Environmentally Sensitive Channel- and Bank-Protection Measures (2005)

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T R A N S P O R T A T I O N R E S E A R C H B O A R D WASHINGTON, D.C. 2005 www.TRB.org NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM NCHRP REPORT 544 Research Sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in Cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration SUBJECT AREAS Energy and Environment • Bridges, Other Structures, Hydraulics and Hydrology • Soils, Geology, and Foundations Environmentally Sensitive Channel- and Bank-Protection Measures JOHN MCCULLAH AND DONALD GRAY Salix Applied Earthcare Redding, CA

NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM Systematic, well-designed research provides the most effective approach to the solution of many problems facing highway administrators and engineers. Often, highway problems are of local interest and can best be studied by highway departments individually or in cooperation with their state universities and others. However, the accelerating growth of highway transportation develops increasingly complex problems of wide interest to highway authorities. These problems are best studied through a coordinated program of cooperative research. In recognition of these needs, the highway administrators of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials initiated in 1962 an objective national highway research program employing modern scientific techniques. This program is supported on a continuing basis by funds from participating member states of the Association and it receives the full cooperation and support of the Federal Highway Administration, United States Department of Transportation. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies was requested by the Association to administer the research program because of the Board’s recognized objectivity and understanding of modern research practices. The Board is uniquely suited for this purpose as it maintains an extensive committee structure from which authorities on any highway transportation subject may be drawn; it possesses avenues of communications and cooperation with federal, state and local governmental agencies, universities, and industry; its relationship to the National Research Council is an insurance of objectivity; it maintains a full-time research correlation staff of specialists in highway transportation matters to bring the findings of research directly to those who are in a position to use them. The program is developed on the basis of research needs identified by chief administrators of the highway and transportation departments and by committees of AASHTO. Each year, specific areas of research needs to be included in the program are proposed to the National Research Council and the Board by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Research projects to fulfill these needs are defined by the Board, and qualified research agencies are selected from those that have submitted proposals. Administration and surveillance of research contracts are the responsibilities of the National Research Council and the Transportation Research Board. The needs for highway research are many, and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program can make significant contributions to the solution of highway transportation problems of mutual concern to many responsible groups. The program, however, is intended to complement rather than to substitute for or duplicate other highway research programs. Note: The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, the Federal Highway Administration, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, and the individual states participating in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of this report. Published reports of the NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at: http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America NCHRP REPORT 544 Project 24-19 ISSN 0077-5614 ISBN 0-309-08836-4 Library of Congress Control Number 2005932288 © 2005 Transportation Research Board Price $30.00 NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Such approval reflects the Governing Board’s judgment that the program concerned is of national importance and appropriate with respect to both the purposes and resources of the National Research Council. The members of the technical committee selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for recognized scholarly competence and with due consideration for the balance of disciplines appropriate to the project. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied are those of the research agency that performed the research, and, while they have been accepted as appropriate by the technical committee, they are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, or the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. Each report is reviewed and accepted for publication by the technical committee according to procedures established and monitored by the Transportation Research Board Executive Committee and the Governing Board of the National Research Council.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished schol- ars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. On the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and techni- cal matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Acad- emy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achieve- ments of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, on its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Acad- emy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both the Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. William A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. The Transportation Research Board is a division of the National Research Council, which serves the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. The Board’s mission is to promote innovation and progress in transportation through research. In an objective and interdisciplinary setting, the Board facilitates the sharing of information on transportation practice and policy by researchers and practitioners; stimulates research and offers research management services that promote technical excellence; provides expert advice on transportation policy and programs; and disseminates research results broadly and encourages their implementation. The Board’s varied activities annually engage more than 5,000 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. The program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation. www.TRB.org www.national-academies.org

COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMS STAFF FOR NCHRP REPORT 544 ROBERT J. REILLY, Director, Cooperative Research Programs CRAWFORD F. JENCKS, Manager, NCHRP TIMOTHY G. HESS, Senior Program Officer EILEEN P. DELANEY, Director of Publications BETH HATCH, Editor NCHRP PROJECT 24-19 PANEL Field of Soils and Geology—Area of Mechanics and Foundations JAMES A. RACIN, California DOT (Chair) LARRY A. ARNESON, FHWA, Lakewood, CA JOHN F. CROWLEY, University of Georgia, Athens WILLIAM FLETCHER, Oregon DOT WENDI GOLDSMITH, The Bioengineering Group, Salem, MA MIKE VIAR, Virginia DOT KRISTY VYVERBERG, California Department of Fish and Game MATTHEW WITECKI, Washington State DOT J. STERLING JONES, FHWA Liaison G. P. JAYAPRAKASH, TRB Liaison AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The research reported herein was performed under NCHRP Proj- ect 24-19 by Salix Applied Earthcare. John McCullah of Salix Applied Earthcare was the Principal Investigator, and Dr. Donald Gray, Professor Emeritus of Univer- sity of Michigan, was the Co-Principal Investigator. Dr. F. Douglas Shields, Consulting Hydraulic Engineer, developed the Greenbank Decision Support Tool and authored many of the techniques while providing valuable reviews for many others. Also on the research team were Grace Hsuan, Associate Professor of Civil and Archi- tectural Engineering at Drexel University; Andrea Lucas of Sites Pacific-Andrea Lucas Associates; and Michael Wiley, Associate Professor of Natural Resources at the University of Michigan. Others who contributed to reviews of various sections of this publication include David Derrick, of the U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, and Phil Balch, of the Watershed Institute. Other Salix Applied Earthcare staff who contributed significantly to this publication include: Daria Hoyer, Laurie Barnes, Traci Mon- trose, Aaron Rose, and Kaila Dettman.

This report presents a description of useful environmentally sensitive channel- and bank-protection measures, design guidelines for their application, and a selection sys- tem for determining the most appropriate channel- and bank-protection measure. This report will be particularly useful to professionals responsible for design and construc- tion of channel- and bank-protection measures in environmentally sensitive areas. Environmentally sensitive channel- and bank-protection measures—such as bio- engineering, root wads, large woody debris, riparian vegetation, bendway weirs, and energy dissipaters—are being called for more frequently to protect transportation facil- ities from erosion, scour, and lateral migration. However, relatively little guidance has been developed to help practitioners apply environmentally sensitive channel- and bank-protection measures with confidence that their designs are adequate. Traditional channel- and bank-protection techniques rely on countermeasures such as riprap, gabions, cable-tied blocks, or grout-filled bags, which may not offer sufficient in- stream functions, such as habitat diversity, fish passage, water quality, and energy dis- sipation. The use of more environmentally sensitive measures for the protection of channels and stream banks has been hampered by the lack of selection criteria and design guidelines. Under NCHRP Project 24-19, Salix Applied Earthcare developed selection crite- ria, design guidelines, and a compilation of techniques used for environmentally sen- sitive channel- and bank-protection measures. After conducting an extensive literature review and evaluation of commonly used environmentally sensitive techniques, the research team identified 44 environmentally sensitive channel- and bank-protection techniques for study. The channel- and bank-protection techniques were grouped into four major categories, namely (1) River Training Techniques, (2) Bank Armor and Pro- tection, (3) Riparian Buffer and River Corridor Treatments, and (4) Slope Stabilization. Technique descriptions and guidelines for their applications were developed. Finally, a rule-based technique selection system was also developed. The selection system is presented as an interactive software program entitled “Greenbank,” which can be found on the accompanying CD-ROM (CRP-CD-58). FOREWORD By Timothy G. Hess Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

1 CHAPTER 1 Introduction Changing Requirements, 1 Project Tasks, 2 4 CHAPTER 2 Tasks Task 1—Literature Review and Agency Survey, 4 Task 2—Formulation of Work Plan, 4 Task 3—Interim Report, 4 Task 4—Execution of Approved Work Plan, 4 Task 5—Preparation of Supporting Tools, 5 Task 6—Final Report, 5 6 CHAPTER 3 Literature Review and Evaluation General Evaluation, 6 Specific Review, 6 10 CHAPTER 4 State DOT and Agency Survey Survey Design, 10 Survey Response and Findings, 10 12 CHAPTER 5 Technique Descriptions and Guidelines Hierarchical List of Techniques, 12 Technique Guidelines, 12 Special Topics, 12 14 CHAPTER 6 Technique Selection System Selection Strategy and Approach, 14 Greenbank Decision Support Tool, 14 16 BIBLIOGRAPHY 29 APPENDIX A Descriptive List of Channel- and Bank-Protection Techniques 41 APPENDIX B Greenbank Decision Support Tool User’s Guide CONTENTS