What is the percent for the removal of the contaminant of the turbidity curtains and silt barriers? What is the average effectiveness they both have when installed?
by Silt Barrier Tech Team
(Florida, USA)
floating turbidity curtains, silt barriers, silt curtain
A visitor contacted us asking what the percent for the removal of the contaminant of the turbidity curtains and silt barriers is and what average effectiveness they both have when installed. The visitor was doing a research for a hypothetical situation and needed this information.
Our tech team supporting this visitor provided the following information:
Silt barriers are greater than 95% effective in controlling the migration of sediments if used in the right water conditions. They are primarily not designed to remove contaminants but we have used activated carbon and other more advanced filter materials to “polish” the water on contaminated remediation sites (where pcb’s were present).
The turbidity/silt curtain/barriers have their place on most in-water projects but as with all things the right tool must be selected to get the desired result.
Sometimes turbidity curtains are not the way to go, or may be used in conjunction with sheet pile or not at all due to the impact of pile or coffer cells and the surrounding area.
The considerations for determining the effectiveness for barriers are quite broad.
However, there are studies out by the USACE and EPA and are worth reviewing.
See Silt Barrier General Information
