S&ME used an innovative combination of traditional geotechnical drilling and Pile Integrity Testing techniques to evaluate a 90-year old Raymond concrete step taper pile foundation system’s capacity to support new Streetscape sidewalks in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee.  The complexity of the exploration and Pile Integrity Testing was compounded because the existing foundations were located in catacombs beneath the sidewalks.

Our initial services included providing drilling and laboratory testing, and providing geotechnical recommendations for subgrade improvements and retaining wall design.  During the Streetscapes construction, the existing columns supporting the sidewalk were to be replaced, and a new sidewalk was to be constructed.  Because of the poor soil conditions encountered at the planned foundation levels, we were asked to provide recommendations for alternative foundation systems.  In order to evaluate the subsurface conditions beneath the original ground surface and to evaluate the condition of the existing pile foundations, we had to set the boring casings either through former coal chutes or by coring through the existing sidewalk.  The core samples we obtained from the existing piles were tested in our laboratory.  We then conducted Pile Integrity Testing to evaluate the continuity of the pile and estimate the pile tip elevations.  After evaluating the options, we concluded that the existing foundations were capable of supporting the new loads where the alignment of the new columns matched the locations of existing foundations.  S&ME recommended new micro-pile foundations in the two locations where the alignment of new columns and existing foundations did not coincide.

S&ME’s outstanding investigative work and creative employment of engineering skills was vital to the successful conclusion of this project.  The existing Raymond cast-in-place pile foundation was an innovative method when constructed in 1919, and has proven to be a sustainable design, still useable in 2010. By reusing the existing pile foundations instead of installing new deep foundations to support the project’s structural loads, the City of Knoxville realized a savings of $1 million.

Through a subcontract with PDC Consultants, S&ME was responsible for stream and wetland permitting and mitigation design for the new municipal airport in Cleveland, Tennessee.  S&ME provided natural resource services including a biological assessment, natural resource evaluation, Rosgen survey, No-Rise Certification, permitting of stream and wetland impacts, and design of a half-mile of stream relocation for Little Chatata Creek that integrated with the site plan and met Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations.

Extensive regulatory coordination has been performed with multiple agencies, including the three lead permitting agencies, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and the Tennessee Valley Authority.  The project has also involved S&ME as the technical lead for the public meeting held by the permitting agency as part of the permitting public notice process.  The stream relocation plan utilized natural channel design techniques modified to address FAA design standards for water resources and vegetative canopy.  Extensive modeling of the proposed stream relocation was performed by S&ME using USACE Hydrologic Engineering Center – River Analysis System (HEC-RAS) to calculate flood elevations in the planned stream corridor and demonstrate a no-rise condition.  The modeling included a new 700 ft. long box culvert that allows the new runway to cross the realigned stream.

S&ME also provided and executed a plan to continuously monitor construction stormwater.  An Individual Construction Stormwater Permit issued by TDEC is one of the first in Tennessee requiring monitoring of stormwater discharges.  S&ME devised an innovative approach using automated in-stream monitors for turbidity and stage (converted to discharge using a rating curve) that allowed the permit’s required continuous monitoring with minimal personnel intervention.

Our client has expressed satisfaction and appreciation for our efforts in overcoming challenges to meet and exceed the project’s rigid needs and schedule.  We worked closely with the client’s and owner’s representatives to complete tasks on schedule and within budget.

S&ME was lead engineer for Bristol Motor Speedway (Speedway) for natural resource permitting and stream restoration design and implementation at the Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee.  S&ME provided natural resource services including a stream morphological and habitat assessment, a “no-rise” certification, Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) preparation, coordination with regulatory agencies, and design of 3,200 feet of onsite stream enhancement that integrated stormwater management components.

S&ME worked to enhance and restore stream hydraulic and habitat functions along an existing stream corridor, in a highly developed urban setting with adjacent infrastructure encroaching on the channel.

