Containment

The closed Bridge Street Landfill in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, is looking into installing an array of 2000 crystalline solar panels (each 6 x 3 feet) on top and side slopes. The solar company looking to place the panels would pay the municipality $12,000 per year, while the city would buy back power from the solar source. The solar power would be fed into a nearby school. Engineering studies are being performed. No information has been published on whether an exposed cap system has been considered. Learn more here.;

Waterproof Membranes 2009 is almost here! The event takes place in Duesseldorf, Germany from 19-21 October. Companies from all over the world will gather to discuss the latest in geotechnical and architectural waterproofing technologies. Greenroofs, HDPE geomembranes, thin-film solar laminates atop exposed TPO membrane caps on landfills, and much more. Will you be there? Presentations and attendees include companies such as Colbond, Dow, GSE Lining Technology GmbH, Agru, Sotrafa, SENSOR, and many others. Geosynthetica's Chris Kelsey will be there presenting and covering the event. If your company will have a representative there, please let Chris know so he can be sure to include your firm in the conference coverage.

The Local Municipality of Madibeng this week denied claims that a contractor was appointed on a contract of almost R3 million at the landfill site in De Kroon without a tender being issued. Gundle Geosynthetics (Gauteng, South Africa) was appointed directly, the council has said, in order to guarantee expert work at the environmentally sensitive site. While local contractors may be upset about not having the work, they must understand that most geosynthetic types require careful handling and experience. They must not be confused with earthworks. Learn more here.;

Trelleborg's report for the third quarter 2009 will be published on Thursday October 29 at 7:45 CET. Analysts, investors and media are invited to attend a breakfast meeting and presentation, in English, combined with a telephone conference. The presentation will be held at Operaterrassen in Stockholm at 9:30 CET on October 29.

The town of Longboat Key, Florida has allocated $400,000 for a beach protection project using geotextile tubes. The project has been delayed, however, by a Manatee County commissioner who wrote letters on official county letterhead to the US Army Corps of Engineers, which otherwise would have started the work. The commission did not hold home rule over Longboat Key either. That commissioner has since been removed from his post on the West Coast Inland Navigation District. Learn more here.;

Around the world, polymeric materials such as geosynthetics have become crucial to safe and successful long-term infrastructure performance. In the Middle East and Gulf region, geosynthetic use is on the rise not only to support major construction projects but because the region's polymeric materials industry is maturing rapidly. It will soon be a major production center. One of the most important geosynthetics used in today's infrastructure is high-density polyethylene (HDPE) geomembrane. On 12 November 2009, Dr. Ian D. Peggs of I-CORP INTERNATIONAL, Inc., will present a full-day workshop titled "HDPE Geomembrane Liner Performance: the Reality." Learn more.

The 5th Asian Regional Conference on Geosynthetics--Geosynthetics Asia 2012--will be held 10-14 December 2012 in Bangkok, Thailand. IGS Thailand will host and the event will be held under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). The deadline for submission of abstract to GA2012 is 31 May 2011. Download an information sheet in PDF. Learn more here.;

Though it will not be held until 2012, a website has already been launched for EuroGeo 5--the Fifth European Regional Conference on Geosynthetics. The host chapter of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) will be IGS Spain. Valencia will serve as the conference location. As of now, the dates for the event will be 16-19 September 2012. Learn more about IGS Spain at the event website. Learn more here.;

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is raising the height of four of its dams to help reduce the risk of flooding in the event of weather more extreme than any conditions ever recorded in the region. TVA is using a prefabricated multi-cellular system made of coated steel-welded mesh and lined with a non-woven polypropylene geotextile. Learn more here.;

On 12 November 2009, Dr. Ian D. Peggs of I-CORP INTERNATIONAL, Inc., will present a full day workshop during which three of the primary topics of SKZ's 2nd International Conference on Geosynthetics Middle East will be discussed in greater detail. This in-depth event, "HDPE Geomembrane Liner Performance: the Reality," will address liner leakage, allowable leakage, liner integrity surveys and methods, understanding failure, predicting failure and end of useful service life, and more. Please share the PDF registration form for this important session with your colleagues in Dubai and nearby in the Gulf region. Register by October 14 to secure your seats!

A report on waste disposal in China: In less than five years, the Zhengzhou Comprehensive Waste Treatment Landfill has overwhelmed this otherwise pristine village of about 1,000 people. Peaches and cherries rot on trees, infested with insect life drawn by the smell. Fields lie unharvested, contaminated by toxic muck. Every day, another 100 or so tonnes of garbage arrive from nearby Zhengzhou, a provincial capital of eight million. Though a polyethylene liner is in place, residents contend it does not span the whole landfill, and that what is there may be torn. Learn more here.;

Coastal roads and harbours are traditionally protected from sea erosion by giant blocks of rock or geosynthetic bags filled with material, all locally sourced where possible. In the Arctic and other cold northern regions, where good quality material is often scarce, the prohibitive economic and environmental cost of importing suitable matter has led to a demand for solutions that make use of whatever low quality soil or other material is available.

