Erosion and Sediment Control Plans

Blog | August 17th, 2018

Two forces are guilty of altering our landscapes. The first works with subtractive impact, chewing away swathes of soil. This ejecta is then carried away and deposited elsewhere. In effect, the process is “eroding” land and dropping the removed soil as sediment elsewhere. Unfortunately, what was once a natural cycle is now being heavily influenced by man’s unnatural machinations. To counteract those actions, we use erosion and sediment control plans.

Erosion Impacts Natural Topographical Features 

Natural forces erode river banks and their beds. On rivers, it’s the wind and rain, plus strong currents that chew into those features. Of some concern, what was once a natural phenomenon, is now being magnified by incautious infrastructural designs. Flood control systems and upstream structural alterations (dams and city drainage culverts) are accelerating the effect and causing never-before-seen topographical alterations. Counteracting this manmade effect, engineers are using every tool at their disposal to stop the artificially induced landscape alterations.

Erosion and Sediment Control Planning 

Pulling out the latest survey maps, a top engineering service is designing an erosion reduction plan. The team is talking about working with nature first, which is standard protocol. After all, the land doesn’t need more artificial structures added, not if that measure can be avoided. Trees and bushes are planted as erosion prevention remedies. If the ground is steep, it’s graded so that a heavy downpour doesn’t use the slope as a sluicing mechanism. Next, the engineers initiate a more proactive approach. Is there a quarry or mine nearby? If there is, it’s time to talk to the site owner and purchase several loads of rip-rap. This rocky waste is intelligently placed along river banks and eroded coastal lines as a shoreline armouring medium.

Stopping Sediment Dispersal in its Tracks 

Rip-rap aprons and land cultivation strategies are all very good, but what if the sediment load is still saturating the water? Again, a technical service has the tools to prevent this action from causing severe damage. Sediment runoff is filtered naturally by water-based plant life. If this measure isn’t enough, there are sediment basins, gravel drop inlets, and all manner of sediment filtering solutions to explore.

Initiating the finished erosion and sediment control plan, technical services tend to do follow-up surveys. Is the rip-rap stopping soil from being eaten away? What about the trees and other arboreal flora? Employing a series of monitoring instruments, the erosion-prone region is still very much under the jurisdiction of the engineering service, for Mother Nature often needs a helping hand, especially when Man exerts his environment-unbalancing ways.

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