Promoting Integrated Sediment Management

Newsletter 7May 2014

PRISMA celebrates three years of success

European partners are celebrating the successful completion of an innovative sediment management project with a final conference in Antwerp.

Dutch, British, French and Belgian partners have worked together on the Interreg Two Seas Promoting Integrated Sediment Management (PRISMA) project over the past three years. The project has resulted in award-winning work and ground breaking ways of dealing with dredged materials.

The main aim of the project was to decrease the volume and environmental harmful effects of sediment and to increase the economically and ecologically responsible re-use of sediment.

Full details of how this was achieved by Waterwegen en Zeekanaal NV (WenZ), Water Board Schieland and Krimpenerwaard (HHSK), the Broads Authority and Armines in cooperation with Ecole des Mines de Douai (AEMD) are detailed in the timeline of work and successes on page five.

The conference in Antwerp will take place on 18 June, 2014 at the Elzenveld Hotel. A programme is included on page six.

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Meet the people behind the project

William Coulet, Broads Authority Project Manager

What is the single most memorable moment during the three years of PRISMA?

“The Broads Authority has carried out a total of 10 different pilots and trials under the PRISMA banner. For that reason it is very difficult to pick a single memorable moment. But I have to admit that the iconic project at Salhouse Broad is a huge achievement for the Authority and me.

“Other projects, perhaps not as iconic were as least as challenging and inspiring to manage. Upton Little dredging and dewatering with non-woven geotextile bags, dredging on the Chet with a combination of tech-niques previously proven to be effective at the Lower Bure Setback Scheme. Not to forget the spit restoration with gabion baskets at Duck Broad and the dredging at Thorpe River Green.

“We’ve also learned a huge amount of the trialling of submersible pumps, concrete pump and the reusable geotunnel. I can honestly say that the last three years have flown by.”

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What has been the biggest benefit to the Broads Authority?

“The Broads Authority has achieved a lot during the three years of PRISMA, but the biggest benefit is not quantifiable. It is the cooperation, the knowledge sharing and learning from international partners both within the PRISMA partnership or people who we met along the way.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank every- one for the collaboration and we hope to build on existing and establish new relationship. We live in a managed landscape with natural features, for that reason there will always be a drive to improve management techniques.

“A platform to learn more about these techniques and share available knowledge is the international co- operation, this is supported by the European Regional Development Fund.”

Mahfoud Benzerzour, Associate Professor, Armines Mines Douai

How has the project been beneficial?

“Sustainable management of dredged sediments is today an international issue that mobilises waterways managers, industrials and scientific community. This management problem represents at the same time a strong potential in the future for serious alternatives resources of material for civil engineering construction instead of consuming more and more precious materials.

“In this context, the research centre Armines Mines Douai was strongly interested by the PRISMA project that represents a unique in situ full-scale experience.”

“Our work is made concrete by the mechanical, geo-technical and environmental characterisation of many types of sediment and by the realisation of formulati-ons for reused dredged river sediments of the partners in road applications.

“Moreover, our work allowed us to realise with the project partners a mobile unit of characterisation of sediments and the development of decision support software to optimise the valorisations of sediments.”

What were the most memorable moments?

“During these three last years of work with partners, I was particularly pleased by the realisation of the characterisation mobile unit. This was for me, not only a mobile unit to give a quick and viable response for the characterisation of tested sediments, but also an opportunity to travel through Europe and particularly visiting the PRISMA partnership.

“These site visits allowed me to realise personally the problem of the management of sediments and the important efforts made by the partners of the project to find sustainable solutions.

“This experience allowed me also to combine the very rewarding social aspect through my interactions with PRISMA partners to the scientific and experimental aspect of my work.”

Guido Verweij, waterboard of Schieland en de Krimpenerwaard (HHSK) Project Manager

Tell us about your work and the benefits of the PRISMA project

“The demonstration project consisted of dredging the Ringvaart, a canal located in the municipality Zuidplas which is situated in the Two Seas Region. The water-board and the other partners shared knowledge about innovative methods, techniques and other aspects of the management of dredging and sediment.

“The dredged material, sludge, was removed and drain-ed using the new technique of geotubes. The material was also tested by the French PRISMA project partner Armines to decide the amount of pollution using a mo-bile laboratory. With help from the various partners, the French partner then created a decision-model to help us decide what to do with the sediment.

