Ohio River Crossing Permanent Water Line

The City of South Shore, KY’s water treatment plant needed significant upgrades to meet current drinking water standards, and the decision was made several years ago to stop treating drinking water themselves and instead buy water from the City of Portsmouth, Ohio, located across the river. Initially, a water line was installed on an existing bridge as a temporary solution. The long-term plan included installing a new water line beneath the Ohio River, along with several miles of additional pipeline.

To support the project; which is not yet under construction, S&ME worked for the City of South Shore to provide geotechnical exploration for the proposed 3,000-foot-long horizontal directional drill (HDD) under the river, and for the two-mile water line, including trenchless crossings under railroads and US routes. We also conducted a bathymetric survey and environmental services for the project.

Drilling on the Ohio River is complex, requiring a towboat, deck barge, and crane to stabilize the barge in up to 30-foot-deep water. As the river is one of the busiest commercial waterways in the country, we coordinated with the US Coast Guard and the US Army Corps of Engineers to avoid blocking the navigation channel and obtain permits to drill. Borings reached depths of up to 133 feet, including 80 feet of rock core, and was timed to complete during low flow periods in the wet season.