Field Evaluation of Silt Fence Tieback Systems at a Highway Construction Site
Publication: Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 14, Issue 3
Abstract
Every year, construction activities expose millions of acres of soil to the elements of wind, rain, and snow. This greatly increases the potential for erosion; and therefore, the need for efficient erosion and sediment control practices is a high priority. In this research, the performance of a silt fence system with tiebacks (a.k.a., “j-hooks”) was investigated to determine its effectiveness as a sediment control technology at highway construction sites over multiple rainfall events. The data presented provide a qualitative perspective showing sediment migration over time along with the occurrence or lack of failures among two silt fence systems tested. The results from this field test exhibit that silt fence tieback systems are more effective in containing eroded sediment from construction sites and also reduce the risk of silt fence system failures than traditional linear silt fence systems.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
The writers would like to gratefully acknowledge the support provided to conduct this research sponsored by ALDOT through the Highway Research Center at Auburn University. The writers also would like to acknowledge the contributions provided by Jarid Halverson, Research Associate, and Mr. Barry Fagan, P.E., Environmental Construction Engineer with the ALDOT Construction Bureau.
References
Barrett, M. E., Kearney, J. E., McCoy, T. G., and Malina, J. F. (1995). “An evaluation of the use and effectiveness of temporary sediment controls.” Center for Research in Water Resources Technical Rep. 95-6, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Tex.
Novotny, V. (2003). Water quality: Diffuse pollution and watershed management, Wiley, New York.
Robichaud, P. R., McCool, D. K., Pannkuk, C. D., Brown, R. E., and Mutch, P. W. (2001). “Trap efficiency of silt fences used in hillslope erosion studies.” Soil Erosion Research for the 21st Century, Proc. Int. Symp., American Society of Agricultural Engineers, 541–543.
Stevens, E., Barfield, B. J., Britton, S. L., and Hayes, J. S. (2004). “Filter fence design aid for sediment control at construction sites.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), EPA 600/R-04/185, Office of Research and Development, Washington, D.C.
U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA). (1986). “Urban hydrology for small watersheds.” Technical release 55 (TR-55), National Resource Conservation Service, Conservation Engineering Division.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). (1994). “What is nonpoint source (NPS) pollution? Questions and answers.” EPA-841-F-94-005.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). (1998). “Reissuance of NPDES general permits for storm water discharges from construction activities.” Federal Register, Part II, Notice, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
Zech, W. C., Halverson, J. L., and Clement, T. P. (2007). “Development of a silt fence tieback design methodology for highway construction installations.” Transportation Research Record. 2011, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 21–28.
Zech, W. C., Halverson, J. L., and Clement, T. P. (2008). “Evaluating the effectiveness of various types of silt fence installations to control sediment discharge from highway construction sites.” J. Hydrol. Eng., 13(6), 497–504.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 14 • Issue 3 • August 2009
Pages: 105 - 112
Copyright
© 2009 ASCE.
History
Received: Apr 23, 2008
Accepted: Aug 11, 2008
Published online: Jul 15, 2009
Published in print: Aug 2009
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.