| SPR Active Projects |
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| SPR 663 |
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Copper Toxicity and ESA Listed Salmon
| Project Coordinator: |
Matthew Mabey |
| Research Agency: |
Oregon State University |
| Principal Investigator: |
Jeffrey A. Nason |
| Start Date for ODOT: |
September, 2007 |
| Completion Date for ODOT: |
December, 2008 |
BACKGROUND:
Highway stormwater runoff is a non-point source of many pollutants to surface receiving waters in the State of Oregon and across the United States. Because many of the pollutants found in stormwater are toxic, these discharges represent a potential threat to aquatic species. One contaminant of particular concern is copper. Copper is a common constituent in stormwater, with the primary sources being tailpipe emissions and the wear of tires, brake linings, moveable engine parts and asphalt pavement (Makepeace et al., 1995). The toxicity of copper to a number of aquatic species ranging from diatoms, to fish has been shown (USEPA, 2007). For example, recent research by Sandahl et al. (2007) has shown that low concentrations (2-5 μg/L) of dissolved copper can impair the olfactory system of juvenile coho salmon, one of several ESA-listed fish species. Damage to the chemosensory system reduces the ability of fish to navigate and avoid predators, likely increasing mortality.
Taking these results into consideration, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has changed the way it evaluates the potential impacts of transportation projects with regard to stormwater discharges to surface receiving waters inhabited by T&E species. Historically, Section 7 Biological Assessments were made by comparing pre- and post-project pollutant concentrations. Following the dissolved copper/salmon research, NMFS began basing effects determinations on dissolved copper concentrations as well. Consequently, even if an ODOT project decreases pre-project concentrations and loads of dissolved copper in runoff, if the concentration in post-project runoff is greater than 1 μg/L, NMFS may determine that project is “Likely to Adversely Affect” T&E species. As the severity of effects determinations increases, so does the potential for project delays and increased project costs (e.g., requirements for advanced stormwater treatment).
In aquatic systems, copper partitions between the dissolved and particulate phases by adsorption processes. Additionally, in the aqueous phase, free (ionic) copper forms weak complexes with inorganic anions (e.g., Cu(OH)2) and strong complexes with dissolved organic matter. It is generally accepted that the ionic and weakly complexed fractions of the dissolved copper are the most bioavailable to aquatic species (Campbell, 1995; Paquin et al., 2002). However, copper speciation is not the only factor that influences toxicity; as the concentration of hardness causing cations (calcium and magnesium) increase, copper toxicity decreases. This effect is conceptually framed as the competition between hardness cations and bioavailable copper for binding sites on the organism (Campbell, 1995; Paquin et al., 2002). In light of these complicated interactions, it is clear that measurements of total, or even dissolved copper are conservative estimates of toxicity and do not result in a complete picture of the propensity of a given water to exert copper toxicity to aquatic organisms.
A number of researchers have investigated the speciation of copper in ambient freshwater and marine environments; recent examples include Bryan et al.(2002) and Ploger et al. (2005) (freshwater) and Buck and Bruland (2005), and Nuester and van den Berg (2005) (seawater). Results from these studies and previous research show that in natural waters, the vast majority of dissolved copper (90-99.9%) is strongly complexed with organic matter. However, despite the increased regulatory scrutiny surrounding copper, little is known about copper speciation in stormwater. In one study, Boulanger and Nioloaidis (2003) found that ionic copper concentrations ranged from <0.05 to 0.39 μg/L while the dissolved copper ranged from 8 to 14 μg/L in urban stormwater runoff from paved and grassy areas (much higher values were found in runoff from a copper roof and in the ambient receiving water). Here, the dissolved concentrations would raise a red flag when compared with the study by Sandahl et al., but the concentrations of ionic copper (which is likely a better indicator of toxicity) were much lower. It is clear that an improved understanding of copper speciation in highway stormwater runoff is necessary to make fundamentally sound decisions regarding potential impacts.
