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Debris Cleanup
moved onto a pier from stockpiles using either a dozer or a loader and
loaded onto the barge by a crane which was prepositioned on the barge
(Figure 5-14). The barge was then towed out to the dump site, secured to
the buoy marking the site, and offloaded with the crane (Figure 5-5).
Normally the loading/offloading consumed 8 to 10 hours for each
operation. This method was used to move most of the debris from Medren
from November 1778 to May 1979.
The last and most efficient method of transporting noncontaminated
debris employed a BC-type barge with a bulldozer aboard. This method
was developed for use at Enewetak Island where there was a substantial
cargo pier and a large volume of debris identified for lagoon disposal.
Numerous innovations were necessary to achieve maximum efficiency
in the loading operation. One was the removal of dump beds from
uneconomically repairable 20-ton dump trucks. These beds could easily be
moved to and from stockpiles by a tractor-trailer in a loaded/unloaded
configuration. Debris-loaded dump beds were emptied onto the barge at
Enewetak with 45-ton or 90-ton longboom cranes (Figure 5-16). By
judicious placement of loads on the barge, much higher capacities were
reached. Up to 700 cubic yards were loaded on a barge, with average loads
of 500 cubic yards. Loading time ranged from 4 to 6 hours. Offloading took
less than an hour with the bulldozer pushing the debris off the barge at the
lagoon disposalsite.
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FIGURE 5-14. DEBRIS LOADING ON A BARGE.