Trapping Models for the Lower Silurian Medina Sandstone Group--A Comparison of Trapping Styles and Exploration Methodology for Both Deep"and "Shallow"Medina Plays in the Appalachian Basin"

Abstract

The Lower Silurian Medina Sandstone Group has been a major oil and gas producer in the Appalachian basin since the late 1800s and remains a primary objective in parts of New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Although classified as a stratigraphic trap, production from the Medina is obtained from a wide variety of trapping conditions ranging from pure stratigraphic to structural stratigraphic in the shallower producing areas of the Medina to deep basin (i.e., Elmworth field, western Canada) trapping in the deeper producing regions of strategies must be employed for optimum prospect development and maximum economic success ratios. Several producing areas of the Medina are presented to compare and contrast these various trapping mechanisms together with suggested exploration models applicable to each trap type.