Southeast Alaska is an area most know little about. It rains a lot (averaging nearly 100 in. a year), has the highest cost of living in the Pacific Northwest, and navigation between communities is difficult and infrequent. Economically, it functions as a shipping thoroughfare between the lower 48 and the nation’s 49th state; tourism is the highlight industry with five to 10 cruise ships passing through daily; and it supports struggling fishing and lumber industries.

One thing Southeast Alaska has, better than most anywhere else, is incomparable beauty. Deep blue skies and mysterious blue water are separated by majestic mountains and wispy clouds.

What does this have to do with mining and construction? If you can handle the remoteness of Southeast Alaska – which makes this area so special – it is a hot place for construction workers. And, for those who live here, they wouldn’t want it any other way.

Chris Gerondale is the Southeast Alaska region manager for Atlas Copco’s Anchorage-based distributor, Construction Machinery Industrial LLC (CMI). Gerondale currently supports rental agreements on dozens of surface drills and a number of underground operations. Unlike any other area, CMI’s territory could be described as remote. Service calls for the region cost the company tens of thousands of dollars monthly, as many calls require an airplane or a helicopter. 

“Aside from the cost of living, the standard of living is extremely high in Southeast Alaska,” Gerondale said. Nature is so much a part of what makes that standard so high. Activities could include fishing, crabbing, hunting or hiking. Gerondale thinks the people who choose to live in this part of the world have “extreme lifestyles to match incredible personalities.”

The following is a look at a few extreme projects that reflect the beauty of Southeast Alaska. A “hiding place” is being quarried for a major infrastructure bypass, and in Ketchikan there are two major projects under way: a monumental runway extension that focuses on keeping the fish happy and a road into the wilderness that will provide development opportunities for the city.

Hidden Valley
In a valley surrounded by mountains, not far from Juneau’s city limits, is the Hidden Valley Quarry. Rock is being removed for Juneau’s new highway overpass. Over the next couple years, 500,000 yd. of rock will be taken from this quarry to fill the needs of the project.

Brian Thatcher is the man onsite with many skills. Starting off the eight-month season in March, there were many days Thatcher said he would shovel snow two-plus hours before he could start drilling. After the blaster finishes his part of the job, Thatcher returns to Hidden Quarry in the afternoon to remove the shot material.

In a week, Thatcher drills about 10,000 ft., averaging 60-ft., 3-in. holes. Through the season, he expects to drill 240,000 ft. with the ROC D3. Thatcher started drilling just last year and really likes operating the ROC D3.

Thatcher is currently leveling a small plateau within the valley. An outcrop of trees needs to be removed so he can continue to evenly bring down the summit. Because Hidden Valley offers such a rugged landscape, Thatcher can take it right to the working edge and feel comfortable with the rig’s stability. “The ROC D3 goes anywhere I want to go … it really sticks to the ground,” he said.

Salmon runways
The federal government has committed dollars for airport runway extensions across the country to meet current FAA regulations, but there aren’t many airports that need to move a river to make that extension possible. Ketchikan’s airport is located across Tongass Narrows on Gravina Island, a short five-minute ferry ride across the channel from the city. At the north end of the runway, a river flows into the channel, and like all rivers in this part of the world, salmon count on it for spawning. To expand the runway, the river must first be moved.

To complete the project, 1.7 million yd. of material will be moved in two phases. The first phase is moving the riverbed. On the 3:1 slope, parallel to the runway, drilling is under way using 12 ft. steel and 3 ½ in. bits. To move the river, the natural flow was redirected with a right turn and then a curve to the left, resulting in the mouth ending up a few hundred yards up the shoreline. The project was a basic borrow and fill, with extensive coordination and timing, as the rock was drilled, blasted and then moved, ultimately filling the old streambed.

The second phase is expanding the runway 500 ft. To extend the runway, borrowed material is taken parallel to the existing runway. After six months of work, 400,000 yd. has been moved from the stream and 300,000 yd. moved as borrow for the extension. 

The contractor, Secon Inc., is using Atlas Copco ROC D7 rigs. Charlie Jewett, the project manager for Secon, likes the efficiency of the rig and said his drillers “really like the D7 because the cab keeps them out of the weather and the controls are user-friendly.” Drilling is done around the clock while weather cooperates. The project began in March 2007 and was scheduled for completion in August 2008.

Room to grow
The city of Ketchikan (population 14,000) is surrounded by mountains and water. The city has about 40 miles of roads with one 30-mile paved highway running through town, dead-ending at either end. To grow, the town is looking to Gravina Island, which is relatively flat. Kiewit Pacific, of Anchorage, has been awarded the contract to build a 3.2-mile road that will continue from the airport to an area approaching the West Channel of Tongass Narrows.

The crew has found the island’s terrain, although reasonably flat, less than welcoming. The project has run into rock, but less rock than expected – or hoped for. In the area photographed, engineering reports indicated that there would be solid rock within 5 ft. of the surface. Upon excavation, muskeg was found as deep as 12 ft. Muskeg is mud and decaying plant life that is mostly swamp, and doesn’t come close to a solid foundation. This spongy muck exists because of the region’s cool summers and high rainfall. For the project to continue, the muskeg must be relocated to an authorized dumping location.

Although Alaska covers a geographic area double the size of Texas, with Southeast Alaska equaling the eastern seaboard of the United States, some who live in the region are fighting to keep it as natural as possible. Going through the process of obtaining permits to relocate the muskeg put the project a month behind schedule. The project is permitted to stay within a boundary and leave all other land undisturbed. Plastic fencing barriers have been placed along the road’s future path to contain any runoff into the pristine muskeg wilderness.

Kiewit uses ECM 660II rigs for the drilling work. The operators like the simplicity of their operation, and the rigs give them the hole size and depth needed. Service and support is also a big reason for using these rigs, which are provided by Atlas Copco dealer CMI.

“CMI has a unique service and product support situation with its customers in Southeast Alaska,” said Ketchikan Sales and PSSR Brian Elliot. “As a companywide entity, we strive to meet those customers’ needs.”

There are about 30 surface drills working in Southeast Alaska. With 24 rentals in the region, CMI stays busy servicing its equipment. Elliot said it’s common to spend 20 hours a month on a floatplane making service calls, and helicopter parts delivery and service calls are also frequent.

Atlas Copco, www.atlascopco.com

Scott Ellenbecker is editor-in-chief of two in-house publications for Atlas Copco. He has been involved in marketing construction and mining equipment since 1995.