A standardized test for the bioavailable fraction of dissolved copper does not exist. Furthermore, the recent EPA guidance document for determining copper criteria in ambient freshwater (USEPA, 2007), notes that such an approach is not justified due the heterogeneity of different surface waters and the fact that such a measure would not include the effects of hardness and pH. The EPA approved approach for determining the toxicity of a given freshwater is based on the use of a biotic ligand model (BLM) that accounts for copper speciation and binding to a biochemical site on an organism. Model inputs include temperature, pH, dissolved organic carbon, major geochemical cations (calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium), dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC, the sum of dissolved carbon dioxide, carbonic acid, bicarbonate, and carbonate), and other major geochemical anions (chloride, sulfate). To date, these methods give the greatest insight to copper toxicity and are the most broadly applicable. However, to our knowledge, these models have not been applied to stormwater systems, nor have the models been used to evaluate the potential toxicity to the olfactory system evidenced in recent research.
OBJECTIVE:
In planning, designing, and constructing or rehabilitating transportation facilities, ODOT is always balancing the State’s transportation needs with environmental stewardship. Current assessments of the environmental impact of highway stormwater runoff are based on conservative estimates of copper toxicity. The trade-offs for these conservative assessments are lengthened project timelines and increased costs. In large part, the conservative estimate of copper toxicity (total dissolved copper) is used because little is known about copper speciation in stormwater. In other words, the fraction of the dissolved copper that is bioavailable and the extent to which that fraction interacts with other constituents (e.g., calcium and magnesium) and biological organisms to exert toxicity is largely unknown. The proposed research aims to bridge that gap in understanding.
The objective of the proposed research is to develop a fundamental framework for estimating the likely impact of copper in highway stormwater runoff that discharges to surface receiving waters inhabited by ESA-listed fish species in the State of Oregon. This guidance will allow ODOT to predict when, where and to what extent copper toxicity is likely to be a problem and will inform NMFS in their assessment of the risks associated with transportation projects. Copper speciation and the concentrations of other constituents (e.g., hardness and dissolved organic carbon) that influence copper toxicity are keys to this analysis and therefore are the focus of the proposed study. The overall objective of the research will be accomplished by answering the following questions:
(1) What are the concentrations and ratios of various copper species (i.e., ionic, weakly complexed, and strongly complexed) in highway stormwater runoff and can those quantities be predicted (modeled) knowing something about key stormwater quality parameters?
(2) What are the concentrations of other water quality parameters that are known to influence copper toxicity (e.g., hardness and dissolved organic carbon) in highway stormwater runoff?
(3) How do the metrics measured as part of (1) and (2) vary across the highway system, across seasons, and with impervious surface area, adjacent land use and traffic volume?
(4) Are there trends in commonly utilized measures of water quality (e.g., total suspended solids, dissolved organic carbon) that can be correlated with copper speciation? If so, how do those parameters vary with the independent variables described in (3)?
(5) How do the concentrations and speciation of copper in highway stormwater runoff compare with the concentrations and speciation of copper in the surface receiving waters to which they are discharged and what are the potential impacts in terms of copper toxicity?
APPROACH:
The proposed work lies at the interface between several scientific disciplines (e.g., civil engineering, environmental engineering, chemistry, biology, and toxicology) and different aspects of the proposed projects will be of interest to each group. Furthermore, there are a great number of stakeholders that are likely to be interested in the results; these include the general public, tribes, municipalities and State and Federal environmental and transportation agencies (e.g., ODOT, Oregon DEQ, USEPA, USDOT, FWHA). As such, it anticipated that multiple outlets for technology transfer will be required to effectively disseminate the results to all interested parties.
Dissemination of the results to the scientific community will be accomplished through publication of the findings in appropriate peer-reviewed journals and oral or poster presentations at local and national conferences. Specific journals, trade journals and conferences will be selected in an attempt to reach a broad population of interested scientists and policymakers.
