THOUGHTS &
PHILOSOPHY
ACCORDING
TO DERRICK
If you can, let your
river be a river!!
Let it breathe and
have some freedom!
A Laboratory Study of the Meandering of Alluvial Rivers.
By J. F. Friedkin, Captain, Corps of Engineers - 1 May 1945.
If you can, let
your river be a
river!!
Let it breathe and
have some
freedom!
USE GOOD SCIENCE,
FUNCTION-BASED
DESIGN, & RIVER
EXPERIENCE IN
DECISION MAKING
Goal and
Function-Based
Design
(WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE
YOU TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH?)
WATER IN = WATER OUT
SEDIMENT IN = SEDIMENT OUT
CARBON IN = CARBON OUT
Photo by Nate
Muenks, MoDOT
GOAL: a broad statement that
reflects a desired outcome.
“The project needs shade”
OBJECTIVES: are specific
statements that state GOALS in
measurable terms.
“In 5 years between 45-75% of
the project should be shaded”
ASK YOURSELF,
IF WE “DO
NOTHING” DOES
THIS PROBLEM
GET BETTER OR
WORSE ???
STEPS IN A PROJECT
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Initiate
Plan & develop goals
Gather data & analyze
Conceptually develop how water should flow
through the project
Develop conceptual designs
Analyze and develop the final design (P&S)
Construction & Inspection: Original design
team members should be involved in
construction oversight
Monitoring
i am a minimalist, ask not how high
the hard protection has to go, but how
low can we take it (long, low and
hydraulically smooth is the idea)…
Nudge the river, never fight it!!!!
• Minimal hard protection has to go hand-in-hand with
laying back the banks to a stable angle & planting all of
the appropriate vegetation (aquatic, emergent, pioneer,
veg within the protection and mid- and upper bank
areas)
• RE-USE EVERYTHING THAT HAS TO BE
MOVED OR REMOVED
First
Law of River Engineering:
Complex
Problems
Often Have
Simple,
Easy-toUnderstand
WRONG
ANSWERS
Second Law of River Engineering:
COOKBOOKS
COOKBOOK
Tweak
existing
techniques
for the job
at hand
Third Law of River Engineering:
“Streambank Stabilization
Aint Rocket Science, It Is
Way More Complex Than
That”, (Dr. Biedenharn)
“With Many More Variables
and Unknowns!!” (Dave Derrick)
Do U see a
shadow
from the
astronaut?
Picture
taken by
me at the
Huntsville
NASA
display
Fourth
Law of River Engineering:
"Natural Systems
Are Complex,
And Disturbed
Systems Are Even
More Complex!!!"
Charlie Elliott
COE-LMVD,
Retired
Bernice, LA
Last Law of River
Engineering:
When in over your
head, go get help!
IF ANYONE SAYS THEY
HAVE ALL OF THE
ANSWERS, THEY
DON’T!!!
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
•NO SURPRISES !!
•NO DRAMA !!
•NO BACKING
UP !!
PERMITS - get regulatory involved early
• First thought from regulatory …..
Avoidance & minimalization….
• List all alternatives – not just your best
plan. Show how U have minimized
already.
• Regulatory folks are 99% biologists,
emphasize the effects of the project on
the planet. Hint: roughness = habitat…
• Regulatory wants it done correctly,
once!!
Luxuries We Like To Have
• The “Luxury of Space”
• The “Luxury of Time” (nature strengthens
the project over time)
• The “Luxury of Monitoring”
• The “Luxury of Adaptive Management”
Think conceptually regarding functions, use
Derrick’s “LAW OF EXTREMES” to
understand how things work. Example-ditch
narrow & deep, or 5 ft wide & 1 inch deep
You will never get everything
correct the first time around
• If you do it was a miracle
• Or you are the luckiest person on the planet
• Or it has not rained yet
• Or the project is overbuilt
Aftercare
• All projects should take two years to
construct. Build it, monitor over the first
year, then repair & apply adaptive
management as required (based on project
goals), then monitor some more.
