| Urban
Areas Always on the look out for new locations
to collect sand, I starting wondering one lunchtime about
the possibilities of collecting sand in urban areas, namely
in around the office where I work in the centre of
Edinburgh, the Scottish capital. Of course, what follows
will also allow to other towns and cities. Most days I
arrive at work early and of for a walk, the same at
lunchtime. During these walks I set myself the task of
trying to locate suitable places where sand might be
collected. The first location I noticed, all be it from
some distance away was Holyrood Park, a large area of parkland with considerable volcanic outcrops. I knew the
area to be well covered with footpaths and walks and knew
that erosion of these trails was quite considerable. It
seemed likely that sand would accumulate from the processes
of weathering. If fact, I know this to be true from previous
visits. Edinburgh is also crossed with a number of streams
and rivers, all of which have potential for the sand
collector. The Water of Leith crosses much of the city and I
know from walks in the past that sand banks exist along the
river and that there are also various cliffs with exposed
soft friable rock. Both these are worth investigating.
Smaller streams also exists around Braid Hill and Blackford
Hill, potentially two further sources of sand. In the very
city centre stands Edinburgh Castle, perched high on Castle
Rock. At fist glance not an obvious location for sand
samples but investigations reveal erosion of the cliff face
to the south and west. Sandy soil can also be found on the
north side, along Princes Street Garden, exposed by rabbits
digging into the slopes below the castle. The next source
of samples I found where in the ever present road works that
seem to have a permanent place along many of the city
streets. As much of Edinburgh is built of glacial deposits
there is a good chance that beds of sand might be found.
However, these excavation are usually not accessible and you
will have to ask for assistance to gather samples. I have
also noticed that sand can even be gather straight off the
street itself. Many road works use sand bags to hold down
barriers or the like and spillage often occurs. It's not
really "natural" sand but there for the collecting
if you so wish. |
