A comparative study of RECPs: Index properties and field performance

With growing concerns over soil erosion and its impact on surface water quality, it is becoming increasingly important to find ways to economically and efficiently minimize soil erosion. There are a number of erosion control methods available; however, in recent years, there has been a move away from the use of traditional methods, such as rock riprap, because they are expensive and time consuming to install. This has opened the door for geosynthetic rolled erosion control products (RECPs.) RECPs are temporary degradable or long-term non-degradable materials manufactured or fabricated into rolls designed to reduce soil erosion and assist in the growth, establishment, and protection of vegetation (ECTC, 1998.) RECPs provide engineers with cost-effective, environmentally sustainable options for pushing the boundaries of live natural vegetation to minimize the use of traditional methods. The design of RECPs is typically based on maximum slope, velocity, and shear stress requirements. Besides these basic criteria, however, engineers are often given little guidance on the selection of RECPs of different fiber types, nettings, and structures. RECPs can vary significantly in basic index properties and overall field performance. Although index, bench-scale, and large-scale tests exist for evaluating and comparing different RECPs, limited comparative laboratory data has been published. Similarly, limited information is available that compares the results of laboratory testing to actual field performance. This paper relates the field performance of six different RECPs installed in a drainage channel in central New York to laboratory index tests.