Containment

Southern California Edison is dropping the level of Shaver Lake to 73 feet below the dam's spill level, in order to expedite its two-year dam maintenance project. The utility is resurfacing the 83-year-old concrete dam with a geomembrane liner designed to prolong the dam's life and prevent leakage. Learn more here.;

The latest issue of GIGSA News from the Geosynthetics Interest Group of South Africa is available. This issue includes stories on geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs), GIGSA Award Winners, a GeoAfrica 2009 report, liquid geosynthetics, GCLs in landfill applications, what not to do with GCLs, and indext testing. GIGSA is the South Africa Chapter of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). Read the issue in PDF here.

By Chris Kelsey - On September 26, immediately following the 10th International Conference on Geosynthetics (10 ICG), a high-level, one-day workshop on HDPE geomembranes convened at the headquarters of BAM,...

Orewa Beach Reef project near Auckland is progressing. Funding is being obtained steadily for the off-shore, geotextile-based artificial reef that will be constructed to stem erosion of the beach. Project supporters cite the success of other installations in Australia and New Zealand and even the acceptance and successful use of geotextile tubes in Florida. Learn more here.;

The Indonesian island of Bali is one of the world’s most well-known tourist destinations. It provides critical economic vitality to the province, with tourism accounting for more than 70%...

The Shaw Group Inc. today announced it has been awarded a five-year Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity Multiple Award Construction Contract by the U.S. Department of Defense for construction services at Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) installations throughout California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado. Shaw is one of eight contractors selected to compete on task orders under this contract for design, construction, supervision, equipment, materials, labor and delivery of facilities, including outdoor shooting and combat training ranges. These facilities require construction of canals and channels, dams and embankments, landfill and erosion control, irrigation and landscaping, as well as recreational fields and parks.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 has settled with Usher Enterprises Inc. of Detroit, Mich., for alleged violations of federal hazardous waste regulations at two of its oil recycling facilities. EPA's administrative order requires the company to spend $700,000 to upgrade two of its facilities by installing new tanks, upgrading secondary containment, and decontaminating and testing the integrity of other tanks.

On Tuesday, 3 November, our engineer colleagues and friends Gaye Sprague and John Paulson were elected to their city councils. At a time when so much of American government is debating infrastructure, it seems especially relevant and important to have civil engineers serve in office. Read about them here.

ASTM Interntional Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has established work item WK29397, "Standard Practice for Exposure and Retrieval of Samples to Evaluate Installation Damage of Geosynthetics." It is a work item revision to existing standard D5818-06. After the winter meeting in San Antonio it was voted to make modifications on section 7.1.7 of the standard. This ballot ONLY changes the existing paragraph to a clearer paragraph. Learn more here.;

The 7th Asian Regional Conference on Geosynthetics, GeoAsia 7, has proactively moved its dates from March to 22 – 26 November 2021. Conference chair, Prof. Chiwan Wayne Hsieh, posted...

Abu Dhabi's National Marine Dredging Co or NMDC, said Monday it won a 1.5 billion U.A.E. dirham ($408.7 million) contract to build a 63.5-kilometer canal in the U.A.E.'s largest emirate. The Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council, or UPC, awarded NMDC the contract to construct Mussafah canal, which will play an important role in the development of Mussafah Industrial City. Learn more here.;

Geofabrics Australasia Pty Ltd has been named the exclusive distributor for Concrete Canvas Ltd.’s Concrete Canvas® Geosynthetic Cementitious Composite Mat products in Australia and New Zealand. Concrete Canvas is a...

The Industrial Fabrics Association International's (IFAI) annual International Achievement Awards (IAA) competition is accepting submissions through 15 June 2009. Among the 28 entry categories, you'll find "Geosynthetics." One change to this year's competition is an entry fee, but it is a nominal fee. We encourage you to look into this event and share your projects and experience with the larger industry. Need help with preparing your submission or writing about your project? Contact the writers and editors at geosynthetica.net. Download the competition PDF. Learn more here.;

This year, the Cities of Opportunity report (now in its fourth edition) covers 26 cities and presents in-depth results covering 10 key indicators and 66 variables, examines issues such as transportation and sustainability, and adds insight from major urban thinkers and influencers. Download Cities of Opportunity 2011 (PDF).

The Asia Mining Congress 2010 has announced its speaker list: Donald Lindsay, CEO, Teck, Canada; Sam Walsh, CEO, Rio Tinto Iron Ore, Australia; Nagi Hamiyeh, Managing Director -Investment, Temasek Holdings, Singapore; Fabio Barbosa, CFO, Vale, Brazil; and Ian Pearce CEO, Xstrata Nickel, Canada. Learn more about this event from Terrapinn at the conference website. Learn more here.;

Ian Peggs has written a tech note about the consistency and specification of textured geomembrane, a concern expressed at the recent GRI-19 conference by both a geomembrane manufacturer (Boyd Ramsey, GSE) and a CQA firm (Mark Sieracke, STS) - the general consensus being that asperity height is not sufficient to assure adequate interface shear properties.

The long-running Geosynthetics Conference from IFAI and the Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) was able to hold its event in person in 2020, with its early-year position. But in 2021,...

By Fumio Tatsuoka - The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) will grant IGS Awards in 2014 to individuals or groups of individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the development...

A creosote-contaminated soil berm at a school in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Canada has been remediated with the placement of a geotextile separation layer and clean soil. The Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST) contained the area in 2007 after the forest products-polluted soil was discovered. Learn more here.;

The Business Coordination House (BCH) in India has released its latest quarterly newsletter. The wide-ranging issues include finding your product and service demand in the Indian market, Indian GDP, news of a forthcoming geotextile workshop, and much more. Download a copy here.

International geosynthetics manufacturer HUESKER has announced a new social media initiative. Andreas Elsing, Product and Marketing Manager at HUESKER notes that the company does not initially intend to focus on any exclusive content to its social media channels, but like many businesses will utilize social media for additional communication opportunities with its global customer base. Learn more.

AGRU America’s podcast series explores geosynthetic applications and polymeric material advances that beneficially influence the performance of infrastructure. The latest episode finds Cody Miles discussing geosynthetics in aquaculture. (Listen...

In the fall of 2010, as a part of a training day in South Carolina for an International Erosion Control Association (IECA) state group, videographer Chelsea Thompson conducted interviews and captured footage of full-scale erosion and sediment control testing procedures at TRI Environmental's Denver Downs Research Facility (DDRF) in Anderson, South Carolina. Those videos have now been uploaded for open access online. The nine videos in the series address performance issues associated sediment retention devices (SRDs), including silt fence, ASTM D 7351 toe-of-slope testing, curb inlet filters along gutter lines, turbidity treatments, inlet filters for area inlets, ASTM D 6459 slope testing, sediment traps and baffles, sediment bags, and ASTM D 7208 check structure testing in trapezoidal channels.

The value of construction in emerging countries will more than double in the next 11 years according to Global Construction 2020, a new report from Global Construction Perspectives and Oxford Economics. Global construction output is expected to increase +70% overall, with mature countries' output rising +35%, compared to the +110% rise forecast in the developing world. Learn more here.;

The City of Snohomish currently operates two inground reservoirs that supply domestic water to the south zone of the City. MPC Containment will soon begin installation work on a new floating cover for one of the floating reservoirs. Exposed geomembranes, while serving a tremenedous purpose on exposed cap applications, can be considered long-term solutions but should never be considered permanent fixtures. Monitor the cover for its integrity. Be prepared for the possibility of replacement…just as you need to be for asphalt, concrete, and other construction materials! Learn more here.;