page_title: Scollard Formation
section_title: Coal deposits
hierarchical_section_title: Scollard Formation / Coal deposits
caption_attribution_description: English: Metasequoia occidentalis, early Paleocene, central Alberta
context_page_description: The Scollard Formation is an Upper Cretaceous to lower Palaeocene stratigraphic unit of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in southwestern Alberta. Its deposition spanned the time interval from latest Cretaceous to early Paleocene, and it includes sediments that were deposited before, during, and after the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. It is significant for its fossil record, and it includes the economically important coal deposits of the Ardley coal zone.
context_section_description: The coal seams of the Ardley coal zone attain thicknesses in excess of 7 metres (20 ft) in some areas.  The zone is present at shallow depths and, in places, exposed at surface, along a trend between Red Deer and Edmonton.  The coal is typically of sub-bituminous B to C rank, although more deeply buried Scollard coals farther to the west reach high-volatile bituminous rank.  The Ardley coal has been mined in the Red Deer area, and is currently being mined west of Edmonton to fuel mine-mouth electric power generating stations.
caption: Metasequoia occidentalis, upper Scollard Formation, central Alberta
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