ENCI quarry (type Maastrichtian, The Netherlands) fossil hunting trip

[Johan]

Hello everyone,

 

Last Saturday, October 6th, I joint a fossil hunting excursion of the Dutch geological society (NGV) to the ENCI quarry, near the town of Maastricht (The Netherlands). This quarry has been in production since 1926, and has been one of the best fossil hunting sites of the Netherlands ever since. Worldwide, the youngest time interval of the Cretaceous Period is known as the Maastrichtian, a reference to the rock layers exposed in this area. We owe this international reference to the instrumental work of Belgian geologist André Hubert Dumont, who, in 1849, first described the rock layers in the valley of the Meuse River, close to the present-day ENCI quarry. Consequently, the rock sequence in the ENCI quarry constitutes the original type-locality of the Maastrichtian Stage. The Maastrichtian rocks are also world famous for their excavated mosasaur skeletons (the word 'mosa' is latin for the river Meuse. Mosasaurs are also named after this locality). 

 

 

Yet, unfortunately, all good things come to an end: the ENCI quarry is closing down. The production has stopped this month, and the quarry is now turned into a nature conservation area. Most of the quarry walls are currently being covered up, to make 'nice' gently slopes. Burying all remaining fossils forever.... 

 

 

So the remaining few excursions this year are the very last opportunity to hunt some fossils in this once glorious pit. I have been there a couple of times this year, and every trip fills me with melancholy. While the hunting is still relatively okay(ish), the possibilities become fewer and fewer, and only a very small part of the total strata can be examined.... 

 

 

 

 

[Johan]

In the quarry, it took me a while to find some 'fresh' material. In the end, I discovered a few blocks with coarser limestone, from the upper part of the Maastricht Formation. The find included some shell material, and a few nice shark teeth, still in the matrix. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Johan]

And some more finds.....

[Manticocerasman]

Thx for the report Johan. 

It is indeed sad to see such an iconic place closing down. 

[FossilDAWG]

I'm very sad to hear of the quarry closing, and even more sad to hear that the exposed layers will be covered over.  This is a scientifically important section, and some of it at least should be preserved in an accessible state for researchers to examine.

 

I collected once at ENCI when I was a kid living in the Netherlands, back in the early 1970s.  I still have some of the belemnites, Hemipneustes echinoids, callinassid claws, and shells I collected there.  It is one of the places I had always hoped to revisit one day, but it seems that opportunity has closed.  

 

Don

[Fossildude19]

Sad to loose such a wonderful place to collect fossils. 

Thank you for the informative trip report. 

Nice finds and pictures, as well. 

Regards,

[jpc]

Sad to hear this.  I had the good fortune of collecting there in 2011, (I think).  Found lots of good fossils and some locals donated a few to my cause.  Thanks folks.  

 

Isn't there a quarry in Belgium that allows collecting that has the same layers?  

[Miocene_Mason]

Sad to hear it is going. Wish I could’ve got there. Thanks for sharing it in its final days!

[Johan]

Thanks for all the kind responses, everyone. It is indeed really a pity that this location is shutting down. 

 

6 hours ago, FossilDAWG said:

This is a scientifically important section, and some of it at least should be preserved in an accessible state for researchers to examine

I agree with you. Actually, as a professional geologist, I have tried to organize a field campaign to try to archive the material from this section, but access was denied to the quarry by the current owner. We have set up a new project, titled the "Maastricthian Geoheritage Project" in an attempt to preserve some of the parts of the quarry. We are still working on achieving this. 

 

3 hours ago, jpc said:

Isn't there a quarry in Belgium that allows collecting that has the same layers?  

Sort of.... There are two Belgian quarries that have a part of the same stratigraphy as the ENCI quarry, the Romontbos quarry and the Marnebel quarry, but both quarries only represent the lower part of the Maastricht Formation, not the entire formation. To make things worse, the Marnebel quarry is also close to shutting down, and the access to the Romontbos quarry is very limited (one excursion per year, through the Belgian Paleontological Society). So not much hope for that .....

 

Cheers,

Johan

[Ludwigia]

I'd already heard about this but I'm still sad about the news, especially since this place has such a history in the annals of paleontological research. Thanks for giving us a few last glimpses.

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

On 08/10/2018 at 9:26 PM, Johan said:

We have set up a new project, titled the "Maastricthian Geoheritage Project" in an attempt to preserve some of the parts of the quarry. We are still working on achieving this. 

I know I'm late to comment on this, but is this project going well? I seriously hope so..

-Christian

Edited February 9, 2019 by The Amateur Paleontologist

[Tidgy's Dad]

Yes, I too would be interested in an update.

How very sad it's closing down.

[Johan]

Last year, we have had a couple of meetings with the ENCI management, in an attempt to acquire access to the quarry for a field campaign. Unfortunately, as they had both tight schedule (to dig out every last bit of limestone) en tight security rules and regulations, our applications were not granted. No access to the quarry for geological sampling...

 

Since last year, the quarry is being turned into a nature reserve. Many of the quarry walls are covered by earth, to create 'natural slopes', for a sheep herd to graze on. This means that by now, a large part of the quarry is already 'lost' to geology. The current owner of the quarry is the Dutch nature organisation "Natuurmonumenten". Last month, we have had a meeting with a couple of officials from this organisation, to plead for our cause. The meeting was positive, they were interested in our ideas and plans. We are now making plans to do a big field campaign this summer, to capture what is left of the quarry with a drone (and make a 3D model of the quarry, to at least 'preserve' it that way for future generations) and do a big sampling campaign, to collect sufficient rock sampled from the part of the stratigraphy that is still available, to allow future geologists and paleontologists to work on the material, long after all of it is lost to nature. 

 

I will keep you guys posted on the developments of this project.

 

Cheers,

Johan 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Still a shame, but some good news at least.

[ynot]

Good luck with this project!

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

19 hours ago, Johan said:

The meeting was positive, they were interested in our ideas and plans. We are now making plans to do a big field campaign this summer, to capture what is left of the quarry with a drone (and make a 3D model of the quarry, to at least 'preserve' it that way for future generations) and do a big sampling campaign, to collect sufficient rock sampled from the part of the stratigraphy that is still available, to allow future geologists and paleontologists to work on the material, long after all of it is lost to nature. 

There's the silver lining, I guess  

This is a great project - good luck with it!

-Christian