Amherst Island Wind Farm Amherst Island, Ontario

37 Pages·2016·4.38 MB·English

by  Hatch, Adam

Amherst Island Wind Farm
Amherst Island, Ontario

Work Plan
Geotechnical Investigation
Municipal Roads
(Field Component)

Prepared for:
Windlectric Inc.
354 Davis Road, Suite 100,
Oakville, ON L6J 2X1

Prepared by:
Stantec Consulting Ltd.
300W-675 Cochrane Drive
Markham, ON L3R 0B8

Project No. 122411132
September 14, 2016
AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

This document titled Amherst Island Wind Farm was prepared by Stantec Consulting Ltd. (“Stantec”)
for the account of Windlectric Inc. (the “Client”). Any reliance on this document by any third party is
strictly prohibited. The material in this document reflects Stantec’s professional judgment with
consideration for the scope, schedule and other limitations stated in the document and in the
contract between Stantec and the Client. The opinions in this document are based on conditions
and information existing at the time the document was published and do not take into account any
subsequent changes. In preparing the document, Stantec did not verify information supplied to it by
others. Any use which a third party makes of this document is the responsibility of such third party.
Such third party agrees that Stantec shall not be responsible for costs or damages of any kind, if any,
suffered by it or any other third party as a result of decisions made or actions taken based on this
document.
AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Table of Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................1.1
2.0 EXISTING MUNICIPAL ROADS .....................................................................................2.1
3.0 SCOPE OF WORK – GEOTECHNICAL INVESTIGATION ...............................................3.2
3.1 INVESTIGATION OBJECTIVE ........................................................................................... 3.2
3.2 FIELD INVESTIGATION ..................................................................................................... 3.3
3.2.1 Pre-Investigation Measures ........................................................................ 3.3
3.2.2 Borehole Numbers and Locations ............................................................. 3.3
3.2.3 Drill Equipment ............................................................................................. 3.5
3.2.4 Traffic Control ............................................................................................... 3.6
3.2.5 Drilling Program ............................................................................................ 3.7
4.0 HEALTH & SAFETY .........................................................................................................4.9
5.0 SCHEDULE ..................................................................................................................5.10
6.0 CLOSURE ....................................................................................................................6.11
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1 Summary of Proposed Boreholes ............................................................................... 3.4
Table 2 Typical Traffic Control Layout – All Boreholes Except Those On Dump
Road ............................................................................................................................. 3.6
LIST OF APPENDICES
APPENDIX A PROPOSED BOREHOLE LOCATION PLAN
................................................. A.1
APPENDIX B RMS1
APPENDIX C R MS2 .......................................................................................................... B.2
APPENDIX D STANTEC SAFE WORK PRACTICE 416
.......................................................................................................... C.3
....................................................... D.4
AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Introduction
September 14, 2016
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Stantec Consulting Ltd. (Stantec) has been retained by Windlectric Inc. (Windlectric) to provide
geotechnical engineering services for the proposed Wind Farm on Amherst Island.
The construction of the proposed wind farm will require the transport of construction materials
and wind turbine components via a number of the local municipal roads. It is therefore intended
to conduct an intrusive geotechnical investigation to determine the make-up of the existing
roads. The information obtained will be used to assess the adequacy of the existing municipal
roads to support the planned construction traffic, to identify if and what improvements are
required to support the planned construction traffic, and to develop a base-line for comparison
with the post-construction conditions to identify what and where repairs may be necessary to
restore the roads to original conditions.
Though the determination of the make-up of the existing municipal roads is the primary
objective of the investigation, it is also intended to investigate a number of locations where road
widening is anticipated to be required to facilitate the transport and movement of construction
materials and two locations where construction traffic will pass over existing culverts and the
specific material covering the culverts is unknown.
In addition to the scope of work outlined above specific to the municipal roads, possible road
widenings, and culverts, two locations under consideration for the proposed O/M Building will be
investigated to determine the subsurface conditions and develop the design parameters for the
proposed Building.
This work plan outlines the intended scope of work with respect to the geotechnical
investigation and provides an overview of the Health & Safety standards and protocols that will
be in place for this undertaking.
2.0 EXISTING MUNICIPAL ROADS
A Public Road Assessment was completed at an early stage of project execution.
The Assessment was based on visual observations only. The results of the assessment were used
to classify the roads with respect to the existing condition and likely extent of remedial work that
may be required after completion of construction to restore the roads to the pre-construction
condition.
The Assessment established 5 road classes ranging from asphalt/asphalt-gravel roads to
unmaintained roads.
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AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Scope of Work – Geotechnical Investigation
September 14, 2016
Given the current proposed layout of the project and the intended locations of the wind
turbines, the following municipal roads are to be investigated as a component of the planned
geotechnical investigation:
• Front Road
• Stella 40 Foot Road
• 2nd Concession Road
• 3rd Concession Road
• South Shore Road
• Lower 40 Foot Road
• Dump Road
For reference, the speed limits on the roads on the island are 50 km/hr. except within 150 m of
the school on Front Road where the speed limit is 40 km/hr.
3.0 SCOPE OF WORK – GEOTECHNICAL INVESTIGATION
3.1 INVESTIGATION OBJECTIVE
The boreholes for the municipal roads are intended to determine the following:
• Presence and thickness of asphalt pavement;
• Presence and thickness of granular base and/or sub-base materials;
• General condition of the underlying sub-grade.
The boreholes intended for the locations of the possible road widenings will permit determination
of the thickness of surficial materials and/or organic ground surface cover that will require
stripping and the nature and condition of the underlying native soils that will support the fill for
the road widening.
The boreholes intended for the locations of the existing culverts will permit assessment of the
nature of the materials overlying the culverts to determine if the anticipated construction traffic
may pose a risk to the serviceability of the culverts.
The boreholes intended for the O/M Building will permit assessment of the nature of the
subsurface conditions and development of geotechnical parameters and recommendations for
the design of the O/M Building.

