Containment

Organizers for Venice 2010--the 3rd International Symposium on Energy from Biomass and Waste--would like to remind interested participants that the deadline for abstracts is 31 August 2010. The event, from the International Waste Working Group (IWWG), will be held 8-11 November 2010 in Venice, Italy. Key theme incluce anaerobic digestion; renewable fuel (handling and storage); refuse-derived fuel (RDF); experiences and new developments (e.g., case studies); climate change; and much more. Learn more here.;

iSmithers Rapra Publishing has release Roger Brown's "50 Years of Polymer Testing." Since the beginning of the rubber and plastics industries, an essential requirement has been that the materials and the products are tested for quality control. Testing establishes their fitness for purpose and provides design data. Brown's book gives a unique personal account--Brown has headed up Rapra's testing laboratory--of the developments in the technology of physical testing of polymers and of the changes in the working environment in which testing was conducted over the last fifty years. Learn more here.;

The 2010 installment of the LatAm Mining Congress will take place 27-30 April 2010 in Coral Gables, Florida. The event is an excellent high-level networking opportunity, as numerous senior executives from Latin America’s small, mid-cap and super-major mining houses come together with analysts, consultants, economists, financiers, investors and country regulators for three days of discussions. Visit the conference website now to see the program. Highlights include foreign demands; partnerships; country profile sessions on Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay and the Andean Region; project developments; sustainability; expansion; and more. Geosynthetica is a media partner to the show. Learn more here.;

The Belgium-based nonwovens association EDANA and India-based Business Coordination House (BCH) will present a high-level conference and unique business opportunities in support of the expected market growth for filtration across the Indian subcontinent and Asia. FiltrexAsia 2010 will be held 18-19 February 2010 in New Delhi, India. Themes include new filter media technologies, market trends, water treatment, gas filtration and more. Read about it in the latest release.

University of Iowa researchers have confirmed that sediments of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal (IHSC) in East Chicago, Ind., are contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The PCB levels found here are comparable to other PCB-contaminated sites in the U.S., most established by law as Superfund Sites, which requires the removal of contaminants from environmental media such as soil, groundwater and sediment. The IHSC is not a Superfund Site.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is recognizing eight landfill methane capture projects for their innovation in generating renewable energy and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The winners include one of the largest landfill gas (LFG) to liquefied natural gas facilities in the world, located in Livermore, California. Read more about the awards and see a list of the winners.

The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) is holding its first-ever photo competition. Members should keep an eye on the deadline date: 1 February 2010. This initiative comes just ahead of the planned April 2010 launch of the redesigned IGS website and May 2010's major, quadrennial IGS conference: 9ICG. The 9th International Conference on Geosynthetics will be held 23-27 May 2010 in Guaruja, Brazil (near São Paulo).

US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa P. Jackson shares her memo to the agency regarding her first year at the helm and the now-expanded list of priorities for going forward.

The dreaded shipworm is moving into the Baltic Sea, threatening artefacts of the area's cultural heritage. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg suspect that the unfortunate spread is due to climate change, and are currently involved in an EU project to determine which archaeological remains are at risk. Protective geotextiles have been proposed as a potential saving solution. Krister Svahn writes from Sweden's University of Gothenburg.

Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors are incredibly versatile. They're used in tiny medical devices and on huge bridges. Often FBG and other types of fiber optic sensors are chosen when many measurements are needed over a long distance and the environment is harsh. A good example of this is the use of FOS in geosynthetic materials used to reinforce earthworks. Tom Graver of Micron Optics writes on this collaboration of technologies and how it could change geosynthetics.

The Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) invites students to submit papers on topics related to dam and levee safety, including engineering, geology, hydrology, hydraulics, environmental & agricultural sciences, design, construction, risk, hazard mitigation, emergency management, floods, floodplain management, case studies, security, policy issues & more. ASDSO will award up to $1500 in prizes. Winners will present their papers at Dam Safety 2010, ASDSO's Annual National Conference, to be held in Seattle, 19-23 September 2010.

