Australian consulting firm CSA Global has begun the aerial survey of the proposed Nicaragua Canal route, reported HKND Group in a release.
Representatives from Nicaragua Canal, Development Project Commission, HKND Group and CSA Global were present at the ceremony, held on September 21 in Managua.
The survey will cover the 276km canal corridor connecting the Atlantic to the Pacific and a 2km-wide circumference of Lake Nicaragua, with a total flight distance of approximately 18,000 km.
“ The survey is a major step in the construction development process and supports pre-works planning, design and engineering for the canal and infrastructure ,” stated Senior Advisor of HKND Group, John Murray.
Two specialized aircrafts have been commissioned to complete different aspects of the aerial survey. The project will employ the most modern equipment and utilize Precise Point Positioning (PPP) data processing technology to ensure the accuracy of the survey.
The airborne LiDAR method (Light Detection and Ranging) is capable to penetrate the dense forests and detect the actual topography and surface water. When applied to the water section, the technology is also able to generate terrain mapping of shallow sections of Lake Nicaragua shoreline and along the lake section of the canal route.
According to CSA Global´s Managing Director, Jeff Elliott, the majority of the data collection phase of the aerial survey will be undertaken during the next few months and the final products from the aerial survey are scheduled to be delivered to HKND by March 2016.
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