County: Galway Site name: Terryland
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 18E0060
Author: Jean O'Dowd
Site type: No archaeological significance
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 529383m, N 726450m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.283658, -9.058991
A programme of archaeological excavation of test trenches and test pits were undertaken at a proposed development site at Terryland, Galway. The site was divided into two areas both of which are greenfield sites. These works were undertaken for Ryan Hanley on behalf of Irish Water.
The proposed development involves the construction of a new intake to serve the Terryland (Water Treatment Plant) WTP, which will be located on the left bank of the River Corrib downstream of the N6 Quincentenary Bridge.
The new intake will comprise approximately a 7m wide inlet structure headwall (located at the toe of the river bank) with a coarse screen, an inner rotating band screen, a settlement tank to remove sediment and a travelling fine band screen designed for debris removal and exclusion and protection of fish. These will be constructed in underground chambers. A site access road will be constructed from the Dyke Road to the intake site. A new electricity substation and associated underground cabling will likely be required for the new installation.
A total of nine test trenches and eight test pits were excavated for the purposes of advance geotechnical investigations. The locations for both the test trenches and test pits were set out to Ryan Hanley specifications as were their identification numbers. The exposed subsoil was examined for archaeological features. Excavation ceased at the first significant archaeological level or at natural subsoil.
Archaeological monitoring of advance geotechnical works has not identified any archaeological features or deposits. However, possible fragmentary human bone was noted in Trenches ST6-1000-1001 and Test Pits TP8-1008 and TP2-1003. These are located in proximity to the site of a series of burial excavated in 2013 (Licence No. 13E0058) and it is possible that further burials remain in situ in this general area.
As the development site as a whole constitutes an area of archaeological potential, there is a potential that construction groundworks could uncover previously unknown archaeological features or artefacts.
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