West Virginia (Aug. 3, 2016) — Woolpert has tasked its unmanned aerial systems (UAS), or drones, with monitoring landslide areas and potential landslide areas in northern West Virginia.
“This is an active weather time, with West Virginia experiencing historic rains,” said Aaron Lawrence, Woolpert GIS expert and UAS technology developer. “Access to this terrain can be challenging and viewsheds from ground level can be blocked due to overgrown vegetation. UAS gives us a tool to get as close to these remote and often unstable areas as possible in a quick and safe manner.”
The Woolpert team collected high-resolution aerial imagery via UAS and generated 3D data after a slope failure on a recently developed parcel of land in West Virginia, completing this process in less than 24 hours.
“The 3D data collected during this event and others like it can be used by engineers to not only identify but reinforce and stabilize these dangerous slopes,” Lawrence said.
Woolpert has conducted UAS projects with various states’ departments of transportation, departments of natural resources and oil and gas developers, identifying slopes of a designated percentage for road and highway construction as well as land development. For instance, if a slope next to a road is greater than 30 percent, Lawrence said, there is a higher probability of a landslide to occur and/or for debris to enter a roadway corridor.
“There is value in collecting imagery before, during and after a landslide because, from the resulting data, we can better understand the mechanics of these natural disasters,” Lawrence said. “Then this information can be used to prevent future landslides, and we can better protect the public, our industries and our resources.”
About Woolpert
Woolpert is a national architecture, engineering and geospatial (AEG) firm that delivers value to clients by strategically blending engineering excellence with leading-edge technology and geospatial applications. With a dynamic R&D department, Woolpert works with inventive business partners like Google; operates a fleet of planes, sensors and unmanned aerial systems (UAS); and continually pushes industry boundaries by working with advanced water technologies, asset management, Building Information Modeling (BIM) and sustainable design. Woolpert’s mission is to help its clients progress—and become more progressive. For over 100 years and with 24 offices across the United States, Woolpert serves the needs of federal, state and local governments; private and public companies and universities; energy and transportation departments; and the United States Armed Forces. For more information, visit woolpert.com or call 937-531-1258.