What's in this dirt?

We’ve been digging up our backyard to get rid of Japanese knotweed and have been finding pockets of this grey, gritty stuff. Does anyone know what it is (see images; in one you can clearly see the grey line where this layer of stuff is)? We thought that perhaps its by-product from when homes were heated by coal and rather than properly dispose of the by-product it was dumped in the backyard. Or perhaps it’s leftover gunk from when a narrow concrete walkway was put in the yard. We’ve been trying to throw out this crap, but easier said than done. Thanks.

Guest User | 11 years and 8 months ago

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blauprint9 | 11 years and 5 months ago

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Be careful. Depending on what your plans are for the area, it might be safer to just cover it up with other soils and groundcovers.

Guest User | 11 years and 8 months ago

string(1) "3"
string(6) "195523"

No wonder the levels of lead in our soil are so high. I guess when we find this stuff we should try to bag it and throw it out. Thank you all for your feedback.

Townie | 11 years and 8 months ago

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Might also be very old finish and browncoat plaster from interior demolition…

berniceshola | 11 years and 8 months ago

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Yeah, that looks like fly ash from a coal furnace. Mercury, arsenic, lead, selenium, and hexavalent chromium. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fly_ash

BobMarvin | 11 years and 8 months ago

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A layer of ash? Perhaps coal ash from an old furnace dumped years ago.

Guest User | 11 years and 8 months ago

string(1) "3"
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Why is it that my pictures never upload with my original post?