Containment

Engineers at District 2 of the Illinois Department of Transportation were busy preparing plans for a major project in the Quad cities area in Rock Island County of Northwestern Illinois. The project, an extension of the Milan Beltway, was to include a long and highly visible drainage channel. They sought out a vegetated solution for this project, and the ideal solution they found was with composite turf reinforcement mats (C-TRM) from Tensar North American Green. Read about the exemplary and cost-saving performance from this site.

The Atlanta Business Chronicle reports that in Georgia banks are facing stiff environmental fines for housing developments that have been foreclosed on. The problem stems from foreclosures that occurred mid-construction. As banks reclaimed land, the dirt piles left on site become serious runoff risks. The fines are coming back on the banks. (NOTE: Subscription required for access to the full article but a partial article has been posted freely.) Learn more here.;

This installment from the GeoAmericas Series is timely! The author, Glen W. Toepfer of CQA Solutions, Ltd., will lead an important, free, online discussion on March 27 at 1:00...

A baffled crump weir flow control structure was used for the first time at a UK dam at the Burn of Mosset flood alleviation scheme. The Scottish project has been operating successfully under flood conditions and is enhancing the ecological status of the watercourse. To make the design safe, the earth fill surface was benched and covered with a needle-punched geotextile. A 600mm layer of coarse gravel was placed on the benched profile, covered with a 400mm layer of open stone asphalt and topsoil. From International Water Power & Dam Construction. Learn more here.;

American Environmental Group Ltd. (AEGL), an expert installer of geosynthetic materials, has been re-certified with the Approved Installation Contractor (AIC) status from the International Association of Geosynthetic Installers (IAGI). AEGL is one of eight US-based Approved Installation Contractors and has held AIC status since 2007. Read more about the AIC program's importance.

The revitalization of blighted properties in several Montana communities received a big boost today as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded $1.9 million in brownfields cleanup grants for projects across the state. EPA announced that the Great Northern Development Corporation will receive $1.5 million to clean sites contaminated by hazardous substances and petroleum in a 15-county area of eastern Montana. In addition, Lewis and Clark County will receive $400,000 for projects to remove contaminated soils and protect groundwater at several candidate properties, include a former foundry, a metal ore mill site and a post-and-pole facility.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Government of India, and India's Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry are hosting the 2nd Methane to Markets Partnership Expo in New Delhi from 2-5 March 2010. The event has attracted attendees from 30 countries and showcases more than 150 opportunities for capturing and using methane, a greenhouse gas more than 20 times as potent as carbon dioxide, as a valuable clean energy resource.

The 28th International Conference on Solid Waste Technology and Management will be held in Philadelphia, PA, U.S.A. on 10–13March 2013. Participants are expected from over 40 countries. Researchers, educators, government officials, consultants, managers, community leaders and others with expertise in solid waste are invited to submit papers for oral presentation or poster session at the conference. Papers related to all aspects of solid waste technology and management are of interest, including landfill design, energy recovery, regulations, liners, caps, gas and leachate management, ash containment, mining and mineral wastes, and much more.

A new training program from international barrier system manufacturer Solmax aims to increase user understanding of conductive geomembrane. The three-day training will be held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada...

As part of GTI’s global expansion, Geomembrane Technologies Inc. (GTI) is pleased to welcome Raul Reiff Janini as its newest project engineer. Raul will be based out of Sao Paulo,...

David Frost, who serves as a professor of civil engineering at Georgia Tech's Savannah campus, is working hard to change the popular perception that Georiga Tech's Atlanta campus is the only one to know. Frost, who serves as the Savannah campus' director and as a Georgia Tech vice provost, has been investigating the interaction of soil behavior and geomembrane texture (or smoothness) for the past 12 years. Read more at Media Newswire. Learn more here.;

The long-running, renowned television news magazine 60 Minutes broadcast a report on American infrastructure on its 23 November 2014 episode. It has received a fair amount of attention for...

CETCO Lining Technologies has announced the official release of three new product lines in its GCL portfolio. The names of the new product lines are InterLoK, Resistex and Continuum. Each product features a unique engineered clay technology designed by the research and development team at CETCO to enhance the permeability and/or chemical resistance. InterLoK, Resistex, and Continuum GCLs are now available in the U.S. with an expected release in Europe later this year.

The National Guard is joining forces with a contractor hired by BP to put up a protective wall along the shoreline on the north side of Dauphin Island, Alabama. A geotextile-lined unit is being used for establishing a flood protection application. Learn more here.;

WK28660, "Standard Test Method for Swell Index of Clay Mineral Component of Geosynthetic Clay Liners," is a work item revision to existing standard D5890-06. It will be discussed more fully during the D35 Committee Week meeting in St. Louis, Missouri 8-11 June 2010. Learn more here.;

The Tennessee state legislature may be very close to the ratification of a new bill to require the installation of geosynthetic liners in all new or future expansions to coal ash storage facilities. Kingston, Tennessee, readers will recall, was the site of a massive coal ash pond breach in December 2008. That facility’s failure released 5.4 million cubic yards of contaminated ash across 275 acres. The estimated cleanup cost, announced in mid-February, will be $525-$825 million. Tennessee’s House of Representatives has signed off on the bill (SB1559), but changes in the bill’s language means it must revert to the state senate for an approval vote or further amendments. (Continued.)

ASTM International Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has revised D4439, "Standard Terminology for Geosynthetics." Learn more here.;

In the latest addition to our GeoAmericas series of stories, we look back at the GeoAmericas 2016 project story of how Groupe Alphard utilized electrical leak location (ELL) surveys...

EDMONTON, Alberta - Layfield Environmental Containment is proud to announce the launch of HAZGARD® 635 FR, a fire retardant geomembrane that meets the requirements of CAN/ULC-S668-12 Standard for Liners...

The January/February 2010 newsletter from the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC) is now available in PDF. This issue includes a list of conference and seminar opportunities for the year, updates on European nations' renewable energy target status, "road maps" for meeting targest in some nations, and much more. Learn more here.;

The Geosynthetics Interest Group of South Africa (GIGSA) and the International Association of Geosynthetic Installers (IAGI) will present a lecture on July 22. The topic: "Ensuring competent geomembrane installations...

Since 1977, the time of the first geosynthetics conference in Paris, geosynthetics have emerged as exciting engineering materials in a wide array of civil engineering applications, e.g., transportation, geotechnical, geoenvironmental, hydraulics, and private development. To provide a deeper understanding of this subject matter, author Robert M. Koerner presents Designing with Geosynthetics - 6th Edition, which contains two volumes, released through Xlibris.

Last year, Geosynthetica reported on a large erosion control study being directed by Germany-based SKZ. Now, SKZ is shedding more light on this research. On 5 May 2011, a special event will be held to take attendees through the site-based research: "Formulation and verification of selection criteria for geosynthetic surface erosion control systems." A main focus for this data will be to better assist in road construction erosion and sediment control. Read more.

GeoAfrica 2013 will be held 18-20 November 2013 in Accra, Ghana. This quadrennial event marks the 2nd African Regional Conference on Geosynthetics. To be held under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) and hosted...

This instructional webinar will provide attendees with knowledge on the use of geotextile containers and polymeric marine mattresses for island breakwater creation. On-site project experience from the City of Ft. Pierce Marina in Florida will be shared. This project features a permanent wave barrier, configured as a carefully sculpted, but naturally appearing, artificial island breakwater. This solution was proposed to protect the marina from a 100-year storm event, as mandated by FEMA regulations. Learn more here.;