The Association of Geohazard Professionals (AGHP) has announced the winners of its inaugural photo contest. The professional society is dedicated to promoting geohazard technologies, standards, and best practices, with a particular focus on North America, where the geohazards field is still emerging despite its large need.
Major applications for geohazards experts include rockfall and landslide protection for roadways, communities, and industry; mitigation of seismic risks; and recovery response to natural disaster-affected regions and other large soil and rock threats.
The theme of AGHP’s contest was “Demonstration of Geohazard Materials, Technologies, and Events.”
GEOHAZARDS PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS
The winners of the contest were announced during a special AGHP session at the annual Highway Geology Symposium (HGS), which was held in Sturbridge, Massachusetts in September.
Descriptions of the work (followed by a slideshow):
First Place: Courtney Smith, GeoStabilization International (GSI). Smith captured work in Kentucky, where a quarry operation’s crusher is protected from a significant rockfall hazard through the utilization of high-tensile mesh secured to rock bolts. The value-engineered design saved the customer tens of thousands of dollars.
Second Place: Luke Fetzer, Midwest Rockfall. Fetzer photographed technicians drilling rock dowels for a pinned netting system. The location was the picturesque and remote Mystique Island (South America).
Third Place: Geobrugg / British Columbia Ministry of Transportation. Canada’s second avalanche barrier installation, located 56 km west of Terrace in the 35 Mile Area, has been the source of 80% of Highway 16 closures between Terrace and Prince Rupert. The Northwest Avalanche Program’s new trial protection system involves 82m of 3m-high steel mesh along 40 – 55° slopes, more than 300m above the roadway.
Honorable Mention: Bob Forbes, Ameritech Slope Constructors. Forbes photographed rock scalers at work on Waimea Bay, Hawaii.
In a release, AGHP President Ghislain Brunet said, “The winning photographs represent a large range of difficult engineering performed by AGHP members and the geohazards community. They also demonstrate how geohazard specialists are vital to all engineered environments.”
The photo contest is part of its long-term plan to elevate public and professional awareness of geohazard technologies, companies, and achievements.
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For more information on AGHP committees, activities, and membership, visit www.geohazardassociation.org.
