Water and Wastewater Minimization: the Aire and Calder Project

The reduction of the waste of raw materials at source using clean technologies, recycling, and good housekeeping has considerable benefits for both the environment and industry. A demonstration project on wastewater minimization was completed in 1995 in the Aire and Calder catchments of West Yorkshire. The findings indicated cost savings for eleven firms of over $3 million/annum and further opportunities which, when implemented, could realize another $1 million/annum. The reduction in the amount of wastewater discharged either to sewer or river was 27%, with a potential to increase to over 40%. The payback period for 63% of the waste minimization opportunities is less than one year and many involve only a small initial investment. Waste minimization when widely adopted has prospects for cutting industry's costs, reducing demand for water and reducing the volume of effluent produced.     

Unravelling the Mystery: Charlotte Brontë’s 1850 ‘Thackeray Dress’

In the summer of 1850, there was a frisson of excitement in London society. Charlotte Brontë, the recently revealed writer of the best-selling novel Jane Eyre, was in the capital, staying with her publisher, George Smith. The highlight of Charlotte’s trip was a large, formal dinner hosted by her literary hero, William Makepeace Thackeray. To this august event it has long been assumed that she wore a floral print, white and blue delaine skirt and bodice. This article begins by examining the colloquially named ‘Thackeray Dress’ in detail, before considering the evidence given in support of it having been worn to the dinner on 12 June 1850. The style and fabric of the dress are then compared to others of the period and this is followed by an examination of contemporary sartorial conventions, and the extent of Charlotte Brontë’s adherence to them. Questions raised by these findings are then considered alongside reports that suggest the dress may not have been worn on this occasion. Published in the bicentenary year of Brontë’s birth, this study questions the validity of the garment’s association with the legendary Thackeray dinner and, in so doing, attempts to separate fact from fiction.     

Sense-Sensitive Design for the Ageing

When designing retirement housing and socially inclusive urban spaces, there is a great deal of emphasis on mobility and accessibility. Physical decline is, however, only one important dimension of old age. Richard Mazuch , Director of Design Research and Innovation for IBI/Nightingale, an architect with specialist expertise in evidence-based design and healthcare, here describes how architects and designers need to be mindful of how the senses wane with age when designing environments for older people.     

Development of a Groundwater Resource Model for the Yorkshire Chalk

This paper (a) aims to demonstrate the basic principles of groundwater resource model development by means of an example, and (b) describes the development of the Yorkshire Chalk groundwater model (YORKMOD), undertaken on behalf of the National Rivers Authority † and Yorkshire Water Services. The model incorporates a permeability-depth function to represent fissuring in the Chalk, and has been successfully calibrated against observed groundwater heads and springflows for the period 1975–1992 inclusive.     

Landscape conservation policy and traditional farm buildings: a case study of field barns in the Yorkshire Dales national park

The effectiveness of policies intended to protect the built environment in rural Britain is examined in the context of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, a large part of which has also been designated as an Environmentally Sensitive Area. Further protection is given in some areas by a local Barns and Walls Conservation Project. Three survey areas are identified which have been subject to different levels of protection. Within each area the condition of a sample of 100 field barns in 1997 is compared with the results of a baseline survey carried out in 1985. It is shown that, although a high proportion of field barns still retained their traditional appearance, significant changes in their condition had occurred in all the areas by 1997. Few of these changes appeared to be the result of deliberate actions by farmers, which suggests that the various protective measures have not been fully effective in arresting the long‐term process of deterioration and dereliction that is leading to the loss of one of the most distinctive features of the Dales landscape.     

