E5: Nature-Based Project Success Stories

Description

1) Naturalization of Fassnight Creek, An Urban Success Story
Eric Dove, PE, HDR, eric.dove@hdrinc.com
Co-presenters: Kirkland Preston, kpreston@springfieldmo.gov

Abstract: Our urban centers are plagued by a variety of concrete storm water conveyance structures. Originally intended for flood control, they have simply moved the flooding to downstream areas while degrading natural stream habitat. It’s well documented that nature-based solutions mitigate stream habitat degradation, but can they also perform a vital flood risk reduction purpose in our urbanized neighborhoods? The naturalization of Fassnight Creek in the older Phelps Grove neighborhood is a great example of removing a concrete flood control channel while also lowering the flood stage at the existing Art Museum building and residential structures.
These projects can be challenging, and this project involved:

Street Diet and a Permanent Closure
Sanitary Sewer Relocation
Integration with Art Museum campus masterplan
Public Park Improvement
Public Engagement
Pedestrian Movement
MoDOT funded Shared Use Path (Bike Trail)
Complementary Bridge Aesthetics
Native Plantings
Natural Channel Design Approach
Urban Hydrology with no upstream detention
High flood velocities
Accelerated Design Schedule
FEMA Remapping
Tight Budget with Value Engineering Approaches
Multiple Bid Lettings and COVID supply chain impacts
Wet Spring, Summer Drought and Flooding within weeks of completion

Despite the challenges, the results are impressive. Fassnight was recently recognized as an APWA Missouri Chapter Public Works Project of the Year because it demonstrated a functional solution to flood risk reduction which can serve many other beneficial purposes for the community. The naturalized channel is the new grand entrance to the Museum, an inspirational functional piece of living art. During the recent heavy rains, flooding outside of the project remained but the project performed well, and the Art Museum Director said he no longer needs to worry about these “flashy” storms. The ribbon cutting grand opening occurred October 15, 2022 with the Mayor, City Administrator, three Councilmen, the Art Museum director and the Art Museum board of directors presiding.

2) Progressive Design-Build Delivery is Saving Salmon and Reducing Flood Impacts
Alexander Keil, EI, Kiewit, Alexander.Keil@Kiewit.com
Co-presenters: Emily Fulton, Emily.Fulton@Kiewit.com;

Abstract: In March 2013, the U.S. District Court, on behalf of twenty-one northwest Washington tribes, found that the State of Washington has a treaty-based duty to preserve fish runs for native salmon and steelhead. Per a federal court injunction, the State is required to correct over 1,000 existing barrier culverts in Western Washington with 400 required to be completed by 2030. To streamline design and schedule, WSDOT is currently implementing its first Progressive Design-Build (PBD) project. The Coastal 29 project between Kiewit and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) aims to correct twenty-nine of these barriers on the Olympic Peninsula as part of WSDOT’s developing Fish Passage Program. Typically, these culverts were designed for conveyance only and are inadequately sized, too steep, or have developed sizable drops at their outfalls, blocking miles of critical fish spawning and rearing habitat and discouraging natural channel processes. This presentation will discuss the unique solutions the Kiewit design team developed through the PDB delivery model in response to the need for low impact solutions to restore natural, dynamic channel processes while protecting necessary infrastructure in the Olympic Peninsula region. Due to the rapid growth of the WSDOT Fish Passage Program, the design team was challenged with developing and analyzing innovative geomorphic components to mimic natural channel complexity features that provide stability and habitat to the reconstructed reach. Through the use of two-dimensional hydraulic modeling software, the team designed complex channels, incorporating habitat elements, and performed floodplain analyses. The project alleviates backwater flooding effects, thus reducing inundation loss of roadways and adjacent properties. The Kiewit team’s holistic design approach provides a resilient and sustainable engineered solution that minimizes impacts to both the built and natural environments while meeting the needs of the project and local community.

