County: Galway Site name: Claregalway
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 15E0121
Author: Graeme Laidlaw
Site type: Non-archaeological
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 537599m, N 733759m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.350365, -8.937239
Moore Group was commissioned by EPS Group to carry out a programme of archaeological monitoring at the site of the installation/replacement of a number of pumping stations near Claregalway, Co. Galway. The monitoring work was undertaken at the site of the waste water treatment facility and its access road, the pumping station, and the main pipeline between the aforementioned. All excavation work was undertaken with 20 tonne track machines fitted with grading buckets.
Waste water treatment plant and access road
The topsoil from the access road, the waste water treatment plant, and associated compound areas, was stripped between 12 and 26 May 2015. The depth of excavation varied dependent on ground conditions. Towards the west the stratigraphy consisted of peat overlying natural gravels extending in parts to a depth of 1m. Further east, in the vicinity of the treatment plant location, peat was present to a depth of up to 2m in places. The depth reduced further east. Nothing of significance was noted during the works.
Main pipeline
Excavation of the main pipeline between the pumping station and the waste water treatment plant was undertaken between 27 August and 3 September 2015. The excavated trench was 0.6m wide and 1.2m deep. The topsoil was an average depth of 0.15m and was located upon a deposit of fine alluvial sandy-silts and river gravels that occurred to a depth of 0.75m. This deposit was over a blue-grey oxidised clay that was excavated to a depth of 0.3m. No archaeological features or deposits were identified within this trench
Claregalway pumping station
An access road was excavated from the edge of the modern housing estate to the location of the pumping station. The road was 3m wide and the topsoil was removed to a maximum depth of 0.35m. The road followed the route of an existing pipeline and was heavily disturbed, with concrete manholes and several plastic irrigation pipes, and modern rubble evident within the trench. The footprint for the pumping station was excavated on 12 June and consisted of a topsoil layer no greater than 0.2m in thickness lying immediately upon an orange-brown sandy-clay with occasional stone inclusions. This deposit was approximately 0.6m deep and was located upon limestone bedrock.
Moore Group, Corporate House, Ballybrit Business Park, Galway
