Late Permian to Cainozoic tectonics of the New England Orogen

Abstract The development of the New England Orogen, until the middle Permian, was divided into three tectonic periods by Harrington and Korsch (Aust. J. Earth Sci. 32, 163–179,1985). These tectonic periods were dominated firstly by W‐facing volcanic arc systems which in tectonic period (TP) 3 were replaced by the E‐facing Gympie arc system. In TP4 the upper marine beds and coal measures of the Sydney, Gunnedah and Bowen basins were deposited and were covered by Early Triassic strata. In the W there was little structural disturbance in TP4 except in the Gunnedah Basin near the Mooki Fault where the Lower Triassic is unconformable on the Permian coal measures, but in the E there was a fundamental change with the formation of the major Late Permian and Early Triassic TP4 magmatic arc in Zone B and in the Yarrol Orogen. During TP5, in the Middle and Late Triassic, the Stanthorpe Plutonic Suite was intruded and the Ipswich Basin was formed and filled with volcanics and coal measures. A deformation in the Late ...