages of many outcrops remain poorly constrained. This study utilises multiple datasets; palynology, biostratigraphy, and detrital zircon geochronology to assign and refine ages assigned to seven stratigraphic intervals across Northern Vancouver Island. A new chronostratigraphic chart for Northen Vancouver Island is presented and Mesozoic and younger strata are correlated to contemporaneous strata within and below Canada’s other west coast sedimentary basins. From these data, it is determined that NVI strata record deposition in both the Queen Charlotte Basin, and the Georgia Basin as different times.