AFTER THE STRIP MINES

+ SPRING 2019

+ UNDERGRADUATE - ACADEMIC WORK

FIRST READER - PROF. WILLIAM TRUITT

SECOND READER - MEREDITH CHAVEZ

HONORS READER - HANC MARKE

+ SITE ANALYSIS INDEPENDENT + ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN INDEPENDENT

The landscapes and ecologies of Appalachia have been drastically altered due to the practice of mountaintop removal mining. Practices such as these, driven by economic intentions, resulted in damaging community resources and wildlife ecosystems.

Landscape has the potential to be a visual representation of various conditions, such as community, politics, and nature, and the irreversible changes and implications they have on an existing ecology. This thesis accepts the transformation of the Appalachian landscapes and the ecological repercussions involved by proposing to transform the scraped industrial landscape of a mountaintop removal mine into a working bioremediation field and research center.

Complete Mine To Site Diagram

Due to the sheer size of the strip mine, a 1 square mile immediate site was established, an invisible boundary that would be abandoned after the initial phased landscape development

Contrast Images

These images highlight the scarred and desolate landscapes left behind by the strip mining process. The existing landscape forms are drastically altered and often struggle to recover due to toxins introduced.

Mat Ecology

The mechanical landscape of this project was created through the mat ecology approach. The three zones are part of a larger grid that is deployed over the existing scarred landscape.

Phasing Diagram

The research facility acts as the folly from which the landscape development will progress outward. The progression will occur in a phased approach over a 60 year time period.

Restoration And Reclamation Practices

The reclamation and restoration approach to the site is done via three techniques, traditional reclamation through reforestation, rotational planting, and water treatment. These three approaches are deployed on the established grid

Building Section

This building design illustrates the relationship between remediation techniques and the building program. The main circulation is housed along the exterior, providing views to the developing landscape, while secondary circulation is found in the core.

Development Perspective

Due to the extensive nature of the phased approach, the scarred and toxic landscape will be a major visual component of the development for a large portion of the phasing. The calculated and measured landscape deployment will eventually be blurred, erasing the harsh grid lines established in its infancy.