For many stabilization and habitat
structures there are no hard and fast
design criteria. Judgment based on
riverine experience & expertise and the
ability to access field conditions and
modify plans and construction
accordingly are a significant component
of a successful project.
Stream has changed since design!!
Stream has changed since permitting!!
“Blackwater's flooding spurs scrutiny”
Washington Times - Washington, DC.
Six of the 10 worst floods on record for
the river have occurred in the past eight
years, according to the US Army Corps
of Engineers……..
THE WEATHER
AINT NORMAL
ANYMORE!!!
Protection starts late & ends early,
resulting in erosion at both ends of the
project!!!
FEMME CREEK, ST. LOUIS AREA,
STUDY NATURE UNDERSTAND
WHAT IS
WORKING AND
WHY!!
Attack
Angles,
Thalweg
Profile, &
crosssections.
Note:
There are
sine waves
for both
stream
planform, &
the vertical
profile!
HOW STREAMS NATURALLY
DISSIPATE ENERGY !!
Purloined from Brad Humber, The Nature
Conservancy
Longitudinal
Profile
HOW TO TELL
WHEN A POOL IS
WORKING
PROPERLY
Gravel-cobble bed, 1%
slope, rural, pool-rifflepool
Looking US at a properly
functioning pool, note
roostertail dies out at DS
end of pool during bankfull
event, 9/1/2005, McKinstry
Creek, Delevan, NY
Gravel-cobble bed, 1%
slope, rural, pool-rifflepool
Looking US at a properly
functioning pool, note
roostertail dies out at DS
end of pool during bankfull
event, 9/1/2005, McKinstry
Creek, Delevan, NY
Looking DS at a pool that is not
functioning as well, fast water
through length of pool. Needs to
have more volume in pool, or
roughness, McKinstry Creek,
Delevan, NY
STABILIZE
HEADCUTS FIRST,
THEN WORRY
ABOUT BANK
INSTABILITY
SECOND
HEADCUTS
GONE BAD!!
Las Vegas Wash, NV. has degraded from a 3 ft deep by 100 ft wide
channel in 1975, to a 40 ft deep by up to 1,000 ft wide channel in 1995
Huge problems with
perchlorate
interception from
the groundwater
table
I am standing on the roots of
dead wetland plants, over 2,200
acres of wetlands lost
Then
2,400 Acres of Wetlands
Now
2000 acres of
wetlands lost !
SEVERAL LOW
GRADE CONTROL
STRUCTURES ARE
BETTER THAN
ONE BIG MONSTER
GRADE CONTROL
STRUCTURE
SELF-ADJUSTING,
GRADE CONTROL
STRUCTURES
WORK WELL !!
Arresting an active
headcut at the
downstream end
of the Articulating
Concrete Mattress
Looking US 10 months after project completion, veg
looking good, note mat has arrested a small headcut
July 2004
Submar ACM system has arrested a larger headcut
LOOKING US,
JULY 2004
April 2006
1-year later, larger headcut arrested by Submar mat
LOOKING US,
JULY 2004
March 2007
Note uneven DS edge of adjusting mat.
Pipeline still well protected.
April 2007
A more uniform adjustment of the mat to the
headcut, but still approximately 14 ft until the
headcut gets back to the pipeline.
Pix by Derrick
March 18, 2009
Nine Mile Run
* 7 million dollars to build,
* 63% of structures had
functionally failed in 20
months:
•
•
•
•
100K & 10 days to re-rehabilitate
800 tons of stone
3,000 plants
gobs of stone reused (use used stone)
9 Mile Run-Looking US at a Cross-Vane. Fish passage???
April 2007
Looking US-Structure 18: Engineered Rock
Riffle (Structures 17 &16 in background)
November 12, 2007
THE SECRET TO BANK
STABILIZATION:
MAKE THE BANK THAT IS
PROTECTING SOMETHING
TOUGHER &
HYDRAULICALLY ROUGHER
THAN THE OPPOSITE BANK
(OPPOSITE BANK SHOULD
BE SMOOTHER & WEAKER)
A bank protection
project should start
& end in stable
(usually depositional)
areas.
