Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
Hot tropic
STARTLING DISCOVERY MADE ABOUT RUILSIP’S PAST
ENGINEERS preparing to build HS2’s Northolt tunnel have made a startling discovery about Ruislip’s ancient past.
Located 33 metres below the surface, a previously unknown layer of black clay has led HS2 to discover that Ruislip was a subtropical coastline 56 million years ago.
The startling discovery was made while the engineers were investigating the area ahead of the construction of a 14 km tunnel from West Ruislip to Old Oak Common, dubbed the Northolt Tunnel.
The new soil type has been named “Ruislip Bed” and dates from the Paleocene period, after dinosaurs had become extinct.
The soil is believed to have formed from densely wooded marshes on the edge of a sub-tropical sea.
Dr Jacqueline Skipper, a geological expert from Geotechnical Consulting Group said: “Although ground investigations regularly take place across the country, it’s really exciting and very unusual to come across a material that no one has ever seen before.
“The ‘Ruislip Bed’ discovery is particularly fascinating, as it is a window into our geological history.
“It would have been formed during the Paleocene period, which was a time of intense change, with new animals evolving following the extinction of the dinosaurs.
“Most of Southern England was covered by a warm sea and this clay helps us to pinpoint where the coastline was.”
HS2 Limited have carried out investigations at 8,000 sites on the route from London Euston to the West Midlands, as initial investigations are due to be completed this month.
Steve Reynolds, HS2’s Ground Investigation Programme Manager added: “Since 2015, we have been investigating ground conditions along the route of HS2, so we can design the railway in the safest and most efficient way.
“We have been exploring the soil and rocks beneath the surface through various methods, ranging from drilling into the ground and taking samples to using radar technology.
“Our main investigations are almost complete, with over 1 million laboratory tests undertaken on the samples we have taken.
“It’s the largest ground investigation programme that the UK has ever seen and an unparalleled opportunity to learn about the ground beneath our feet.”