| Mention the great national parks in the United States, and Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, and Yellowstone might be top of mind. But, by far, the most visited is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Comprising a half-million acres of protected wilderness in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina, the park draws roughly double the number of tourists as its Grand Canyon and Yosemite counterparts, the second and third most-visited national parks, respectively. Located within 550 miles of a third of the nation’s population, Great Smoky Mountains National Park attracts almost 10 million visitors a year. That figure does not include an additional 13.2 million annual visitors to the nearby tourist towns of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Sevierville in Tennessee’s Sevier (pronounced ‘severe’) County, which abuts the park. The county’s population increased 50 percent in the past 17 years, but it still is a relatively small 61,335. Although local governments must stay abreast of population increases, the real challenge in Sevier County is staying ahead of ever increasing tourism. Said a tourism official in Pigeon Forge: “The population here in Pigeon Forge is just under 4,000, but we’ve got to be prepared to take care of 40,000 overnight guests. If those people need a drink of water on the hottest day in July, we have to be able to give it to them. And we also have to maintain roads, electricity, and everything else as though we were a city of 40,000.” It’s much the same in Gatlinburg (population 3,816) and the county seat of Sevierville (population 8,807). Thus, it is of utmost importance to maintain an infrastructure that more than supports the tourism needs in the county, where total travel expenditures increased from $399 million to $728 million between 1988-1995. Established in 1794, Sevier County is named after John Sevier, who, despite a long running feud with Andrew Jackson, is revered as a Revolutionary War hero and an early governor of Tennessee. A taste of Tennessee’s frontier days remains prevalent in Sevier County’s beautiful countryside, rustic architecture, and abundant wildlife. Along with its natural surroundings, the area now offers the whole gamut of family activities — live entertainment, incline rides, skiing, outlet malls, and amusement parks. Historically, the county, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and Gatlinburg have relied on mountain streams for their water supply. In the face of sharply increased demand, however, the county and these municipalities formed a joint venture project aimed at providing an unlimited water supply until the Year 2050. The project, the Sevier Water Board, Inc., Phase I Water Supply Program, will provide the county with more than 20 MGD, drawing water from nearby Douglas Lake to do so. It is one of several joint ventures among these government entities, which also are working together on transportation and solid waste issues. Such projects have set the stage for comprehensive planning for county-wide infrastructure improvements that will benefit all governments in the county. Sevier County’s scenery is beautiful to behold, but it presents nightmares for construction contractors. The rugged terrain spanned by the Water Supply Program is full of steep mountain grades, rocks, water and, during much of the winter, snow. In addition, contractors on this project had to coordinate their efforts around traffic flows both in and off season. In such conditions, AMERICAN Ductile Iron pipe and fittings met the contractors’ stringent requirements. McGill Associates, PA, of Sevierville, was the design engineer for the $8 million Water Supply project. Almost 15 miles of AMERICAN Ductile Iron piping and some 45 tons of ductile iron fittings and ductile iron welded outlets were installed. Begun in the spring of 1996, the project is scheduled for completion in August of this year. “AMERICAN pipe and fittings showed the ability for installation in a wide variety of trench conditions — rocky, wet, you name it,” said Chuck Priddy, P.E., of McGill Associates. W.L. Hailey and Company of Nashville, Tennessee, installed 8.8 miles of AMERICAN 24-inch Fastite ® pipe for a main running from a raw water intake point on Douglas Lake to Sevierville. Hailey also used 25 tons of 24-inch ductile iron fittings, 17 four-inch welded-on outlets and five 12-inch welded-on outlets. The ductile iron welded-on outlets for blow-offs and air release valves saved both time and money. “This particular job had all the various conditions that might be encountered,” said Greg Harris, W. L. Hailey’s Pipeline Division manager. “For us, that included traversing marshes, a river crossing, a multitude of