STITCHING LANDSCAPES: Architecture for Rehabilitating Abandoned Aggregate Quarries in Southern Ontario

Abstract

Milton Quarry, located along the Niagara escarpment, is Ontario’s largest resource for aggre- gate raw materials such as sand, gravel and limestone and is rapidly coming close to the end of its life-cycle, which raises questions about the manufactured landscape it will leave behind. This thesis questions whether these post-industrial landscapes on the Niagara Escarpment be re-imagined to actively rehabilitate the site through water, while simultaneously provide oppor- tunities for recreation, education and research? The thesis aims to propose a design strategy that addresses the prototypical nature of quarry abandonment on the Niagara Escarpment and uses the site as a case study to create infrastructure for recreation, landscape rehabilitation, education and research.