Installing Depressurization Wells at Palo Alto.

Malcolm Drilling installed eight 40-foot depressurization wells for the new Palo Alto Safety Building. The Palo Alto Safety Building will house the Police Department, 911 Emergency Dispatch Center, and Emergency Operations Center, in downtown Palo Alto. The project consists of constructing a three-story building over a two-level basement structure. The site soils are a mixture of fine-grain comprised of clay and silt with variable amounts of sand and granular soils.  Groundwater control for the excavation involve extracting groundwater from the granular soil layer situated a few feet below the excavation subgrade to depressurize it. Depressurization will lower the piezometric level in the granular soil layer. Malcolm’s priorities always consist of maintaining safe ground conditions and abiding by all environmental regulations.