Geological Evolution Of South East Asia

This is the first comprehensive synthesis of all aspects of the geology of South-east Asia, a region extending from Tibet and Taiwan southward through the Malay Peninsula into the Indonesian archipelago. The region is significant as the eastern extremity of Tethyan geology and the type locality of the Triassic Indonesian Orogeny. It is also the world's foremost field laboratory for convergent and "escape" tectonics. The active plate margins are described in detail, and the past history of drifting of microcontinents from Gondwanaland is traced to their eventual collision to form Eurasia.

Intended as a companion or sequel to the atlas " A Geophysical Atlas of East and South East Asia Seas" Provides the first interpretation of data contained in the atlas. It also presents many of the results obtained during the last several years of IDOE-supported feild experiments as well as imporatant and closely coordinated Deep Sea Drilling Project investigations developed during the international phase of Ocean Drilling.

SE Asia is probably the finest natural geological laboratory in the world, yet is still not geologically well known. It is a spectacular region in which the manifestations and processes of plate collision can be observed at present and in which their history is recorded. It is a region that must be understood if we are to understand mountain belts, arc development marginal basin evolution and, more generally, the behaviour of the lithosphere in collision settings. The volume will be of interest to all geologists working in SE Asia, particularly those involved in the petroleum industry.

This is the first and only book to give a regional analysis of the oil, gas, coal, and mineral deposits of South-East Asia. The hydrocarbon-bearing basins are described in the complicated regional Tertiary tectonics, for which the region is the world's foremost field laboratory. The book is acompanion to the author's 1989 Geological Evolution of South-East Asia. (Now to be reissued by the Geological Society of Malaya.)The stratigraphy, structures, hydrocarbon and coal deposits of the major Tertiary basins are described. Regional similarities and differencs are analysed.Important ophiolite-related chromium, nickel and copper deposits, and volcanic-related porphyry copper and epithermal gold-silver deposits are described from the island-arc terrains of the Philipines and Indonesia. The Sundaland continental peninsular core has been the world's foremost source oftungsten and tin. The great placer tin mines of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand are now in decline. Iron, antimony, non-volcanic gold, fluorite, barite, lead-zinc and gemstone deposits are also described.

The Physical Geography of Southeast Asia examines the complex mosaic of physical environments which comprise Southeast Asia, and the current environmental problems and management practices which have arisen in this part of the world. The book is in three sections. The first section introduces the basic environmental components (geology, landforms, rivers, vegetation, and others) across the entire region. The second section discusses specific environments that are characteristic of this assemblage of continental and maritime landscapes (volcanic islands, coastal environment, granitic terrains, karst, etc.). The third and final section illustrates the ecological relationship between the environment and people (volcanic hazards, urban environment, coastal zone development, coral reefs, and others). The physical environment of Southeast Asia is examined at different levels, covering a world region that ranges from ancient, stable landmasses to dynamic, unstable plate boundaries, from aged, primary rainforests to brash, vibrant, resource-demanding built environments. Southeast Asia has been perceived as a laboratory for studying plate tectonics. It is an assemblage of large river basins, peninsulas and archipelagos, and seas surrounded by islands. It is an area of great physical variations where parts of the physical environment have been significantly degraded anthropogenically, following rapid population growth and development. In large parts of the region, the forms and processes on land and offshore should no longer be seen as entirely natural. As this book repeatedly illustrates, plate tectonics and people are both important contributors to the physical geography of Southeast Asia. The contributors to this volume are distinguished, scholarly, and have a long association with Southeast Asia. The chapters are not only skilfully built on state-of-the-art research findings but also include new material from the on-going research activities of the authors. The book goes beyond being the first comprehensive and detailed volume of the biophysical geography of Southeast Asia in that it also deals with the tropical environment and the relationship between environment and people in a rapidly developing world region.