Clackamas Water Environment Services retrieved a 250,000-pound tunnel boring machine, "Clack-A-Mole," from the Willamette River on Tuesday. The machine had been submerged for seven months while creating a new tunnel for treated water in Oregon City, according to the Clackamas County.
Officials from Water Environment Services lifted a tunnel boring machine after it completed a half-mile tunnel beneath the riverbed for a new outfall pipeline. The nine-foot-diameter tunnel will carry treated water from the Tri-City Water Resource Recovery Facility to the river. The facility processes over 10 million gallons of wastewater daily. Clackamas County Commissioner Martha Schrader stated, "Without this type of infrastructure, we're not able to provide the necessary services to homeowners, and we're not able to build so that people have a place to live."
Water Environment Service Director Greg Geist stated, "In all of my years in the industry, the outfall project and subsequent retrieval of the tunnel boring machine from deep in the Willamette River is one of the biggest and most impressive engineering accomplishments I’ve had the pleasure to witness." The project addresses the aging outfall system, built in 1984 and nearing capacity, especially during heavy rainfall. The upgraded system is scheduled to be operational in 2025. As part of community engagement, a naming contest for the tunnel boring machine received over 650 submissions, with "Clack-A-Mole" selected by the Board of County Commissioners, as stated by the Clackamas County