“In case of the Ringvaart, most of the sludge was used to heighten the surrounding dikes and land. In a low country such as Holland, this is a huge advantage to be able to reuse the local sediment. This method allows

safe transportation of the sediment and the quality of the areas, particularly the water management, signifi-cantly improved.

What were the highlights for you?

“We really learned a lot from each other. I found it really quite amazing when research showed out that we were able to apply the contaminated dredging material on the exit of the highway (A20) at Moordrecht.

“The fact Belgians use their dredging work on a much larger scale impressed me. A deposit of a project at Waterwegen en Zeekanaal (B) is as large as the total volume dredged material our waterboard produces in one whole year!

“The project, achieved by transnational cooperation, not only demonstrated new ways to process sediment, but also a method to reuse this sediment in a CO2 friendly manner.”

Hans Quaeyhaegens, Project officer Vlassenbroek pilot W&Z

How did you get involved in PRISMA?

“The idea to construct an embankment with dredged sediment which would survive tidal conditions was born in 2008. This was a world first and the possibility was developed in 2009 in the framework of Interreg when similar organisations were starting projects on sustainable use of sediment.”

What were your expectations?

“By participating the pilot project of Vlassenbroek had a chance of succeeding. The financial support from Europe was an important element for W&Z and we could benefit from the exchange of knowledge and experience with experts in neighbouring countries.”

What did participating in PRISMA bring you and your organization?

“The execution of the pilot project in Vlassenbroek taught me and W&Z a lot about the potential and beneficial reuse of sediment to construct dykes. It turned out that much more useful products are available on the market for reuse of so-called useless sediments.

W&Z also learned a lot about dredging and treatment thanks to the cross-border cooperation with other water managers abroad, such as the impact of dredging on the environment.

What were the most memorable moments?

“The most remarkable moment in the PRISMA period was for me the visit to the lowest point in the Nether-lands at the partner meeting in Rotterdam. This point is more than 6.7 metres below sea level. It impressed me and made me realize why Netherlands is often regarded as a model country in knowledge and expertise in water engineering.

The most important moment was for myself the successful completion of the compartment dyke. Before the start of the pilot project, there were many uncertainties about the technical feasibility. But from the start of the project the professional approach of contrac-tor Jan De Nul Envisan and the constructive cooperation with W&Z lead to a great success.

The realisation of the pilot project is a big step forward in the sustainable management of dredged material. It shows that sediment is not just a waste product that belongs in a landfill, but rather a secondary raw material that can reduce the use of primary raw materials.”Thanks to the success of the pilot project, W&Z decided to apply the same technique for the next dyke construc-tion which has even steeper slopes and a higher crest.”

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PRISMA Progress timeline

2009 2010

September 2009 Broads Authority starts construction and dredging for the reedbed restoration at Duck Broad

January 2010 AEMD starts sediment characterisation of project partners involving two samples per partner

October 2010AEMD starts design and implementation of the mobile unit of characterisation and validation on 10 experimental sites in France, England and the Netherlands

2011

January 2011 AEMD starts study of treatment by polymers on six sediments (France, Netherlands, England)

February 2011 AEMD starts on the formulation and treatment for road application

May 2011 Broads Authority starts dredging of Upton Little Broad and dewatering of the sediment

September 2011Broads Authority finishes dredging of Upton Little Broad and continues the dewatering process

October 2011 EU commissions construction of compartment-dyke with dredged material from the Scheldt at Vlassenbroek by W&Z

Broads Authority starts dredging at Thorpe St Andrew

November 2011 Broads Authority starts dredging on the Lower Bure

December 2011 Broads Authority finishes dredging at Thorpe St Andrew

HHSK starts project with the dred-ging of the dispersible sediment

W&Z opens proposals for tende-ring the work at Vlassenbroek and selects Jan De Nul Envisan as the contractor

2012

January 2012HHSK suspends dredging due to bad weather with the Ringvaart frozen. This delays by almost three weeks but results in beautiful ice sculptures

W&Z Closes the contract with Jan De Nul Envisan and starts the design phase

AEMD starts on the decision model tool

January 2011 AEMD completes the for-mulation and treatment for road application

2012

April 2012Due to poor weather HHSK only dredges about 3,500m3 in the first four months, processing 25,500m3 into geotextiles

