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Biodegradable Erosion Control Products

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Team Members

• Connie Jones D4 Sr. Environmental Planner

• Alissa Salmore D5 Sr. Environmental Planner

• Matt Carlson HQ Sr. Environmental Planner

• Cathy Ford Roadside program Administrator

(QPL SME)

• Tom Furrer QPL Administrator

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• Unclear EC product choice– No guidance for use of non-synthetic products

– No separation of synthetic/non-synthetic products on the QPL

• Failure to remove BMPs at completion of construction– Becomes Operations issue long after project completion

• Synthetics require disposal in landfills

ITD Issues Identified

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• Determine which QPL Approved products contained synthetic materials– Emails sent to Manufacturers

• Self certify non-synthetic products

• Define non-synthetic– Became define biodegradable

“The material will decompose under ambient soil conditions into carbon dioxide, water, and other naturally occurring materials within a time period relevant to the product’s expected service life.”

Action Items

Results

4 new hydraulically applied erosion control products (HECP)

QPL sub-categories

– 621-(a) Biodegradable Hydraulic Mulch (HM) - 3 months

– 621-(b) Biodegradable Stabilized Mulch Matrix (SMM) - 3 to 6 months

– 621-(c) Biodegradable Bonded Fiber Matrix (BFM) - 6 to 12 months

– 621-(d) Biodegradable Fiber Reinforced Matrix (FRM) - 12 to 24 months

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Results

3 new rolled erosion control products (RECP) QPL sub-categories

– 621-(a) Biodegradable Rolled Erosion Control Product - 3-12 mo.

– 621-(b) Biodegradable Rolled Erosion Control Product - 12-24 mo.

– 621-(c) Biodegradable Rolled Erosion Control Product - 24+ mo.

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Next Action Items

• Education– Relative cost?

• Most products in QPL biodegradable categories were already approved …we just didn’t have them identified as biodegradable.

– Competitively priced to survive marketplace

– Maintenance cost to remove products not included in project cost of synthetic materials

– Project costs do not account for life-cycle costs (such as future removal labor, disposal costs, and unquantified potential damage to natural resources).

• BMP products not typically a high percentage of project cost

– Ask Design/Construction to use biodegradable products• Provide feedback of performance

• RAC Project in progress on waste wool RECPperformance

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