Eastern Heights Utilities – I-69 Sections 2 and 3 Water Main Relocations Environmental Review, Permitting and Inspection

The water distribution system conflicted with the route of the new I-69 in Greene and Monroe Counties. This project required the relocation, modification and/or abandonment of 47,000 linear feet (LF) of water main prior to the construction of the interstate. Wessler staff assisted Eastern Heights Utilities team members with water main relocations at 19 locations.
The Wessler team’s services included design, survey, permitting, construction administration, and inspection during the construction of the interstate done simultaneously by five different Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) contractors. The water mains were the first utility relocated in all but two locations and Wessler staff were able to accelerate work schedules with limited notice, sometimes by as much as three months. This fast-tracking of schedules provided a considerable benefit to INDOT, the interstate construction schedule and the Utility. The $16 million utility relocation project was completed in October 2013.

Wessler staff also studied each project area for possible environmental impacts and planned appropriately to avoid, minimize and mitigate unavoidable impacts. Permits for waterway crossings, wetland impacts, construction in a floodway and erosion and sediment control were obtained prior to the beginning of each project. Early coordination was completed and permits were obtained from the following agencies: Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) for 401 Water Quality Certification and CSGP, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for 404 Permit for waterway/wetland impacts and Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for construction in a floodway. The project design also had accounted for wellhead protection areas, underground karst features and restricted tree-cutting periods to prevent adverse impacts to threatened and endangered species, such as the Indiana Bat and the Bald Eagle.

Approximately 12,000 LF of land clearing was conducted within the existing I-69 right-of-way and/or 20-foot-wide easements along the route of the planned water main relocations. Land clearing included complete removal of trees and stumps, erosion control measures and temporary site stabilization. To avoid impacts to the roosting habitat of the Indiana Bat, it was necessary to schedule the tree clearing between November 16 and April 1.

During construction, Wessler staff completed regulatory inspections to ensure permit conditions were implemented as planned and provided coordination with appropriate regulatory agencies to close out permits as the projects were completed.