Gale Common Artificial Hill of Fly Ash

In 1961 Brenda Colvin was appointed, with engineers Rendel Palmer & Tritton, to design a new hill made from pulverised fuel ash from two coal fired power stations, together with waste shale from the nearby coal mine. It is 7 miles SW of Selby, beside the M62. The 50m high hill, 1.5km wide by 2.2km long, was designed to be constructed in three phases to an “unabashed and obvious artificial form” with the surface returned to agriculture, arable fields on top. Construction started in 1972 under Hal Moggridge, Brenda’s new partner; at first experiencing a number of awkward landscape problems and continued until the coal-fired power stations were closed. The brief gradually developed preferring nature conservation over economic land use, and on this basis Phase 1 was completed successfully in 2004. However, fuel ash has now become a valuable raw material so that the further parts of the hill which were commenced in the 1980s are not to be permanent features.

Colvin & Moggridge, the oldest active landscape practice in the UK, was founded in 1922 by the late Brenda Colvin. Hal Moggridge joined her as partner in 1969; Chris Carter became partner in 1981. Both are now consultants to the practice which continues thriving under younger directors, with a staff of 15. (www.colmog.co.uk)

Hal Moggridge OBE VMH PPLI FIHort RIBA was president of the Landscape Institute (1979-81) and for many years LI delegate to the International Federation of Landscape Architects. He has served on the Royal Fine Art Commission (1989-99), the National Trust’s Architectural Panel (1991-2009) and both UK and International ICOMOS Cultural Landscapes Committees. He was awarded the Landscape Institute Medal.

The practice’s work has always included large-scale industrial landscapes, power stations, quarries, reservoirs, as well as gardens and parkland, such as consultancy to Inner London’s Royal Parks and the masterplan for the new National Botanic Garden of Wales.

Image: A view from the hilltop looking east towards Eggborough and Drax power stations, 2005, ©Colvin and Moggridge

This event can be booked through the Gardens Trust eventbrite page.

Ticket sales close 4 hours before the first talk

Attendees will be sent a Zoom link 2 days (and again a few hours) prior to the start of the first talk (If you do not receive this link, please contact the Gardens Trust), and a link to the recorded session will be sent shortly after each session and will be available for 2 weeks.