With help from Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA), we were pleased to be able to help Pangborn Farms in Lynden replace a failing and undersized culvert on their property, which was partially blocking fish passage. To do this, we removed the old culvert and installed a 40' precast concrete bridge in its place. Because we were working on a farm field access road in a peat bog, the ground was very soft and unstable and was like working on a waterbed. In consideration of the soft ground and weight of the bridge (roughly 140,000 pounds), helical piles were driven into the ground through the peat and down to a harder layer of material. Cast in place concrete pile cap abutments were then poured on top of the piles for the bridge to sit on. Multiple electrical and water lines were relocated and attached to the new bridge. Bearing witness to these third-generation farmers’ stewardship for their property was heartwarming. We are thankful to our local farmers in so many ways, including their contributions taking care of the land and waterways that make Whatcom and Skagit Counties so special.

Major Elements: excavation, erosion control, trucking, water diversion and stream bypass, dewatering, helical pile installation, bridge assembly, stream channel construction, extensive utility relocation