Contents

  • Cover
  • Front matter
  • Introduction
  • Identifying and managing risk
    • Risk overview
    • Working smart and efficiently
    • Starting the job – be prepared
    • The job is not finished until it is signed-off
  • Basics
    • Roading terms
    • Basics about soil
  • Good construction
    • A well-constructed road
    • A well-constructed landing
  • Earthworks
    • The right machine for the task
    • Clearing and stripping
    • Cut and side cast construction
    • Cut and bench fill construction
    • Full bench construction with end-haul
    • Earthworks compaction
    • Landing construction
    • Forming road corners and in-bends
    • Final grading before metalling
    • Stabilising cut/fill slopes
  • Water control
    • Water control overview
    • Ditches
    • Road drainage culverts
    • Berms and cut-outs
    • Flumes
    • Silt traps and soak holes
    • Silt fences
    • Single culvert river crossings
    • Ford crossings
    • Bridges
  • Applying aggregate (metalling)
  • Repairs and maintenance
    • R&M overview
    • R&M common to new construction
    • R&M of road formation
    • R&M during harvesting operations
    • R&M of river crossings
  • Assisting loggers and harvesting rehab
    • Installing deadmen
    • Installing debris traps
    • Harvesting track rehabilitation (rehab)
    • Harvesting track rehabilitation – cut-outs
    • Landing rehab
  • Want to learn more?
  • Glossary

NZ Forest Road Engineering Manual: Operators Guide

  1.  ›
  2. Earthworks ›
  3. Clearing and stripping
 

Clearing and stripping

Grass and scrub, topsoil, roots and branches must be removed because they rot or don’t compact. Otherwise, water can move through this material and may cause weak and unstable fills to collapse.

  • The right number of trees have been removed to build the road
  • More trees should have been removed
  • Standing trees should not have been buried. They will cause road stability issues when they rot, and are less safe to log
  • The most valuable part of the tree is buried!
  • Topsoil and wet clay are being removed
  • Good use of different machines
  • Stumps have been left in an unsafe position for harvesting operations

Check enough trees have been removed for safe construction

  • Remove vegetation, black soil, stumps and slash
  • Place stumps on flat, stable ground, on a secure bench, or beyond the toe of fills
  • Cart strippings to a safe disposal site if nowhere close by is suitable
  • The topsoil was not properly stripped. Vegetation buried in the fill will rot and make it less stable
  • The berms are too large, leading to overloaded batter slopes
  • Topsoil and slash are in a safe and stable place that will not impact on harvesting
  • Material is kept away from restricted areas. For example, waterways, native bush
  • Debris is placed on a bench
  • This stump should have been removed
  • There is no water table drainage
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