Thirteen years and £20m of restoration work on a former coke works in Rotherham is set to come to an end next month, with some real environmental enhancements gained. The Waverley site, which had been used for more than 200 years for coal mining and industrial activity, has undergone a total transformation since 1995 from a bleak mining site with dirty rivers and contaminated land, to an area with a real future. More than four million tonnes of waste from the former coke works and 30 million tonnes of spoil contained in the Orgreave colliery pit tip has been remediated as part of the Orgreave Reclamation Scheme as well as the re-routing, decontamination and aeration of the River Rother. Site manager, Derek Harrison, (55) from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, has seen Waverley's regeneration first hand, after working alongside more than 120 colleagues on the 741-acre site for more than eight years for owners, property and energy company, UK COAL. Derek has worked on the contouring of development platforms, a major surface water drainage scheme, landscape planting, ecological enhancements and the implementation of public footpaths. He said: "It has been extremely rewarding to see Waverley develop from an industrial wasteland into a vast restored area. "It's gone from a dark, dirty and smelly area, to a mass of remediated landscape which we hope to secure a sustainable community on, complete with lakes and reservoirs, improved public access and the creation of dedicated woodland and wildflower grasslands. "The river was once the dirtiest in Europe, but now has good water quality. To add to this, the land has been designed to attract nature."
Waverley Community website
Rotherham
Rotherham healthcare decontamination specialist DawMed have announced their latest financial results. Turnover increased by 67% to £3.82m compared to £2.29m in 2006 and the company said sales of its own products significantly increased over the six months up to March 31st. Without the impact of losses such as the exceptional foreign exchange rate, the company would have made a profit in the period of £61,900. Kevin Gilmore, Executive Chairman of Dawmed, commented: "I am pleased to report a buoyant period of recovery from last year's losses, with a first half underlying performance turnaround of £501,000, excluding the effects of the exceptional foreign exchange loss and the non-recurring abnormal costs expected to be recoverable in the second half, and I look forward to the current profitable trading leading to profitability for the second half of the year."
