Reply to the comment of Schollnberger on 'Subsidence analysis of salt tectonics-driven carbonate minibasins' (Northern Calcareous Alps, Austria), published on Basin Research 2020; 00: 1-23 doi:10.1111/bre.12500

The subsidence analysis study presented by Strauss et al. (Basin Research, 2020, doi: ) for Triassic carbonate platforms located in the eastern Northern Calcareous Alps shows that salt expulsion allowed for the growth of thick isolated depocenters (>1.5 km) at rates faster than that tectonic subsidence alone can provide. In this answer to a comment by Schollnberger (Basin Research, 2021, doi: ) we discuss in detail the rationale behind our subsidence model and the assessment of the initial salt thickness. Excellent biostratigraphic control as well as precise knowledge of paleo-bathymetry for most of the sedimentary record allowed to setup the subsidence model with well-defined boundary conditions.

Automated summary

The study demonstrates that salt expulsion facilitated the rapid growth of isolated deep depocenters in Triassic carbonate platforms in the eastern Northern Calcareous Alps. With excellent biostratigraphic control and precise knowledge of paleo-bathymetry, a well-defined subsidence model was established.