Can you dig it? Clackamas County Tunnel Boring Machine officially named “Clack-A-Mole”
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- After receiving more than 650 submissions to name a tunnel boring machine (TBM), the Clackamas County Board of County Commissioners has finally selected a winner.
The newest TBM will now be known as “Clack-A-Mole," the county announced Thursday.
It’s tradition to name TBMs, according to the county, highlighting examples such as the TBM used for Seattle’s Canal Water Quality Project, named “MudHoney,” after a Seattle grunge band.
Other examples include San Jose’s TBM “Shai-Hulud,” named after the giant worms in the “Dune” series, or Glasgow’s TBM “Cruella de Drill,” an homage to the “101 Dalmatians” movie.
As a result, the Clackamas Water Environment Services (WES) offered the community the opportunity to make suggestions back in February. In this case, county commissioners chose from several finalists including "Chewrocka," "Chuck Borris" and "Happy Drillmore."
According to the county, submissions came from all around the country, including as far as Pensacola, Florida.
“We want to thank the community for all of the great, creative names that came our way,” stated WES Director Greg Geist. “We heard from families that children were discussing names in their living rooms, along with why this project was even happening in the first place. Raising awareness of the importance of infrastructure – and what it takes to keep our rivers and waterways clean – is a tremendous win.”
Over the course of seven months, WES will use "Clack-A-Mole" to build a tunnel half-a-mile long and nine feet in diameter for a new outfall pipeline that will transport water from the Tri-City Water Resource Recovery Facility to the Willamette River.
Spectators can view the new TBM in a showcase at the WES tunnel drilling launch event in July.