The results of the research will be directly communicated to the ODOT staff through workshops and targeted presentations. Results will also be directly communicated to NMFS biologists and researchers at OSU who performed many of the recent toxicological studies. It is hoped that the findings of this research will spur further research on the toxic effects of complexed copper and copper in stormwater matrices.
The environmental impacts of highway stormwater runoff are a current concern of DOTs around the country. Transportation officials from across the USwill be reached through links to the research from relevant websites. For example, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Center for Environmental Excellence (http://environment.transportation.org/), is a clearinghouse for environmental information for transportation professionals. The general public, local municipalities and Oregontransportation professionals will be reached through links to the research from the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Geo-Environmental Section webpage (http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/GEOENVIRONMENTAL/index.shtml).
Finally, through the participation of graduate students, undergraduates, and K-12 students results will be further disseminated as those students continue their studies and begin careers in the public and private sector.
COPPER TOXICITY AND ESA LISTED SALMON WORK PLAN
Quarterly Reports:
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| SPR 665 |
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Access Management Best Practices Manual
| Project Coordinator: |
Mark Joerger |
| Research Agency: |
Oregon State University |
| Principal Investigator: |
Karen Dixon |
| Start Date for ODOT: |
May 2008 |
| Completion Date for ODOT: |
June 2010 |
BACKGROUND:
The transportation industry has been aware for several years that there are substantial safety and operational benefits when a transportation system is constructed or retrofitted with strategic access management designs such as shared driveways, raised medians, or driveway restrictions near intersections. In the Oregon Highway Plan, goal number three identifies access management as the single largest contributor to highway safety and essential to the efficiency protection of existing and planned state highways. The Transportation Research Board (TRB) holds a bi-annual meeting on access management and publishes a key document know as the Access Management Manual. This TRB document addresses access management principles, techniques, and basic design configurations. It also includes recommendations for state and local involvement, case examples of access management techniques, public information strategies, and legal considerations. Though this TRB document provides substantial information regarding the application of access management principles and strategies, it does not provide a means for decision makers to make data-driven decisions that can show performance measures or provide information to help these decision makers or designers quantify the expected benefits of potential candidate treatments. Access management has met with significant resistance from the business community as business owners often perceive access management treatments as a means for restricting access to businesses adjacent to the public road. It is important to develop a best practices document for the state of Oregon that includes decision-support tools that will help quantify the anticipated results and determine the costs and benefits of these choices to both the transportation agency as well as to the community.
The states of Florida and Colorado were early leaders in the areas of access management and both states developed access manual codes to enhance access management needs within their respective states. In addition, the state of Florida developed the Florida Median Handbook in 1997 and the Florida Driveway Handbook in 2005 to specifically address access management techniques for the state of Florida. These documents serve as design recommendations for median and driveway locations. In 2005, the state of Iowa released their Access Management Handbook and a companion Access Management Toolkit. The handbook addresses access management principles and the toolkit quantifies overall benefits of access management principles. In recent years, several access management researchers have made headway towards quantifying specific access management benefits, yet this information is not readily available and may not be applicable to all regions. For example, states where access management has been given substantial attention (Florida, Texas, Colorado, and Iowa for example) have unique issues (such as older drivers, unfamiliar drivers, frontage road systems) that do not completely capture conditions in the state of Oregon or other states.
The state of Oregon needs a comprehensive document that addresses the potential access management treatments and their associated performance measures. The document also needs to be compatible with Oregon regional mobility and safety objectives such as comprehensive bicycle lane configurations. Oregon is also in need of a method for tracking the benefits of these access management improvements so as to provide an empirical basis to aid in the decision making process. This proposed research will compile the best practices from the access management literature, will incorporate the recent research on benefits into a document usable for the state of Oregon, and will provide a resource for decision makers to determine the most effective and efficient use of access management funds.
