Our client challenged us to transform the environment around this working iron ore mine in central Ukraine and create a ‘Unique and extraordinary landscape’. The project aim is to create something special to help change current perceptions of open cast mining. Three key aspects that emerged from the brief were supporting ‘Operational function’, providing ‘Amenity and leisure’ and creating a sustainable ‘Environmental legacy’.

Utilising waste material excavated from the mine we are developing a sculpted landscape topography not previously seen before on the Ukrainian steppe. The landscape is providing habitats for native flora and fauna as well as a space for leisure and amenity. By planting trees, we are bringing back some of the character of the old forest steppe. The project includes the creation of wetland that expands and contracts seasonally, restoring ecological niches that existed in the meanders of an old river that has since been diverted. This is an impressive undertaking with a long time scale, developing as more mine waste becomes available. The long-term phasing of the work and the management of the construction process are at least as ambitious and demanding as developing the initial project. This is truly a ‘one of a kind’ project, and we are delighted to be playing a crucial role in its design and realisation.