ABSTRACT
The route of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) traverses 789 mi of diverse terrain, including three major mountain ranges and 590 mi of permafrost. Before the pipeline could be designed, detailed information on soil, bedrock, groundwater, permafrost, and other environmental conditions had to be gathered along the entire route and analyzed. The construction of TAPS at a projected cost of over $6 billion is the largest and most expensive private project in history. To comply with stringent government stipulations designed to protect the environment and ensure the integrity of the pipe from hazards such as earthquakes and thawing of ice-rich permafrost, the pipeline route had to be investigated in more detail and with greater accuracy than any previous large construction project in Alaska. Detailed geotechnical information on soil, bedrock, groundwater, permafrost, and other environmental conditions had to be gathered along the entire route, most of which crossed extensive undeveloped and uninhabited areas.
