Play, Prospect and Field Characterization and Evaluation:
Outcrops in NE Scotland tied to Mesozoic and Cenozoic Systems of the North Sea
Trip at a glance
Field Staff
Rene Jonk
- Director, ACT-Geo (act-geo.com). Honorary Professor, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen (ORCID employment, 2021–present).
- Ph.D. in geology, University of Aberdeen, 2000–2003. M.Sc. in geology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1995–1999 (GeoLogica tutor page).
- Technical advisor and leadership roles with ExxonMobil and Apache (act-geo.com; GeoLogica).
- Consultant, Sand Injectite Research Group, University of Aberdeen (act-geo.com).
- Member: SEPM, EAGE, Geological Society of London. Fellow of the Geological Society of London from January 2022 (LinkedIn).
- Escher Award, KNGMG, October 2000: best master’s thesis in a geologic subject in the Netherlands, “An Integrated Study of Breccias in the Gargano Promontory, Italy” (LinkedIn).
- Founder and first president, AAPG student chapter, University of Aberdeen (LinkedIn).
- Journal of the Geological Society, 2003: “The structural and diagenetic evolution of injected sandstones: examples from the Kimmeridgian of NE Scotland” (Jonk, Duranti, Parnell, Hurst & Fallick).
- AAPG Bulletin, 2005: “Origin and timing of sand injection, petroleum migration, and diagenesis in Tertiary reservoirs, south Viking Graben, North Sea.”
- Basin Research, 2005: “Aqueous and petroleum fluid flow associated with sand injectites.” Basin Research, 2010: “Sand-rich injectites in the context of short-lived and long-lived fluid flow.”
- Geoenergy, 2024: “Evaluating CO2 retention risk of geological sequestration sites” (Davis, Jonk & Bohacs). Basin Research, 2025: “High Impedance Mudstone Associated With Sand Injection Complexes.” Energy Geoscience Conference Series, 2026: Inner Moray Firth containment risk (Jonk & Watson).
- Publications list: researchgate.net/profile/R-Jonk · act-geo.com
Rene Jonk
Rene Jonk has more than 25 years of experience in geoscience characterization for petroleum exploration, development and research, having held technical advisor and leadership roles with ExxonMobil and Apache. He has worked extensively across offshore basins of the African and South American margins, as well as the North Sea and the Mediterranean, and on onshore unconventional exploration and production. He is an honorary professor at the University of Aberdeen, where he teaches seal evaluation for petroleum geology and CCS and is a consultant with the Sand Injectite Research Group.
Christopher Oswalt
- Nationally Registered EMT.
- Member, Texas Search and Rescue (TEXSAR).
- Medical and safety committee volunteer, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
- Certified FAA Part 107 drone pilot, 11 years of experience, diverse airframes.
- Natural Resources Management degree, Texas A&M University.
- Park Ranger, Texas State Parks; Outdoor Skills Instructor, REI.
- TIME Person of the Year, 2006.
- geologyfieldschool.com
Christopher Oswalt
Christopher Oswalt has over two decades of experience in outdoor education and wilderness risk management. For six years he served as Global Field Safety Director for Nautilus/RPS, training field staff, auditing courses, and overseeing safety operations for more than 100 field courses worldwide. In 2019 he left Nautilus to launch Geology Field School, which he now directs.
Andrew Hurst
- Chair of Energy Geoscience, University of Aberdeen. CGeol, Geological Society of London (abdn.ac.uk/people/ahurst).
- B.Sc. Hons Geology & Mineralogy, University of Aberdeen, 1977. Ph.D. Geology, University of Reading, 1981.
- Sand Injection Research Group (SIRG), University of Aberdeen, from 2000. Chevron UK initiated the first project in 1998.
- Earth-Science Reviews, 2011: “Physical characteristics of sand injectites” (Hurst, Scott & Vigorito).
- JGS 2003 co-author with Jonk et al. on injected sandstones, Kimmeridgian of NE Scotland.
- Named contributing instructor in the 2026 Scotland field guide.
Andrew Hurst
Professor Andrew Hurst is Chair of Energy Geoscience at the University of Aberdeen and a Chartered Geologist. The 2026 Scotland field guide names him as providing additional technical instruction. Since 2000 he has led the Sand Injection Research Group (SIRG) at Aberdeen, which the university describes as focused on sandstone intrusion reservoir facies.
Gustavo Zvirtes
- Research Fellow, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen (abdn.ac.uk/people/gustavo.zvirtes1).
- B.Sc. Geology 2012 and M.Sc. Geology 2013, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul. Ph.D. Geology 2019, University of Aberdeen.
- SIRG Phase 4 post-doctoral research fellow (Aberdeen SIRG site).
- Geological Society, London, Special Publications 493, 2021: “The Tumey Giant Injection Complex, Tumey Hill, California (USA)” (Zvirtes, Hurst, Philipp, Palladino & Grippa).
- Sedimentary Geology, 2020: “Petrofacies of Eocene sand injectites of the Tumey Giant Injection complex, California (USA).”
- Named contributing instructor in the 2026 Scotland field guide.
Gustavo Zvirtes
Dr Gustavo Zvirtes is a Research Fellow in the School of Geosciences at the University of Aberdeen. The 2026 Scotland field guide names him as providing additional technical instruction. He holds a Ph.D. in Geology from Aberdeen (2019) and works with the Sand Injection Research Group on outcrop characterization of sand injection complexes.
Preliminary Course Calendar and Weather
Tain, five days
Scotland Field Map
Moray Firth transect
Suggested reading
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Mid–Upper Jurassic North Sea
Ch. 2–3
Injected Sandstones NE Scotland
& dykes
Giant Sand Injection Complexes
& seals