HHSK sets up a second dewatering site on the Bermweg in Nieuwer-kerk aan den IJssel

June 2012 Broads Authority finishes dredging on the Lower Bure and completes filling of the setbacks

By the end of June HHSK has re-moved 12,700 m3 of sediment, an average of 1,250 m3 a week, filling 18 geotextiles in total

July 2012HHSK opens the the geotex-tiles of the dispersible sedi-ment in the location of the Bermweg

W&Z starts preparatory work on the construction phase

September 2012 HHSK opens the geo-textiles of the disper-sible sediment in the location of ‘t Weegje. Approximately 12.700 m3 is dredged

October 2012 Broads Authority starts dred-ging and construction on Salhouse Broad

The contractor for HHSK starts dredging the non-spreadable sedi-ment. This second phase consists of processing about 9,000m3 of sediment which is dewatered on an adapted parcel

W&Z starts dredging and building compartment-dykes

December 2012HHSK dredges the last cubic metres of sediment out of the ringvaart. The dredging activities finish within the specified time

2013

February to March 2013 W&Z suspends work due to exceptionally bad weather conditions

April 2013 Broads Authority spreads dewatered sediment from Upton Little Broad and finishes dredging and restora-tion work at Salhouse Broad

June 2013 W&Z completes dredging and building compart-ment-dykes

June to August 2013 W&Z finishes construction of dyke and seeding slopes

November 2013 Broads Authority starts dredging and dewatering at Hardley Dyke

AEMD completes sediment characterisation of project part-ners and begins the development of a road pilot with the Belgium sediments

December 2013 W&Z completes work onthe construction of the compartment-dyke at Vlassenbroek

AEMD completes study of treatment by poly-mers on six sediments

2014

January 2014 Broads Authority finis-hes work at Hardley Dyke and starts work in Loddon

March 2014Broads Authority finishes dredging and spreading of the sediment at Loddon

AEMD completes the road pilot with the Belgium sediments and the design and imple-mentation of the mobile unit of characterisa-tion and validation on 10 experimental sites

May 2014 Broads Authority finishes dredging at Duck Broad although restoration continues for some time

June 2014 AEMD completes work on the decision model tool

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Every announcement or publication with regards to this project, regardless of form and medium, solely represents the opinion of the author. The program-authorities are in no way responsible for the use of this information.

NEWS & EVENTS

Promoting PRISMA PRISMA partners have made sure their successes have been in the news regularly over the project’s three years so the public are aware of their achievements.

Dozens of newspaper reports, radio interviews and trade publication articles promoted work carried out under the project from pumping mud to winning awards.

One of the most interviewed project managers was William Coulet of the Broads Authority, whose work on the restoration of a spit of land in Salhouse using dredged sediment, gained much good publicity after being shortlisted for a Water-ways Renaissance Award.

William said: “Aside from the priority of undertaking the work itself promoting our successes and the PRIS-MA project as a whole by putting it centre stage is really valuable. We are proud of what we have achieved and it is important that other organisations and the public know about these innovative solutions and how so many people can benefit from them.”

PRISMA final conference details

The PRISMA project partners have organised a final conference on 18 June, 2014 at Elzenveld Hotel, Lange Gasthuisstraat 45 in Antwerp, BELGIUM

The programme begins at 10am with a welcome and introduction at 10.15am by Dr John Packman, Chief Executive of the Broads Authority.

At 10.20am Els Serbruyns, Project Manager for lead partner Waterwegen en Zeekanaal will be interviewed followed by a presentation on dredging by William Coulet, Project Manager for the Broads Authority.

Guido Verweij, Project Manager for Hoogheemraadschap van Schieland en de Krimpenerwaard and Mahfoud Benzerzour Project Manager for Armines Mines Douai will talk about treatment and Hans Quaeyhaegens, Project Manager for Waterwegen en Zeekanaal, will discuss reuse.

A presentation on legislation and the decision model will be given by Mahfoud Benzerzour, Project Manager for Armines Mines Douai, followed by a panel discussion about the results and the legacy of the project. The conference will end with a networking reception.

Please confirm your presence via the online registration page: www.prisma-projects.eu