Flat Rock Dam Fish Passageway,
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Overview: Built in the early 1800s as part of the Schuylkill Navigation System, the Flat Rock Dam is a gravity dam located along a section of the Schuylkill River in the Lower Merion Township of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. To assist in fish migration, Pennsylvania’s Department of General Services (DGS) planned to install a fish ladder on the dam. GeoStructures provided a geotechnical investigation to characterize the subsurface of the site.
Highlights & Related Services:
The completed 200-ft, S-shaped structure along the west bank of the Schuylkill River involves 21 upward sloping chambers that allow fish to climb 15 ft and reach the 10-ft deep impounded waters on the upstream side of the dam.
The geotechnical exploration provided by GeoStructures involved 4 core borings on the rip rap of the west bank using a special skid rig. The rig was precariously cantilevered over the rapids on the downstream side at two locations. Expertise provided by our engineers on this project included:
- Specialized drilling in a precarious setting over the river
- Detailed rock characterization for compressive strength, hardness, weathering, fracturing, and discontinuities
- Quantifying rock cut for attraction chamber and valve pit
- Sliding/uplift stability for tanks of the passageway
- Bearing capacity of alluvial soils below the higher chambers
- Assessment of rock in terms of scour and countermeasures
- Retaining wall design
- Cut slope design/stability for soil cuts
- Dewatering criteria
PennDOT Approved Contractor
GeoStructures is now approved as a PennDOT Prequalified Geotechnical Drilling Contractor. ...
2021 Project of the Year
GeoStructures is the proud recipient of the Delaware Valley Geo-Institute 2021 Project of the...
2019 Project of the Year
GeoStructures is the proud recipient of the American Society of Civil Engineers 2019 Project of...
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