The Wadi Hanifa is a valley in Saudia Arabia, that’s over 75 miles long. And thanks to increased urbanization, it became subject to runoff from a local sewage treatment plant, turning it into a toxic sewer. But in 2001 Moriyama & Teshima Planners, a Toronto-based architectural firm, was tasked with cleaning up the valley and has now been recognized for turning it into a sparkling oasis.
The firm won five Aga Khan awards this week for its work on the $100 million project, funded by the city of Riyadh.
“Wadi Hanifa was Riyadh’s dump and its sewer,” Moriyama & Teshima Planners president George Stockton said. “What we wanted to do was to bring Wadi Hanifa back to life. So after decades of neglect, we are now seeing this amazing rebirth and transformation of Wadi Hanifa as a naturalized park system.
In addition to cleaning up the valley, the rehabilitation project also included the installation of dams to regulate water flow and planting reeds to help purify the water further. The Wadi Hanifa now serves as a home to plenty of social activities, including fishing and picnicking.
You can view a series of before and after images of the valley at the CBC.
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