CLI-ClearWater Construction has received the prestigious Gold Hard Hat Award for their work on the Rocky Mountain Arsenal enhanced landfill cap. The annual Gold Hard Hat Awards is a competition to determine the best projects completed by Colorado firms in a calendar year. Judging is done by a panel of industry experts, and based on design quality and innovation, craftsmanship, the project's contribution to the community and the industry, solution of unique design and construction challenges and overall excellence.

TRI/Environmental, Inc. (TRI) has achieved independent, third party accreditation for its large scale erosion control testing and research laboratory by the Geosynthetic Accreditation Institute (GAI), which is part of the Folsom, Pennsylvania-based Geosynthetic Institute (GSI). This TRI facility, in upstate South Carolina at the Denver Downs Research Facility (DDRF), compliments TRI's industry-leading index and bench-scale erosion and sediment control testing capabilities. With over 1.2 sq. km of working area, this research farm employs various sloping terrain and water from four ponds. Additionally, DDRF has numerous structures housing covered research and testing, and material and equipment storage. Read more about this industry first.

Sonoma County supervisors have put off until 27 October a vote on a contract to sell the Mecham Road landfill to Republic Services because they needed more time to review details of the proposal. Republic Services proposes opening a new section of the county landfill by installing a $70 million liner that prevents leakage of toxics into area groundwater. It wants a 20-year commitment of trash flow from cities and promises $2.7 million in annual royalties to the county. Learn more here.;

Pierre Pomerleau, Eng., MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pomerleau Inc., will speak on promising applications for textiles at Expo Hightex on Wednesday, 7 October 2009, at the Bonsecours Market in Montréal. Since he became president of Pomerleau and Beaubois, respectively major construction and architectural carpentry firms, the group's growth has been reflected in an increase in sales, from CDN $200 million to nearly CDN $800 million. This business leader sees Canadian textiles playing increasingly important role in construction projects.

The deadline for sending an offer of a paper at Middle East Plastic Pipes 2010 is fast approaching. Please send a short summary and speaker name to me before 15th November 2009 at sh@amiplastics.com. Middle East Plastic Pipes 2010 will be held from 17-19 May 2010 at the JW Marriott Hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Jack-Gregor Tcherniavsky, the managing director of Tencate Geosynthetics Africa region, has been quoted in an article about the coming oil industry in Uganda. Geosynthetics will play a role in the country's infrastructure growth andin the oil sector's development. As the former may be reliant on the latter's success, geosynthetics perhaps stand to be of special interest. For example, "there will be a need to build more roads and more infrastructure," Mr, Tcherniavsky said. Learn more here.;

Intruders invaded Tanzania's third leading gold producer, North Mara Gold Mine and stole pond liners from the mine's waste ponds over the weekend, a spokesman for Tanzania Barrick Ltd., a unit of Canada-based Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX), owners of the mine, said Tuesday. The intruders stole around 90 square meters of pond liners on Oct. 3 and took 110 square meters on Oct. 4. The liners have been replaced. Learn more here.;

In early August 2009, Typhoon Morakot hit Taiwan. The storm was the deadliest typhoon ever to strike Taiwan. More than 450 people were killed, and initial estimates of the property, structure and infrastructure damage has been estimated at USD $3.3 billion. But one of the lessons learned in this typhoon is that geosynthetic reinforced structures can preserve infrastructure even against such a catastrophic event.

The American Public Works Association (APWA) 2010 conference and exhibition has extended its call for proposals to 9 October 2009. The event will be held 15-18 August 2010 in Boston, Massachusetts. It will be co-located with the Solid Waste Association of North America's (SWANA) annual WASTECON event. Learn more about the topics sought by APWA online. Learn more here.;

The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is accepting abstracts for its 2010 conference and exhibition through 16 October 2009. The event will be held 16-18 August 2010 in Boston, Massachusetts. It will be co-located with the American Public Works Association's (APWA) annual event. Learn more about WASTECON in the Call for Presentations PDF. Learn more here.;

Santa Fe Gold Corporation has announced that the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer has issued a permit required to proceed with construction of the tailings dam impoundment at the Banner Mill located near Lordsburg, New Mexico. The company expects to complete construction of the tailings impoundment during the current quarter and to begin processing operations shortly thereafter. This includes the installation of geomembrane.

A 7-mile pipeline, which will be used as the conduit for about 900,000 cubic yards of sand to build a new beach south of Pascagoula's Beach Boulevard, was threaded under the U.S. 90 bridge this week. Crews began laying the 18-inch black plastic pipe last week and the project should take three or four weeks. The first order of business will be to fill the Geotubes on site. Learn more here.;

IFAI Expo Asia 2011 will be held 22-25 March 2011 at the new Marina Bay Sands Hotel and Exhibition Centre in Singapore, and is being organized to serve the rapidly growing specialty fabrics marketplace in the Asia-Pacific region. There is a tremendous output and consumption of specialty fabrics in the Asia-Pacific region. The current trade shows in India and China focus almost exclusively on the disposable nonwoven industry. IFAI Expo Asia 2011 will now become the first major event in the region that specifically targets as visitors the end-product fabricators who use all types of materials--woven, nonwoven, knit and composite textiles.