The driving of a pile or sheet pile impacts the surrounding area with sound accidental spillage and vibrations. Engines transmit a constant noise impact hammers produce a pounding thud interlocking sheet piles sometimes screech and the springs on an electric hammer can rattle loudly. New technologies and work methods are continuously developed to counter this type of pollution. Another type of environmental impact that is receiving more attention in recent years is the impact of offshore piling.
 
ICE has been one of the first to recognize the advantages vibratory hammers offer in the driving of offshore foundations. Under water sound waves travel faster and further than on land and can impact marine life in a very large area. Sound waves from impact hammers banging on hollow steel pipes used for wind power foundations chase animals out of their habitat and when they reach the natural frequency of organs in marine organisms even cause physical damage and death. Ironically in the drive for generating clean energy to protect our planet marine ecosystems are disturbed sometimes irreversibly destroyed.
 
ICE hydraulic hammers use vibrating technology to drive piles into the seabed. The sound generated during vibratory driving is of a different class: constant engine sound and the sound of the bearings rotating not an impact noise. We estimate the sounds generated by vibratory hammers to reach 2 km while sound burst created by impact hammering travel distances upwards of 20km.
 
To read more about what ICE is doing to reduce environmental impact in offshore piling applications click to download our brochure here or to view a presentation of ICE’s capabilities in offshore pile driving.
 
For further reading we incite you to check our reading list of academic studies on the environmental impact of piling. We welcome contributions from the scientific community and reader suggestions to update this list!