Landslide Program Management

The Emergency Deep Dewatering Well (DDW) Project in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, is a critical stabilization initiative aimed at slowing and stabilizing land movement within the Portuguese Bend Landslide Complex (PBLC). Hout Construction Services, Inc., DBA Hout Engineering (HCS) is serving as the City’s Program Manager for various landslide mitigation projects, including this emergency dewatering effort. HCS helped City staff present to City Council for a local emergency declaration; procure the appropriate engineering, environmental, and well-drilling contracting firms; and implement the project under a fast-tracked, emergency timeline. In addition, HCS prepared and submitted on behalf of the City a FEMA Grant application and secured $23.3 million for the program. Our on-site Construction Manager and his support team from HCS worked on behalf of the City with the contractor and has installed 11 deep dewatering wells, test boreholes, and monitoring wells throughout the landslide area to extract artesian groundwater—a primary driver of slope instability and root cause of the landslide. The wells varied in depth and complexity of instrumentation, such as piezometers, shape arrays, and inclinometers, and extended the wells to depths of more than 450 feet below ground level. As of January 27, 2025, the system was extracting approximately 755 gallons per minute (1.1 million gallons per day). As of March 2025, DDWs were extracting water at 540 gallons per minute and have removed more than 170 million gallons since inception. The ground water was tested, treated, and mostly discharged to the ocean as clean water. Early results from weekly GPS monitoring indicate that land movement has either ceased or significantly slowed in areas, such as the Seaview Neighborhood and the Portuguese Bend Beach Club, with reductions in both horizontal and vertical displacement falling below instrument error. Additionally, groundwater pressure has measurably decreased in the vicinity of the DDWs. While the newer wells near Abalone Cove are still being evaluated, initial data suggests a positive trend correlating groundwater extraction with reduced ground movement, supporting the project's overall goal of stabilizing the landslide complex. The PBLC has been the largest and most active landslide in North America for the last 68 years. HCS is extremely proud of the collective efforts led by the City and our Program Management Team to substantially slow down the Landslide in the Rancho Palos Verdes peninsula.

HCS provides comprehensive engineering and support services (staff augmentation) in the areas of program management, construction management, geotechnical support, environmental documentation, civil engineering and surveying, project controls and coordination (cost and schedule management) and full electronic program documentation.