Landscapes Via Reclamation
The history of our landscape is the history of human land use. Toledo and the surrounding area was once part of the Great Black Swamp. Our predecessors filled it in. As we perpetually change the ways in which we use the land, we change the landscape. With an increase in environmental awareness and action, reclamation of brown-fields and unwanted materials are shaping our landscape.
Since moving to this region, I have learned to recognize hills in an otherwise incredibly flat region as a sign of human land use. Almost anything that creates a silhouette on the regions landscapes is human made. If you see a large hill or series of hills covered with grass, there is a good chance that it is a capped landfill. Hills are also formed by gravel and minerals piled high.
I have taken to looking at the hills and wondering what they conceal. I get my groceries at a local shopping center situated on the largest hill in the area. It is part of the largest commercial redevelopment of a landfill in the nation. Along with the grocery store, numerous restaurants, and retail stores there are three miles of scenic trails and a pond where you can feed the ducks. In Ann Arbor, there is a large dog park adjacent to a series of hills. It is also a reclaimed landfill. The real beauty of these landscapes is that many of the people who visit them don't realize that that they were once brown-fields.
Each time I drive to and from Toledo, I pass a constantly changing series of hills. The hills are made from salvaged concrete and piles of rubble. The rubble is made by grinding the large slabs of concrete down. This is used as the foundations of roads. I enjoy seeing these hills of rubble rise and fall.
This series of photos illustrates these landscapes via reclamation.