Site Event/Activity record ESF20026 - Monitoring Test Pits - Leiston Substation 132kV Cable Route

Archaeological monitoring of a series of geological test-pits was carried out along the route of a proposed 132kV underground electricity cable. All of the tes-pits were negative. The route is aroun 1km long designed to link the proposed substation for Greater Gabbard Wind Farm with Sizewell Power Station. A total of 12 test pits were located at regular intervals along the route, ten were excavated under the supervision of the monitoring archaeologist, while the remaining two whil lie in the made ground adjacent to the power station are to be dug at a later date. Nine of the ten monitored test pits revealed agriculturally conditioned topsoil overlying intermittent sandy subsoil and natural sand and gravel. One test-pit was located in a low lying position at the eastern edge of an area of agricultural fields. This test-pits contained deposits which suggest the location once form ed part of the marshland which still survives in areas around the site. Darkly stained, organically rich silts lay immediately below the topsoil and pockets of peat occurred at much lower levels in the test pit (S1).