2.1.1 Geology and Vegetation

Dublin City originated where the River Liffey meets the Irish Sea. Originally this landscape consisted of the unhindered Liffey meandering its way to the coast with its many contributory streams and rivers forming a broad drainage basin. It is notable that many of these waterbodies have since disappeared underground in our contemporary city.

The underlying geology is largely of calp limestone bedrock formed by marine sediments and harder Leinster granite is also present from the Blackrock area in South Dublin.

Overlaying the bedrock is glacial till of sediments deposited by the ice sheets (over 10,000 years ago) and the predominant soil that is derived from this till is grey brown podzolics which are typically well drained and fertile. Alluvial deposition from the rivers and coast is also present. This fertile land would have been forested with species established since the retreat of the ice sheets and was dominated by oak and ash