Facts:
The East Continent Rift Basin (ECRB) was discovered by the Ohio Geologic Survey in 1988 during coring of Warren County, Ohio.  The basin is a regionally extensive feature, extending from northwestern Ohio to central Kentucky and westward across Indiana.

Theories:
Unfortunately, not much is known about the basement rocks of this area, therefore not much is known about the rift basin itself.  With the help of recent magnetic and seismic techniques along with core samples two theories have been developed. The dispute is over the size, age, association with other rift basins and how folding occurred in the middle run formation sediments.

Theory #1:

• ECRB is one of a series of Precambrian Mesoproterozoic rift basins (shown in red).
• 1.11-.95 Ma, 200 Ma younger than the Mid Continent Rift.
• ECBR exhibits listric faults that indicate a east-west motion.

Theory #2

• Eastern Arm of the Mid Continent Rift Basin.
• Keweenawan age approximately 1.4 Ma, same age as Mid Continent Rift.
• ECRB has same thrust fault as other basins in the area.

The significance of the East Continent Rift Basin is not which theory is correct but what theory will find the natural gas traps that are thought to lie within its boundaries. This push for natural resources has spurred debate among geologists in five states, for more than ten years. Both theories show evidence for these traps, weather it is true or not, or economically feasible only time will tell.
 

References:

Culotta, R.C., Pratt, Thomas, and Oliver, Jack, 1990. A tale of two sutures:COCORP's deep seismic surveys of the Grenville province in the eastern U.S.midcontinent: Geology, v.18, p.646-649

Hauser, E.C., 1993, Grenville foreland thurst belt hidden beneath the easter US midcontinent:Geology, v.21, p.61-64

Pratt,T., Culotta, R.,Hauser,E., Nelson, D., Brown,L., Kaufman,S., and Oliver,J., 1989 Major proterozoic basement features of the eastern midcontinent of North America revealed by recent COCORP profiling: Geology,v.17 p.505-509.

Drahovzal,J.A., Harris,D.C., Wickstrom, L.H., Dan, Baranoski, M.T., Keith, Brian and Furer, L.C., 1992, The east continent rift basin: A new discovery:Ohio division of Geological Survey Informaion Circular 57,P.25

Drahovzal,J.A, East Continent Rift Basin,http://www.uky.edu/KGS/emsweb/ercb/ercb.html February 2001.

Drahovzal,J.A, Genesis of Rocks of the East Continent Rift Basin, http://www.uky.edu/KGS/emsweb/abstract/pcrift3.html, August 2000.

Hansen,M.C.,TheGeologyofOhio--Theprecambrian,http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/odnr/geo_survey/oh_geol/96_winter/precambr.htm

More Refrences to Come.