Natural Environment Research Council BRITISHGEOLOGICAL SURVEY GEOLOGY OF THE PONTELAND-MORPETHDISTRICT 1:10,000 sheets NZ 17 NE,SE and NZ 18 NE,SE Parts of 1:50,000 Sheets 9 (Rothbury) and 14 (Morpeth) D.J.D. Lawrence and I. Jackson Production of this report was supported by the Department of the Environment but the views expressed in it are not necessarily those of the Department Bibliographic reference LAWRENCE,D.J.D. and JACKSON, I. 1986. Geology of the Ponteland-Morpeth district. Research Report of the British Geological Survey. Authors D.J.D. Lawrence, BSc I. Jackson, BSc British Geological Survey Windsor Court Windsor Terrace Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HB CROWNCOPYRIGHT 1986 NEWCASTLEUPON TYNE BRITISH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 1986 PREFACE Dataused in preparingthisreport and Thisaccount describes the geology ofthe associatedmaps islodged at theNewcastle Ponteland-Morpethdistrict covered by 1:10,000 uponTyne office theof British Geological sheets NZ17NE, SE and NZ18NE, SE whichlie Survey. enquiriesAny concerning these withinthe 1:50,000 geologicalsheets 9 documents should be directed to that office. (Rothbury)and 14 (Morpeth). The districtwas firstsurveyed at six-inchthe scale by Similarreports areavailable for 1:25,000 sheets H.H. Howelland W. Topley,and published on NZ15, NZ25, NZ26 and NZ27. NorthumberlandOldMeridian County maps duringthe years 1871 and 1879. Aresurvey by G.A. Burnett, V.A. Eylesand A. Fowlerbetween 1925 and 1949 waspublished onthe New Meridian. NOTES The present survey, whichwas commissioned AllNational Grid references in this report lie and financedtheDepartmentby theof withinthe 100 km square NZ. Gridreferences Environment,represents thesecond phase of a are given to eithereight figures (accurate to program m e of work in south-east in workprogramme of within 10m), or six figuresfor more extensive Northumberland.Its objectives are toprovide locations. up-to-date geological maps for the^ area and to identify and report on any particular implications Each boreholeor shaft registered with BGS is landuseplanning,for development and identifiedby a four-elementcode (e.g. NZ17 redevelopmentposed by the geology ofthe SE 58). The first t~c!elements define the 10 km area, particularly withrespect tosuperficial square(ofthe National Grid) whichin the deposits,underground workings and mineral boreholeis situated; the third element defines resources.Mapping was carried out in 1985-86 thequadrant of that square,and thefourth is by D.J.D. Lawrence (NZ18NE and SE) and theaccession number of that borehole. In the I. Jackson (NZ17NE and SE) with Mr D.H. Land as text of the report the borehole/shaft is normally programme manager. referred to by the last three elements alone (e.g. 17SE58). Theready cooperation landownersof and tenantsduring this resurvey and the assistance The word ‘district’,unqualified, in thisaccount of Britishof Coal Deep Mines andOpencast means the whole ground covered by NZ17NE, SE Executiveand Northumberlandof County and NZ18NE,SE. Council are gratefully acknowledged. G. lnnes Lumsden Director, British Geological Survey October 1986 2 CONTENTS TABLES 1. UpperCarboniferous cyclothems 8 Summary 5 2. Coalseam nomenclature 13 3. Formercollieries with a take Introduction 5 inthe district 25 4. Formeropencast coal sites 24 GeologicalHistory 7 5. Formersandstone quarries 26 6. Formerclay pits worked for UpperCarboniferous Geology 7 brickand tile making 26 Sedimentology 7 7. Made ground 30 Stratigraphy 10 MillstoneGrit 10 CoalMeasures 12 IgneousDykes 16 Structure 16 ASSOCIATEDMAPS Quaternary 18 1: 10,000 scale Rockhead 18 (For each of four themes there are Quaternarydeposits 18 four maps, for NZ17NE, NZ17SE, NZ18NE and NZ18SE respectively. All MineralResources 24 the maps are printed on Ordnance Survey topographic bases.) Geological Implications for Geology LandUse Planning 27 Rockhead elevation Coal mining 27 Drift thickness Geotechnicalproperties 28 Borehole and shaft sites* Conclusions 32 1:25,000 scale Structure contours SelectedBibliography 33 Shallow coal workings Appendix A:lndex of non-confidential *There are insufficient boreholes sited boreholes and shafts34 on NZ17NE to justify the preparation of a separate map showing boreholes and shafts for that sheet; all borehole and shaft sites are shown on the FIGURES geological map. 1. Locationmap 4 2. Generalizedvertical section 6 NOTE: It is emphasized that the maps 3. Simplifiedmap of thesolid geology 9 associated with this report should not 4. Comparativesections of the Millstone be used as a substitute for site Gritand basal Coal Measures 11 investigation. 5. Horizontalsections 17 The maps are available separately 6. Rockhead elevation 19 from the report. 