creeks, ridges, cross country runs, narrow city streets, areas of shale, limestone deposits, and river bottom farm country where we were able to make fast-track progress.” “AMERICAN has always had a quality pipe product, and their deliveries on this job were excellent,” Harris said. “AMERICAN’s inside sales support group does an excellent job of getting the product to the customer. Next day delivery is available if needed.” Towry Contracting of Knoxville, Tennessee, installed 4.9-miles of AMERICAN 24-inch Fastite ® pipe for a main running from Sevierville to a water plant in Pigeon Forge. Towry also used 19 tons of 24-inch ductile iron fittings and 20 four-inch saddle outlets on this phase of the job. “The AMERICAN piping gave us greater deflection in the joints and the ability to change directions,” said Towry Vice President Jack Lail. “We eliminated several fittings by deflecting the pipe. Creek crossings were a breeze with AMERICAN restrained joint pipe.” Lail added that, “AMERICAN did an excellent job, from their sales personnel, customer service and deliveries, from the beginning of the job until the end.” Jones Environmental Construction, Inc. of Trussville, Alabama, used AMERICAN piping for construction of the raw water intake structure on Douglas Lake, subcontracting the subaqueous piping to W.L. Hailey. “AMERICAN made on-time deliveries of the raw water piping, which made our job easier,” said Joel Jones, president of Jones Environmental Construction, Inc. “We have been using AMERICAN for 23 years, and their service, products, and deliveries have met or exceeded our needs. AMERICAN will do whatever is necessary to deliver and perform on special needs projects.” “We had a project in Cullman, Alabama, where we needed 30-inch pipe and fittings for a critical tie-in to a raw water line, and AMERICAN had the material on site within a week,” Jones said. |
To see countryside like this is one reason almost 10 million people visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park each year. That figure does not include an additional 13.2 million annual visitors to Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Sevierville in Sevier County. [PHOTO COURTESY OF THE PIGEON FORGE DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM]
Historically, Sevier County and its municipalities have relied on mountain streams such as this one for their water supply. The joint venture project will draw water from Douglas Lake, ensuring adequate supply through the Year 2050. [PHOTO BY BILL CARSON]
Phase I of the Water Supply Project traversed almost every geographic condition possible in Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, Sevierville and portions of Sevier County. Here, AMERICAN Fastite ® Ductile Iron pipe is being installed along a city street. [PHOTO COURTESY OF McGILL ASSOCIATES, P. A.]
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 Steep mountain grades and ridges were among the conditions encountered by construction crews. On the incline pictured here, the deflection of AMERICAN piping is easily seen. “The AMERICAN piping gave us greater deflection in the joints and the ability to change directions,” said Towry Contracting Vice President Jack Lail. [PHOTO COURTESY OF McGILL ASSOCIATES, P. A.] 
Its superior durability makes AMERICAN Ductile Iron pipe the smart choice for installation in rocky conditions such as these. [PHOTO COURTESY OF McGILL ASSOCIATES, P. A.]
AMERICAN Fastite ® pipe is lowered into a water-filled trench — yet another kind of installation condition encountered on this job. [PHOTO BY BILL CARSON]
A worker cuts a piece of AMERICAN pipe, well-known for its versatility during installation. [PHOTO BY BILL CARSON]
“AMERICAN pipe and fittings showed the ability for installation in a wide variety of trench conditions - rocky, wet, you name it,” said Chuck Priddy, P.E., of McGill Associates. Here, it was wetter than it was rocky. [PHOTO COURTESY OF McGILL ASSOCIATES, P. A.]
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| Owner: | Sevier County, Tennessee, and the municipalities of Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and Sevierville |
| Project: | Sevier Water Board, Inc., Phase I Water Supply |
| Engineer: | McGill Associates, PA, Sevierville, Tennessee |
| Contractors: | W.L. Hailey & Company, Nashville, Tennessee; Towry Contracting Co., Inc., Knoxville, Tennessee; and Jones Environmental Construction, Inc., Trussville, Alabama |
| Material: | Approximately 15 miles of AMERICAN pipe and fittings, including almost 14 miles of 24-inch Fastite ® pipe and 45 tons of ductile iron fittings |
| Sales Engineers: | Jim Williamson and Michael Williams |
| Customer Service Representative: | Tonia Westbrook |
© 1998 American Cast Iron Pipe Co.
