Cowbury Green, Carrbrook
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Cowbury Green, Carrbrook by Gerald England as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
Cowbury Green, Carrbrook
Image: © Gerald England Taken: 25 May 2009
Cowbury Green is the site of the Chemstar factory where a massive explosion took place in 1981. The firm recycled petrol based chemicals such as processed pharmaceuticals, paint, printing ink, adhesives etc. They had been operating in Carrbrook for five years, storing a variety of chemicals and solvents. After the explosion chemicals were washed into the local stream; when experts were brought in after the fire over 400 different chemicals, many of them carcinogenic, were found in the soil. The effect of this contamination on local wildlife was catastrophic, and residents were warned not to eat home-grown vegetables. In 1989, the contaminated soil was removed from the site and the area was cleared of all debris and toxic waste. The area has since been landscaped and planted with trees. The area is now known as Cowbury Green and was officially opened on 8th April 1993. Image] shows the site in 2012.
Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
Image Location
Latitude
53.506229
Longitude
-2.014586