Tom Bawden, Science and Environment Correspondent for The i Paper has today published a long, illustrated story on the extraordinary scientific resources of Wicklesham Quarry, and the role of Faringdon fossils in the development of geology and natural science- from Isaac Newton to Charles Darwin (pictured above).
Contributions to the article from earth scientists include those of Professors Keith Jeffery and Mark Wilson, who carried out research at Wicklesham Quarry in the 1980s, and discovered a new genus and 3 new species of fossils. Professor Wilson describes the Faringdon Sponge Gravels at Wicklesham Quarry as "scientifically priceless" and states that the quarry "must be passed down to the next generations of geologists and paleontologists to explore the many scientific mysteries that remain.” It is, states Professor Jeffery, "a unique location" with "a unique collection of fossil species".
These expert views are supported by the Geological Society, the Palaeontological Association, and UNESCO Adviser and Emeritus Professor of Geoconservation, Cynthia Burek - all of whom have objected to the proposal to build on the Site of Special Scietific Interest.
You can read Science and Environment Correspondent, Tom Bawden's article below - or find it in The i Paper, 10 February 2025, or access it online here: https://inews.co.uk/author/tom-bawden?srsltid=AfmBOopUISF47RNScQ93LV8XrauE-u-XgdsqaPgl9X6jb_cS7IQYRc8u
Anger over multi-storey car park planned on one of UK's 'richest' fossil sites.
Wicklesham Quarry was recognised by both Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton as a globally significant fossil site.
Nestled in the Oxfordshire countryside, a mile away from the market town of Faringdon, lies one of the UK’s oldest sites of special scientific interest.
Over its long history, Wicklesham Quarry has been recognised by both Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton as a globally significant fossil site.
But now, the site of the former quarry famed for its archaeological promise and biodiversity is set to be tarmacked over to make way for two multi-storey car parks and an array of other buildings.
In 1950, Wicklesham Quarry became one of the first locations to be designated a site of special scientific interest (SSSI).
This is because a vast number of the species contained in its fossils have never been found anywhere else, with some thought to be unique to the location.
The quarry is now covered in farmland as a result of earlier planning conditions, but can be re-excavated for further research.
A proposal is in place to build seven 18 metre-tall buildings, a data centre and two multi-storey car parks across a 33,000 square metre site above the quarry.
The site will be four-times the size of a typical professional football pitch.
The work would mean that the remaining fossils beneath would be lost to geologists permanently, campaigners have said.
Only a few sections of the quarry walls would remain as part of the planning application for the project, know as BioGenia, by De Montalt Life Sciences, which is expected to be heard by the planning committee of Oxfordshire County Council in the coming weeks.
Preserved remains found on the site over its history, known as Faringdon Fossils, have played a key role in the early understanding of fossils.
Recognising their significance, Darwin successfully lobbied the government in 1838 to buy some of them for the British Museum.
He argued the fossils not only had “peculiar value as demonstrating the subterraneous structure of this country, but [are] also of general interest to the scientific world”.
(Illustration: Over its long history, Wicklesham Quarry has been recognised by both Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton as a globally significant fossil site (Photo: Getty Images/Hulton Archive/TonyBaggett)
Nearly 150 years earlier, Newton funded an early collection of fossils from the site.
Details of the collection appeared in the first catalogue of fossils ever to be published – by his friend Edward Llywhd, an eminent naturalist – in 1699.
Meanwhile, Natural England describes the site as being “of great historical importance” and “one of Britain’s richest palaeontological localities”.
The site contains fossils of more than 150 species.
Most of them are sponges – simple organisms that lack a nervous system and muscles. These may have been the first animals comprised of more than a single cell to evolve.
The fossils also include shellfish, sea urchins, turtles, crocodiles, bullet-shaped, squid-like belemnites and even small, marine dinosaurs.
Given the historical significance of the site, there is widespread opposition to the development plans from locals and organisations, such as The Geological Society and The Palaentological Society.
Dr Anna Hoare, an anthropologist who lives about half a mile from the quarry, told The i Paper: “I would find it hard to want to remain in a place where a local council would want to destroy something like this.
(Photograph: A student geologist exploring the site back in 2007 (Photo: Mark A. Wilson/The College of Worcester)
“I’ve lived hear 35-odd years. I find it quite heartbreaking and I’m not the only one – a lot of people feel very strongly about it.”
The buildings in the development would dwarf anything in Faringdon and spoil the landscape, Dr Hoare added.