S&ME’s design of the Beaver Creek in-stream structures:

• stabilized adjacent banks
• hid sewer crossings from view
• protected crossings from debris
• improved the pool habitat within the stream channel

Where feasible, S&ME maintained existing mature trees to preserve aesthetics of the stream, reduce the effect of thermal pollution on the stream following construction, and reduce the cost of replanting.  Our establishment of vegetative swales and the inlet retrofit provide pretreatment of stormwater runoff, improving water quality.

The Speedway was grateful for the technical solutions we brought to bear on the project.  We worked closely with the owner to complete tasks on schedule and within budget.  Our client has expressed satisfaction and appreciation for S&ME’s achievements in overcoming challenges to meet and exceed the project’s rigid needs and schedule.  Speedway Vice President of Operations & Development Scott Hatcher said, “BMS is well pleased with the project.  The aesthetics and overall appearance have been enhanced with the structures in the stream as well as bank stabilization.  We had a lot of positive comments during our August race”.

S&ME was the prime consultant for assessing and remediating site contamination. In planning site development, the owner, the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources (NCDCR), retained the architectural services of BJAC. In turn, BJAC and NCDCR relied on S&ME to guide the project through a maze of state and national environmental regulations, thus paving the way for development of a property fraught with hazardous constituents, including metals, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and asbestos.

Role of Other Consultants

No other consulting firms were involved in assessment and remediation.

Original or Innovative Application of New or Existing Techniques

The former Barbour Boat Works (BBW) occupies a 5.8-acre site along the banks of the Trent River in New Bern, North Carolina. The property once consisted of wetlands and shallow waters of the Trent River, which over years was filled in to create a land mass by using fill soils and residue, saw dust, and wastes from past industrial activities. The BBW site was used primarily as an industrial and commercial sawmill and later, for boat production, sales, and a commercial marine maintenance yard.

The land was donated to NCDCR by the heirs of the land owner. NCDCR was unaware of the magnitude of soil and groundwater contamination as well as the complexity of environmental regulatory requirements bestowed upon them.

Challenges faced by S&ME, the architect, and the owner included 1) a complexity of regulatory oversight from both state and federal agencies regarding site contamination and, 2) obtaining the necessary approvals to proceed with construction, including a Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) Major Permit for remediation next to the river.

The sources and types of environmental contamination, and the limited funds available to ‘fix’ the site before developing a Silver LEED (a green public facility) presented S&ME with many challenges, for example the removal of subsurface and underwater structures embedded in contaminated soil and sediments. We also needed to remove contaminated soil and landfill debris so that artificially-made wetlands could be constructed along the riverfront, and for protection for short-term exposure of construction workers, the public and the ecosystem of the Trent River.

The regulatory agencies included the NC Coastal Zone Management, the NC Division of Water Quality (DWQ), The NC Division of Waste Management (DWM), and the NC Fish and Wildlife Commission. S&ME also had to address concerns from federal agencies such as the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and USEPA Region 4. In all some eight agencies were involved. Integrating the cooperation of each of these regulatory agencies to achieve consensus on a wide array of remedial actions, demolition, and construction was paramount to the project’s success.

Three primary stages of the project were:

1. Preparing the site for demolition

2. Identifying contamination in the soil groundwater and sediments

3. Devising a remediation plan to protect human health and the environment while keeping costs down

In stage one, S&ME assessed and designed removal of asbestos containing materials in 15 dilapidated structures and specified the removal of PCB transformers scattered throughout the property. We completed each task under budget. Once these materials were removed, demolition of aboveground structures took place, clearing the first hurdle for development.

In the second stage S&ME identified areas of concern for contamination. We made a detailed assessment of soil, groundwater and Trent River sediments. S&ME was confronted with a massive array of soil contamination volatile organic compounds (VOCs), PAHs, pesticides, PCBs, metals and hexivalent chrome throughout much of the property. Shallow groundwater was contaminated with PAHs and hazardous metals exceeding state remediation standards. River sediments were also polluted with PAHs, arsenic and copper.

