Old sand pits in the Bois de la Houssière

The Bois de la Houssière was once exploited for its high-quality sand. There were 6 sand pits: Tête du Bois, Haut Bois ridge, Clos du Vertbois (formerly Freyr's sand pit, see fig.16), Planois, Marouset (the largest, see fig.17), Long Jour. In the woods, the vast majority of the wood is coarser and yellow-ochre Brussels sand and Ypresian clayey sand, finer and brownish, all covered by a thin layer of silt (see fig.18). The former was used in construction while the more clayey was used to make foundry moulds. The Fauquez glassworks took advantage of the Brussels sand pits for their productions.

In 1990, the Marouset sand pit was abandoned and turned into a landfill (see fig.19). Since 2002, none of them have been exploited because once they reach the clay layer, which is too sticky, there is no more sand to harvest. From then on, nature took over, a few birch and heather trees grew in these places. Fauna and flora have reconquered these places, so much so that the former sand pit of Vertbois is now a nature reserve.

Cyrille Marchant