Schwyll Aquifer facts for kids

The Schwyll Aquifer (pronounced 'Shwill') was once known as 'the Great Spring of Glamorgan'. It's a huge underground water source that helps supply water to homes and businesses. Welsh Water uses the water that comes out of the ground at the Schwyll Spring, near Ewenny in the Vale of Glamorgan. This spring is a very important source of water for the Bridgend area.

What is an Aquifer?

An aquifer is like a giant sponge made of rock, hidden deep underground. It's a layer of rock that can hold and let water flow through it. Think of it as an underground river or lake, but instead of open water, it's water stored within tiny cracks and spaces in the rock.

How the Schwyll Aquifer Works

The Schwyll Aquifer is made of a type of rock called carboniferous limestone. This rock has many cracks and holes, allowing water to seep in and travel through it. When it rains a lot, the water soaks into the ground and slowly makes its way into this underground rock system.

Where Does the Water Come From?

Scientists believe the water in the Schwyll Aquifer travels a long way. When there's heavy rain far away, it takes some time for the water at the spring to change color. This delay suggests the water might come from as far as 20 miles away! This would mean the main source is in the limestone hills on the southern edge of the Brecon Beacons.

Exploring the Underground World

It's hard to explore the full cave system of the Schwyll Aquifer because there isn't an easy way to get inside. The only known entrance is at the pumping station where water is taken out.

Discoveries in the Deep

In 1998, brave cave divers explored the system from the pumping shaft. They went about 440 meters (that's almost half a kilometer!) into the underground passages. About 400 meters in, they found a huge underground room, or cavern. Inside this cavern, they made an exciting discovery: bones! These bones were identified as belonging to a horse. Scientists then studied the bones to find out how old they were.

A Giant Spring

The amount of water that flows out of the Schwyll Spring is truly impressive. It's much larger than any other spring in Wales. It even produces more water than famous springs in England, like those at Wookey Hole or the Cheddar Gorge. This makes the Schwyll Aquifer a very special and important natural water source.