In stage three, S&ME evaluated several alternatives before devising a program that remediated hot spots of soil contamination by removing smaller areas or capping larger areas with a geosynthetic clay layer. However, contaminated groundwater and sediments posed a much larger cost problem – on the order of to $8 to $12 million. The project may have been derailed for years if such monies were needed to satisfy the State’s Inactive Hazardous Sites Branch (IHSB) requirements.

S&ME had to find alternatives. To gain better assurances for alternative remedial solutions for sediments, S&ME recommended an additional assessment of the river and an assessment of the risk to the benthic (lowest level ecological region of a body of water) ecosystem not only at the BBW site, but the adjacent upstream, downstream and across stream. Our findings concluded

PAHs and metals were present in sediments throughout the area and were not concentrated at just the BBW site. Moreover, the benthic organism community was more diverse (i.e., healthier) adjacent to the site than in the other areas. S&ME concluded, with consensus from the regulatory community to leave the river sediments alone, because the metals were bound to sediment (i.e., unavailable for biotic uptake), and the benthic community would suffer adverse effects from active remediation (i.e., dredging). S&ME’s innovative approach, using an ecological assessment and risk evaluation, saved the project $3.25 million.

Groundwater remediation also threatened the project’s budget due to costs. Stage three, included an additional six month hydrogeological study gathering data at unprecedented detail on groundwater potentiometry and identifying hydraulic influences of the river’s tide changes and rainfall. S&ME’s goal was to determine if groundwater will transport contaminants to the river, potentially exposing the public and the Trent River ecosystem to hazardous metals and PAHs.

S&ME installed 15 monitor wells and a stream gauge fitted with pressure transducers. Over six months, groundwater elevation data was gathered once every 15 minutes in each well and at the stream gauge generating approximately 17,900± data points per well for a total of over 286,400

data points. These were evaluated statistically to evaluate the cause effect relationship of tide changes in the river to groundwater flow potential with exceptional detail. S&ME also gathered hourly rainfall data from a weather station to statistically evaluate the influence of rainwater infiltration on groundwater flow potential.

With this high-resolution dataset, S&ME identified that the river’s water level is the predominant influence on the on-site groundwater levels with minor influences from precipitation. The relationship between the Trent River water level and on-site groundwater gradients showed little overall movement of groundwater with accompanying migration of contaminants of concern (COCs) across the site. Site groundwater gradients are consistently low but are apparently variable as to direction. The gradients rapidly diminish and even reverse as a reflection of changes in the river water level. Although there may be a minor groundwater discharge into the river, most of the movement appears to be confined to short distances in circuitous patterns.

S&ME concluded that COCs are relatively immobile, and the COCs dissolved in the groundwater are not likely to significantly seep to the river. Rather, the transport of dissolved COCs is likely to cycle in concert with a slight back-and-forth movement of site groundwater. Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA) is a viable alternative to active remediation. The MNA alternative saved the project an estimated $1 million to $5 million compared to more typical active groundwater remediation. IHSB accepted our approach, allowing the project to proceed in a timely, cost-effective manner.

Future Value to the Engineering Profession

S&ME incorporated risk assessment and an unprecedented detailed groundwater / surface water hydraulic assessment to devise cost effective remediation enabling a development project to proceed while keeping costs down. S&ME also coupled our engineering evaluation for remediation with insightful use of a benthic study and ecological assessment for a property situated in an environmentally exposed area, the New Bern waterfront.

Future assessment and remediation projects may benefit from high-resolution assessment techniques and risk assessment methods to devise perceptive remediation alternatives.

Social, Economic and Sustainable Design Considerations

The NC History Center is a $60.5 million project. This state development is a Silver Award LEED site that was once an industrial wasteland burdened with hazardous materials, plus soil, groundwater and sediment contamination.