The US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) 5th AgSTAR National Conference solicits presentations in the following areas: carbon and renewable energy credits, co-digestion of livestock manures and other wastes, biogas processing and use, centralized systems, permitting issues, and operator experiences. Proposals for both oral and poster presentations will be considered. The event will be held in Green Bay, Wisconsin on 27-28 April 2010. Abstracts of no more than 300 words and a short bio must be submitted to Allison Hogge (hogge.allison@epa.gov) by January 29. Learn more here.;

The 3rd Annual Waste-to-Fuels Conference & Trade Show will be held in Jacksonville, Florida 18-20 April 2010. The event focuses on informing the public and private sectors of the economic and environmental benefits of converting waste materials to alternative fuels such as biodiesel and ethanol as well as energy recovery. Topics include municipal solid waste (MSW)-to-fuels and energy recovery; biomass-to-fuels; landfill gas; agricultural waste-to-fuels; and more. Abstracts are invited through January 22. Learn more here.;

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may soon take steps to declare coal ash a hazardous waste and force producers of coal ash to set aside money during operations as a check against future cleanup needs. The cost to taxpayers is quite high, as of now. EPA is looking to shift the environmental protection cost to the industries producing the danger. Learn more here.;

The Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) has been honored with a Gold Award for Best Trade Magazine in Association TRENDS' 2009 All-Media Contest. It was one of more than 425 entries in the association publications contest. The TRENDS All-Media Contest is an annual competition held exclusively for associations, recognizing the most creative and effective communication vehicles developed in the industry over the prior year. The 2009 competition included more than 425 entries in 26 categories of association communications

A new effort by the LSU AgCenter to streamline biofuels research may have a positive impact on local sugar cane, forestry and other agricultural producers while increasing the Louisiana's use of biofuels. For example, timber processing leaves behind tons of branches, bark and debris -- biomass -- that can be converted to biofuel. Algae aquaculture also could generate significant biomass for fuel, and has been a subject of intense research nationally and at the AgCenter. Learn more here.;

In mid-November 2009, The Geosynthetic Insitute (GSI) - Taiwan held the 4th installment in its series of interntaional geosynthetics conferences in Taiwan. This series has brought expert speakers in from around the world and allowed attendees from across Asia and further to connect with researchers, manufacturers and others in Taiwan's region. Dr. C. Wayne Hsieh, director of GSI Taiwan, has sent along a couple photographs from the gathering.

The Ngaruawahia Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) in New Zealand receives domestic wastewater from several towns for treatment. Upgrading of the plant required that the flow of the wastewater into the plant is never disrupted and that the quality of the water leaving the plant has received as much treatment as possible. Read a case study from Nikolai Vakhroushev of Permathene on how the company's baffle curtain and dewatering approach fulfilled the facility's needs.

ASTM Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has revised Standard D6243, "Standard Test Method for Determining the Internal and Interface Shear Resistance of Geosynthetic Clay Liner by the Direct Shear Method," to D6243-09. The procedure described in this test method for the shear resistance for the GCL or the GCL interface is intended as a performance test to provide the user with a set of design values for the test conditions examined. Learn more here.;

ASTM Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has reapproved Standard D6523, "Standard Guide for Evaluation and Selection of Alternative Daily Covers (ADCs) for Sanitary Landfills," as D6523-00(2009). This guide provides information which the regulator/permit officials, engineers, waste disposal operators, and others will find helpful to (1) understand and distinguish between the many choices available; (2) understand the performance feature considerations for living up to EPA regulations for landfill daily covers, and (3) understand the various requirements and differences for putting these covers into practice at landfills. Learn more here.;

The battle against global warming may turn out to be a boon for a California industry long targeted by environmentalists -- dairies. Green engineering is taking off in agriculture with the help of technologies such as methane-harvesting digesters with geosynthetic covers. David Albers, president of the 2,800-cow Vintage Dairy in western Fresno County, is also part of BioEnergy Solutions, a company utilizing geomembrane covers for power-converting systems. They are hoping to raise money to create a network of 40 dairies plugged into the grid. Learn more here.;

The Sunshine Coast Council in Australia is continuing a number of beach renourishment and erosion control projects using geotextiles, such as for groyne construction and artificial reefs. Projects at Noose, Maroochy River, Mooloolaba Beach Spit, and Golden Beach are all in the works. Learn more here.;

A 42-hectare expansion of the Cache Creek landfill in British Columbia, Canada, has been approved. The $100 million project will add up to 25 years of service life to the landfills. In gaining approval, the facility operators have planned to exceed provincial and national codes in the construction of new cells. For example, composite double-liner design with leak monitoring technologies will be put in place. Learn more here.;

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is furthering its work at an old dump in the Southington, Connecticut area. Gases have been detected migrating from the landfill. Another 560-foot-long space, seven feet down, will be capped with an impermeable liner as part of remedial action as furthering testing and long-term planning take place. A public meeting is planned for this spring. Learn more here.;

WaterWorld Magazine offers a weekly video news cast hosted by its online editor, Angela Godwin. It's called WaterWorld TV. This week's headlines include the steady, annual erosion of Alaska's shoreline; NASA technology aids in river volume flow predictions; and a study shows that nutrient enrichment with waterways may actually disrupt the food chain. Watch it online today. Learn more here.;