Geological History of Mengkarang Formation for Enhancing the Geodiversity of Merangin Geopark

Merangin area, a national geopark in Jambi Province, is currently being proposed to be the global Geopark to the UNESCO. To make it successful, Merangin Geopark should fulfil the essential requirement, i.e. having outstanding rock outcrop and influence the global process or geological history of the world. The most attractive outcrop in Merangin Area is the Permian Mengkarang Formation with abundance of floral fossil. As the oldest exposed formation in Jambi, Mengkarang Formation has its unique tectonic process that made this formation exposed in the surface with the shape of inversed "U" curve. Therefore, this research aimed to model the geological history of Merangin as fulfilment of the Global Geopark requirement. This research used three methods, first of all, field work that consists of the stratigraphic measurement, geological structure investigation, and rock sampling. The next method was the laboratory work that consisted of petrographic analysis, paleontological analysis, and XRD (X-Ray powder Diffraction) analysis. The last method was the studio work that consisted of the stratigraphic parameter analysis in this area, structural geology analysis, and modelling the geological history of this area. The result of this research shows that the historical geology in Merangin area has its unique tectonic sedimentation, and denudation process that made the Permian Mengkarang Formation exposed to the surface in unique "U" shape. This research will add knowledge about Merangin Geopark to help fulfilling the requirement of the proposed Merangin Global Geopark.