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Construction Site Erosion
Costly, Illegal
© 1997, 1998 Streamline Publications
What is this 12 by 9 by 40-inch long object?
- Large, low-fat sausage.
- Genetic experiment in dachshund-turtle crossbreeding.
- Shillelagh on steroids.
- Antipollution device.
If you answered 1, 2, or 3,
give yourself credit for an active imagination and extra credit for
knowing what a shillelagh is (a short, heavy club named for an Irish
town). If you answered 4, an
antipollution device, go to the head of the class. The Agromin Bio-Filter Bag, a
product that replaces anti-erosion devices and methods currently used on
construction sites.
What used to be muddy water is
now a pollutant, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The eroded soil need not have any hazardous or harmful constituents,
such as agricultural chemicals, to be considered a pollutant—or to
subject the person or company causing it to stiff penalties. Construction site storm water
runoff should be avoided regardless of whether the federal, state and
local authorities enforce the EPA's rules. It is a simple matter of
money and liability. One would be hard-pressed to justify soil erosion
from a construction site. The economics point strongly toward
prevention.
The Last Straw
Before Agromin Bio-Filter Bags
came on the scene, contractors had little choice in how they stopped job
site erosion. Straw bales, straw wattles—straw-filled mesh tubes—or
sandbags were arranged on slopes to slow or stop the water. The straw
had to be entirely removed from the site and disposed of before
landscaping could be done. Straw materials, especially rice straw, were
slow to degrade. Even with removal, the straw could introduce unwanted
seed into the area. The removal effort was labor intensive and costly.
Sand was heavy to work with and had to be moved or spread.
Attractive Alternative
Agromin's Bio-Filter Bag is an
attractive, ecologically sound alternative to straw or sandbags. The mesh bags are filled using
100 percent recycled wood chips. Water flows through the bags while the
rough-edged wood chips hold back entrained soil, silt and debris. Unlike the UV light degradable
(photodegradable) straw wattle mesh bag, the Bio-Filter Bag mesh does
not break down in the sunlight—an important characteristic on
long-term job sites. So what happens when the bags
are no longer needed? Removal of the entire bag and its contents is
unnecessary since the wood chips merely add mulch to the topsoil. The
mesh container is slit and pulled away by workers while the wood filling
remains in place. The wood chips and the soil which they have strained
from the runoff water are then spread across the planting area. Disposal
is limited to a few ounces of plastic from each filter bag. The wood chips are clean, 100
percent recycled log and stump waste and contain no plastic, metal or
weed seeds. There won't be any surprise growths blooming in the new
plantings.
Versatile The Agromin Bio-Filter Bags are
suitable for open slopes and embankments, gullies, catch basins, culvert
retention areas, roadside ditches, swales and around drain openings.
The filter bags are easily
installed. At about forty-five pounds each, workers can readily handle
them. Depending on application, the
bags can be staked in place using two 1 x 2 inch wood stakes or their
equivalent for each filter bag. Agromin Bio-Filter Bags are available at
Albright Seed Company now along with expert advice from Albright
consultants. 
Paul Albright, of Albright Seed Company, holds a revolutionary antipollution device. Contact Albright before the government calls you!
Agromin Bio-Filter Bag
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