On ungrounded ground: A poet in residence at the dump

‘On ungrounded ground’ reflects upon a writer’s yearlong ‘residency’ at a landfill site and resource recovery facility. The article explores the significance of contemporary waste management within an archaeological, ecological and geological context. It reflects upon the psychological and aesthetic impact of rubbish, and describes some of the challenges faced by a writer trying to describe an object that contains so much contemporary, ephemeral material culture. How should they begin to decipher this monument constructed from the dark matter of late-consumer capitalism? The article suggests that the dump ultimately passes beyond the power of metonymic representation and remains other to the text that tries to represent it. It also asserts that the dump is an intense combination of natural and man-made processes. Referencing Val Plumwood’s concept of the ‘shadow place’, it identifies the dump as a hidden landscape upon which our celebration of natural landscapes and places depends. Quotes from interviews with staff and visitors to the dump are included, and, despite the impossibility of representing the dump, an attempt is made to give a taste of the physical, emotional and intellectual impact of spending time at the site.