We sat down for a chat with Mark Rowan ahead of his upcoming course: Salt Tectonics of the Gulf of Mexico
What is your field and specialization?
I am a structural geologist by training, by talent, by passion, by any measure. And although I’ve worked in all types of structural environments, from rift basins to fold and thrust belts to passive margins, the vast majority of my work since about 1992 has been in the area of salt tectonics. And so, whatever the depositional environment, whichever basin I’ve worked, I’ve been looking at salt movement, salt evolution, salt geometry, salt-sediment interaction and all sorts of related issues.
Tell us a bit about your journey into teaching.
OK, let’s see, I was doing a University degree in biology and, after taking a geology class during my very last semester, I decided to switch to geology, taking classes part time, while being a ski bum for four years. Then I went to grad school where I was supposed to do a PhD on carbonate turbidites but turned it into a Master’s because I saw all these amazing folds and decided I’d rather become a structural geologist!
I worked in the industry for about four years, then went to get my PhD in structure, which is where I first started doing some teaching as a teaching assistant. After working at a consultancy in Scotland for three years, I went back to university as a research professor and that’s where I started teaching classes on my own for both undergraduate and graduate students. I left there in ‘98, started my own business and I’ve been teaching courses for industry ever since.
It turned out to be a move for the better because, although I always enjoyed teaching students, I discovered that I much prefer to teach professionals. They’re taking the class because they want to, because they need it, rather because it’s required for the major or their degree, so I’ve always found they tend to be more invested in the class. They have their own experience to bring along with them, they can see the applications right away, and so it’s just generally more rewarding in terms of that feedback loop.
I still do a ton of research, too, which informs my teaching. And the teaching informs my research and consulting; it all goes together. I hate to use a buzzword, but it is rather synergistic.
Tell us about a favourite memory from fieldwork or field training?
Well, I can’t think of one specific course or experience, but I can tell you what my favorite part of training is more generally – when something you’ve been struggling with comes together. You might be walking around mapping, having a conversation with a course participant, doing this and that, when suddenly things fall into place – those light bulb moments. Some people like to really sort things out in their head before they say what they think. But I’ve always been one of those people who figures out what I’m thinking by talking it through with people first – that’s part of the value in of in-person courses; it’s being able to have those conversations. Now, that doesn’t just happen in the field – it can be in the classroom, while having conversations with people in the office, or while looking at seismic. It can happen in a variety of ways. But, there’s no question that being out in the field is more fun!
(Above: Contact between a flaring diapir (grey gypsum) and continental redbeds in the Sivas Basin, Turkey)
Tell us about your upcoming course with GeoLogica – what is it about and who is it for?
It’s about salt tectonics in general – the fundamentals, the styles, the processes, the implications for other aspects of petroleum systems and the salt basins, but with a particular emphasis on the Gulf of Mexico, both northern and southern. So, it really covers everything. The learnings are applicable to working other salt basins, but this course goes into a little more detail on some aspects that are most germane to the Gulf of Mexico. It is lecture based primarily, with time set aside for questions, discussion and, importantly, exercises (about two per day), which gives participants a chance to get their eyes on some real data and assimilate some of the concepts we’ve been working through.
It’s aimed for anybody working in salt basins, from people who just started working there last month and really know nothing about salt and the Gulf of Mexico, to people who are internal salt experts! On the whole, it’s an intermediate course, but that categorization is only so useful – really, we’ll go from the basics right up to more complex things. So, yeah, it’s for anybody working salt basins.
Tell us a fun fact about yourself that most people don’t know
Because I tend to give out too much information, most people already know all these things about me! But the one that comes to mind relates back to a conversation I had with my wife, from when we first met. She said to me, ‘So, Mark, what’s your dark side, because everyone has a dark side…’ Yep, that’s my wife! She’s a philosopher. So, at first I said, ‘I don’t really have one.’ But then I realized that I do.
My dark side, or perhaps just my ‘deep secret’, is that at heart I’m really a climbing, skiing, surfing bum . . . but one whose brain isn’t challenged enough by those things. I thrive on solving problems and, well, ‘doing the geology’. In reality, I don’t do nearly enough of those other things that I love because I’m a workaholic, but yeah that’s me at heart.
What is the biggest challenge facing the sector today from your perspective?
I’d say the biggest thing is the transition to clean energy – it’s thrown everything into a bit of turmoil, certainly in the world of salt tectonics. Standard exploration for traditional plays in salt basins has definitely slowed down, with both major and minor oil companies moving more towards oil shale and gas and so forth. It’s funny, there are more people doing research now on salt tectonics than at any time in the past because it has become better known, more data sets have become available and so more and more students are going into it. But, at the same time, the need and the opportunity for more fundamental research is decreasing because the focus is shifting. Right now, the biggest new issue on salt is hydrogen storage in salt diapirs, which I touch on a little in the class.
The world is changing, but I’m nearly 70 and approaching the end of my career, so it’s not so much a problem for me but for the younger researchers, explorers and students trying to fit in and find out how they can match their interests (which might be salt) to where things are going in the future. And there’s a lot of uncertainty. I think that’s the biggest challenge right now.
What would be your advice to junior geoscientists starting their careers today?
1. Keep taking classes and keep going in the field – if you can convince your companies to let you go on a field course. I find the field absolutely invaluable because if one person learns just one thing that makes them put a well in a better place or take the decision to not drill a specific well, or just see things differently in the seismic, then it has more than paid off the cost of sending ten people to a class. And there is always someone who’s going to learn something like that. But it’s an easy one for the companies to cut because it’s seen as a line-item budget issue. Often the true cost of that “cost-saving” isn’t realized at the time.
2. Keep going to conferences! It’s easy for us to get stuck in our offices but even just attending a conference can give you some fresh insights into stuff you’ve been struggling with.
Any closing thoughts Mark?
Well, I always say that ‘Geology, just like food, goes better with a pinch of salt.’
And at the end of the day, to quote some sage, ‘Geology is mostly guesswork; the rest is alcohol . . .’
Salt Tectonics of the Gulf of Mexico by Mark Rowan will be taking place in Houston from 13-15th August
