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April 24, 2006 Vol. 77, no. 14S
In CEE
180, upperclassmen tackle ferry transportation and sinking levees
The levees along the Sacramento River aren’t the only ones in trouble. CEE seniors Sara Garrett and Bryan Jaworski and junior Mei Chee Teoh are investigating levees near Novato for CEE professor Robert Bea’s capstone class “CEE 180: Construction, Main-tenance, and Design of Civil and Environmental Engineered Systems.” In Bea’s class, teams of students work to solve contemporary Bay Area problems and deliver a polished project within a 15-week semester. Garrett, Jaworski and Teoh are concentrating on the levees that sit on the former Hamilton Army Airfield, which is being converted to a wetland. Its soft bay mud is perfect for shoreline habitat but wreaks havoc on the old, earthen levees, which protect nearby homes and farmland from flooding. The levees, in short, are sinking. The Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees levee maintenance, has solved this problem by building them ever higher. But Garrett, Jaworski and Teoh think they have a better idea: a new low-cost, low-maintenance design that won’t sink as much and will still meet FEMA insurance requirements. “Geo-foam,” explains Jaworski. “It’s expanded polystyrene, a cousin to Styrofoam, that is cut into large blocks. It’s already used in bridge and highway embankments.” Geofoam is lightweight, strong, enduring, and environmentally safe, say team members. Their design involves inserting geofoam blocks into the middle of an earthen levee. The levee will weigh less, sink less, and won’t require constant topping. It’s also easier for workers to install because it’s lightweight to carry and work with, the team claims. Using this new design, the team is now calculating costs versus benefits. “I’m impressed that our team came up with this idea,” says Garrett. “Geofoam isn’t well known, and it hasn’t been used in the area of levee design.” If data back them up, the team can think of another place in need of their design: New Orleans faces its next hurricane season starting June 1. While New Orleans faces its challenges, the Bay Area must also prepare for what all experts expect some time in the next 30 years: a large earthquake. Another CEE 180 team is analyzing ferry transportation in the event an earthquake disables the Bay Bridge and BART. “Especially in those first 24 to 48 hours, emergency personnel and equipment will need to get to the city. Ferries are critical,” says CEE senior Anthony Mangonon. It’s widely assumed that demand will increase, but Mangonon and CEE seniors Wai Kit Fung, Wen Gao, Guang-Ru Li and Matt Plumb are calculating what this increase will be and how it compares to the region’s plan to add 17 new ferries and seven new routes in the next two decades. “Essentially we’re asking how cost effective it is,” explains Mangonon. Along the way, the team has gained a new appreciation for ferries. “They’re definitely part of the transit solution here,” he says.
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