Containment

In his year-end review letter, North American Geosynthetics Society (NAGS) Executive Director David Suits writes, "The year 2011 has been a very good year for the North American Geosynthetics Society (NAGS)….We are maintaining a healthy membership. This year we had 32 new or revived memberships. Under the guidance of the past Board, the early part of the year was devoted to working with IFAI, and the Geo-Institute organizing the Geo-Frontiers 2011 Conference. We had close to 2000 attendees and 150 exhibitors. As a result NAGS received one of the best, if not the best financial return that we have experienced for any of the conferences in which we have participated." Read more, and don't forget to renew your membership (or join).

The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) has published its third issue of IGS News for 2011. Issue 27.3 includes a lead editorial from IGS President Jorge Zornberg on IGS's relationship with international sister societies (which includes an interesting comparative table on memberships, chapters, and technical committees), a call for IGS Council members, a chapters activity report, news on the October 2011 memorandum of understanding between IGS and ICID, event reports, and much more. And don't forget to submit your photo to the 2nd IGS Photo Competition. Read the issue here (PDF).

TenCate Geosynthetics is reporting strong global performance of approximately 15% organic sales growth, led by new products and a focus on sustainability and environmental protection. Soil stabilization and soil reinforcement solutions have been key to this growth. For products such as TenCate Geotube® and TenCate GeoDetect™, the company sees growing interest stemming from their CO2-friendly, sustainable environmental approach and the utilization of leakage, erosion control and deformation detection systems.

Propex announced today that Robert F. Dahl, II, has joined the Company as Vice President Sales - Specialty Products. Dahl comes to Propex from Fiberweb, where as Vice President of Specialty Products he led growth of the building materials, geotextiles, and defense business units, with primary focus on North American markets. Prior to that, he spent eighteen years with DuPont, building experience in a range of Sales, Marketing and Management roles.

TenCate Geosynthetics North America has developed a patented, woven geosynthetic for soil stabilization and base course reinforcement applications when differential settlement occurs due to heaving in the subgrade soils. TenCate Mirafi® H2Ri is a wicking geosynthetic created from high-tenacity polypropylene filaments and wicking filaments formed into an innovative weave to provide superior reinforcement strength and soil interaction integrated with high soil retention and wicking capabilities. Read more in the release.

The bienniel Geosynthetics conference series continues 1-4 April 2013 in Long Beach, California. This event will be co-located with the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) annual Southwest Geotechnical Engineers Conference and the Geosynthetic Institute's (GSI) 25th Geosynthetic Research Institute conference (GRI–25). Geosynthetics 2013 has issued a call for proposals for short courses, panel discussions, and technical papers. Deadline for submission: 1 February 2012.

The World Bioenergy Award has given a lift to the work of the Brazilian researcher Laércio Couto and his team in the Renabio network. Presented in collaboration between World Bioenergy 2012 and the World Bioenergy Association, the award is offered to an individual who has made a difference in the development of the bioenergy sector. Dr. Couto's work was recognized with the first World Bioenergy Award, which focused on Short Rotation Wood Crops (SRWC), which are utilized in the production of ethanol, wood chips, pellets, and particleboard. Since then, the recognition has helped raise the profile of the SRWC sector and bioenergy in Brazil. The next Award will be presented at World Bioenergy 2012, which will be held 29-31 May 2012 in Jönköping, Sweden.

NAUE America has announced the appointment of Paul O'Malley as President of NAUE America, effective 1 January 2012. In the United States, the international manufacturer specializes its business around Secugrid® and Combigrid® geogrids for reinforcement utilization in applications such as road construction, wind farm development, retaining walls and soil stabilization. O'Malley is a veteran of the construction and engineering materials field, including numerous years involved in geosynthetics. Read more in the official release.

China's geotextile market currently exceeds 300 million square meters, with 40% of the volume being nonwoven geotextiles. From 2006 to 2010, the country's manufacturing output of geotextile materials rose more than 35% annually, according to information exchanged during the December 3 China Geotextiles Composite Materials Summit 2011 held in Lingxian, Shandong. Elsewhere, Chinese officials made some surprising environment and climate change target proposals at a UN-led gathering in Durban, South Africa.

Propex has announced that Mark Marienfeld, P.E., has joined its Geotextile Systems Division as Transportation Market Specialist. Marienfeld brings a wealth of design expertise on the use of geotextiles, especially in the transportation market. With 27 years experience in the geotextile industry, he has held key positions within industry associations and has worked closely with transportation agencies to show the benefits of incorporating geotextiles and pavement interlayer fabrics in their paved and unpaved roads.

