The Environment Beneath the Skid-Steer - Soil Engineering Basics for Onsite System Installers (WWETT Show 2023)

Geotechnical engineering is the branch of civil engineering concerned with the behavior of earth materials, involving soil mechanics, geology, hydrology, and geophysics.  Onsite wastewater treatment system installers operate equipment above and near underground structures, sloped ground, and potentially unstable soil.  Construction equipment creates a sphere of influence in the underground environment that extends both horizontally and vertically, resulting in a variety of concerns during onsite system installation.  While geotechnical engineering is an important aspect of onsite wastewater treatment system construction, the below-ground, out-of-sight aspect should not make it a lesser concern.  The objective of this seminar is to increase installers’ awareness of the conditions that exist in the subsurface environment during onsite system construction.  The discussion covers geotechnical engineering fundamentals as related to onsite system construction, including soil unit weight, earth pressure, stress on buried structures, and slope stability.  Soil stress with depth and the lateral extent of stress in soil will be addressed, as well as the effect of static and dynamic stress on buried structures.  Publicly available construction videos will be used as case studies to tie the geotechnical engineering concepts to real-life situations.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explain geotechnical engineering fundamentals as related to onsite system construction, including soil unit weight, earth pressure, stress on buried structures, and slope stability

2. Relate the principles of geotechnical engineering to onsite wastewater system installation practices

3. Increase awareness and understanding of subsurface conditions and how they affect onsite system construction

4. Create a heightened awareness for construction safety and system installation for field practitioners

Speaker:  David Lentz, Regulatory Director at Infiltrator Water Technologies