Rock of ages: how chalk made England
Here at HD Services Ltd, we have been drilling water supply boreholes in the South East of England for over 30 years. The chalk aquifer that underlies it provides high quality water that can be be put to various uses. The following article by Helen Gordon of The Guardian, outlines the history and importance of this particular rock form and its importance to our country. A long and interesting read.
Swathes of England’s landscape were shaped by the immense block of chalk that has lain beneath it for 100 million years. For a long time, even geologists paid it little heed – but now its secrets and symbolism are being revealed.
On the British Geological Survey’s map, chalk is represented by a swathe of pale, limey green that begins on the east coast of Yorkshire and curves in a sinuous green sweep down the east coast, breaking off where the Wash nibbles inland. In the south, the chalk centres on Salisbury Plain, radiating out in four great ridges: heading west, the Dorset Downs; heading east, the North Downs, the South Downs and the Chilterns.
To read the full article by Helen Gordon, of The Guardian, click here.
