A newly established International Union of Geological Sciences Commission on Global Sedimentary Geology has initiated as its first project a study of Cretaceous Resources, Events and Rhythms (CRER). The Cretaceous Period offers special opportunities to understand global processes and their variations. It was a time of pronounced eustatic change and oceanic anoxia. Its sediments record Milankovitch rhythms and the development and demise of carbonate platforms. It is a turning point in the evolution of life, and its deposits include vast amounts of natural resources including oil and gas, coal, phosphorite, bauxite, kaolinite and manganese ores. To implement this pilot project, a series of five workshops is planned in Europe for 1988, each corresponding to one of the working groups within the CRER project: (1) sequence stratigraphy and sea level change, (2) sedimentation in oxygen-deficient oceans, (3) cyclo- stratigraphy, (4) development and demise of carbonate platforms, and (5) paleogeography, paleoclimatology, and sediment flux. Following these workshops, a general workshop will take place near Digne, France, to provide overall coordination for this project. An Interim U.S. Program Committee for the Global Sedimentary Geology Program (GSGP) has been established by the Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists (SEPM), under whose auspices GSGP was initially developed. This committee has the responsibility of ensuring adequate participation of U.S. scientists in Project CRER. This project represents support for the travel of key U.S. personnel to the planned workshops in Europe.
