Alison...it's a test to establish how porous, or not, the site is. Because there is no mains sewage system, drainage from a septic tank, or whatever, has to be man enough for the job...so to speak. We're hiring a local man with a wee digger. Results then go to a surveyor. We'll be taking Mr soop's initial drawings in to the planners on Friday. We've dealt with them before, and they are a decent bunch of fellas. In fact, at one point, when we had nowhere to live, the chief planner suggested that we might like to camp in his office. 