In early summer, the Country Squirrel Outfitters canoe/kayak
lunch received a little love. The
existing launch wasn’t much more than an eroded dirt footpath to the Clarion
River. It had been this way for many
years under the previous ownership and it was time for an upgrade.
The first step was to obtain the necessary permits from
the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which came in the form of
a General Permit #2 for boat ramps and docks.
This authorization was obtained in the fall of 2013. The next step was to determine the method
that would be used to stabilize the launch area surface. Due to the steepness of the embankment, simply
adding stone to the launch would not work.
Through his work in the conservation field, Steve the CSO owner, had
worked with a product called Geoweb.
Geoweb is a cellular confinement system that has many different
uses. Its primary uses include; slope
stabilization, storm water management controls, and pervious parking areas. Geoweb was chosen for the new canoe/kayak launch
application. A local Ridgway area
contractor, Bill Kinkead Excavating, was chosen as the contractor to do the job. Construction began with grading the old launch
to provide a level surface to install the Geoweb. The plan was to establish a walkway that was
approximately 8 feet wide and 30 feet long.
Once the new walkway was established to grade, a layer of geotextile separation
fabric was installed. This material is
used to create a separation barrier between the subsurface soils and the new
materials that will be placed on top.
The Geoweb panel was then installed.
We chose to use a single panel with a rise of 4 inches. The panel was stretched to approximately 7.5’x27.5’
in size. The corners and edges of the
Geoweb panel was staked in place until the void spaces could be filled with
stone. Once in place, the Geoweb panel was
filled with 2A limestone. Limestone was
chose over sandstone because of its durability and the added alkalinity that
limestone adds to the water, which is an added environmental benefit. Once the canoe/kayak launch was completed,
the small disturbed areas were seeded and covered with straw mulch to minimize the
potential for erosion.
The whole project took about a half of a day to complete. The new launch has been in place for about 2
months now and it is holding up very well.
It is a huge improvement over the old launch area. There were certainly cheaper and easier ways
to establish a new canoe launch, but we wanted something that would last a long
time and would also provide some added environmental benefits. With the methods and techniques used on our
new launch, we were able to meet several primary goals:
·
Reduce erosion and sedimentation that was occurring
at the old launch
·
Provide a stable and firm surface that would
provide better traction for the users, which results in a safety improvement.
·
Utilize an innovative technology that isn’t
common in our area, which may serve as an educational tool or demonstration
project.
·
Utilize limestone to provide much needed
alkalinity to the Clarion River watershed
