Blooming slag heaps

John Berry of North Lincolnshire has come up with a way of making slag heaps
bloom (GB 2 338 706). Silt dredged from an estuary is mixed with hydrated
calcium sulphate, a by-product of making titanium dioxide. Then you add
pulverised fuel ash from a coal-fired power station. Each material on its own
would be useless, but calcium sulphate washes out the salt in the silt while the
ash adds nutrients. Assorted grass and shrub seeds are added to the mix, which
is then moistened and pumped over the derelict site. Adding organic waste, such
as pulverised waste paper,…