The Geology of Calderdale

13.2 The solid geology of Calderdale sees Lower Carboniferous rocks outcropping at the surface, these being overlaid in areas by more recent drift material, peat on the uplands and sands and gravels in the valley bottoms, particularly in the east of the District. The Carboniferous strata are typified by an ever-changing succession of sandstones, gritstones, shales and mudstones. The sandstones and the very hard Millstone Grit have been, and will continue to be, worked for building stone and crushed aggregate. These materials contribute significantly to regional output, and will continue to be of importance in the future.

13.3 Shale, mudstones and clays from the strata have been extensively worked in the Halifax, Elland, Hipperholme, Shelf and Todmorden areas for use in the manufacture of bricks, pipes, pottery, refractory and vitrified clayware goods, although much of the activity has now ceased, as reserves have been exhausted and the demands of the market have changed. There is currently major clay and shale working at Strangstry Wood near Elland, where reserves need to be protected in the future. Other small workings also survive.

13.4 Sand and gravel deposits in the Calder Valley are often contaminated with shale and coal and are not of the highest quality. The thicker beds are not found in Calderdale, but in the east of West Yorkshire where a large proportion is used in concrete products. There is no active sand and gravel working in Calderdale at present.

13.5 Historically, there has been some mining of coal using deep-mined and opencast methods from the Lower Coal Measures in the east of the district. A small opencast coal operation is working in Shelf at the present time. Resources of coal remain in these areas and also in the Pennine areas to the west of Todmorden. There are abundant resources of peat in the Pennine uplands but it is not considered appropriate to work this resource (see Policy M 7 ‘Peat’). There is also the remote possibility of oil and gas resources occurring in the Carboniferous strata, although these have not been investigated.

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