Underwater timber harvesting , Reclaimed wood products , Reservoir management , Reservoir services

Brasil – Jirau

Brasil - Jirau

Triton was contracted by Energia Sustentável do Brasil S.A (ESBR) to examine options to recover 173,025m3 of harvested stems and related debris from the shores of the soon to be flooded Jirau Reservoir located on the Madeira River. The Madeira River is a major waterway in the state of Rondônia in Brazil. It measures approximately 3,250 km in length and is the largest tributary of the Amazon River, contributing 15% of the Amazon runoff.
Energia Sustentável do Brasil S.A clear-cut the reservoir pre-flood and decked the logs on the shores of the river. However, the logs were never taken to market as the market was reported to be to far from the reservoir to make the trees profitable.
The rising water elevation would cause the trees to be swept downstream and into the dam creating catastrophic problems for hydro-electric production.
Triton was asked to develop a plan to extract the logs and recommend options for protecting the dam from floating debris that occurs naturally from bank erosion. The absence of roads to the harvested areas required the logs be extracted using marine resources.
The project involved extensive surveying of water depths to determine suitable access points to the numerous dispersed log decks scattered along the shorelines. The project required three weeks to complete.

Triton Timber Group