Geosynthetics – Flood Control Solutions

Geomatrix, in its more than 14 years of experience in the Geosynthetics and Geotextiles industry, has been working on effective solutions for flood control in Colombia and other Latin American countries. One of these solutions was implemented in Salahonda, a small town in the municipality of Francisco Pizarro, department of Nariño.

Salahonda is one of the towns in Colombia that has suffered the most flooding as a result of the La Niña phenomenon. In 1992 and 1997 it had this problem, due to the overflow of the Patía River, the longest in the Colombian Pacific region.

For the year 2008, the challenge of building a barrier for flood control was assumed. Said challenge described a problem: the geographical conditions made it difficult to transport a large volume of materials necessary to form the structure, increasing the costs of the project and exceeding the budget allocated for it.

Solutions to control floods with Geosynthetics

Taking advantage of the knowledge and work team of Geomatrix, it was decided to use the sand from the sector to form a protection structure with geotextile tubes, mitigating future flooding in the urban area that surrounds the Patía River and the Pacific Ocean. Thus, a cost-efficient solution was achieved, with resistant and high-tech materials for the installation of the protection barrier.

During this process, specialized engineers used materials made with high resistance Geotextiles and Geosynthetics produced by Geomatrix. They also used textile forms for structure protection.

Thanks to this, the structure installed since 2008, in addition to fulfilling its function of controlling floods in Salahonda, is used by its inhabitants as a pedestrian path and support surface for various tasks. Today, 8 years later, the project is still in its third phase, confirming the resistance and quality of Geomatrix Geotextiles and Geosynthetics products.

For this year, Simón Gaviria, director of the National Planning Department, confirmed that only 22 municipalities in the country are prepared for the arrival of the La Niña Phenomenon.

Are you interested in alternative and cost-efficient solutions for flood control with Geotextiles and Geosynthetics? Find all the details in the document Success story: Barrier for flood control in Salahonda, Nariño.