Key Middle Pleistocene localities of the Lower Thames: site conservation issues, recent research and report of a Geologistsʹ Association excursion, 8 July, 2000

A review of published data spanning two centuries, combined with new investigations at a number of critical sites, has confirmed the Lower Thames terrace staircase to be one of the most complete and best dated archives of late Middle Pleistocene environmental change in Europe. This recognition comes at a time when access to exposures of the key sediments has diminished to just a handful of conservation sites, mainly Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), under increasing pressure from development. Four such sites, central to the recognition of the oxygen isotope stage (OIS) 9 and OIS 7 interglacials within the Lower Thames sequence, were visited by a GA excursion in July 2000. This paper combines a report of the excursion with discussion of the importance of the sites as well as conservation management issues.