FARMING THE LIFE: LANDSCAPE RESTORATION OF VALL D'EN JOAN WASTE LANDFILL

This project deals with two important issues: landscape, which is something that we always try to preserve, and waste, which is something that we always try to avoid. The power of this proposal is how the architects were able to integrate these two fields into one single operation.
For some reason we tend to think of landscape architecture as applied decorative art that aims to embellish the surroundings and bring some delight to our experience of the open space.
But the scale and forces with which landscape architecture tends to operate have, in actual fact, a potentially much greater impact than we might think. On the other hand, waste and landfills tend to be seen as a health threat, the worst of all evils that cities tend to create and consequently the perfect candidate for NIMBY’s resistance. The Batlle i Roig project masterfully channels the potential of a discipline to operate at a magnitude that architecture is very rarely able to achieve. It operates with extremely large dimensions with a resource (waste) that is generated at a scale that cannot be repelled but only redirected. What makes this project remarkable is not only that it is based on very specific and highly qualified technical knowledge, but that it was able to create a new, simultaneously elegant and precise landscape. The problem (enormous volumes of garbage) contained the seeds for a potential gain: a powerful public space of geographical magnitude.