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Wright County engineer says seismic testing given tentative permit; company must provide segmented maps, follow setbacks
Summary
Wright County Engineer Adam Clemons described a tentative approval of a seismic testing permit covering 200th Street and 40th Street from Buchanan to Youngblood, and outlined conditions including a permit fee, mapping requirements, setback limits, restrictions on paved roads and bridges, and daily data reporting requirements.
Wright County Engineer Adam Clemons told the Board of Supervisors that he has given tentative approval for a seismic testing permit covering an area along 200th Street and 40th Street from Buchanan to Youngblood, and that the testing company must provide more detailed segmented maps and a schedule before work proceeds.
Clemons said the company submitted a permit with an associated $110,000 fee that he has provisionally approved. He said the firm must submit a revised map that breaks the route into segments and a schedule “so we can have an educated conversation about where they’re going.” Clemons told the board he expects the company to produce daily reports of measured vibration data and other monitoring results.
Why it matters: the testing will cross county roads and private property in Wright County; supervisors and staff discussed restrictions intended to protect county infrastructure and private crossings and to coordinate operations with road crews.
Clemons described operational limits the county has communicated to the contractor: testing teams may work on private property only with landowner permission; they may not operate on paved roads or concrete surfaces; and the county has required a setback from certain county infrastructure. He said the county maintained a 250-foot setback from county roads and from bridges in its current restrictions. Clement also said the company must submit segment-by-segment plans and a schedule so county crews know where testing sensors will be placed.
Clemons said the company’s sensors are sensitive to moisture and weather: rain or snow can prevent testing on a scheduled day because the instruments measure ground vibration at short intervals. He said the company estimates the 200/40 stretch will take about five days of work but that the schedule can change if weather affects measurements or if the company modifies its models.
Clemons said the county provided the contractor with a spreadsheet of every known culvert and tile crossing and other infrastructure to help the company plan sensor locations and avoid damage to county features. He also said the company will submit “peak particle velocity” values daily as part of monitoring so the county can check setbacks around structures.
Board members and staff discussed other operational items: the contractor’s map and schedule will be shared through a Teams file to keep supervisors and staff updated; the county will post notices on its Facebook page and via its road-notification tool; and the county will push the company to use alternative, unpaved access routes where possible to avoid wear on older concrete routes.
No formal board vote on the permit appears in the transcript; Clemons described the approval as tentative and said he is continuing to review the submitted mapping and scheduling details.
