Water...water...where is it?

The University of Colorado Boulder campus has over 50,000 sprinkler heads.  For someone with less than 20 in my yard, this number is staggering.  How do you manage to keep track of every single one of them was my question to Tom Coppens, a member of the Irrigation team.  He helped me see the big picture.  It is not just about the sprinklers, which we see spraying water across the campus; it is what we don’t see that creates the campus irrigation system.  The pieces and parts include:  4 pump houses, 4 water ditches, 3 campus weather stations, 84 irrigation clocks, and miles of irrigation lines.  Oh my!


Varsity Lake awaiting irrigation start up 

Mother Nature sends out indicators to announce her plants are ready to come back from their winter rest but it takes a keen eye to notice.  If temperatures remain above freezing, the turf starts coming out of its dormant stage. It needs water.  Allowing the turf to stress is very bad.

This revelation sent me straight home to take a good look at my own lawn for stress.  Yep, I found it.  My grass was super stressed and begging me for water.  While I was outside examining signs of new growth, I noticed my neighbor adjusting his sprinkler heads.  I may not know Mother Nature as well as the turf guys on campus but one look at my grass told me I better move fast or I might find my lawn creeping next door to receive better care.

Fortunately, the campus has professionals.  Teams and a centralized irrigation system work together to keep the turf, trees and plants healthy and flourishing no matter what time of year it is. 

Communication between antennas and clocks is critical.  No water will be turned on until it can be told where to go.  It’s the first step in firing up the campus irrigation system after its winter shut down.  You may never see the antennas because they are on some of the highest spots on campus but I am sure you have seen the clocks.  Look for green boxes that stand about waist high. 

Tom Coppens checking a clock near Macky Auditorium

The insides of these clocks look like computers.  Encased in a hard plastic, they are designed to handle most types of weather conditions.  But if for any reason there is a communication breakdown, never fear, the clocks will continue implementing the last watering command for up to two weeks. 

Up next:  Windowless Buildings--they are important!

Stay tuned.

Marsha

Fickle Spring

Fickle Spring

Just when you think Spring is here and Summer is close behind, a snow storm rolls through and shouts, "not so fast!"  But that didn't stop our Redbud near Ramaley from showing its colors while it could.

Redbud (Cercis Canadensis) next to Ramaley 4/1/15

No worries...it even looks beautiful wearing a dusting of white!

Redbud next to Ramaley after snow fall 4/3/15

 

Just had to share...now back to work!

Marsha



Newbie Blogger

I recently joined the Outdoor Services team.  In my previous career I sat in an office for hours, preparing reports, attending meetings and working on project deadlines.  Stepping outside meant a walk from the building to my car.

Since joining the grounds team at CU I have had a chance to raise my head up and look around.  What I see is the breathtaking campus I graduated from.  It was always a great place to bring family and friends.  Sadly, I never asked “how” or “who” kept it beautiful.  Well, now I am asking.  And with this blog will continue to share the answers.

The grounds team has entrusted me to blog and when I say entrusted, I mean they have taken a leap of faith with someone who has no experience working in a grounds department to explain what they do.  I have a lot of questions.  For instance, how does a place designed for 3,000 people in the 1800s now take care of close to 30,000 people and still stay safe, inviting and beautiful?

In the short time I have been here, I already have the answer to “who.”  It’s a team of professionals, many with college degrees, who have chosen to work on landscaping, irrigation, trees and grounds care.  I even have the answer to “why.”  It’s simple, they love being outside.  They weren’t meant to sit behind a desk all day.  I get that! 

Everything they do is new to me.  As the teams shift from winter tasks into new spring activities I’ve already begun asking “what” and “how”.  Stay tuned, answers are on the way.  

Marsha

Record Snow for February



Coloradans have a saying--if you don't like the weather today, just wait for tomorrow.  That’s  life when you live near the Rocky Mountains.  However, when a snow storm pattern hits like it did this February, even long time residents wonder when the change will come.  It was a record breaking February for the University of Colorado with a total snow fall of 56 inches. 

 A lot of work goes into organizing snow removal on campus.  For more information about that go to http://www.cuoutdoorservices.blogspot.com/search/label/Snow%20Removal     

February’s multiple snow storms took their toll on the Outdoor Services crew responsible for campus snow removal.  They dealt with weekly storms that dropped an average of 11 inches each time they passed through.  Out of four Sundays in February, three averaged 5 inches of snow followed by additional accumulation during the week.

103 inches of snow fell on campus from November 2014 through February 2015

When the campus gets this much snow all at once, it is a challenge to find places to put it all.  Much is shoved off onto the turf and the flower bed areas to quickly make campus safe.  It typically takes two hours to make a complete first pass on a snow route.  It took longer during the February storms.  There was a lot of snow to move and the crews often found their walkways covered in snow minutes after they plowed their routes.

