Malcolm’s Sonic Drilling Exploration Revives Wapato Headworks
At the heart of the picturesque Yakima River near Wapato, Washington, lies a century-old engineering marvel – the Wapato Headworks. This historic spillway facility stands as a lifeline for the lower Yakima River Valley, providing vital irrigation water to the surrounding agricultural lands. However, with time comes the need for rehabilitation, and Malcolm stepped in with cutting-edge sonic drilling technology to uncover the secrets hidden beneath the surface.
The Wapato Headworks Rehabilitation project sought to explore deep into the earth, gathering crucial subsurface data to support the engineering efforts aimed at revitalizing this indispensable infrastructure. To achieve this, Malcolm coordinated a series of sonic borings, strategically positioned at various locations along the river’s edge.
Supplied with state-of-the-art equipment and expertise, Malcolm’s team embarked on a mission to extract vital soil core samples, Standard Penetration Test (SPT) samples, Shelby tube samples, and rock core samples. These comprehensive datasets would serve as the cornerstone for informed decision-making in the rehabilitation design process.
Each sonic boring, ranging from 25 to 50 feet in depth, was thoroughly executed utilizing a 4-inch core barrel and 6-inch casing. The versatility of sonic drilling allowed operations to unfold seamlessly across diverse terrains, including the dewatered riverbed, riverbank, an island within the river, and even from a barge that was anchored within the water.
