Richmond Hill’s development, particularly the post-1970s expansion north of Highway 7, has consistently pushed residential and commercial construction onto the complex glacial deposits of the Oak Ridges Moraine. The population, now exceeding 200,000, has driven a demand for precise geotechnical data, especially where the variable till and interbedded sand layers create unpredictable bearing surfaces. In our experience, the most reliable way to visually confirm stratigraphy before a shovel hits the ground is through a well-executed exploratory test pit. Unlike strictly remote sensing methods, an exploratory test pit allows our technical team to directly observe soil structure, moisture conditions, and potential cobble content—critical factors in a municipality where a single lot can transition from dense clayey silt to loose sand within meters. For deeper stratigraphic confirmation, we often supplement findings with a CPT test to produce continuous soil behavior profiles where the test pit base is exceeded.
A direct look at the soil profile through an exploratory test pit often reveals critical details—like thin silt seams or perched groundwater—that other subsurface investigation methods can easily miss.
