Contact: Ralph Derickson

David Harris and Thomas Sparks of the Kentucky Geological Survey look over a new map.

The three- by four-foot color publication actually includes three maps, each at a scale of 1:500,000. They show 1) the surface, or structure, of the Big Lime; 2) the isopach, or thickness, of the Big Lime; and 3) the locations of all the wells that have produced oil or gas from the formation.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 21, 2005) -- A newly published map from the Kentucky Geological Survey (KGS) provides details about the nature of an eastern Kentucky oil- and natural gas-producing geologic formation known as the Big Lime.

Two KGS geologists, David Harris and Thomas Sparks, compiled data from over 6,400 existing oil and gas wells for the project. Using a computer contouring program, they created the map of the 9,400-square-mile area. The map is titled “Structure and Isopach Maps of the Mississippian Big Lime (Newman Limestone/Slade Formation), Eastern Kentucky.”

“This map documents the structure and thickness of the Big Lime formation,” said Harris, lead project investigator for KGS. “It provides information that can help energy companies interested in the area improve their chances of finding oil and gas.”

Harris and Sparks found that the Big Lime formation, composed of limestone and dolostone, varies in thickness from as little as one foot to over 420 feet in the mapped area. The depth of the formation ranges from surface exposures in the northwest to more than 1,800 feet below sea level in southeastern Kentucky.

They determined that an average oil or gas field in the Big Lime contains 30 to 40 wells with a potential to produce from 1 million to 1.5 million barrels of oil or 4.5 billion to 6 billion cubic feet of natural gas. As the price of imported energy sources rises, interest in cheaper domestic oil and gas increases, making maps like this one more valuable to the domestic energy industry.

The three- by four-foot color publication actually includes three maps, each at a scale of 1:500,000. They show 1) the surface, or structure, of the Big Lime; 2) the isopach, or thickness, of the Big Lime; and 3) the locations of all the wells that have produced oil or gas from the formation.

The project was funded by a consortium of three energy companies, and the map is publicly available for $10 through the KGS Public Information Center at UK by calling (859) 257-3896. It can also be viewed at the KGS publications Web site.