Get the latest information on PlastaFlex IG (Industrial Grade) and PlastaFlex FG (Fish Grade) geomembranes. Download the data sheet here (PDF). Learn more here.;

Geosynthetica is proud to welcome Plastatech Engineering Ltd as its latest Silver Underwriter. Plastatech is an expert manufacturer of various film and sheet materials, including the PlastaFlex line of geomembrane products. Learn more about the company's materials and expertise on the Plastatech website, www.plastatech.com. Learn more here.;

Tech 5® and Tech 10® Geomembranes from Plastatech Engineering Ltd are a key part of the PlastaFlex geomembrane product line. These geomembranes help shield the environment against harsh chemicals and other pollutants commonly found in landfills, reservoirs, chemical processing plants, refineries, manufacturing facilities, and water treatment operations. Learn more. Download the specification sheet for these products here (PDF). Learn more here.;

PlastaFlex OR geomembranes from Plastatech Engineering Ltd. provide impervious protection to oils, fuels, and harsh chemicals commonly found in industrial and oil refinery settings. These oil resistant products are essential secondary containment solutions. Download the product information sheet here (PDF). Learn more here.;

EDANA has announced that the deadline for the call for papers and student grant for the Nonwovens Research Academy has been extended to the 20th of January 2012 to accommodate the holiday period, and allow as many industry experts to submit their papers for consideration for presentation at the conference, and for students to submit their proposals for grant funding. Key subjects include Sustainability, Biomaterials, Nonwoven and polymer fibre technology developments, Modelling and testing, Nanotechnology and Advances in absorption technologies.

In a 1 December 2011 release, the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) announced that it is postponing its IFAI Expo Asia 2012 event, originally scheduled to be held in late June 2012 at the Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre. However, construction on the Suntec Center may not in fact be completed by June to ensure the full success of the event and the association cites the softness of the global economy as another primary reason for the event's postponement. Two geosynthetics sessions were to be held at the event.

Maccaferri now offers a biaxial geogrid. Manufactured in the United States and in accordance with USA regulations and standards, Maccaferri MacGrid® EG biaxial geogrids are a single layer product, which are produced of polypropylene (PP) using punched and drawn technology. The introduction of the MacGrid® EG biaxial geogrid series reinforces the company's commitment to superior quality and availability of geosynthetic products with improved technology.

GSE Lining Technologies, a manufacturer of geosynthetic barrier materials such as high-density polyethylene geomembranes, has received approval from Williamsburg County, South Carolina to expand its Kingstree facility. The company's planned $3.5 million investment is expected to add 20 jobs. This is the third expansion for GSE in Kingstree since opening the facility in 2000. Learn more here.;

ASTM International Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has announced a work item, WK35425 "Standard Test Method for Accelerated Tensile Creep and Creep-Rupture of Geosynthetic Materials Based on Time-Temperature Superposition Using the Stepped Isothermal Method." This is a work item revision to existing standard D6992-03 (2009). According to the work item rationale, "This standard is being used by geosynthetic related industries including storm water chambers and plastic pipe. They have an interest in including their materials within the text of the standard so that they do not have to generate their own standard." Learn more here.;

The International Erosion Control Association (IECA) has announced the launch of its first podcast series, Clearing the Waters. The podcast, recorded and distributed in MP3 format, allows the listener to download it to any MP3 device (e.g., an iPod) or to listen to it from a computer desktop or laptop. The purpose of the podcast series is to provide listeners with an inside look at IECA's annual conference and expo, Environmental Connection 2012 (EC12). The 2012 conference will be held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino Las Vegas from February 26-29, 2012.

ASTM International has launched a revamped online version of its flagship magazine, Standardization News (SN). The magazine's new website, which is available free to all visitors at www.astm.org/standardization-news, offers more frequently updated ASTM news that is organized into new industry sector gateways. These gateways serve as web portals to comprehensive news and information about ASTM standards development activities, meeting and training course dates, publications and more.

The latest issue of Tensar's GEOTALK newsletter is now available. This issue includes case studies on the Port Mann/Highway 1 (PMH1) Improvement Project (British Colombia, Canada), a $500,000 cost reduction on a Michigan road rehab project, and a lake's restoration in Belleville, Wisconsin. Other articles focus on seasonal flood protection, the approval of key grade separation solutions, and Alabama Power's Hydromulch trials. Learn more here.;

Eighteen people attended the 14-15 November geoelectric Liner Integrity Survey and Assessment course at the TRI campus in Austin, Texas. Organized by TRI/Environmental and I-CORP INTERNATIONAL (as the TRI-CORP Liner Integrity Center [T-CLIC]), this gathering marked the 17th course since 2004. In total, ~250 people have taken part in this unique training and education program, including registrants from England, Australia, Chile, Canada, and Brazil. Read more.

Kirra Point along Australia's Gold Coast lost much of its surfing strength in the 1990s, according to locals, when a long groyne at the site was shortened by about 30m. Now, a mayoral candidate has proposed re-extending the groyne, at least temporarily, with geotextile bags to evaluate if the groyne's structural changes were the cause of surf issues in the Kirra Point area. Learn more here.;

A number of calls are closing shortly, as conference technical committees and companies finalize their 2012 agendas. In our latest update we look at five of them: EuroGeo 5 (November 30), Global Waste Management Symposium (December 1), World Bioenergy 2012 (December 1), Environmental Connection (December 16), and GeoManitoba 2012 (January 15).