SHALE‐GAS POTENTIAL OF THE MID‐CARBONIFEROUS BOWLAND‐HODDER UNIT IN THE CLEVELAND BASIN (YORKSHIRE), CENTRAL BRITAIN

The shale‐gas potential of mid‐Carboniferous mudrocks in the Bowland‐Hodder unit in the Cleveland Basin (Yorkshire, northern England) was investigated through the analysis of a cored section from the uppermost part of the unit in the Malton‐4 well using a multidisciplinary approach. Black shales are interbedded with bioturbated and bedded sandstones, representing basinal‐offshore to prodelta – delta‐front lithofacies. The total organic carbon (TOC) content of the shales ranges from 0.37 to 2.45 wt %. Rock‐Eval pyrolysis data indicate that the organic matter is mainly composed of Type III kerogen with an admixture of Type II kerogen. T_max (436–454°C), 20S/(20S+20R) C₂₉ sterane ratios, and vitrinite reflectance values indicate that organic matter is in the mid‐ to late‐ mature (oil) stage with respect to hydrocarbon generation. Sedimentological and geochemical redox proxies suggest that the black shales were deposited in periodically oxic‐dysoxic and anoxic bottom waters with episodic oxic conditions, explaining the relatively low TOC values. The Rock‐Eval parameters indicate that the analysed mudrocks have a limited shale‐gas potential. However, burial and thermal history modelling, and VR_r data from other wells in the region, indicate that where they are more deeply‐buried, the Bowland‐Hodder shales will be within the gas window with VR_r > 1.1 % at depths in excess of 2000 m. Therefore although no direct evidence for a high shale‐gas potential in the Cleveland Basin has been found, this cannot be precluded at greater depths especially if deeper horizons are more organic rich.     

Restructuring the post-industrial landscape: A multifunctional approach

Using the example of the Dearne Valley in South Yorkshire, England, a notion of multifunctionality, and its potential to be utilized in post-industrial regeneration is explored. Multifunctionality is defined as an integration of different functions within the same or overlapping land unit, at the same or overlapping in time, and is a framework whereby a holistic view of a landscape can be examined. The multi-criteria analysis approach to mapping potential in the landscape highlights the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in this part of post-industrial England. The graphical format enables the elements of the landscape to be identified and this offers potential for a basis of consultation in the process of regeneration. By examining the place of post-industrial sites in the context of the landscape in which they are situated will enable their potential to be realized, rather than viewing them as individual problems. The paper concludes by examining how a concept of multifunctionality can address some of the shortcomings in the current regeneration delivery environment, and suggests that this approach may bring about post-industrial landscapes that are not only new, but better.     

Restructuring the post-industrial landscape: A multifunctional approach

Using the example of the Dearne Valley in South Yorkshire, England, a notion of multifunctionality, and its potential to be utilized in post-industrial regeneration is explored. Multifunctionality is defined as an integration of different functions within the same or overlapping land unit, at the same or overlapping in time, and is a framework whereby a holistic view of a landscape can be examined. The multi-criteria analysis approach to mapping potential in the landscape highlights the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in this part of post-industrial England. The graphical format enables the elements of the landscape to be identified and this offers potential for a basis of consultation in the process of regeneration. By examining the place of post-industrial sites in the context of the landscape in which they are situated will enable their potential to be realized, rather than viewing them as individual problems. The paper concludes by examining how a concept of multifunctionality can address some of the shortcomings in the current regeneration delivery environment, and suggests that this approach may bring about post-industrial landscapes that are not only new, but better.     

The Management of Sediment in Reservoired Catchments

The rates of sedimentation in Yorkshire reservoirs are high for the UK but low compared with those reported globally. Whilst not likely to jeopardize supply, the behaviour and properties of reservoir sediments have implications for the quantity and quality of the water.
Data suggest that the use of control and diversion structures reduces average sedimentation by 53m³/km² per annum in the case of residuum lodges, and also modifies the nature of the sediment considerably, tending to allow the finer, organic particles into the reservoir. Trapping may be minimized by the diversion of high flows where such facilities exist, or by maintaining water levels at the maximum possible in supply reservoirs.
Management strategies to reduce sedimentation would, in many cases, require fairly simple routine maintenance of existing structures. The short-term cost of discarded water must be weighed against the longer-term benefits of improved quality and reservoir capacity.     

The Feildbarn

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios are leading an initiative to find an alternative use for the disused field barns of the Yorkshire Dales that will retain for prosperity these beautifully crafted structures roughened and enhanced by time. David Littlefield describes the pilot project in Lower Wharfedale, near Skipton, in which a timber pod has been created to provide basic accommodation for holidaymakers seeking a countryside break close to nature. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.