Jonathon Porritt, a former chairman of the Green Party and environmental campaigner, said that the scale of the development is “astonishing”.
Last week, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced plans to build houses and improve transport links between Oxford and Cambridge, in efforts to create “Europe’s silicon valley”.
In reference to the proposals, Mr Porritt said: “This is the UK’s new silicon valley, the Oxford to Cambridge belt, just extended a little bit further on down to Faringdon.”
Faringdon is about 15 miles from Oxford in the other direction to Cambridge.
“These kind of massive developments probably would bring joy to Rachel Reeves’s heart, because that’s what it’s all about.
“And screw this little place which has been important to a lot of people for so long and still is important from both a biodiversity and archaeological perspective,” he added.
Reeves will not be personally involved in the decision relating to the Wicklesham Quarry site.
(Illustration: Paleontologist Mary Anning (1799-1847) found fossils at Faringdon, including the first fossil of a plesiosaur, an extinct reptile from the Jurassic era (Photo: Mark A. Wilson/The College of Worcester)
The decision on whether the development goes ahead will remain with Oxford Country Council after the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government decided not to “call in” the proposal.
Keith Jeffery, a visiting professor at Cardiff University and elected fellow of the Geological Society, who lives in Faringdon, said: “I am strongly against the proposed development. Wicklesham Quarry has a unique collection of fossil species, many unique to the location.
“And it has a unique configuration of rock layers, with a channel of Cretaceous age scoured through the pre-existing Corallian limestone, formed from old coral reefs, of the Jurassic age; a unique piece of landscape.”
A spokesperson for Oxfordshire County Council said they were unable to comment on a live case.
De Montalt Life Sciences could not be reached for comment.
Spencer Cooper of De Montalt Life Sciences has previously said the quarry was “perfect” for the planned campus.
“It is close to Oxford, has excellent road communications, a good choice and supply of relatively affordable housing compared to Oxford, which our agents advise is a key issue for scientists and researchers working in the city”, he said.
He said he recognised the “special archaeological and ecological value” of the quarry walls and added they would provide “new sustainable linkages to the residential areas close by so future workers can cycle and walk to work”.
What is the best-known fossil from the site?
Perhaps the best known of the fossils found on the site is a sponge known as Raphidonema faringdonense.
It was discovered by the geologist Daniel Sharpe in 1854 and is in the collection of the Natural History Museum.
“A cup-shaped sponge, attached at the base, formed of course and loosely netted fibres, nearly to the top, with a thick membrane, without any openings; above this the upper part and the edge of the cup are uncovered and are pierced by the numerous irregular openings of large canals,” Sharpe said at the time of his new discovery.
“This species differs from all those with which it is associated in having the lower part of the cup entirely lined by a thick membrane, leaving only the upper portion of the interior porous,” he added.
Professor Mark Wilson, a geologist at the College of Worcester in Ohio, who has spent much time studying fossils from the quarry, added: “Like most sponges it was a filter-feeder sitting stationary on the seafloor.
“This one was probably attached to a cobble in the gravel…it has a fused network of calcitic spicules making up its skeleton.
“This is why it has remained a very resistant, rigid object long after death. It probably spent some time rolling around in those gravels with the tidal currents.”
Why are the Faringdon fossils so significant?
Professor Wilson described the fossils as “a geological and paleontological wonder of international scientific importance”.
“These gravels accumulated in tidal channels about 115 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous,” he said.
“Tidal gravels like these are rare in the geological record, and at Wicklesham Pit they are mostly uncemented and so can be studied as individual pebbles and cobbles free from a rocky matrix. They are extraordinarily fossiliferous with an astounding diversity of invertebrate and vertebrate remains.
“These fossils were first formally described in the late 17th century and have since been subjects of countless scientific papers and geological field expeditions.
“They have told us much about life in the Early Cretaceous. The Faringdon Sponge Gravels are scientifically priceless and must be conserved and protected from further developments that would hinder their study.
“The diversity and abundance of these fossils in the gravels at Wicklesham is unique, with many new species known only from there. Nowhere else are fossils like these so well preserved and abundant.
“This critical exposure must be passed down to the next generations of geologists and paleontologists to explore the many scientific mysteries that remain.”
Thank you for your support for the Campaign to Protect Wicklesham Quarry from Development. Please keep in touch and send any queries or comments to protectwicklesham@gmail.com