OBJECTIVE:
This proposed research project will compile information currently available in many documents; however, the research team will critically scrutinize available, often conflicting, information to determine accuracy and applicability for the state of Oregon. The specific objectives of this proposed research are to develop measurable criteria to evaluate access management techniques and improvements, to survey practices in other states and their techniques in developing those practices, and to determine data collection practices necessary to properly measure outcomes.
The product of this research effort will be the creation of the Oregon Access Management Best Practices Manual. This resulting document can be used by engineers, decision makers, and educators to help the transportation community better understand the appropriate application of access management strategies and how to quantify the benefits of various access management options.
3.1 Benefits
This Manual will help Oregon transportation agencies evaluate alternatives and select the access management techniques that best achieve system management goals. A reference manual that quantifies the impacts of using access management techniques will help these agencies make more informed system management decisions. For example, previous research determined that ‘a change from 10 to 20 driveways per mile would result in a 41% increase in accidents’. This kind of information will help representatives of transportation agencies explain the principles and benefits of access management to elected officials, local agency partners, and private developers. Quantifying the impacts access management has on system management will help develop credibility for the use of these access management techniques.
APPROACH:
Oregon will use the Access Management Best Practices Manual in a variety of training classes. The research will be presented at regional, statewide and national land use and transportation conferences, such as the TRB Access Management Bi-annual conference, the annual Oregon Planning Institute, ACEC conferences and the Project Delivery Leadership Academy. The Manual will be made available throughout the Department and to consultants from the Access Management Program’s website. It would also be submitted for inclusion as a resource on the TRB website.
The Access Management Best Practices Manual will be used to help determine and apply the best management techniques to achieve state goals. The Manual will be used to evaluate alternatives and assess outcomes both for state and local transportation system planning and to assess and mitigate development impacts.
The Manual will be an educational tool to help governing jurisdictions communicate and market the principles and benefits of access management. It will help establish consistent statewide understanding, expectations, and application of access management techniques.
ACCESS MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICES MANUAL WORK PLAN
QUARTERLY REPORTS
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| SPR 667 |
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Assessment of Statewide Intersection Safety Performance
| Project Coordinator |
Mark Joerger |
| Research Agency: |
Portland State University |
| Principal Investigator: |
Christopher Monsere |
| Start Date for ODOT: |
May 2, 2008 |
| Completion Date for ODOT: |
August 31, 2009 |
BACKGROUND:
In the United States, intersection crashes accounted for 45% of all crashes and 21% of fatal crashes in 2003 (FHWA). For the period of 2000-2005, the trends in Oregon are similar - approximately 40% of all reported crashes occurred at or near intersections. These crashes accounted for 44% of all injuries and 17% of fatalities. In many highway safety improvement programs, intersections are one of the key focus areas because of this concentration of severity and frequency of crashes. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in enhancing techniques for screening transportation networks to identify high crash locations. The most appealing procedures attempt to identify sites with the most “promise” for improvement since engineering studies are expensive, agencies have limited budgets, and if a site with potential is not identified, an opportunity to substantially improve safety is missed (Hauer, 2002). Typically, the sites with most promise have safety performance for a particular crash type that deviate from some average characteristic. There are number of techniques by which to define average, but it is clear that having knowledge of the expected safety performance as it relates to existing conditions, crash history, and other factors is helpful to both identify problem areas in network screening and once a location is identified, to diagnosis the correctable safety problem.
OBJECTIVES:
The primary objective of this research is to quantify the safety performance of typical intersections for various geometrical and operational categories (rural, urban, suburban, volumes, configuration, traffic control, geography). The objective can be broken down into two sub-objectives:
1.) To assemble a statewide inventory of intersections including location, geometry, control and volume data. This database will be designed to be updated and maintained over time. The intersection inventory data will become a part of the growing Oregon Traffic Safety Data Archive (OrTSDA).
