1. Shallow / Deep
Harpur Hill, Derbyshire
Harpur Hill, Derbyshire, is the location of an abandoned lime quarry which is located some thirty miles from Derby. Today, due to contact with rainwater, the lime continues to leach from the quarry works and appears suspended in a solution known as limewater (calcium hydroxide). At the top of the hill, a Go Kart track likely provides the source of the fly-tipped tyres, which float suspended in the calcium hydroxide solution. Although this brook is a post-industrial wasteland, it also serves as a site of scientific study for researchers who are interested in the microbial lifeforms which can survive in this hyperalkaline environment (pH > 12). In existence since the 17th century, this location provides a natural analogue site when studying the behaviour of microbes in the cementitious conditions of a geological disposal facility (GDF), which is designed to hold radioactive wastes in long-term storage.
The title of the work refers to two temporal concepts. Firstly, the notion of ‘shallow time’ is a reference to the present era of industrial production known as the Anthropocene. Whilst ‘deep time’ in this instance refers to Uranium 235, which is used as a fuel source in nuclear power stations, and has a radioactive half-life of 703.8 million years.