KEY ALL
STRUCTURES
INTO THE
BANK
key
A
has one main function:
to connect bank protection (or a
river training structure) to the
rest of the world, & not let the
river “flank” (get behind) the
improvement or protection
works.
Flanked perpendicular grade control structure.
Water should be flowing over this structure.
9 Mile Run - April 2007
VEGETATE THE
KEYS TO MAKE
THEM
HYDRAULICALLY
ROUGHER
Constructed Engineered Rocked Riffle with extended vegetated keys
Sept 27, 2007
VEGETATION
CAN
HOLD YOUR
WORLD
TOGETHER !!!
ONONDAGA COUNTY BUILT A
PROJECT WITHOUT A PERMIT
BUFFALO DISTRICT
REGULATORY ASKED ME TO
BRING THEM INTO COMPLIANCE
RESULT: 1-DAY HANDS-ON
WORKSHOP FOR 44 PEOPLE
2700 PLANTS PLANTED IN 6 HRS
PLANT PLANTS
ON A GRID
(PERPENDICULAR &
PARALLEL TO THE
DIRECTION OF HIGH
FLOW)
Rubber tired
backhoe digs
4-5 ft deep
trench with a
narrow
bucket. Pix
by Bill
Frederick
Many hands get things done quickly, 2,740 plants planted
in about 6 hours. That’s why they call it a workshop. Pix
by Derrick
TWO-STAGE SLIT TRENCH TECHNIQUE
Plant other species
that require less
water than the
willow. In this case
Sycamore & Red
Osier Dogwood
LET’S SEE
HOW IT
GROWS
BEFORE 5-15-2007
8:00am. Pix by
Derrick
AFTER 5-15-2007
noon. Pix by Derrick
Black Willow,
Streamco
Willow, Red
Osier Dogwood
& Sycamore
were planted
using the Slit
Trench
bioengineering
method.
40 RPM
container plants
(7 species of
trees & shrubs)
were planted in
the green oval
areas.
Plantings
form a grid
to flow. No
matter how
water flows
through the
project, it
encounters
rows of
vegetation
(Living
Dikes)
Aug 3, 2007 {less than 3 months after installation}. Looking
US at right bank floodplain. Pix by Mark Schaub
2 YEARS & 1
MONTH AFTER
PROJECT
COMPLETION
Photos by Derrick
JUNE 18, 2009
2 YEARS & 1 MONTH LATER-Looking US @ the
planted floodplain (Mark hidden in plants). Very lush
growth, dense as desired from a hydraulic point of view.
2 YEARS LATER-Onondaga Cr.@ Nichol Rd Bridge-DERRICK 6-18-2009
2 YEARS & 1 MONTH
LATER-Mark with
10-14 ft tall willows.
2 YEARS & 1 MONTH LATER-Onondaga Cr.@ Nichol Rd Bridge-DERRICK 6-18-09
VINES – THE
OVERLOOKED
RESTORATION
TECHNIQUE
Use to shade stone &
improve aesthetics
1 YEAR LATER-Looking DS @ planted Virginia Creeper
vines on stacked stone wall. Great vine growth for first year
1 YEAR LATER-BUSHKILL CR-SITE 2-A - DERRICK 9-12-2010
“NO-MOW STONES”
DESIGNED TO
EFFECTIVELY KEEP
RIPARIAN AREAS FROM
GETTING ACCIDENTALLY
MOWED.
Swan Cr. @ Highland Park,
Toledo, OH
“NO-MOW STONES”
are dug into the
ground several inches
to reduce movement
from vandals or
equipment strikes.