2.) To characterize by a variety of geometric, operational, and volume features the safety performance of typical intersections. This performance will include both statistical summaries and exploration of the applicability of predictive models.
The primary use of these data will be to improve identification of high crash intersection locations and improve diagnosis of these locations. An example of the type of information that can be provided is shown in Figure 2. While preliminary and a simple summary, it is clear that different volume, control, and geometrical features influence the expected crash performance. If the type crash was also shown, overrepresentation (or above average) of a particular crash pattern could be detected. The Oregon Traffic Safety Data Archive (OrTSDA) is another research effort by the principal investigator to catalog a growing knowledge-base of safety data and analysis methods. Incorporating the intersection inventory in the archive will preserve the research and methodology developed in this effort to be continuously updated.
PROPOSED ACTIVITIES:
Task 1: Literature Review. Complete a literature search to identify similar intersection studies, data collection efforts, and safety performance functions and evaluations.
Task 2: Research Design. A detailed research study design will be developed that will allow a range of typical intersections in a number of suitable categories (rural, urban, suburban, entering traffic volumes, geographical area, and weather experience) to be studied.
Task 3: Data Collection. Following Task 2, the research team will assemble data in a format suitable for analysis that will likely include geometry, volumes, turning movements, intersection control, crash types, weather conditions, driver behavior and a number of other parameters about intersections.
Task 4: Data Analysis and Safety Performance Functions. The data collected in Task 3 analyzed to determine average crash performance and to determine typical crash types by approach. Simple metrics such as crash type proportions, crash severities, and others will be provided by a useable set of categories.
Task 5: Prepare Final Report. The research team will prepare the final report materials and all deliverables.
ASSESSMENT OF STATEWIDE INTERSECTION SAFETY PERFORMANCE WORK PLAN
Quarterly Reports:
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| SPR 672 |
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Mechanistic Pavement Design Instrumentation
| Project Coordinator: |
Norris Shippen |
| Research Agency: |
Oregon State University |
| Principal Investigator: |
Todd Scholz |
| Start Date for ODOT: |
April 2008 |
| Completion Date for ODOT: |
February 2010 |
OBJECTIVES:
The principal objective of the research project is to obtain key information (i.e., engineering properties of the materials used for construction and in-service response of these materials to applied truck loads) that will be used to assess the validity of predicted tensile strain via layered elastic analysis, which is a key input into the fatigue cracking model of the new design procedure. More specifically, the objectives of the project are to:
1. Instrument three new HMA pavements that have differing structure (i.e., HMA thickness, base course thickness and type, and subgrade type), truck loading volume, and that are constructed in differing climatic conditions such that pavement response due to truck loading can be measured periodically throughout the year.
2. Conduct necessary field testing and obtain field samples for laboratory testing.
3. Conduct the necessary laboratory tests on the samples obtained from the test sites.
4. Collect data from the instrumented test sites on a frequent basis (e.g., at least once per month).
5. Use the data collected from the instrumented pavements (i.e., axle loads, axle configurations and/or truck classification, induced tensile strain, and pavement temperature) as well as information derived from laboratory tests conducted on the field samples to validate tensile strain prediction via layered elastic analysis for the range of pavement structures, truck traffic volumes, and climatic conditions investigated.
OVERVIEW:
The project involves installing several instruments within and on top of three hot mix asphalt pavements during the construction process and periodically collecting data from the instruments. Analyses of the data will be used to validate a key component of the new pavement design procedure currently being implemented by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). In addition, loose hot mix asphalt and cores extracted shortly after construction will be obtained and tested in the laboratory for dynamic modulus, a key input in the new design procedure. Other field samples will be obtained and tested as necessary for analysis purposes. Falling weight deflectometer testing will be conducted on a seasonal basis to obtain layer moduli of the aggregate base course and subgrade soil. Predictions of tensile strain using layered elastic analysis will be generated and compared to the measured values. It is expected that the results of the study, in combination with the results of a current study, will provide sufficient evidence to determine the validity of tensile strain prediction using layered elastic analysis (as required in the new design procedure) for a range of pavement thickness, traffic loads, and climatic conditions.