Innovative use of existing technologies and methods enabled the project to proceed without budgetary hindrances. The Grand Opening of the new Tryon Palace facility is planned for October 22 and 23, 2010, opening a wonderful piece of New Bern’s waterfront for the public to safely enjoy for generations to come.

Complexity

The technical complexities of assessing and evaluating contamination in multiple environmental media had complicated, difficult regulatory hurdles to clear. S&ME coordinated the gaining concurrence from state and federal regulatory agencies in a Coastal Zone Management county.

This required an extensive, collaborative effort from all parties involved. Without this cooperation, the project would have suffered longtime delays.

Exceeding Client/Owner Needs

S&ME worked closely with the prime architect BJAC and the owner, Tryon Palace / NCDCR to find intricate remedial solutions that would not financially hinder the project’s timeline. To meet client/owner needs, S&ME complied with rigorous project deadlines, imposed by grant restrictions for creation of the manmade wetlands, and with contractor-imposed construction schedules. An NCDCR Capital Projects Office engineer said, “S&ME, Inc performed exceptionally well in their long-term involvement…at the former Barbour Boatworks site, from early clean-up efforts to the expertise required to make the fine museum opening in October 2010 a reality.” The end result…Tryon Palace’s new waterfront super fun place for all to enjoy.

The site was built up to its present elevation by a combination of fill soils and residue from site activities.  The BBW site was primarily used industrially and commercially as a sawmill and later, for boat production, sales and maintenance.

The BBW site is located directly between the Trent River and the former location of the New Bern Coal Gas Plant, a CERCLIS site located to the north across Tryon Palace Drive at the corner of Tryon Palace Drive and Hancock Street.

Fifteen structures remained on the site along with several wooden docks and bulkheads located along the Trent River.  The buildings, docks and bulkheads had been demolished and removed.  The central portion of the site was used for sandblasting paint from commercial boat hulls.

Services Provided by S&ME

S&ME performed the following services at the former Barbour Boat Works site:  A Phase II Environmental Site Assessment (ESA), a geotechnical subsurface study; asbestos survey/abatement plan/bid specifications/abatement air monitoring/final clearance for the state and an Environmental Assessment (EA) under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA).

The project work is being performed on behalf of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources (NCDCR) in preparation for the development of a History Museum and.  A Remedial Investigation under the NC Inactive Hazardous Site’s Voluntary Remediation Program, which included an Environmental Risk Assessment of the Trent River; A Feasibility Study/Remedial Action Plan; Engineering Cost Estimates;  Plans and Specifications for bid submittal for remediation using NC State Construction Guidelines (bid package dated January 31, 2004).

The Phase II ESA/geotechnical subsurface study at the site involved the use of 40 Geoprobe® borings for soil and groundwater sampling, four test excavations, and eight geotechnical borings.  The findings identified soil and groundwater contamination.  The geotechnical assessment identified foundation issues for the development of the proposed facilities (building and parking lots).  The EA addressed environmental impacts for the proposed development.

In summary, the proposed development would enhance the environmental condition of the site by demolishing an abandoned industrial site and re-developing the site as an educational facility, benefiting tourism and the local economy.  In addition, the proposed project would improve the environmental setting by remediating contaminated soil groundwater, creating wetlands, and mitigating stormwater runoff discharged into the Trent River. A Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) was issued for the environmental impacts associated with the future development of the site.

The findings from the limited Phase II ESA prompted the owners, NCDCR, to participate in the Voluntary Remediation Program regulated under the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR), Superfund Section, Inactive Hazardous Sites Branch.

The scope of work and methodology for the Remedial Investigation (RI), including field work and data analysis, was performed according to the S&ME Remedial Investigation Work Plan (Work Plan).  The Work Plan addressed heavy metals, pesticides, PCBs, and semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOC) contamination in the site’s soil, groundwater and Trent River sediments.

