Laserfiche WebLink
BMP C123: Plastic Covering <br /> Purpose Plastic covering provides immediate, short-term erosion protection to <br /> slopes and disturbed areas. <br /> Conditions of • Plastic covering may be used on disturbed areas that require cover <br /> Use measures for less than 30 days, except as stated below. <br /> • Plastic is particularly useful for protecting cut and fill slopes and <br /> stockpiles. Note: The relatively rapid breakdown of most polyethylene <br /> sheeting makes it unsuitable for long-term(greater than six months) <br /> applications. <br /> • Clear plastic sheeting can be used over newly-seeded areas to create a <br /> greenhouse effect and encourage grass growth if the hydroseed was <br /> installed too late in the season to establish 75 percent grass cover, or if <br /> the wet season started earlier than normal. Clear plastic should not be <br /> used for this purpose during the summer months because the resulting <br /> high temperatures can kill the grass. <br /> • Due to rapid runoff caused by plastic sheeting, this method shall not be <br /> used upslope of areas that might be adversely impacted by <br /> concentrated runoff. Such areas include steep and/or unstable slopes. <br /> • While plastic is inexpensive to purchase, the added cost of installation, <br /> maintenance, removal, and disposal make this an expensive material, <br /> up to $1.50-2.00 per square yard. <br /> • Whenever plastic is used to protect slopes, water collection measures <br /> must be installed at the base of the slope. These measures include <br /> plastic-covered berms, channels, and pipes used to covey clean <br /> rainwater away from bare soil and disturbed areas. At no time is clean <br /> runoff from a plastic covered slope to be mixed with dirty runoff from <br /> a project. <br /> • Other uses for plastic include: <br /> 1. Temporary ditch liner; <br /> 2. Pond liner in temporary sediment pond; <br /> 3. Liner for bermed temporary fuel storage area if plastic is not <br /> reactive to the type of fuel being stored; <br /> 4. Emergency slope protection during heavy rains; and, <br /> 5. Temporary drainpipe ("elephant trunk") used to direct water. <br /> 4-26 Volume Il—Construction Stormwater Pollution Prevention February 2005 <br />