PROPOSED ACTIVITIES:
The effort to move to mechanistic pavement design procedures does not end with the implementation of the new work procedures. There will be significant work to prepare for the implementation of the AASHTO design guide. A schedule for implementation of the new design guide cannot be made at this time. There is much work happening at the national level in addition to the work being conducted by the states.
The plan at this time is to tap into other states work and use this information to determine and prioritize the additional research required by ODOT. The implementation schedule for the AASHTO design guide is dependent upon completion of the current national research work, adoption by AASHTO and the ability of ODOT to continue research efforts in preparing for use of the AASHTO design guide.
MECHANISTIC PAVEMENT DESIGN INSTRUMENTATION WORK PLAN
Quarterly Reports:
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FY 10
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FY 11
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FY 12
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| SPR 680 |
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Oregon Open-Graded Wearing Course Update
| Project Coordinator: |
Norris Shippen |
| Research Agency: |
University of Washington |
| Principal Investigator: |
Steve Muench |
| Start Date for ODOT: |
March 3, 2009 |
| Completion Date for ODOT: |
December 31, 2010 |
OBJECTIVES:
1. Determine what and where open graded friction courses are being used in the U.S. and what their general performance has been.
2. Inventory Oregon open graded friction course locations and performance. This includes an evaluation of expected function and design life versus actual performance. Data from Washington State Modified Class D mixes will also be included in this analysis, as they are quite similar to ODOT 3/4 inch open graded mix.
3. For those mixtures that have not performed adequately, attempt to determine mixture, construction, and environmental reasons for their poor performance.
4. Develop a set of best design and construction practices for producing and placing 3/4 inch open graded mixes and/or recommend other types of open graded mixes suitable for the Northwest.
5. Develop guidelines for where open graded mixes should and should not be used.
OVERVIEW:
ODOT initiated a research study on open graded mixes back in the early 1990’s to document performance and identify improvements. The project included several publications that noted: Open graded mixtures in Oregon were originally developed as a friction course, but they have also proven to reduce noise, splash and spray and rutting. The benefits, along with some problems such as reduced durability and increased winter maintenance, have made it necessary to improve the quality of the mixes used in the porous pavements. To facilitate the improvement, there is a need to quantify the… change in mixture properties (e.g. permeability, voids) over time (Younger, et al 1994).”
Since the time the research findings were published there have been several changes that may have affected the properties of constructed open graded mixes. The changes include but are not limited to:
- A move from PBA graded asphalt to PG graded asphalt.
- The use of fibers to reduce drain down during construction.
- A shift from agency mix design to contractor mix design.
The changes noted above warrant a reinvestigation of open graded mixes in the Northwest to evaluate the impacts and the affect on performance. Also, more performance data over a much longer period of time is available to allow for a more objective evaluation to determine the best use of open graded mixes.
PROPOSED ACTIVITIES:
Results of the research will be used to modify ODOT publications and specifications for the use of open graded friction courses. In Oregon, the Principal Investigator, along with the Pavement Services Engineer, will be responsible for making presentations at industry meetings to describe the research findings. Other implementation efforts include the following:
· Post the construction best practices and use guidelines in Pavement Interactive (http://pavementinteractive.org), an online open Wiki, for wide dissemination within ODOT and beyond.
· Publish at least one refereed journal article based on the study.
· The potential exists, with possible future funding from TransNow (U.S. DOT Region 10 University Transportation Research Center) or other research center matching funds, that research findings could be turned into a 20- to 30-minute online course. Such training could be taken by designers or inspectors associated with projects that either already have or are considering ¾ inch open graded mixes..
OREGON OPEN-GRADED WEARING COURSE UPDATE WORK PLAN
Quarterly Reports:
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