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AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Scope of Work – Geotechnical Investigation
September 14, 2016
3.2 FIELD INVESTIGATION
3.2.1 Pre-Investigation Measures
The locations of the boreholes have been established with a general view to obtaining
information along the length of the municipal roads of interest.
The pre-investigation measures will consist of the following:
• Submit the attached drawing to the public utility authorities to confirm the locations of
public utilities at the locations of the proposed boreholes.
• Adjust the borehole locations where and as required in consideration of the public utility
clearance responses.
• Renew public utility clearances if and as required.
It is understood that neither an encroachment permit nor road occupancy permit is required for
this investigation.
Windlectric has been made aware through public consultations that there may be private
underground utilities in various locations, particularly under and along South Shore Road and the
west end of Front Road. The borehole locations have been selected to minimize potential
interference with known or possible utilities and several locations were adjusted from that initially
intended with consideration for the potential presence of buried utilities or services.
Windlectric is also forwarding letters of notification to local residents that may have existing
infrastructure near the proposed borehole locations to inquire if they have any private buried
watermains or electrical cables along the public road(s).
3.2.2 Borehole Numbers and Locations
The number of boreholes has been established to provide general coverage of the municipal
roads of interest (reference the list provided in a previous section of this submission). As also
referenced in a preceding section, a number of additional boreholes are included for specific
design purposes (e.g. possible road widening, locations of existing culverts, and ancillary
requirement for the O/M Building). There is no anticipation that additional boreholes or deeper
boreholes will be required for this investigation, given the scope of work as described herein.
A brief summary of the locations, number of boreholes, and anticipated depths is provided in
the table below.
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AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Scope of Work – Geotechnical Investigation
September 14, 2016
Table 1 Summary of Proposed Boreholes
Proposed
Road Type Number of Boreholes Borehole Depth
(m)
Paved Roads 4 1.5
Gravel Roads 2 1.5
Poor Quality Roads 20 1.5
Proposed Road Widening 7 3
Existing Culverts 2 2
Proposed O/M Building 2 2.5

