Researchers at Oklahoma State University’s School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CIVE) are working on a multi-university initiative to improve erosion and sediment control practices on state Department of Transportation (DOT) construction sites. This collaboration includes experts from Auburn University and the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, as well as consultants from Fagan Consulting and JEO Consulting, with funding from the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP).

Led by Dr. Jaime Schussler, assistant professor in CIVE, the project aims to develop comprehensive guidelines for selecting, placing, and maintaining effective erosion and sediment control strategies. “Managing erosion and sediment starts with people,” Schussler noted, as she emphasized the importance of evaluating and improving current designs to reduce failure risks and enhance resilience. The team also plans to create practical tools, host workshops, and collaborate with an NCHRP panel to ensure the research reaches construction professionals.

This effort aims to advance current practices, introducing more resilient design and installation methods that will be tested in full-scale controlled experiments. By the project’s conclusion, Schussler and her colleagues hope to influence industry guidelines for erosion prevention and sediment management, offering tools to facilitate on-site adoption.

The term "resilience" in this context refers to erosion and sediment control practices that can endure or adapt to changes while maintaining their intended function with minimal performance loss.

Construction sites disturbing over an acre are required to implement a stormwater pollution prevention plan, which includes erosion and sediment control practices. Given that every site is unique—varying in soils, rainfall, and slopes—site-specific plans are necessary to manage erosion and prevent sediment runoff.

The consequences of unmitigated erosion are far-reaching. Soil exposed during grading activities is susceptible to erosion by wind and rain, and sediment-laden runoff can harm aquatic habitats if it reaches water systems. Schussler’s team is focused on improving environmental stewardship and reducing harmful sediment discharge.

“We want to make sure we are good stewards of that site, which includes trying to limit the sediment leaving the site and minimize downstream pollution,” Schussler explained. “The erosion control is so important. If you can stabilize the site and prevent the erosion, then you don’t have to worry about the sediment transport as much.”

Offsite sediment discharge also carries pollutants like nutrients and metals that can affect water quality. Schussler clarified, “When the water looks muddy running off the site, we call that turbidity. Elevated turbidity alone can be harmful to water quality… It impacts aquatic species' feeding, spawning and migration. Additionally, it puts a lot more 'stuff' in the water that would need to be removed in the treatment process, which is energy and cost intensive.”

Barry Fagan, advisor and developer of the Five Pillars of Construction Stormwater Management, is guiding the project. The Five Pillars—Managing Communication, Managing Work, Managing Water, Managing Erosion, and Managing Sediment—are central to the team’s approach, ensuring effective and economical mitigation of site erosion and sediment discharge.

As the research moves into its second phase, Schussler’s team is focusing on creating resilient erosion and sediment control practices, drawing on performance-based data to refine design guidelines. Feedback from an advisory panel, made up of state DOT practitioners, will ensure the results meet the needs of the industry.

“It is great to have performance-driven designs. It means that we’ll have data to back up our ‘best’ management practices,” Schussler remarked. “A lot of people say you cannot replicate field conditions, and it is hard to do because construction sites are super dynamic… but by replicating field conditions at Auburn’s outdoor lab, we can get close to full scale. This will give us a lot of information about how the practices will perform onsite.”

Schussler, whose expertise in stormwater management began with erosion and sediment control research, is thrilled to return to this area of study. Her previous work in outreach and training has complemented her new focus on post-construction and infrastructure stormwater research at OSU.

With a three-year timeline, Schussler is already enthusiastic about the impact this project will have. “The coolest part of this project is that we’re getting feedback from practitioners, the people using the erosion and sediment control practices in the field,” Schussler said. “Our panel is reviewing each step of the research and advising us so that risk and resilience-oriented erosion and sediment control practices can be more reliably and easily implemented by the close of this project.”

Originally reported by OK STATE News.