Mad River Project; Chris Whitworth, Deputy Director Humboldt County Department of Public Works
Dear Mr. Engber,
I am writing this letter to thank you for the diligence and expertise your crew demonstrated in the construction of the bio-stabilization project on the Mad River Bluffs in McKinleville.
The completion of the 1,300 foot stabilization project involved access problems, diverse habitat conditions and a short timeline in which to complete the project. Your crew lead by operator Gene Wixson pioneered the access ramp and constructed the toe buttress at the base of the 40 foot bluffs within the first two weeks of the project. Chris Anderson then quickly demonstrated his expertise in the implementation of biological stabilization techniques, and in consultation with you developed modifications to the project that will assure its longevity. The crew organized quickly and began a routine that completed 60 – 80 feet of planted embankment a day.
Your firm completed the project on time and within budget providing innovations to the design that will ensure its long-term success. Thank you for the willingness to take on this difficult project.
Sincerely,
Chris Whitworth
Deputy Director
Humboldt County Department of Public Works
Mad River Project; Ken Miller, Resident of the Mad River Bluffs
Folks,
Residents along the Mad River Bluffs on Ocean Drive may have been the poster faces of the threat posed by the meandering Mad, but we were not the primary targets. Our entire neighborhood, with its infrastructure and utilities were in direct danger. After much negotiation and hand-wringing, we understood that although we were victims of historic constraints on the river to create Arcata agricultural lands, we few bluff residents were going to pay hefty shares of any grant to protect the bluffs, so we focused on the project itself rather than the blame. As you can imagine, federal (NRCS, ACOE), state (Coastal Commission), and county all had skin in the game. Hank Seeman, engineer from County Public Works navigated the minefield of environmental engineering consultants, who expressed expensive concerns over any credible evaluation of the many variables involved, and the regulators with their permitting requirements. Ultimately, we avoided the morass by declaring an emergency, appropriately since one residence was 23 feet from the edge, and proceeded. But proceed with what? ACOE proposed a long rock pile, others wanted a rigid polymer wall. None of us wanted either. Then, along came Evan, and his hearty band. Soon, expert loaders and excavators and diggers and spreaders and foremen were unloading and distributing vast quantities of quarried rock from Strawberry Rock area, building a 1500 foot roadbed surveyed to rise above high water mark. From there, they placed many hundreds of 2-4 ton boulders with the precision of a surgeon until they had built groins and road. Next came harvesting of nearby willows which were planted amongst the rocks. CFG/CFW supplied some second growth redwood logs which were interspersed as subsurface habitat at high tide, exposed at low for the convenience of otters, among others. We watched from above and from the river, entertained by the choreography of giant machines delicately and deftly handling enormous rock, and pleased with how effective the sediment barriers were, even in this tidal reach. Sprinklers wetted the fresh willow saplings until their maturity, at which point they completely secured the boulders in what is now a living beautiful garden habitat that has prevented further erosion into the bluffs while delighting the senses. One of the best parts was interacting with Evan’s crew. They were clearly having fun as they worked their magic, bringing this work of art to fruition, under budget! Thank you Evan for saving our hood and our homes with such an elegant model of geo-engineering.
Ken Miller
Ken Miller, Landowner
Asti Projects; Jeff Collins, Asti General Manager
Hard to believe that this is the 5th winter since BioEngineers completed the work. Looking at the bank you wouldn’t know work had been done unless you knew what you were looking for. However, that work remains a source of pride for Asti Winery, not just in knowing that we ‘did the right thing’ in terms of the environmental approach taken to the project, but in the fact that so many different groups (NOAA Fisheries, Fish and Game, the United Wine Growers of Sonoma County, etc) hold Asti and Bioengineering’s work as the model for how a stabilization project should take place, and what the results should look like. Two weeks ago Asti Winery was honored with the Business Environmental Award by the Sonoma County Business Environmental Alliance. Your work featured prominently in the nomination and was mentioned during the presentation as one of the measures we’ve taken to be both a profitable and environmentally friendly business.
Jeff Collins, General Manager, Asti Winery
Odd Fellows Recreation Club Projects; Jack Davies, OFRC Chairman of the Board of Directors
Fortunately, we were able to complete the Riverbank Restoration Project in November, 2009. Its completion literally saved our community as the winter of 2009-2010 proved to have some of the greatest rainfall amounts recorded in the previous five years, with the Russian River closely approaching flood stage at our site. Our sewer system surely would have been lost to the river had the project not been in place.
Jack Davis, Executive Director, Odd Fellows Recreation Club