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Formation of thin macrofractures and high porosity bands parallel to the compression axis in the unconsolidated sedimentary rocks is treated on the basis of unified approach by considering migration of microdefects (pores) with respect to particles of the medium. The migration of pores is driven by a common cause, namely, a trend of a system to lower its total energy. The mechanism of how discontinuities develop along the maximum compressive stress Tmax is discussed and quantitatively investigated. A single pore splits into two separate holes which move away along the Tmax axis. The trace left by moving hole is interpreted as a macro-discontinuity. Multiple pores migrate so that they form a system of chains extending along the Tmax axis. We associate these chains with observed high porosity bands.

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