MASS GRAVITY RETAINING WALLS

The client had entered into an Environmental Compliance Agreement (TAC) with the Public Prosecutor's Office of Minas Gerais, in which they committed to the restoration of a permanent protection area along the banks of the Piracicaba River in the municipality of Ipatinga. The construction site is known as "Pátio III," where Usiminas had been depositing steel mill slag for years, a byproduct of steel production. Due to the accumulation of material over the years, a steep slope had formed on the riverbanks, posing a risk of material collapsing into the water body and consequently contaminating the waters.

According to the premises outlined in the Environmental Recovery Plan (PRAD) provided by the client, the best solution among the available options in the market was the construction of a gabion wall using PoliMac™ gabions and the slope's lining with MacWeb® geocells. In addition to the proposed and implemented Maccaferri solutions, the project included the planting of grasses on the slopes and the crest of the wall through hydroseeding, as well as the planting of native tree seedlings along the riverbanks. The project also included ongoing monitoring of the grasses and tree seedlings' development and geotechnical monitoring of the containment structure.