7. Quaternarydeposits 21 8. Driftthickness contours 23 9. Madeground 31 3 A6* Majorroads 0 5 1 Okms _______ Railways SCALE -.-.-.- County boundaries Figure 1. Sketch Map showing location of district 4 Geology of the Ponteland-Morpeth district D.J.D. Lawrence and I. Jackson SUMMARY INTRODUCTION Th e geology,mineralTheresources and The districtdescribed in thisreport lies to the geotechnicalcharacteristics of the Ponteland- northNewcastleof upon Tyne, within the Morpethdistrict (NZ17NE, SE and NZ18NE, SE) counties of Tyne and. Wear and Northumberland aredescribed. Information on former workings (Figure 1) andincludes in thenorth the market in coal, sandstone and claystogether with town of Morpeth, and in the south the dormitory detailsof made ground are tabulated. An index settlementsPontelandof andDarras Hall. o f non-confidentialof boreholes and shafts is Outside these built-up areas, mixed pastoral and presented at Appendix A. arable farmingpredominates. The A1 and A696 roadscross the district in the north 'and south MillstoneGrit and Lowerand Middle Coal respectivelyandNewcastle Airport, which Measures(Namurian and Westphalian A and B) servesthe north-east' region, is located tothe strataof fluvial,' deltaic and marine origin crop south-east of Pontelar7d. outwithin the district with a totalthickness of about 600 m. Althoughmuch theof Coal Withthe exception of the incised valleys of the Measures sequence is well documented through Wansbeckand Font ir I thenorth, the district is numerous shafts, boreholesand mine workings, ofmoderate relief. Expanses offlat ground thereis little data onthe Millstone Grit and the belowthe 55 mcontour in the Blyth and Pont basalCoal Measures in thesouth-west and, in valleysand at PrestwickCarr are overlookedby that area, these are poorlyunderstood. Eleven higherground (up to 130 mabove OD) at coalseams have been worked, but resources Saltwick,Berwick and Callerton.Hill The remain which could be extracted by opencast or northernpart of the district is drained by the small scale mining.Geotechnical problems may easterlyflowing River Wansbeck andits arise from subsidenceovershallow coal tributarythe Font. Tothe south of Saltwick workingsandshafts, many whichof are drainageis via theBlyth and Pont and in the inadequatelyrecorded. Foundation problems extremesouth the country is drained by the mayalso be caused by incompetent silts, clays Ouse Burn. and peats of glacial and recent origin. Theeastern part of the district lies within the NorthumberlandCoalfield and in this area, but particularlytheinsouth-east, several coal seamshave been extensively mined. South- westMorpethof opencast workings were widespread.There is, however,no current coal extraction within the district. 5 GEOLOGICAL HISTORY UPPER CARBONIFEROUS GEOLOGY Apartfrom two minor igneous intrusions, the Inthe Ponteland-Morpeth district the proved solid rocks which crop out in the district are of thickness of Upper Carboniferous rocks amounts UpperCarboniferous age, depositedsome 300 to over 620 m, including 260 m of Millstone Grit to 320 millionyears ago. Nothingis known of (Namurian), 180 mofLower Coal Measures thepre-Carboniferous rocks, exceptthat from ' (Westphalian A) and about 180 m of Middle Coal outcropsthein Lake District and Scottish Measures(Westphalian B). Fromknowledge of Southern Uplands it maybe surmised that the adjacentdistricts it likelyis that a further pre-Carboniferousbasement consists of thicknessbetweenof 100 and 200 m of strongly folded Lower Palaeozoic strata. Millstone Grit lies at depth, with at least 500 m of Lower Carboniferous below. DuringCarboniferous times the district lay in theNorthumberland Trough, a regionof relative The boundariesdivisionstheof the of subsidence betweenthe Southern Uplands to Carboniferouswere originally based entirely on thenorth and theAlston Block to the south. lithology and weredefined at differenthorizons Deltaicsedimentation into the trough was thick bydifferent authors. However, the gen,erally andrapid. Sedimentwas deposited in rhythmic on classificationbasedaccepted sequences, mudstone and sandstonebeing palaeontologicalboundaries has nowbeen predominant throughout, with marine limestones adopted throughout northwestern Europe,and is prominent in the lower part and coals significant used here, as showngraphically inFigure 2. in the upper part. The base of the Westphalian Series is taken at a horizonbelieved equivalentbeto theto Atthe end. of Carboniferous times folding and SubcrenatumMarine Band. Noattempt has faultingassociated Hercynianwith (or beenmade todivide the underlying Namurian Armorican)earth movements were followed by Series into its constituent stages. .the deposition of younger strata, since removed byerosion. The 'solid' geological history of the The MillstoneGrit is here taken as thestrata districtwas effectively completed during