H0040 SHANNON PUMPING STATION

FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS

In September 2021, Eustis Engineering L.L.C. was solicited by Freese and Nichols, Inc. on behalf of the Gulf Coast Water Authority to conduct field/marine explorations for the new Shannon Pumping Station located within the Brazos River.

After conducting a site visit to observe existing conditions, a Draft Execution Plan was developed to outline the implementation and performance of geotechnical exploration work.  In order to drill in water to depths of approximately 35 feet, our borings were drilled using one of our skid rotary type drill rigs mounted onto a Class 40 Shallow Draft Lift Vessel.  Standard Penetration Tests determined that cohesionless soils (sand and gravel deposits) were predominate at the site.  Samples obtained from the field operations were preserved and transported to the lab for soil mechanics laboratory tests including Atterberg limits determinations and three-point consolidated undrained triaxial compression with pore water pressure measurements.

This complex project took place in a remote part of the Brazos River in Fort Bend County, Texas, so all exploration equipment had to be lifted by crane to the site.  After continuous challenges including nearly 100 feet of coarse sand and gravelly soils, a few days of blistering winds, and long hours filled with rappelling down and climbing up the bank with ropes, the seasoned Eustis Engineering crew successfully completed the field scope on December 13, 2021.