This plan also included an Ecological Risk Assessment of the Trent River benthic environment to evaluate impacts to the ecology of the river sediment and to assist in the remedial decision making process. The Assessment included sediment sampling for chemicals of concern, macro-invertebrate sampling, and statistical analyses.

At the end of the RI, S&ME developed a Feasibility Study and Remedial Action Plan (RAP) for the soil, groundwater and the Trent River sediments.  The RAP accepted and approved by NCDENR Inactive Hazardous Sites Branch was the following: 1) No further action for the sediments in the Trent River in front of the former Barbour Boat Works property. 2) Natural attenuation with monitoring of the groundwater; and, 3) capping of the soil with geotextile layer and protective soil fill covering in areas of concern to prevent public exposure to the impacted soils.  Deed restrictions were also implemented to prevent the use of the shallow groundwater aquifer as a source of potable water or irrigation system.

S&ME oversaw the soil remedial program and will continue to monitor the groundwater for the next 30 years following MNA program in the RAP. Construction of the Tryon Palace History Museum had begun.  Work is on-going, and S&ME has recently contracted directly with the NCDCR to provide construction materials testing from 2008 through the completion of the project estimated to be in 2010.

S&ME Inc. performed various services including asbestos surveys, lead based paint testing, QC/monitoring, fuel management services and identification of existing coating conditions, recommendations for future treatment and development of a bid document to conduct removal of the existing coatings and re-coat areas of the exterior. Asbestos testing/surveys was conducted on various marine vessels to determine potential occupational and guest risk. Limited removal was also determined and monitored to eliminate high risk scenarios. The asbestos services were provided by in-house personnel with SCDHEC licenses.

Fuel and spill management consulting was performed to minimize potential petroleum releases. S&ME developed bid documents for the removal of over 300,000 gallons of marine fuel. The removal was conducted during non-operational hours and the fuel product removed was used as an alternate fuel for a fossil fuel plant reducing/eliminating fuel disposal costs.

Testing was performed of the exterior coatings on the island, hull and deck to determine the metals content due to environmental and occupational concerns Onsite direct read testing was performed utilizing X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) technology.  A Niton XL 309 provided conclusive for the content of surface and buried lead reported in micrograms per squared centimeter (ug/cm2). S&ME personnel trained in accordance with OSHA, HUD/EPA s lead inspectors and risk assessors performed the onsite testing.

Recommendations were provided to repair the various areas and substrates (steel, copper, aluminum etc.), remove the existing coating, and re-coat the substrate under rigid quality controls both from an administrative stand-point and onsite observation.

S&ME then developed bid documents for the removal of existing coatings in a controlled process to control the spread of lead contaminants to the environment, and protect the public and tradesmen.  OSHA requirements are included to include but not limited to personal protective equipment and administrative controls in accordance with 29 CFR 1926.62.  Proper waste handling, storage, transport and disposal, and the overall minimization of waste was also addressed in the design. Monitoring for metals in the ambient air and adjacent water bodies project requirements which will be conducted by S&ME.  S&ME was awarded an Engineering Excellence Grand Award for this project by ACES-SC.

S&ME conducted a lead inspection, coatings inspection, design, and is performing onsite inspections with a NACE trained and a NACE certified inspector using in-house personnel.  These processes/services are consistent with those anticipated for bridge. Work complied with OSHA and SCDHEC/EPA requirements.

Enterprise South Industrial Park is located at the former Volunteer Army Ammunition Plant (VAAP). S&ME was selected to serve as the ecological consultant to characterize surface waters, delineate wetlands, conduct protected species surveys, and obtain the appropriate federal and state permits because of our knowledge of the local conditions; our relationship with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (Division of Water Pollution Control), the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS); and our ability to work through the various permitting requirements.

S&ME conducted a study to the determine the crayfish population characteristics in Poe Branch, from its headwaters on the Enterprise South Site to its termination where it had its conjunction with Friar’s Branch, a distance of approximately two miles. Special attention was directed to the possible presence of the state-threatened Chickamauga crayfish, Cambarus depressicambarus extraneous, which was determined not to be present within Poe Branch.

