Unearthed

Ode To Soil

Black Creek, Toronto, ON individual and group academic work 2021

Research into soil policy and management found that Toronto has failed to responsibly manage contaminated soil. By having unearthed the history of Black Creek, the hope is to shift our relationship with soil in Toronto going forward: to care, to engage, and to heal. This area will be a hub to handle the excavated soils of future infrastructure projects in the city, effectively reducing carbon emissions and contaminant spread from soil transport.

Surrounding the intersection of Eglinton and Black Creek Drive in West Toronto, there are four zones of significant contamination that need to be remediated and improved through design strategies. The soils deemed as contaminated will undergo various forms of remediation before being relocated for reuse.

We propose a shift in our relationship with soil, acknowledging it as a living, self contained ecosystem, and one that we are heavily reliant on. It must be cared for properly and not taken advantage of. The aim is to break the cycle of fractured soil movement and close the loop to change the pattern of soil mismanagement that has been allowed to take place for far too long.