Containment

TenCate Geosynthetics is adding an Engineered Structures market group to its sales focus. John Lostumbo, PE will lead the group and become Market Manager-Engineered Structures. In this role, John will be responsible for promotion and commercialization of all TenCate® Engineered Structures systems and products, including Miragrid® geogrids, Mirafi® PET geotextiles, Miramesh® SG and GeoDetect® Monitoring System. Learn more here.;

Waste Management of Hawaii has completed the first of three phases repairs at the Waimanalo Gulch Sanitary Landfill, but the landfill remains only partially open. The company reported that it has repaired the eastern side of cell E6, which was damaged by a January 13 storm. Also damaged in that storm was a point at which the liner edge meets the gulch wall. Falling rock was to blame. Learn more here.;

The American Public Works Association (APWA) 2011 Sustainability Conference has opened registration for its 27-29 June 2011 conference in Portland, Oregon. General topics of interest include low impact development, sustainable best practices, success stories in sustainability, and more. The 2010 event in Minneapolis was a tremendous event, and Portland's well-integrated examples of sustainable public works and APWA's active membership should make for a strong 2011 gathering. Register online. Learn more here.;

The 11th Asian Textile Conference (ATC-11) invites abstracts through March 31. The biennial event is open to geosynthetics-related submissions. Abstracts of 150 words for oral and poster presentations are encouraged. All abstracts will be reviewed by the program committee and the full paper (2-4 pages) must be submitted for all accepted presentations. ATC-11 committee is expecting valuable participation from diverse research fields. The event will be held 1-4 November 2011 in Daegu, Korea. Learn more here.;

The 28-page PDF (14 MB) from New York State's Department of Environmental Conservation's Erosion and Sediment Control Training Course is available for download freely. The 4-hour, NYSDEC-endored course is offered at multiple times throughout the in various locations. Currently, there are many opportuntities for contractors and inspectors through March 31. The course booklet of PowerPoint slides offers essential bullet points to help prep course participants and is quite useful for non-New York-based professionals too.

Specialty Fabrics Review has published its 2011 "State of the Industry" for the technical textiles field. One of the article's main sections focuses on the construction sector, where geosynthetics will play a key role in the next 5-7 years for major environmental protection initiatives such as the new US coal ash storage pond regulations. Read more. Learn more here.;

Apple Valley (Minnesota) will build the new Whitney pond this summer on land owned by Burnsville in Lac Lavon Park. The pond, expected to be completed by November, also will have a walking trail around it. The 2-acre pond will have a liner to prevent contaminated water from seeping into the surrounding lakes. Learn more here.;

Fremont, Ohio's Mayor Terry Overmyer has publicly stated that the area's long-discussed reservoir and combined sewer overflow projects are top priorities in 2011. The reservoir project has been delayed for years by disputes with a contractor, the discovery of some karst, and design amendments. Geomembranes, geosynthetic clay liners, and geotextiles are now part of the safer design. Phase I is expected to be completed by spring of 2012. Learn more here.;

The deadline for submitting abstracts to Mine Closure 2011 has been extended to February 15. Erosion control and closure/capping systems will be among the key concepts discussed. Geosynthetica encourages its readers to submit. The 6th International Mine Closure Conference (MC 2011) will be held 18-21 September 2011 in Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada. This conference is a not-for-profit conference and is presented annually in various parts of the world by the Australian Centre for Geomechanics (ACG) and the Centre for Land Rehabilitation (CLR). Learn more here.;

The Time of India reports that the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has given the work of beautifying the island in the middle of the upper Katraj lake to Garware Wall Ropes. The company's geosynthetics division of Garware Wall Ropes will fortify the island with steel gabions and erect a gabion retaining wall, channelising the flow of two nullahs into the lake. A statute will be constructed atop the gabion wall. Learn more here.;

A final cleanup plan, formalized in a document known as the Record of Decision (ROD), has been signed by EPA for the Cabot Carbon/Koppers Superfund Site in Gainesville, Fla. The ROD outlines how the Potentially Responsible Party (PRP) Beazer East will be required to address soil, sediment, groundwater and surface water contamination from the site. With reuse of the site as a goal, the EPA plans to install an engineered capping system.

