Billbrook: Industriekanal

Industriekanal is the clearest local landscape element in this part of Billbrook. Water and the spaces immediately around it influence routes, views and the amount of openness between the surrounding streets, giving this micro-area a character that differs from drier and more densely built parts of the district. Treating Industriekanal separately helps bring the waterside setting and its everyday recreational value into the description. The marshy ground between the Bille and the Elbe valley was raised with sand in the early twentieth century, enabling the creation of an extensive industrial estate. Heavy lorries, freight rail and loading areas set the daily rhythm, while the waterways and surviving strips of wet ground reveal the landscape beneath the infrastructure. The district is closely tied to neighbouring Rothenburgsort, Moorfleet and the port economy, with good road connections but few reasons for casual visitors to enter.