Little Heath Pit

Last updated
Little Heath Pit
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Little Heath Pit 2.JPG
Location Hertfordshire
Grid reference TL017082
InterestGeological
Area0.3 hectares
Notification 1986
Location map Magic Map

Little Heath Pit is a 0.3-hectare (0.74-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Little Heath near Potten End in Hertfordshire. It is part of the Ashridge Estate, owned by the National Trust, and the local planning authority is Dacorum Borough Council. [1] [2] [3] It is listed in the Geological Conservation Review. [4]

The lowest layer is gravel dating to the beginning of the Pleistocene 2.6 million years ago. At this time the North Sea covered much of south-east England and the site was in an inter-tidal area, but since then the Chiltern Hills have risen 170 metres. Above this gravel layer is sand, and then another layer of gravel laid down some 20,000 years ago. This was the height of the last ice age, when the site was cold tundra like western Siberia today. [3] According to Natural England the site is "controversial" as the new excavation shows gravel of possible marine origin rather than glacial till as previously believed. [1]

The size of the site is unclear. In April 2012 the Planning Inspectorate gave consent for the erection of fencing round the site to allow re-excavation of the site while protecting it against badger damage and protecting the public against accidentally falling into the deep pit. The size was given as 360 square metres (0.036 hectares). [5] The excavation and erection of the fence were carried out shortly afterwards. [6] However, the Natural England (NE) citation gives the area as 0.3 hectares [1] and the NE map shows a larger area of 1.2 hectares. [2]

There is access to the site from Bullbeggars Lane.

The surrounding area is wooded and covered in deep pits called locally 'dells''. These are the remains of working to extract the gravel during World War One to make sandbags of use at the front. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swanscombe Heritage Park</span> Archaeological site in England

Swanscombe Skull Site or Swanscombe Heritage Park is a 3.9 hectares geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Swanscombe in north-west Kent, England. It contains two Geological Conservation Review sites and a National Nature Reserve. The park lies in a former gravel quarry, Barnfield Pit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westwood Quarry</span>

Westwood Quarry is a 0.07 hectare geological site of Special Scientific Interest west of Watford in Hertfordshire. It was notified in 1987 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The planning authority is Three Rivers District Council. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wansunt Pit</span>

Wansunt Pit is a 1.9-hectare (4.7-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Dartford Heath between Crayford in the London Borough of Bexley and Dartford in Kent. It is also a Geological Conservation Review site. It is important geologically because it exposes the Dartford Heath Gravel, and the relationship of this exposure to the Swanscombe sequence and the Thames Terraces is a controversial issue in Thames Pleistocene studies. The site is part of Braeburn Park, a nature reserve managed by the London Wildlife Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moor Mill Quarry, West</span> Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hertfordshire

Moor Mill Quarry, West is a 0.16-hectare (0.40-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in How Wood in Hertfordshire. The local planning authority is St Albans City and District Council. It was notified in 1992 as representing the former Moor Mill Quarry SSSI, which was lost to landfill operations. It is listed by the Geological Conservation Review.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downfield Pit</span>

Downfield Pit is a 3.6-hectare (8.9-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Ware in Hertfordshire. It is in the Geological Conservation Review in the Thames Pleistocene section, and the local planning authority is East Hertfordshire District Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hertford Heath nature reserve</span>

Hertford Heath nature reserve is a 28 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hertford Heath in Hertfordshire. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust and the local planning authority is East Hertfordshire District Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hillcollins Pit</span>

Hillcollins Pit or Furneux Pelham Gravel Pit is a 0.2-hectare (0.49-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Furneux Pelham in Hertfordshire. The local planning authority is East Hertfordshire District Council. it was identified as a site of national importance in the Geological Conservation Review in 1988.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fern House Gravel Pit</span>

Fern House Gravel Pit is a 1.3-hectare (3.2-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Fern, near Bourne End in Buckinghamshire. It is also a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purfleet Chalk Pits</span> Site of Special Scientific Interest in Purfleet in Essex

Purfleet Chalk Pits is a 10.7-hectare (26-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Purfleet in Essex. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wivenhoe Gravel Pit</span>

Wivenhoe Gravel Pit is a 2.1-hectare (5.2-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Wivenhoe in Essex. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Osyth Pit</span>

St Osyth Pit is a 0.1-hectare (0.25-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of St Osyth in Essex. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newney Green Pit</span>

Newney Green Pit is a 0.07-hectare (0.17-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest west of Writtle in Essex. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eye Gravel Pit</span> Geological site

Eye Gravel Pit is a 0.4-hectare (0.99-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Eye Green in Cambridgeshire. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, and part of it overlaps Eye Green Local Nature Reserve.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valley Farm Pit, Sudbourne</span>

Valley Farm Pit, Sudbourne is a 0.5-hectare (1.2-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Orford in Suffolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, and in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aldeburgh Brick Pit</span>

Aldeburgh Brick Pit is a 0.9-hectare (2.2-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Aldeburgh in Suffolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, and it is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crag Pit, Aldeburgh</span>

Crag Pit, Aldeburgh is a 0.2-hectare (0.49-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Aldeburgh in Suffolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, and within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Round Hill Pit, Aldeburgh</span>

Round Hill Pit, Aldeburgh is a 0.5-hectare (1.2-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Aldeburgh in Suffolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, and it is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waldringfield Pit</span>

Waldringfield Pit is a 0.8-hectare (2.0-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Martlesham Heath and Waldringfield in Suffolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Briton's Lane Gravel Pit</span>

Briton's Lane Gravel Pit is a 21.5-hectare (53-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Sheringham in Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site and it is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Heath, near Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire</span>

Little Heath is a partly wooded area with scattered housing, just south of the village of Potten End, Hertfordshire, England.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Little Heath Pit citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Map of Little Heath Pit". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  3. 1 2 Information board on the site
  4. ↑ "Little Heath Pit (Quaternary of the Thames)". Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  5. ↑ Holland, Richard (3 April 2012). "Application Ref: COM 314 Little Heath, Hertfordshire" (PDF). The Planning Inspectorate.
  6. ↑ Hartley, Andrew (1 May 2012). "Condition of SSSI Units for Site LITTLE HEATH PIT". Natural England.
  7. ↑ Information board placed at the site by Hertfordshire Geological Society.

Coordinates: 51°45′48″N0°31′40″W / 51.7633°N 0.5278°W / 51.7633; -0.5278

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.