Bloomberg News reports that all 9 million Tennessee Vally Authority (TVA) power customers are paying, on average, 69 cents per month through 2024 to cover costs associated with the TVA's $1.2 billion cleanup operation. The failure of the unlined ash pond in Kingston, Tennessee in December 2008 dumped millions of cubic yards of waste and dramatically lifted to national public attention the dangerous lack of regulation on coal ash storage ponds. Liners, such as used in municipal solid waste facilities, are forthcoming to those coal ash facilities now. Learn more here.;

As supplies drop and demand rises, governments, companies and individuals look for cost-effective ways to save a limited resource. Geosynthetics are playing a strong role in containment projects for reservoirs, ponds, canals and more. The magazine Specialty Fabrics Review takes a look at some projects and players. Learn more here.;

Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) managing director Andrew Aho had an opportunity to address the Geosynthetics Committee at the Transportation Research Board’s 90th Annual Meeting on 25 January 2011 in Washington, D.C. His comments on geosynthetic utilization in transportation and coal ash have been republished by Geosynthetics magazine. Read them online. Learn more here.;

The January/February 2011 issue of Textile World has published an article on the forthcoming Geo-Frontiers 2011 event to be held in Dallas, Texas (13-16 March 2011). The previous Geo-Frontiers (2005) attracted 126 exhibitors and 1,850 attendees. The 2011 edition should boast similar numbers, as interest, the publication notes, has been twice as high. A record 1,161 authors from 60 countries submitted technical abstracts, and 500 papers are slated to be presented. Read more. Learn more here.;

AMI invites you to consider speaking at or attending the 5th international conference on Waterproof Membranes to be held from 15-17 November 2011 at the Maritim Hotel in Cologne, Germany. There is a welcome reception and registration on the first evening followed by a 2-day programme of speakers from the waterproofing industry and its suppliers. Read more about the topics here and submit your abstract by May 16.

Low and Bonar PLC, the international performance materials group, and National Petrochemical Industrial Company, a subsidiary of Alujain Corporation, today announce that they have agreed the terms on which they are to establish a joint venture company in Saudi Arabia for the design, manufacture and sale of geotextile products for the fast growing civil engineering markets in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Learn more.

Trelleborg has completed the divestment of its roofing operations, which were part of the Trelleborg Engineered Systems business area. The operations are being taken over by Axcel, a Nordic venture capital company.

The American Public Works Association (APWA) has announed the theme for the 2011 National Public Works Week, which will be held May 15-21: "Public Works: Serving you and your community." During this time, APWA encourages all public works departments to take part in activities that help promote the essential role its professionals play in society. A how-to guide has been made available online to help inspire ideas for events and participation. Learn more here.;

When the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) convenes its Expo Asia 2011, two technical sessions on geosynthetics will be included. The event will be held 22-25 March 2011 at the new Marina Bay Sands Hotel and Exhibition Centre in Singapore. Session one is titled "Geosynthetic Applications for Infrastructure" and session two will be "Geosynthetic Materials for Environmental Applications." TRI/Environmental, Inc.'s Sam Allen will be the presenter.

Officials with Santee Cooper, Environmental Fabrics Inc. (EFI) and Clemson University Monday announced the construction of a new renewable energy facility, the first of its kind in South Carolina, that will generate power from methane gas captured at a Williamsburg County farm and deliver it to electric customers on the Santee Cooper system. EFI designed and built the designer.

The Thirteenth International Waste Management and Landfill Symposium (Sardinia 2011) will be held 3-7 October 2011 in Santa Margherita di Pula, Sardinia, Italy. Themes include wastewater, waste management strategies, climate change, decision tools, legislation and more. Abstracts are accepted through 15 February 2011. Learn more here.;

Friday, January 28, is the last day to book your room at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort in Orlando, Florida to receive the discounted rates available only to EC11 attendees. The Environmental Connection gatherings from the International Erosion Control Association (IECA) offer short courses, technical sessions, an exhibit hall, numerous networking opportunities, certification, and much more. EC11 will be held 20-23 February 2011. Learn more here.;

Environmental Connection 2011 (EC11), annual conference and expo of the International Erosion Control Association (IECA), brings together the industry's best and brightest for a week of industry-leading education, networking and access to the largest expo hall of its kind. The event offers short courses, technical sessions, an exhibit hall, numerous networking opportunities, certification, and much more. EC11 will be held 20-23 February 2011. The event organizers report that limited space is still available in select EC11 courses. Learn more.

Geosynthetica would like to welcome Burke Industries as our newest underwriter. Burke specializes in geomembranes that exhibit excellent weather resistance, chemical resistance, and design flexibility. As liners and covers, these geomembranes have improved water and wastewater systems, enabled dependable anaerobic gas collection for flaring or power conversion, reduced costs and increased output for industrial and aquaculture operations, and much more. Learn more about the company. Learn more here.;