Beginning in 2004, S&ME ecologists conducted a surface waters assessment and delineated wetlands on the project site. S&ME later evaluated surface waters and delineated wetlands on the remaining 4,000 acres of the industrial park. S&ME obtained the required state and federal permits for the impacts of 0.42 acre of wetlands and approximately 16,700 feet of stream in an expedited time frame. Our onsite mitigation plan included the creation of a mitigation wetland next to an existing high-quality wetland. Onsite stream impacts will be mitigated by the relocation and restoration of approximately 18,500 feet of stream channel along the eastern and western boundaries of the project site. Mitigation construction is currently underway. As a component of the permit, S&ME will be monitoring the construction of the mitigation wetland and streams.
The S&ME/Barge Waggoner Sumner and Cannon team received the Honor Award for Engineering and Environmental Design from ACEC for the work on this project.

QORE (now S&ME) provided geotechnical, ecological, permitting, and construction testing and monitoring services in association with the development of the Enterprise South Industrial Park. However, specific to the development of the site for Volkswagen, QORE has provided geotechnical, ecological, and construction engineering and testing services.

Our geotechnical services included drilling 47 borings for the relocation of about 3 ½ miles of stream, drilling 57 test borings and the excavation of dozens of test pits to develop site grading recommendations, and the drilling of over 300 test borings to provide foundation and site preparation recommendations to construct the Volkswagen Assembly Plant.

In addition to the drilling services, each of the above mentioned studies included a laboratory testing program. The testing program was developed to evaluate settlement of buildings and floor slabs, as well as the settlement of large fills. The testing program also provided data for the evaluation of the stability of slopes for both the stream channels and the site perimeter. Testing was also performed to develop subgrade strength parameters for pavement thickness design, and to evaluate lime stabilization of pavement and floor slab subgrades. To achieve the aggressive project schedule, QORE has staged the geotechnical services to allow for the development of recommendations as the project has progressed and to prevent a loss of construction time.

QORE provided construction testing and monitoring services for the preparation of about a 1,000 acre building pad. Three contractors are currently moving earth to prepare the pad, with over 100,000 yards of soil and rock being moved and compacted per day. To complicate the project, fat clay soils must be culled from the filling process and placed in non-structural areas along with rock. QORE set up an on-site laboratory to allow for the rapid evaluation of soil samples to maintain the contractors’ aggressive placement schedule.

S&ME also completed Phase II evaluative testing of five archaeological sites that were determined potentially eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Based on this testing, one site, the 18th/19th century house site of William Christian and Thomas Cloyd (44PU164), was determined eligible for the NRHP.

The Claytor Hydroelectric Project involved consultation with the Virginia State Historic Preservation Office, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indian Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, the Virginia Council on Indians, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. In addition, there has been ongoing consultation with the public in the form of public meetings and presentations.

The work conducted for the Claytor Hydroelectric Project demonstrates S&ME’s experience in performing a range of cultural resource services, including archaeological surveys and testing, and consultation with Federal and State agencies and Indian Tribes.

The expansion to TVA’s wind energy project included the construction of 15 turbines which are 260 feet tall, with 135 feet long blades. In addition to the turbines, a mountainous access roadway, substation, transformers and switch gear equipment and ancilliary maintenance/support buildings were constructed at the site. In order to construct the turbines, crane pads were required to be constructed at each of the 15 turbine sites.

S&ME’s geotechnical services included site reconnaissance, drilling exploratory borings, logging of the soil samples and bedrock cores, geotechnical laboratory testing of soil and rock samples, and providing geotechnical data reports for each turbine. Our construction materials testing services included proofrolling observations of the roadways and crane pads, density testing of the fill placed in the building and substation areas, concrete and grout sampling and compressive strength testing of cubes and test cylinders