3) Geomorphic Approach to Addressing Flood Risk, Natural System Functions and Infrastructure Resilience at River-Road Crossings
Salam Murtada, MN DNR, Salam.Murtada@state.mn.us
Co-presenters: Kevin Zytkovicz

Abstract: Improving bridge and culverts designs at river intersections requires a transformative ecological system-based approach. As a result, the Geomorphic Approach applies geomorphic principles and incorporates local land measurements for designing these crossings through iterative analysis and hydraulic modeling. Specifically, it promotes both channel and floodplain connectivity through the roadway to establish a ‘least impactful’ design; improving safety and resilience; reducing maintenance while fostering river function and stability. By focusing only on water conveyance and ignoring sediment, the traditional design methods can impact our natural rivers in many ways. For example, confining all flows to a single channel and overlooking floodplain conveyance creates Flood Flow Confinement (FFC). FFC adversely impacts waterways and road infrastructure through scour, head-cuts, discontinuity of flow and sediment transport dynamics commonly resulting in increased structure maintenance and channel bank erosion. These impacts may further be exacerbated by both climate and land use changes. Thus, applying this natural systems-based design approach on a large scale is essential to safe transportation and resource resilience. The Geomorphic Approach to Infrastructure Design at Road-River Intersections requires a local site assessment to document key measurements based on existing natural conditions and serves as a basis for the proposed design. The assessment requires treating the channel and the floodplain as independent design entities. The design can be further optimized and refined in many ways. This presentation will provide a broad overview of the Geomorphic Approach and examples of applied projects in Minnesota.

Contributors

Eric Dove

Mr. Dove is a Professional Engineer with Bachler's and Master's degree in Civil Engineering. He has nearly 30 years of water resources project experience that includes a significant amount of flood risk reduction projects including dams, levees, bridges, culverts, storm sewers, regional detention, and flood diversion channels. Mr. Dove also frequently works on green infrastructure projects such as stream restoration, and bioretention facilities. His projects frequently involve flood risk map updates, floodproofing (wet and dry), floodplain by-outs and a wide range of flood resiliency projects. His clients include US Army Corps of Engineers, National Parks Service, Department of Transportation for several states, Watershed Districts, Irrigation Districts, and various State, County and Municipal agencies throughout the Midwest. He is the office manager and central region stormwater lead for HDR in their Springfield Missouri office. Mr. Dove was appointed by the Governor to the State of Missouri Dam and Reservoir Safety Committee and has been serving this role for the past two years. Mr. Dove is the past committee chair for the Ozarks Watershed Committee which is a non-profit focused on protection of the water supply sources for the Springfield and Greene County area.
Alexander Keil

Alec Keil graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with a primary focus of study in Energy-Water-Environment Sustainability. He is a Water Resources and Drainage Engineer at Kiewit Infrastructure Engineers in Lone Tree, CO where he has worked on stormwater conveyance and stream design for various infrastructure projects. Through his experience Alec has become proficient in 1D and 2D hydraulic modeling and the principles of open-channel flow and river mechanics.
Salam Murtada

Salam is a floodplain hydrologist working at Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources, Division of Ecological and Water Resources. He has two master of engineering degrees from West Virginia University, Morgantown, in Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering. He earned two undergraduate degrees in engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. His current projects include hydrological modeling using Gridded Surface Subsurface Hydrological Analysis (GSSHA) to evaluate the effects of land use and benefits of various BMPs on the hydrological system; applying floodplain connectivity and related geomorphic principles to designing river crossings; FEMA floodplain modeling and mapping; and review of FEMA’s LOMR/CLOMR submittals. In addition, Salam is currently the VP for Institute Development for the American Institute of Hydrology. Before moving to Minnesota in 2008, Salam worked at North Carolina’s Ecosystem Enhancement Program as water resource engineer. Salam enjoys attending and presenting at national and state conferences on topics related to watershed modeling, geomorphic approaches to designing infrastructure and stream restoration.