Erosion Control Issues at Multiple Sites (Monday, October 11, 2021)

The following photos from 9 sites were taken between 8:30 pm and 10:15 pm on October 11, 2021 after a 0.60 inch rain. All of the sites are in the Zilker neighborhood except for one in the Barton Hills neighborhood. Five of the sites are in the Barton Springs Zone.

Back to erosion control issues on other dates.


1402 Oxford

Mulch socks like these (especially flattened mulch socks) are not going to stop runoff and sediment from leaving a site. Mulch socks have their purposes, but sites like this (significant slope) require silt fences. Otherwise, sediment will not be contained. The small mulch sock in the downstream gutter was placed there by the homeowner next door who was tired of sediment piling up in the gutter front of his house. It caught some of the sediment that came off of the site though much of it went around it.


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Photo 2

1301 Garner

Although the address is 1301 Garner, this is along Dywer Street. The slope on this lot is fairly significant to the left. Similar to 1402 Oxford, these flattened mulch sock have no chance of stopping sediment unless the rainfall is minimal. In this case, sediment has been quickly deposited to the top of the mulch sock and allowed to flow over it. The end of the silt fence is in violation of the ECM criteria for j-hooks. It doesn’t have one. This has been pointed out numerous times but the City has done nothing to bring it into compliance. If there were a j-hook here, at least some of the sediment would be contained.


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1206 Garner

Again, flattened mulch socks have no hope of preventing sediment from leaving this site.


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809 Azie Morton

This site has never had proper controls. It has significant slope requiring multiple controls. The entrance controls almost never extends to the ends and often has holes. Here, you can see evidence of where the sediment was leaving the site around the ends and through the hole in the middle (Photo 1). The silt fence on the corner is crushed (Photo 2) as is the one along Lund St (Photo 3).


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Photo 3

1201 Azie Morton (in the Barton Springs Zone)

This site doesn’t have proper controls considering the slope. It needs multiple controls, especially silt fences running uphill along along the entrance road, to prevent sediment from leaving the site. The triangular dikes simply funnel runoff to the open downstream end. At times, this dike hasn’t even been in place during rainfall events. This is another reason this site needs additional controls running up along the entrance road (i.e., for the times that they fail to put the triangular dikes in place.) .


Photo 1

1209 Azie Morton (in the Barton Springs Zone)

This site is adjacent and upstream of 1201 Azie Morton (the previous site). Similar to 1201 Azie Morton, this site needs multiple controls. The slope is significant and those few feet of rock and ripped mulch socks are not going to prevent erosion from this site. It is a joke to think that sediment is not going to leave this site.


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2803 Oak Haven (in the Barton Springs Zone)

This site in the Barton Hills neighborhood has never had proper controls. This site has significant slope and needs multiple controls. Even if the mulch socks were not flattened and the triangular dike wasn’t crushed, the controls would not be adequate. It is quite evident where sediment is currently leaving the site, flowing over the black mulch sock to the left of the painted curb address.


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Photo 2

2024 Ford (in the Barton Springs Zone)

This site is just one example of how little regard the builders and their sub-contractors care about erosion controls, by piling boards on top of and crushing the silt fence.


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2001 Melridge (in the Barton Springs Zone)

The house on this site was demolished weeks ago, and there are still no erosion controls in place.


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