Soil Reinforcement

DENVER, Colo. – 29 May 2014 – The International Erosion Control Association Region One (IECA) and the Water Environment Federation (WEF) announce their new memorandum of understanding. The purpose of this agreement is...

St. Patrick's Day 2009 (March 17) is also the next Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) Lobby Day. This important annual event brings industry, lobbyists, government agency representatives and Congressional offices and committees together. With important water, coal ash management, and transportation issues to address (and in the context of an economic crisis sorely in need of infrastructure spending), this year's event holds great importance. Read an invitation from GMA Executive Director Andrew Aho and learn about how to be part of this gathering.

Polymeric Marine Mattresses (PMM) are compartmental structures composed of a high density, flexible, UV stabilized, extruded geogrid specifically developed for the demanding performance required in coastal and marine applications. On...

ATLANTA – Nov. 24, 2014 – Tensar International, the global leader in geosynthetic construction technology, recently appointed Mike Lawrence as Executive Vice President of the Americas. Lawrence will spearhead...

The geogrid-supported road redesign project in Ann Arbor, Michigan that was reported here a couple months ago has been completed. The $3.7 million, 1.3-mile-long Huron River Drive project adopted geogrid reinforcement so that the base could be shallower. This minimized slope disturbance during construction along the scenic route. Learn more here.;

In its latest animation, TenCate Geosynthetics profiles how road building with geosynthetics can extend service lives up to 10x. The 1 minute, 37 second video shows design with TenCate...

APWA's Sustainability in Public Works Conference offers a meeting place for professionals in both the public and private sectors for the sharing of innovative ideas in sustainability. With the industry's newest processes and technologies available at this event, attending can prove to be a truly important investment in your community's (or business's) future. The event takes place 27-29 June 2011 in Portland, Oregon. A discounted registration rate is available through May 27. Learn more here.;

Korea’s attempt to wrest 28,300-hectares of new land from the Yellow Sea has reached a major milestone 40 years after it was first proposed by former President Park Chung Hee. Four giant sea walls, 33 kilometers (20.1 miles) long, now surround the coastal areas of Gunsan City, Gimje City and Buan County in South Jeolla province, creating a massive sea water pool nearly two thirds of the size of Seoul. Over the next decade, the water will be gradually drained and filled in with sand, creating land for farming and development, and an 11,800 hectare fresh water reservoir. Learn more here.;

The International Erosion Control Association Region One reminds the engineering community that abstracts for the 2018 IECA Conference and Exhibition are due May 31. The 2018 IECA conference will be held...

Demand for geosynthetics in the US is expected to increase 7.7 percent annually to $2.9 billion in 2015. This rate is an acceleration over the gains posted from 2005 to 2010 given that sales of certain types of geosynthetics were sharply restrained during the recession that occurred in the latter half of that period. Funds made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, however, helped mitigate the recessionary effects and spurred sales in 2010.

Tensar International Corporation has increased prices for its subgrade improvement and road base reinforcement geogrid products globally. The increase, effective February 15, has been implemented to partially offset significantly higher polymer raw material costs. Global cost of polypropylene is affected by a complex combination of factors. The base monomer, propylene, is a byproduct of both ethylene and gasoline production. These two processes account for over 90% of propylene production. Crude oil and natural gas prices, global cracking capacity and demand for gasoline and ethylene all have major impact on propylene availability and cost.

The massive American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is having a considerable (and beneficial) impact on construction markets and the environment. Few projects are so ready to be tackled than those on the National Priorities List (NPL)—aka, Superfund projects—and more proactive environmental management designs. The effect of this is certainly being felt in the geosynthetics industry, which provides many of the vital containment, reinforcement and erosion control technologies that these environmentally sensitive and environmentally damaged sites need. (Continued.)

The Crestmoor Canyon area near San Francisco is recovering from the early September natural gas blast the killed 8 people and burned almost 40 homes. The homes that survived the fire are now threatened by steep slope erosion. Engineers are racing the impending autumn rains to provide basic erosion control stability to the exposed slope, followed by plans to rebuild retaining walls and other reinforcement measures destroyed in the fire. Learn more here.;

Syntec has announced the introduction of its new line of integrally formed biaxial and uniaxial geogrids. Syntec SBX biaxial geogrids are made of polypropylene (PP) using punched and drawn technology. The company's UX-S and UX-W series of uniaxial geogrids are produced of high density polyethylene (HDPE) with the same technology.

The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) has created a new lecture series. The LMNS Lecture honors four of the organizers of the 1st International Conference on Geosynthetics (1 ICG): E....

The cost of protecting Reliance Industries Ltd.’s debt from default rose after the refiner and energy explorer controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani bid for bankrupt chemicals and fuels maker LyondellBasell Industries AF. Learn more here.;

Founded in 1998, Taian Modern Plastic (TMP) in China has grown quickly. It now claims to be the largest geogrid manufacturer in the world, with roughly 80 million sq. yds. delivered each year. A short profile has been published at the Construction News Portal. Learn more here.;

Charlotte, North Carolina-based HUESKER continues its annual series of high-level networking and geosynthetics discussions with GeoForum Charlotte 2018. The event will be held 17 – 19 October 2018 in Charlotte, with...

The Minnesota Erosion Control Association's (MECA) 23rd Annual Erosion Control and Stormwater Management Conference and Trade Show will be held 3-4 March 2011 at the Radisson Hotel and Conference Center in Plymouth, Minnesota. The event will feature special pre-conference training opportunities and two days of expert presentations on local projects, stormwater management, innovative products, and more. Register by February 1 for a discounted rate. Learn more at MECA's website. Learn more here.;

It is seldom that one finds wick drains mentioned in the popular media, but the Southeast Missourian has "unearthed" them for its readers. The $180 million widening project of US Highway 67 has involved significant soil consolidation in parts of Missouri. One zone has used 1,200 wick drains to dry out a zone enough to safely construct an elevated road. The area had experienced flooding over the road as recently as 2002. Learn more here.;

The HUESKER Group, with its corporate head office in Gescher, Westphalia, Germany, was expanded on 1 October 2013 through a new subsidiary in Moscow, Russia. As one of the...

The International Conferences on Geosynthetics are of particular importance. Every four years these conferences provide a remarkable forum for geosynthetic knowledge. The 10th ICG (www.10icg-berlin.com), taking place at the ESTREL CONVENTION CENTRE...

On Monday, March 14, Kent von Maubeuge (NAUE) and Joerg Klompmaker (BBG) will present on "New Developments for Geogrid Reinforced Base Courses." The presentation will examine the complex summary of properties which contribute to the reinforcment of pavements, describe the mechanisitic-empirical design method (supported by experimental data), and provide the audience with a tangible reference to existing information, including comparison to the Giroud and Noiray (1981) design method. Catch it between 1:30-3:00 pm in the Geosynthetic Reinforcement Mechanisms in Pavement Stabilization track. Learn more here.;

While the term "best management practice" (or, BMP) may be misleading, especially since agencies from town to town may disagree on which BMPs are acceptable--that is, which are actually "best"--erosion control is clearly of need. You can see this on a very large scale around Las Vegas. The Review Journal looks back at 10 years of major erosion control and bank stabilization projects and how sediment loads have been reduced by 75%, 38,000 native plants have returned, more than 100 species have returned, and much more. Learn more here.;

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,...