| Ground Investigation surveys Ground Investigation (GI) surveys can involve drilling boreholes or excavating trial pits to assess the ground conditions at various sites along the route. This allows us to establish which soils and rock types are present in the area and allows us to monitor the types and quantities of water, gas and vapour which may be in the ground. We will use the information gathered during these surveys to understand the geology of the area and identify any engineering constraints and environmental considerations that could influence the routeing of the new electricity transmission infrastructure. After our GI works are completed, the land is returned to its previous use, and we test any collected samples. The data and results then form part of our Environmental Statement (ES) which will be submitted as part of the set of documents that form our DCO application.GI works for Norwich to Tilbury are being carried out by National Grid’s appointed contractors. Transport surveys We are conducting traffic, transport, and public rights of way surveys along the proposed route. This means you may see some radar and data traffic counting equipment as well as some of our people collecting information. We don’t use these surveys to collect any personal data. The results from these surveys help us understand traffic and people movements in the region so we can make better informed decisions on potential impacts our Project may have during construction and operation.Archaeological surveys We need to understand if there is a potential for buried archaeology along the proposed route and we’ve been liaising closely with the relevant local authorities on how we should carry out archaeological surveys. We began by carrying out geophysical surveys along the route. These surveys have allowed us to create maps of subsurface archaeological features. We are now starting more detailed archaeology surveys which include targeted trial trenching on and around the proposed site for the proposed new substation, as well as along the route. Trial trenching involves digging a series of trenches roughly 20 metres long and 1.8 metres wide at carefully selected sites across the length of the route and at the proposed site of the East Anglia Connection Node (EACN) substation on the Tendring Peninsula. We expect to complete the surveys at the EACN site in early November, depending on progress and ongoing weather conditions. Each trench will be assessed by our survey team and inspected and signed off by representatives of Essex County Council before being filled back in.Where we can, we will look to keep local communities near these archaeological surveys informed in advance and we’ll do all we can to minimise any disruption as we do our work. |
