Formed initially by rifting during the Mississippian period of the Early Carboniferous.
It is West–East trending and lies between the intrabasinal highs of the Askrigg Block and the Market Weighton Axis, passing eastwards offshore into the Sole Pit Basin.
It contains a thick development of the Bowland Shale, which has been assessed as being a major potential source of shale gas.
[1] Subsequent deposition has also created a thick fill of Jurassic and Cretaceous sediments.
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