Ground Improvement

East Coast Erosion Blankets LLC, Bernville, Pa., is proud to announce the hiring of John Ravert, a technical expert in the erosion and sediment control field. John brings a wealth of experience to his new role as Director of Technical Services. He is a CPESC and NICET-certified Erosion and Sediment Control engineering technician and can be reached at +1 610 488 8496, email jravert@eastcoasterosion.com.

Access to or from construction sites often involves crossing over very weak or variable ground conditions. Thus, before work can begin on site, engineers are often first challenged with the problem of how they actually get to site. With a couple notes from recent wind farm contructions, Nigel Wrigley of NewGrids Ltd. writes on how geosynthetic reinforcement solutions provide the answer.

The India-based Business Coordination House (BCH), which is involved in, among other things, the promotion of geotextile and other geosynthetic seminars and companies in India, has released its April-June 2010 newsletter. This issue of TechTex India includes an article on the impact of textile production and use on climate change (page 5), an interview about artificial turf markets (page 20) and uses for TenCate's fiber optic-enhanced GeoDetect system (page 40). Read the issue in PDF. Learn more here.;

The International Geosynthetics Society (www.geosyntheticssociety.org) has announced its selection of Prof. Richard J. Bathurst, P.Eng., Ph.D., FEIC, FCAE, to deliver the 2014 Giroud Lecture—one of the Society's highest distinctions. Since its first awarding in 1998, the Giroud Lecture has recognized exceptional achievement and influence in the field of geosynthetics and has been delivered every four years at the opening of the International Conferences on Geosynthetics, organized by the IGS. Dr. Bathurst is only the fifth to be bestowed this honor and will present the lecture at the opening of the 10th International Conference on Geosynthetics (10 ICG), Berlin, Germany, 21–25 September 2014. Learn more.

The American Society of Civil Engineers' (ASCE) Environmental & Water Resources Institute (EWRI) has announced a number of short course opportunities during the Low Impact Development (LID) Symposium. The...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is seeking public comment on a new strategy that would make cleanups at hazardous waste sites greener. The Superfund Green Remediation Strategy is an initial effort to outline key actions and related activities that can be undertaken to promote green remediation and to reduce energy use. EPA is taking comment on action items that fall into three major categories: policy and guidance development, resource development and program implementation, and program evaluation.

Earlier this year, Dr. Gary Fowmes received a £125,000 (USD $190,000) grant to continue research into the use of 3D printing in the design and performance of geosynthetic materials....

The following listings are only for live, online presentations: webinars, workshops, conferences, etc. Many of these companies/organizations offer on-demand learning too. Please visit their individual websites for on-demand opportunities. 8...

Yes - There is Such a Thing as a Free Lunch! North American Green, the leading provider of erosion and sediment control solutions in the world, believes that education is the cornerstone of any successful erosion control project. Recently they introduced the North American Green Brown Bag Seminar Program to educate customers on developing solutions to erosion and sediment control problems and comply with NPDES and other industry regulations. Now engineers, contractors and specifiers who must comply with today’s strict erosion and sediment control regulations can benefit from their training and get a free lunch – without even leaving the office. While customers enjoy a free lunch, North American Green’s regional manager or local Erosion Solutions Specialist will present an informative, concise seminar on one of the following three topics: ECMDS® (Erosion Control Materials Design Software) - Using North American Green’s ECMDS for selection of materials for slope erosion protection and channel stabilization. Government Regulations and Initiatives - Update on local, state and federal industry regulations, Best Management Practices, NPDES Phase II, LEED Green Building Rating System, and more. Designing Solutions for Slopes, Channels and Shorelines - Rolled erosion control products as effective BMPs, guaranteed solutions for controlling erosion on slopes, channels and shorelines. To sign up for the North American Green Brown Bag Seminar, call 1-800-772-2040 or register online at the link below. Learn more here.;

U.S. Rep. Dan Maffei and U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer have asked federal and state environmental officials to assess the health risk posed by dumping contaminated sediment from Onondaga Lake. The sediments contain contains mercury, PCBs and other contaminants. The lake cleanup plan calls for some sediment from the lake bottom to be dredged, piped directly to Wastebed 13 and packed in geotextile tubes. Learn more here.;

ASTM Committee D35 has published a work item revision to WK26896, "Revision of D5141-09 Standard Test Method for Determining Filtering Efficiency and Flow Rate of the Filtration Component of a Sediment Retention Device Using Site-Specific Soil." Learn more here.;

The International Erosion Control Association's (IECA Region One) annual conference will be held 16 – 19 February 2016 in San Antonio, Texas. Register for Environmental Connection 2016 by December...