As the February storms blasted through campus each week there was little time for the teams to recover.  In addition to moving snow, they battled high and low temperature fluctuations.  During the day, the snow warmed and caused water run off onto sidewalks and roadways.  During the night, temperatures dropped to freezing, and caused ice buildup.

 

Daily Lowest Tempretures/Highest Tempretures in relation to Snow Fall
Tempretures provided by on campus Weather Station 

Combine black ice with new fallen snow and the battle to make campus safe put all teams into high gear.   They came in hours before the campus opened hitting sidewalks, outside stairs and roadways with liquid magnesium, Ice Slicer, bags of granular ice melt and sand.  

What happens when plowing, sanding and ice removal stop?  The ground crews jump into their next campus phase. 

Turf damage caused by plows pushing snow off sidewalks

While most are enjoying sunny skies and relieved that winter is over, Outdoor Services crews are beginning repairs to areas damaged by snow and ice.  They patch turf, remove sand and repair cement.  For the grounds crew, the work doesn't stop just because the snow has stopped falling.



To give you a few facts about last year's snow fall.   Storms continued through March, April and May.  In fact, 7 inches of snow fell as late as May 12, 2014.  We are hoping Spring arrives with warm weather this year.   Spring showers are  welcome, but snow should stay where it belongs--in winter months.

Snow and sand piles awaiting removal

If you see someone plowing, shoveling, repairing turf or sweeping up sand, just know they are working hard to keep the campus safe and beautiful for all to use.  We are in Boulder, it's going to snow.  Be safe out there.

  

Snow Removal at CU Boulder

Snow Removal on Campus: How does it work?

Due to the fact that we have an on-campus residential population and ongoing research activities, and because the weather forecast can change very quickly, the campus prepares to clear snow and mitigate ice as soon as a snow storm is forecasted.

The University has a Snow committee made up of representatives from Parking & Transportation Services, Housing & Dining Services, Facilities Operations, city of Boulder, CUPD, Emergency Management, Risk Management and the Office of Disability Services. This group meets monthly year round to coordinate and review the snow removal process and make recommendations for improvements.

The day before snow is predicted to start, the department of Public Safety and Facilities Management begin having conversations and gathering information as to what actions are needed and identify potential issues and decisions that would need to be made if the storm develops as forecasted.  This includes participating in conference calls with the National Weather Service to get the most up to date forecast, and having discussions with senior administrators, that continue throughout the duration of the storm, who have a key role in determining whether the campus needs to be closed or otherwise change its operating status. Campus operations groups with snow removal responsibilities are making sure their ice abatement inventories and snow removal equipment are ready to go for the storm.

Based on the forecasted time of the snow beginning to fall, Facilities Operations, Housing Facilities Services, and Parking Services all determine when they will have crews and/or contractors report to start the snow removal process and ice abatement if necessary. These personnel typically arrive on campus anywhere between 2:00am and 6:00am depending on their role and responsibilities. During this same time frame, key operational personnel are providing information to Campus Administrators, who are responsible for making decisions about the campus operating status. Factors such as the rate of snow fall, accumulation of snow on campus, campus road and sidewalk conditions, the short and long term weather forecast, local and regional road conditions, public transportation operating status, and other safety considerations are used to determine if there will be any change to the campus' operating status. If a decision is made to change campus operating status, University Communications will get that notification publicized through a variety of methods.

For each snow storm the operations groups are able to devote the following resources to snow removal efforts:

Facilities Operations has 16 plows ranging in size from street plows to smaller tractors deployed on streets, sidewalks and loading docks. Our hand removal team consists of 12 employees from Outdoor Services, 10 student employees, up to 45 custodial staff and 12 staff from the trade’s shops helping to clear snow from building entries, stairs, ramps and bus stops. 

Housing Facilities Services has 18 employees working with 6 plows deployed on sidewalks and parking lots, and additional custodial staff working on building entries, stairs and ramps. 

Parking Services utilizes their pre-established snow removal contractor to clear out parking lots, and Parking Services staff attended to areas such as ramps, pay stations, and smaller areas that plows cannot access.

The snow removal crews and/or contractors work to clear snow and ice to ensure that our affiliates and guests are able to safely move around campus to the greatest extent possible, and to make sure our essential services (dining halls, emergency services, etc.) for our on-campus residential population and research projects can continue.

Another partner I need to mention is the city of Boulder who is responsible for clearing some of the streets on campus, such as Regent Drive. Our campus Snow Marshall stays in close contact with the City to make sure we are coordinating our efforts.

As the snow fall winds down, the operations groups are planning for post storm activities such as pile removal, plowing out sidewalks to their full width, opening all building entries to their full width, and continuing ice mitigation efforts. How long these activities continue is dependent on the amount of snow received and the temperatures that follow the storm.

As you can see, it is a well thought out and multi-faceted operation to clear snow on campus.

Don Inglis