Todd Noles, Superintendent of Lakes, Dams, Common Property, and Forestry, rented a hydroseeder from Sun Belt Rentals for three weeks to tackle difficult erosion areas. In an effort to find an economical way to accomplish the project, the undertaking marks the first time Village hydroseeding was not performed using a contractor. The project ran from Monday, May 8, to Friday, May 26.
Wikipedia defines hydroseeding as a planting process that uses a slurry of seed and mulch. It is often used as an erosion control technique on construction sites, as an alternative to the traditional process of broadcasting or sowing dry seed.”
According to the Sun Belt website, the “600-gallon HydroSeeder is perfect for the landscaper or contractor that requires a fast and economical solution for seeding jobs. With coverage up to 7200 sq. ft. per load, you can tackle a wide range of demanding hydroseeding applications.”
The two-man POA hydroseeding crew, consisting of Jason Welch (Common Property staff) and Clayton Holcomb (Streets and Roads staff), spread a mixture of grass seed, 15/30/15 fertilizer, and wood tack. The purpose of the wood tack was to help the seed and fertilizer adhere to the ground. 1,500 to 2,000 gallons of the mixture was applied daily for three weeks, totaling 18,000 gallons for $8,900 for the project. This does not include the cost of staff time.
Primary roads with significant erosion were hydroseeded, including but not limited to DeSoto Boulevard, South and North Barcelona Road, Alicante Road, Balearic Road, and Fresno Road.
In addition, the crew used the hydroseeder to apply a flowering garden mixture at the Coronado Community Center.
Recently, a contractor hydroseeded the Jarandilla landslide area and a few places along DeSoto Boulevard, costing $7,800 for 1,500 gallons. If we had used a contractor to perform the recent hydroseeding, the cost would have been $93,600 representing a savings of $84,700 (not including staff time).
By Cheryl Dowden; photography by Todd Noles
How much of this erosion is/was caused by contractors of the utility companies that utilized herbicides to kill the vegetation and root structures that kept the soil in place as a means to control the vegetation under the utility lines?
Wow. $84,700 savings. Excellent job. Thank you.
smart resource management…great job!