Chepstow Dock Clearance
The old Chepstow docks is set for development of approximately 350-400 homes. Prior to any works commencing here the docks needed to be stripped of vegetation, to aid surveying and future building requirements.
The task included clearing large areas of trees and shrubs under ecological supervision. There was an old wall running (200m) along one of the site boundaries which needed to be cleared of bramble to allow access for surveying. Along the old slip ways there had been earth piled up against the walls which also had to be removed for surveying.
Vegetation clearance lasted 6 weeks.
Many of the trees and shrubs were felled and cleared by hand and processed by our tracked woodchipper. Some areas of the site were of marshland and riverbank and recorded as Sites of Special Scientific Interest. With the fast-rising tides, we decided it would be quicker and safer to use an excavator with tree shears to remove the trees from the awkward locations. All vegetation had to be cut down to 500mm to then be dug out after ecological inspection. We used excavator and flail for areas of dense shrubbery and small trees.
The old retaining wall along the site boundary had become overgrown with Budlear, Ivy and other weeds, therefore the integrity of the wall could not be determined prior to clearance. Using a tracked MEWP and long reach hedge trimmers we worked along the wall removing the vegetation to reveal the walls condition underneath.
The slip ways where the ships once sat had debris piled up against their retaining walls, therefore removal of this spoil was also required to assess the condition of these retaining walls. During excavation asbestos was identified, therefore a specialist was informed and removed the asbestos from site.
