EROSION CONTROL ON A STEEPLY SLOPED PIPELINE RIGHT-OF-WAY IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA

The results of precipitation on steeply sloped pipeline rights-of-way (ROWs) during the time between ROW rehabilitation and the establishment of a dense, self-sustaining vegetative ground cover can cause locally severe soil erosion. This erosion results in elevated sediment loads in receiving streams and increases the difficulty and costs of ROW maintenance. A field study was completed that compared the environmental effectiveness of nine treatments on a 28% ROW slope in southwestern Pennsylvania. The six erosion-control methods investigated in the study, selected to represent a wide range in material type and installation cost, were (1) heavy application of straw mulch, (2) light application of straw mulch, (3) processed wood fiber, (4) chemical soil binder, (5) paper strips in netting, and (6) light straw mulch with a tacking agent. Each of the test plots also received the basic treatment of limestone, fertilizer, and a seed mixture commonly used to rehabilitate ROWs in the region. Precipitation, runoff volumes, and sediment yields were measured on each of 51 plots for 45 precipitation events during the 18-month study. Vegetation data were collected by the point-intercept method four times during the study to determine the amount of plant cover and species composition. Differences in sediment yield more » were observed among methods and between ROW location, but plant cover development was not influenced by erosion-control method or location. The relationship between environmental and cost data indicated that, of the six erosion-control methods tested, a light application of straw mulch was the most effective erosion-control treatment. 19 refs., 2 figs., 6 tabs. « less