Drainage Upgrade at Sungai Tampines
A Living Engineered Slope
Tensar RE500 uniaxial (primary) and biaxial (secondary) geogrids were used to replace a reinforced concrete structure for the construction of a 3.8m high reinforced soil slope, or commonly known by the locals as vegetated reinforced soil slope (VRSS) along Sungei Tampines.
Benefits:
- Fertile backfill soil promotes vegetation growth as a natural erosion control measure.
- Ease of construction without the need for heavy machinery to lift the geogrid.
- City greening sustainable construction.
The conventional approach for building wider and deeper drains to quickly collect and channel rainwater runoff away from urban catchments was deemed to be no longer adequate or sustainable to cope with the challenge of climate change, limited land and increasing urbanisation in Singapore. The National Water Agency’s upgrading work at Sungai Tampines called for green and sustainable solutions for the drainage system.
Instead of using a traditional concrete channel, uniaxial and biaxial reinforcement geogrid were proposed to form the a green slope that not only enhanced the slope stability, also help to nurture the vegetation growth. The vegetation played an important role in treating storm water runoff prior to discharching into downstream drainage. Biaxial and geotextile were used to form green slope facing to prevent soil erosion prior to plant maturity.