The outcrop of the travertines of Oued Ziz is located about 10 km from Erfoud on the national road number 13 in the South-East of Morocco. It extends along the Wadi Ziz, it appears as a sedimentary complex, which consists of conglomerates and calcareous sandstones as mature travertine deposits. Travertines interested in this study were mentioned by Margat (1962) in the hydrogeological map of tafilalet among the Quaternary lake limestones. In 1971, Chamayou and Ruhard signaled them as markers of the southernmost quaternary alignment of neotectonic deformations, in relation to the tectonic of the southern Atlas furrow. But these travertines have never been the subject of a detailed study as regards their internal structures and their mode of genesis. The genesis of this travertine is controlled by the carbonate inlays with hydrothermal processes of water in a continental environment. The main objective is to highlight the genetic processes responsible for the construction of travertines (Source & Chemistry of water, nature of encrusting biological species) and their interpretation as indicators of neotectonics associated with the circulation of hydrothermal fluids. Generally, this travertine always shows a laminar structure with a double vision: clear and dark. The stratifications are planar, slightly wavy. Fieldwork and microscopic studies of travertines suggest that it is a sedimentological facies with a biological-type construction in which the combination of algal action and bacteria is evident with a precipitation of calcium carbonate in a favorable hydrothermal circulation environment. In addition, these travertines prove to be interesting as ornamental rocks, given their very sought after facies in decoration in the building sector, in a region with particularly poor economic resources.

Key words: Travertines of the Ziz Wadi, hydrothermal processes, continental environment, biological type.
 

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