The road boreholes will be advanced at or near the mid-point of the travel lane on the road,
with due consideration for avoiding traffic disruption and consideration for appropriate traffic
control and safety (as further discussed below).
The boreholes for the possible road widening and O/M Building will be advanced on the edge
of the municipal roads. The boreholes at the locations of the existing two culverts will be
advanced in as close proximity to the culverts as access and mobilization constraints permit.
The depths indicated in the table were developed in consideration of the nature of the
infrastructure components noted and the subsurface conditions across the island as confirmed
via the geotechnical investigation for the wind turbines. The investigation for the wind turbines
encountered predominantly firm to very stiff or compact to very dense native soils underlain at
shallow depth by bedrock. No problematic soils, highly compressible soils, or organic soils were
encountered in the investigation.
In addition to the public consultation process undertaken by Windlectric as referenced in a
preceding section, at the time the boreholes are laid out in the field visual observations will be
made of the presence of any existing infrastructure adjacent to or in proximity to the borehole
locations. If there is any clear and obvious concern for the potential presence of buried utilities
or services, the location of the borehole will be adjusted, and the public locates will be obtained
for the revised location(s).

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AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Scope of Work – Geotechnical Investigation
September 14, 2016
3.2.3 Drill Equipment
The drilling equipment will be supplied and operated by Terex Drilling Solutions based in
Concord, Ontario.
The drilling crews are Certified Drilling Contractors / Technicians with the Drilling Safety
Association, demonstrating the importance of drilling safety. This includes knowledge
concerning underground utility locates, knowledge of drilling equipment and procedures, and
drilling safety. All staff maintains current WHMIS, first aid and CPR training, traffic control, and fire
safety training certification.
It is anticipated that the drilling will be undertaken using a CME 75 truck mounted rig (or similar
based on timing and availability). A photograph of the CME 75 truck mounted drill is provided
below for illustration.

The CME 75 drill is capable of drilling in soil and rock. Conventional drilling can be conducted
using solid stem and hollow stem augers. The drill is equipped with an auto-hammer that has a
weight of 140 lbs. and a drop height of 30 inches which is consistent with the ASTM requirements
for the Standard Penetration Test (SPT).
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AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Scope of Work – Geotechnical Investigation
September 14, 2016
3.2.4 Traffic Control
Traffic control during the field drilling component of the investigation will be provided in
accordance with the latest version of “Ontario Traffic Manual Book 7 Temporary Conditions”
(OTM Book 7).
Stantec intends to retain On Track Safety Limited located in Thornhill, Ontario, specialists in traffic
management and control, with whom we have an established and long-standing working
history.
Given the rural nature of the island, and the light traffic on the municipal roads, the typical traffic
control layout shown in the table and figure below will be adopted for the majority of the
borehole locations. This is also based on the limited time the drill rig will be “sitting” over any
particular borehole, anticipated to be less than 1 hour.
Table 2 Typical Traffic Control Layout – All Boreholes Except Those On Dump Road
Typical Layout Figure Layout Type
Lane Closed
TL-19
(Yield to Oncoming Traffic, Low Volume Roads, Very Short Duration)

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AMHERST ISLAND WIND FARM

Scope of Work – Geotechnical Investigation
September 14, 2016
The exception to the traffic control plan provided above is Dump Road. Given the extremely
narrow width of this road it is intended to temporarily close access from 2nd Concession Road to
the north while maintaining access from Front Road to the south to permit drilling the two
boreholes intended.
The typical traffic control layout shown below will be implemented for the temporary road
closure at the north end of Dump Road.

The traffic control sub-contractor will be available at the location of the temporary road closure
to advise any passing residents of the short duration of the closure.
The field supervisor will inspect the signs, barricades, and markers to confirm that they are in
good and clean condition prior to use. The reflectivity levels of signs, barricades, and markers will
meet the minimum levels specified in the OTM Book 7.
3.2.5 Drilling Program
The field drilling program will include the following components:
• Advance the boreholes using solid stem augers.
• Conduct Standard Penetration Testing (SPTs) on a continuous basis in each borehole; the
SPTs will be conducted in accordance with the methods and procedures described in ASTM
D1586.
• Collect soil samples from the split tubes advanced for the SPTs.
• Place the soil samples in moisture-proof containers for storage and transport.
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