EFFECTIVENESS OF HIGHWAY DRAINAGE SYSTEMS IN PREVENTING SALT CONTAMINATION OF GROUND WATER, ROUTE 25 FROM EAST WAREHAM TO THE CAPE COD CANAL, MASSACHUSETTS

A study to determine the relative effectiveness of special designed highway drainage features in preventing salt contamination of ground water will compare four different drainage designs along a new highway in Massachusetts. At the control site, no attempt will be made to prevent salt from entering the ground. At the other three sites, different combinations of drains and impermeable berms have been designed to prevent salt contamination of ground water. To evaluate the effectiveness of the drainage designs, a salt balance will be prepared at each site over 5 years of highway use. The amount of salt applied to the highway will be compared to the amounts in the ground water or diverted to the drainage systems. Salt loads in ground water will be determined from sodium and chloride concentrations in water from about 80 wells and from aquifer porosity estimated from geophysical logs and lithologic samples. Salt loads in the drainage systems will be estimated from flow and specific conductance with the use of stage-to-discharge and conductance-to-concentrations rating curves. (Author)

• Corporate Authors:

  U.S. Geological Survey

  F Street Between 18th and 19th Street, NW
  Washington, DC    20244

  Massachusetts Department of Public Works

  Research and Materials Section, 99 Worcester Street
  Wellesley Hills, MA  United States  02181

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Pollock, S J
• Publication Date: 1984-12

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Berms; Calcium chloride; Contaminants; Drainage structures; Groundwater; Measures of effectiveness; Prevention; Sodium chloride; Sodium chloride; Surface drainage
• Uncontrolled Terms: Contamination; Effectiveness
• Old TRIS Terms: Drainage systems; Highway drainage
• Subject Areas: Geotechnology; Highways; Hydraulics and Hydrology; Marine Transportation; Security and Emergencies; I26: Water Run-off - Freeze-thaw;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00395422
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 84-4166 Intrim Rpt
• Files: TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Oct 31 1985 12:00AM