'Ruined' coastline wins landscape title
7 December 2010
A major landscaping project to regenerate an area of Durham coastline once ruined by the coal industry has become the first to scoop the title of UK Landscape of the Year, and goes forward to compete in the finals of the European awards next March.
The Durham Heritage Coast between Hartlepool and Sunderland was once known as the Black Beaches following a century of tipping coal sludge, sewage waste and colliery spoil onto the coastline from nearby coalmines. A 15-year regeneration programme has cleared the slag heaps, recreated wetlands and restored limestone grassland rich in wildflowers such as blue moor grass (Sesleria caerulea) and fragrant orchid (Gymnadenia conopsea).
The judges praised the project as 'a bold vision', saying it was 'a landscape of beauty rich in wildlife and cultural heritage in which local communities can feel justifiably proud.'
It's only the second year of the European Landscape Convention's Landscape Award and the first time the UK has put in an entry. Last year's winner was the 300-hectare (740-acre) Parc de la Deûle near Lille, France.