Breaking News…
|
The flood repair projects
are done!
The towpath trail is open
from Easton to Bristol and
rewatering is underway.
Water reached Lock 21 in Durham on Sunday, July 25. These photos were taken by Carole Mebus on July 26. This photo is the south view.
This photo is the north view.
Several residents in Point Pleasant and Smithtown have cleared the weeds from the bottom of the Canal in anticipation of kayaking as soon as the water arrives in their area. The depleted Park maintenance staff can use help such as this.
The Delaware River Sojourners paddled under Woody's Camelback
Bridge in Raubsville on June 23. Photo taken by Fred Mebus.
Water has arrived, again, at Locks 23 and 24 in the Theodore
Roosevelt Recreation Area between Riegelsville and Raubsville.
June 11, 2010. Photo submitted by Carole Mebus.
The view from behind the Raubsville Hotel.
June 11, 2010. Photo submitted by Carole Mebus.
Installation of the stop gate near Mueller’s Store in Williams Township.
The stop gate is nearly in place. When the project is complete,
the gate will lie flat on the bottom of the Canal most of the time.
The Raubsville section of the Canal is full today --- the first time in 5 years!
Photo taken September 24, 2009.
Lock 20 south of Kintnersville. Heavy equipment for heavy work. A gang of earthmoving equipment rests on Sunday, August 16.
Upper Black Eddy. Waste gates built by State Park maintenance staff are waiting to be installed as soon as the Canal prism is ready.
South of Easton
The Canal is almost back to its old self south of Easton.
Photo taken March 28, 2009
A new concrete cap was poured over a concrete "pillow" that has been providing structural stability to the towpath bank for years. Photo taken by Elizabeth Weaver on December 29, 2008.
Black Rock Road Bridge Construction
Photo taken on January 5, 2009.
Photo taken on January 5, 2009.
Popple Construction at Work - South of Easton
Bentomat liner is installed. Photo taken on September 12, 2008.
Skilled masons relaid sections of stone wall.
Photo taken on September 25, 2008.
Attention to detail is evident in this treatment of a drainage outlet.
Photo taken on September 25, 2008.
And the towpath reappears. Notice the worker in the distance
spraying grass seed mix. Photo taken on September 25, 2008.
Raubsville |
New Hope |
The stone culvert that conveys water under the Canal north of Groundhog Lock in Raubsville has been repaired by Bill Anskis Company. Photo taken September 1. |
Tri-State Dredging is re-establishing the channel of the Canal outlet behind Odette's in New Hope. Photo taken September 3. |
Groundhog Lock |
|
 |
 |
Work is almost complete at Groundhog Lock. The grass is sprouting nicely. The "stabilized turf" trail surface is ready for use. Photos taken September 7, 2008 |
|
 |
 |
Popple Construction smoothing out the towpath trail and hydroseeding north of Groundhog Lock. Photos taken July 7 and 10, 2008 |
|
South of Easton |
|
 |
 |
Popple Construction at work on the canal prism south of Easton. Photo taken May, 2008 |
|
Project Area: Easton to Groundhog Lock (aka Theodore Roosevelt Recreation Area) in Raubsville
Action: The flood damage to the canal prism and towpath has been completed by Popple Construction. FINISHED.
Project Area: Palmer Fish Ladder on the Lehigh River; Lock 24, Weigh Lock, and Fish Ladder in Easton
Action: Reconstruction and adjacent dredging has been completed by BiState Construction. FINISHED.
The cost of the Popple and BiState Projects is $10.8 million, which is funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Project Area: New Hope at the Delaware River inlet to Lower Makefield Township
Action: Tri-State Dredging has repaired the canal prism and towpath. FINISHED.
Project Area: Wy-Hit-Tuk Park in Williams Township to Indian Rock Inn
Action: Repair of stop gates, waste gates, a footbridge, and other structures has been completed by Bill Anskis. FINISHED.
Project Area: Lock 5 in Yardley Borough to Ferry Road in Lower Makefield
Action: James D. Morrissey has completed the replacement of the culvert at Black Rock Road and dredging. FINISHED.
This project was funded through the PA Capital Budget.
Project Area: Raubsville to Bridgeton Hill Road in Upper Black Eddy
Action: Nimaris Construction has completed the repair of the canal prism and towpath. FINISHED.
Project Area: Bridgeton Hill Road in Upper Black Eddy to New Hope
Action: The project, which encompasses repairs to the canal prism and towpath, was undertaken by Popple Construction. FINISHED.
Project Area: Lock 14 in Point Pleasant to Bowman’s Hill in Solebury Township
Action: Road Con, Inc. has completed the repair of various locks, wastegates, and other structures. FINISHED.
Project: Lock 12 in Lumberville
Action: Murray Hill Construction completed this lock reconstruction project. FINISHED.
Project: Rocky Falls Stop Gate in Williams Township
Action: The structure repair projectwas done by Bill Anskis. FINISHED.
Project: Riegelsville Stop Gate
Action: Bi-State Construction handled this structure replacement project. FINISHED.
Project: Easton Stop Gate and Bridge Repair
Action: Toth Bros. has completed this project. FINISHED.
All of the projects listed with the exception of the Black Rock Road culvert replacement and dredging were funded by FEMA and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The contracts for the canal prism and towpath repair projects allow for the work to be done in 360 days or less; the structure contracts have a 270-day length.
# # #
Goal–A More Stable Core and Surface
If you had the opportunity to examine any of the towpath bank blowouts along the Canal, you would have seen that the canal bank was built simply of earth and stone. To try to make the canal more flood resistant, the engineers from DCNR’s Bureau of Facility Design and Construction devised a reconstruction plan that involved installing a stable core material within the bank, providing a liner that is more reliably impervious than clay, and then laying down a trail surface that will be less prone to erosion.
In the areas where the towpath bank was totally washed away, the construction specifications called for the installation of stacked gabion baskets that serve as a core. A gabion is a wire mesh basket, about 3 feet high by 3 feet wide by 6 feet long that is filled with stone. Gabions act like building blocks.
To repair a blowout, first a layer of large stone was put down as a base. Then gabions were laid side by side along the length of the blowout. Another layer could have been added on top if needed to fill the void. Several feet of dirt were used to cover the baskets, then a layer of geotextile material called bentomat was put down. The bentomat, which functions more reliably than clay, extends from the bottom of the canal prism up and over the towpath area to the far side. Another layer of dirt was placed on top of the bentomat.
The towpath trail surface is “stabilized turf.” It consists of 85% stone aggregate mixed with 15% topsoil seeded with a special non-clumping grass. The stabilized turf will not be as smooth as the argillite gravel trail, but will hold together better in a flooding situation.
Bentomat and stabilized turf were used for the David Library towpath bank repairs in 2004 and 2005, and the gabion/ bentomat/ stabilized turf solution was used for the repair of a 100-blowout south of Easton in 2006. The materials and methods seem to be working.
 |
© 2007-2008. All Rights Reserved.