2.75 YEARS LATER-”No-Mow” stones ringing an important riparian
area. Stones are dug in to resist movement from any force
2.75 YEARS LATER-SWAN CREEK @ HIGHLAND-DERRICK 5-12-2011
Cleophus Speed Elvis Derrick!!
Here he
is in
action!
RIGID OBJECTS IN
DYNAMIC SYSTEMS
TEND TO FAIL
CATASTROPHICALLY
DURING THE
CATASTROPHIC
EVENT!!
When the concrete-lined channel breaks up
it is not pretty, Vensel Creek, Tulsa, OK
SELF-ADJUSTING,
SELF-HEALING
BANK
STABILIZATION
METHODS ARE
BEST!!
As-built
Longitudinal Peaked Stone
Toe Protection (LPSTP)
After a couple of high
flow events stream has
scoured at the toe &
stone has self-adjusted
Sediment has deposited
landward of the LPSTP
Johnson Creek, MS. Pre-project
rapidly eroding near-vertical bank
{rural, sand bed, slope < 1%, poolriffle-pool, meandering, incised}
Mini case study: 1 of 3
Johnson Creek, MS. As-built
protection consists of Longitudinal
Peaked Stone Toe protection
(LPSTP) applied at 1 ton/ lineal foot
Mini case study: 2 of 3
Johnson Creek-LPSTP one year later
(note volunteer willow growth)
Mini case study: 3 of 3
Longitudinal Peaked
Stone Toe Protection
{installed 1977, picture
taken Sept 2003} at
Batapan Bogue,
Grenada, MS.
LPSTP has launched as
intended (note steep
angle of repose),
armored the scour hole
as expected, & mature
vegetation is assisting
with overall bank
stability
CASE STUDY- Hickahala Creek
Pipeline Protection Project at
milepost 347.64
Tate County, Senatobia, MS
Constructed Sept. 2003
Longitudinal Peaked Stone Toe
Protection {LFSTP} with upper
bank paving
Looking US at the entire stream trying to flow underneath the exposed
pipeline, the first bend downstream of a long straight stretch is hard to
repair, the water does not want to turn!!! This stream put sediment
1,000 ft in a straight line out into the farmer’s field.
Self-adjusting
stone bank
protection
Looking US at impinging flow impact zone. Note
steep angle where LPSTP was undercut & launched
(self-adjusted)
April 2006
Note steep angle where LPSTP was
undercut and launched (self-adjusted)
LOOKING
US,
4 years after
JULY
2004
construction,
March 2007
very stable, veg
growing well
April 19, 2011
7 years later,
bank steep near
water but very
stable, veg
growing well,
no rock appears
to have
launched since
high flows hit
shortly after
construction
KICK THE THALWEG OUT
INTO THE CHANNEL AT
LEAST A LITTLE BIT
WHEN USING RESISTIVE
BANK STABILIZATION
METHODS
(Bendway Weirs, Locked Logs,
Rock Vanes, etc.)
AERIAL
VIEW OF
LPSTP WITH
LIVE
SILTATION,
SOIL CHOKE,
LOCKED
LOGS,
BENDWAY
WEIRS, & A
PLANTED
BANK
Thalweg moved out by Locked Logs &Bendway Weirs
CONSTRUCTION-DUCK CR. E. OF EASTERN AVE. PIX BY DERRICK 7-1-2008
From DS looking US @ thalweg trace.
CONSTRUCTION-DUCK CR. E. OF EASTERN AVE. PIX BY DERRICK 7-1-2008
FINAL THOUGHTS
• Take as many classes and learn from as many folks as
you can
• The stream is a system, analyze it that way
• Design for minimum structure and maximum
function
• Imitate nature
• Max veg, think little, big, and transplants
• Design from the edges of the riparian corridor toward
the stream, not the other way around
• Think thalweg and energy management
• Use flow visualization to achieve project goals
Man’s best friend, Cleophus Speed Elvis Derrick