Cornforth Consultants
  • Home
  • Services
    • Earth & Rockfill Dams
    • Reservoirs, Canals, and Levees
    • Spillway Safety Inspections
    • Landslides and Rockfall
    • Earthquake Engineering
    • Geologic Hazards
    • Geotechnical Site Characterization
    • Hydrogeology
    • Expert Witness
    • Concrete Dams and Locks
    • Geotechnical Instrumentation
    • Deep and Shallow Foundations
    • Geotechnical Manuals
  • Industries
    • Water Resources
    • Energy
    • Natural Resources
    • Industrial
    • Transportation
    • Ports and Airports
    • Expert Witness
  • Projects
    • Earth and Rockfill Dams >
      • Barney Reservoir
      • Frog Lake Reservoir
      • Iron Gate Dam Raise
      • McGuire Dam Raise
      • Bonneville Cofferdam
      • Bull Run No. 2 Seismic Stability Analysis
    • Levees and Canals >
      • Libby Dike Rehab.
      • St. Johns Dike Stabilization
      • Cowlitz River Levees
      • Swift Canal Failure
    • Earthquake Engineering >
      • Barney Dam Seismic Analysis
      • Fern Hill WTP Liquefacation Study
      • Bull Run No. 2 Seismic Stability Analysis
      • Mt. Tabor Seismic Stability Analysis
      • Port Westward Power Plant Seismic Design
    • Rock Slopes and Tunnels >
      • Libby Rockfall Mitigation
      • Sandy River Pipeline Tunnels
      • Ketchikan Third Avenue Extension
      • Sain Creek Water Supply Tunnel
      • Montana Rockfall Hazard Rating System
    • Foundations >
      • Port Westward Power Plant
      • Cascade Locks Casino
      • Air National Guard Hangar
      • Biglow Canyon Windfarm
      • Oakridge Water System Improvements
    • Concrete Dams and Locks >
      • John Day Lock & Dam
      • Marmot Dam Removal
      • The Dalles Dam
      • Willamette Falls Dam
      • Bonneville Dam
    • Transportation >
      • OTIA Cracked Bridge Geotechnical Baselines
      • Newburg Dundee Bypass Design DEIS
      • I-84 Sandy River Bridge Investigation
      • Tanana River Bridge Foundation, Tok, Alaska
      • Montana RHRS Implementation
      • Ketchikan Third Avenue Extension
    • Ports and Airports >
      • Navy CVN Drydock
      • Depoe Bay Seawall Distress
      • Willamette Falls Flow Control Structure
      • Air National Guard Hangar
    • Water and Wastewater >
      • Fern Hill Water Treatment Plant
      • Tualatin Valley North Transmission Line
      • Evaluation of 28 Water Storage Facilities
      • City of Sandy Water Treatment Plant
      • Mt. Tabor Reservoir No. 5 Cap Study
      • Oakridge Water System Improvements
  • Staff
  • Resources
  • Careers
    • Geotechnical Engineer
  • Contact Us

Lawrence A. Pierson

Registration
 Engineering Geologist - OR, WA

​Geologist - OR, WA

Career
2000 - present
Staff Consultant
Cornforth Consultants, Portland, OR

1978 - 2000
Chief Engineering Geologist
Oregon Department of Transportation
(ODOT), Salem, OR

Education
1975/B.S. in Geology
University of California, Los Angeles, CA

Honors/Societies
National Academy of Science, Transportation Research Board, Committee on Engineering Geology (Chairman)

National Academy of Science, Transportation Research Board
Subcommittee on Rockfall Management

Member-author TRB Task Force AFP 15T publication on Rockfall Evaluation and Control

Member, Association of Engineering Geologists

Member, American Rock Mechanics Association

Member, International Society of
​Rock Mechanics

U.S. Representative (Debate Panel) to 11th International Congress of the International Society of Rock Mechanics; Lisbon, Portugal
Staff Consultant
Mr. Pierson has over 40 years of experience in engineering geology, and is a nationally recognized expert in the field of rock mechanics with a specialty in transportation projects. Twenty-two years of his experience were with the Oregon Department of Transportation where he served as a Geotechnical Manager and Chief Engineering Geologist. He was responsible for rock slope and rockfall mitigation designs, foundation evaluations for structures, and managing quarry operations and transportation research projects. As part of national pooled-fund research projects, he has developed management and design systems including the Rockfall Hazard Rating System (RHRS) used by U.S. and Canadian transportation agencies as a rock slope management tool, and a national transportation guideline for design of rockfall catchment areas (RCAD).

