One of the hazards of modern living is the sound wall. Most people didn’t have a choice when the state put an Interstate in their backyard, and the only solution to keep the obnoxious sound of cars at bay is to throw up big, ugly, sound-dampening concrete walls. Or is it? Fed up with the expense and ugliness of sound walls, authorities in Cleveland, Ohio, have taken a page from the Chia Pet and have turned to living walls to block sound.
Along a portion of heavily-traveled Interstate 70, officials have taken a different tack when it comes to handling traffic noise. Rather than the usual wall, they’ve taken sandbags and filled them with soil and seeds. Add a little water to the 400-foot section of test wall along westbound I-70, and you’ve got yourself a Chia Wall! Ch-ch-ch-chia!
Will it work? No idea; that’s why it’s a test wall. Wisconsin tried a similar eco-friendly sound wall in 1996, but it had to be destroyed after part of it collapsed due to weed infestation. If they take care of their plants this time, maybe it’ll work out! Either way, the wall will be up this fall.
Image: Sound Wall
Tags: Chia pets, Columbus, Ohio, sound wall, interstate sound barrier, sound wall made out of Chia pet material, unusual engineering, unusual materials, Interstate 70, sandbag plants