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Rail partners to examine Washington mudslide problem
A big issue is that folks live on the top Of the hillside and have not done the right thing about surface water management and are now losing property off the slope and down to the track
It’s about time! Considering how many times I’ve read articles on the news wire about mudslides stopping passenger trains in the Sea-Tac area, I can’t believe it’s taken this long for the involved parties to get together and figure out a solution. It’s a lot cheaper to install drainage systems and retaining walls in the hills above the mainlines than it is to stop the revenue-producing trains after every preventable mudslide and clean up the mess.
Actually, the root cause mentioned by Mr. Schreiber may actually be closer to the truth than he realized. We have been suffering a plague of mutilation and removal of beautiful old trees and vegetation often forced not by the residents located immediately atop these slopes, but by short-sighted and downright evil neighbors who stop at nothing to destroy any living thing that comes near their precious “view.” One retired Mariners baseball player actually bought a house next to a long-time resident here who had a wonderful old tree in his family’s back yard and then proceeded to hire lawyers to force him to kill his own tree. Often, the trees are killed in the dead of night without any legal proceedings. The consequences are there for all to see when the trees that are killed are located on or near the slopes above the BNSF line. Doing “the right thing” about surface water management has become more and more difficult as local “authorities” take over everyone’s back yard in ever more intrusive ways. I know I would never dream of touching anything that might bring the attention of the wetlands bureaucrats my way.
Keeping water on the plateau from flowing onto the slopes is a good idea, but I wonder how the State and cities could force property owners to improve the management of water atop the slopes. Maybe the power of eminent domain could play a role.
Other ideas (thinking out loud with no background in engineering, hydrology, or soil mechanics):
- Decrease the gradient of some slopes.
- Stabilize slopes where feasible.
- Install retaining walls and diversion dams that control where the mud goes.
- Periodically dredge accumulated mud.
- Build mudsheds (like snowsheds) to allow mud to flow harmlessly over the (above) the tracks and into Puget Sound.
6, Move the tracks farther away from the slopes and elevate them to allow mud to flow under them… - Tunnel under areas that defy other solutions.
- Freeze slopes to allow construction to proceed during the rainy season.
- Inject chemicals into slopes to permanently cement them.
The physical problems can be solved if the money is made available and political and environmental requirements are met…
It is obvous that some of the comments are from people who are not familier with the area.
It is obvous that some of the comments are from people who are not familier with the area.
About time!
The root cause is the problem. The roots don’'t hold in the soil.
Steep hillsides + excessive rain = unstable soil. Add gravity and you have a mudslide.