With Landslide Technology Mr. Pierson has managed major geotechnical projects for the Federal Highway Administration, State DOTs and regional utility companies. He has managed the development of geotechnical procedure manuals and has provided expert witness services on several rockfall litigations and construction claims for transportation agencies.

Several projects representative of Mr. Pierson’s experience include:
​
  • Comprehensive RHRS Implementation, Montana Department of Transportation, Montana
  • Rockfall Litigation, Washington Department of Attorney General, Washington
  • Diablo Dam Rockfall Mitigation, Seattle City Light, Washington
  • Highway 101 Neahkahnie Bridges and Viaducts Rockfall Mitigation, Manzanita, Oregon
  • Cougar Dam Intake Tower Modifications, McKenzie River, Oregon
  • Rockfall Litigation, Ministry of Attorney General, British Columbia, Canada
  • Going-to-the-Sun Road Transportation Corridor Improvements, Glacier National Park, Montana
  • Lemolo Canal No. 2 Rockfall, Tokatee Falls, Oregon
  • ODOT's Kruger Rock Stability Research Facility, Portland, Oregon
  • Prospect Penstock Rockfall, PacifiCorp, Oregon
  • RHRS Implementation, Virginia and Utah Departments of Transportation
  • Al Baha Descent Highway, Ministry of Communications, Al Baha, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
  • Third Avenue Extension, Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, Ketchikan, Alaska

​Mike Meyer - Gerry Heslin - George Machan - ​Charlie Hammond - Brent Black - Darren Beckstrand - Chris Carpenter - Ben George
​
Wade Osborne -  Tom Westover - Greg Landau - Aine Mines - Logan Allender - Andy Kost - Adam Koslofsky - Sebastian Dirringer
Rachel Hunt -Justin McCarley - Aleyna Link - Michael Bunn - Andy Vessely - Larry Pierson - John Sager
  • Home
  • Services
    • Earth & Rockfill Dams
    • Reservoirs, Canals, and Levees
    • Spillway Safety Inspections
    • Landslides and Rockfall
    • Earthquake Engineering
    • Geologic Hazards
    • Geotechnical Site Characterization
    • Hydrogeology
    • Expert Witness
    • Concrete Dams and Locks
    • Geotechnical Instrumentation
    • Deep and Shallow Foundations
    • Geotechnical Manuals
  • Industries
    • Water Resources
    • Energy
    • Natural Resources
    • Industrial
    • Transportation
    • Ports and Airports
    • Expert Witness
  • Projects
    • Earth and Rockfill Dams >
      • Barney Reservoir
      • Frog Lake Reservoir
      • Iron Gate Dam Raise
      • McGuire Dam Raise
      • Bonneville Cofferdam
      • Bull Run No. 2 Seismic Stability Analysis
    • Levees and Canals >
      • Libby Dike Rehab.
      • St. Johns Dike Stabilization
      • Cowlitz River Levees
      • Swift Canal Failure
    • Earthquake Engineering >
      • Barney Dam Seismic Analysis
      • Fern Hill WTP Liquefacation Study
      • Bull Run No. 2 Seismic Stability Analysis
      • Mt. Tabor Seismic Stability Analysis
      • Port Westward Power Plant Seismic Design
    • Rock Slopes and Tunnels >
      • Libby Rockfall Mitigation
      • Sandy River Pipeline Tunnels
      • Ketchikan Third Avenue Extension
      • Sain Creek Water Supply Tunnel
      • Montana Rockfall Hazard Rating System
    • Foundations >
      • Port Westward Power Plant
      • Cascade Locks Casino
      • Air National Guard Hangar
      • Biglow Canyon Windfarm
      • Oakridge Water System Improvements
    • Concrete Dams and Locks >
      • John Day Lock & Dam
      • Marmot Dam Removal
      • The Dalles Dam
      • Willamette Falls Dam
      • Bonneville Dam
    • Transportation >
      • OTIA Cracked Bridge Geotechnical Baselines
      • Newburg Dundee Bypass Design DEIS
      • I-84 Sandy River Bridge Investigation
      • Tanana River Bridge Foundation, Tok, Alaska
      • Montana RHRS Implementation
      • Ketchikan Third Avenue Extension
    • Ports and Airports >
      • Navy CVN Drydock
      • Depoe Bay Seawall Distress
      • Willamette Falls Flow Control Structure
      • Air National Guard Hangar
    • Water and Wastewater >
      • Fern Hill Water Treatment Plant
      • Tualatin Valley North Transmission Line
      • Evaluation of 28 Water Storage Facilities
      • City of Sandy Water Treatment Plant
      • Mt. Tabor Reservoir No. 5 Cap Study
      • Oakridge Water System Improvements
  • Staff
  • Resources
  • Careers
    • Geotechnical Engineer
  • Contact Us