Claim CD203:
The occurrence of limestone deposits that are so great and so uniform
defies explanation except by massive precipitation from chemical-rich
waters, consistent with catastrophism, not uniformitarianism. Dolomite
sediments are not being formed at all today; they also require an
exceptional explanation.
Source:
Morris, Henry M., 1974. Scientific Creationism, Green Forest, AR: Master
Books, p. 104.
Response:
- Uniformitarian processes explain limestone formations far better than
catastrophism does:
- Limestones form continuously today over wide areas (such as the
Caribbean) as calcium carbonate is precipitated from water directly
and through the actions of organisms. Limestone formation easily
fits within conventional geology.
- Limestones appear in strata interleaved between strata of sandstones
and other rocks. A single event could not explain all the layers.
- Limestones often include fragile fossils that could not survive
catastrophic transport.
Dolomites require no exceptional explanation. They form via diagenesis
(a sort of chemical rearrangement in the deep subsurface) from calcite,
the main ingredient of limestone. Creationism does not explain the
origin of dolomite.
- Limestone could not have formed quickly from massive precipitation,
because the formation of calcite releases heat. If only 10 percent of
the world's limestone were formed during the Flood, the 5.6 x
1026
joules of heat released would be enough to boil the flood waters (Isaak
1998).
References:
created 2003-8-18