The geosynthetics field and the erosion and sediment control industry intersect frequently in products, applications, events, and engineering educational resources. This month, they have connected again— by coincidence—only...

The future is bright for India’s nonwovens and technical textiles sector on rising middle income population. This will be one of the drivers for growth for the nonwovens and technical textiles (NWTT) industry in India, according to Seshadri Ramkumar, Associate Professor of Non-wovens and technical textiles at Texas Tech University. Geotextiles are among the material classes to benefit. Learn more here.;

The Charleston Gazette out of West Virginia has posted a new entry in its sustainability and environmental watch blog. This time around, the blog includes notes on changes expected to be made in pit fluid storage rules. Changes include: requiring all pits used to store contaminated water from drilling to have synthetic liners; forcing operators to remove all solid wastes, including liners, during reclamation of pits and impoundments; new design and construction standards for these pits; and requiring inspection of the pits by a registered professional engineer. Learn more here.;

Start the week with the latest in the geoengineering world. Here's the GeoWire conversation for the week of August 24. WORK SMARTER. BIG PROJECTS Wow. After what seemed to be a...

The 9th International Conference on Geosynthetics (9ICG) has extended its Call for Papers to 15 January 2009. Abstracts are sought on key topics such as drainage, mining, durability and long-term performance, transportation, hydraulic applications, new products and much more. The 9ICG will be held 23-27 May 2010 in Guaruja, São Paulo, Brazil, under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). Learn more here.;

For this installment of "Recommended Reading," we asked Richard Bathurst, Ph.D., FCAE, FEIC, P.Eng., what others in the geosynthetics and affiliated engineering sectors might learn from or like to...

Early in July, a team of University of California, Davis, scientists rolled out a series of 100-foot by 10-foot rubber mats and spread them over a half acre of the bottom of Lake Tahoe in the vicinity of Round Hill Pines Beach and Marina, where Asian clam populations have grown in recent years. The barriers are a 45-millimeter thick pond liner that deprive organisms of oxygen. Allen was on the principal dive team responsible for rolling out the barriers. "It definitely wasn't easy," Tahoe biologist Brant Allen said. "I was pretty tired at the end of the day, but the UC Davis engineering team did a great job of making our job as easy as possible." Learn more here.;

Mother Earth News is encouraging the use of EPDM geomembrane liners for backyard ponds. A current article describes the basic steps one needs to take to create a water-saving and wildlife-encouraging pond. EPDM liners from manufacturers such as Firestone are applied not just on small-scale home use but larger scale use by industry, golf courses, fish hatcheries and other environments. Learn more here.;

The quadrennial Pan-American conference on geosynthetics—GeoAmericas 2016—is an event from the International Geosynthetics Society. As a result, IGS Corporate Members have had an exclusive window in which to request...

Maccaferri will sponsor a February 27 (2:00 pm EST) webinar on "Geosynthetics: An Introduction to Flexible Pavement Design." An instructional webinar, this free session will focus on: The AASHTO Method for Unreinforced Roads and Geogrid Reinforced Roads; and, Roadway design support. An overview of roadway construction materials will also be included. Learn more and register.

Since 1986, Biobarrier® has been the product of choice for re-directing tree and shrub roots from walls, sidewalks, foundations and landscapes. Biobarrier Root Control System is placed in a trench between roots and the area to be protected and is guaranteed for 15 years. “ When we introduced Biobarrier, it was a different kind of product for the market,” said Jerry Dunaway, Biobarrier sales manager. “It still is unlike anything else. We think it is also the most effective and cost-efficient method of inhibiting root growth. For example, it generally costs about $900 to replace 15 linear feet of 4-foot-wide sidewalk. Using Biobarrier along that same stretch of sidewalk costs less than $50.”

Maccaferri's coastal structures are designed, produced, and installed to stand against the forces of Mother Nature. This was apparent after Super Storm Sandy hit the Northeastern United States in October 2012. Maccaferri's existing coastal structures protected homes and natural shorelines from storm surge damage and erosion. Links are provided here to fuller stories on each project, one of which involves revisiting how a 2010 installation held up to Sandy.

By TenCate Geosynthetics - The Louisiana Transportation Research Center (LTRC) recently completed phase 1 of a full-scale trafficking study that included Mirafi® RS580i. The phase 1 research results were...