Special Series

Earlier this month, Nonwovens Industry launched its new website. The new site offers a strong visual redesign, and several important new services. Also available is Nonwoven Industry's 2007 International Buyers' Guide (38th annual edition) which lists nearly every supplier and producer of nonwovens around the globe. Learn more here.;

The Rooney Landfill in Jefferson County, Colordao has been closed for many years, but improvements were needed ahead of site reuse plans. A geosynthetic clay liner (GCL) capping system was installed and above that artificial turf soccer fields were constructed. The $2.9 million project is detailed in the current Rocky Mountain Construction. Learn more here.;

July 2007 Technical Region Board of Governors Meeting: On July 13 the Technical Region Board of Governors (TRBG) met in the Hotel Pontchartrain in Detroit. The following is a summary of subjects discussed and actions taken. Learn more here.;

The city of Los Alamos, New Mexico, famous for the work performed there regarding the development of nuclear weapons, had a scare regarding a soil spill. The contaminated soil was being transported from its site to a disposal facility. When the truck arrived, workers discovered a tear in the fabric in which the radioactive soils had been wrapped. The soils came from what is known as Site TA-21. Plutonium was the focus of the former production site's work. To read more on Site TA-21, cut and paste the following URL into your browser: http://www.lanl.gov/environment/cleanup/ta21.shtml Learn more here.;

The United States military is repairing the face of rain-eroded hillsides in Okinawa with soil nails and erosion control fabrics. An article by Lance Cpl. Richard Blumenstein at the Marines' Okinawa website describes the work at Camp Gocsalves. Learn more here.;

Northern California may soon see a new Drexel University campus. The possible site would be near Sacramento. Read more in the Philadelphia Business Journal. Learn more here.;

The Wilton, Connecticut area is soon to remediate the land on which a wire mill once operated. The state's Department of Environmental Protection has not fully approved the plan, which will include geosynthetic capping, but has cleared the land development company to present their plan to the public and receive comment. Read more in the Wilton Bulletin. Learn more here.;

With the help of an obsessed contractor and a flexible liner (Most likely EPDM), homeowners in Turkey have established what they believe is the country's first "natural swimming pool." The system does not use chlorine. Instead, plants are used to filter the algae. Learn more here.;

The Ontario Waste Management Association (OWMA) and the Ontario Chapter of the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) are coordinating a two-day tour of Ontario and Quebec waste facilities. The visits will include Energy from Waste (EFW) operations, modern geosynthetic-lined landfills and bioreactor landfills. The tours will take place September 25 and 26. For more information, see the release at Solid Waste & Recycling. Learn more here.;

According to the European nonwovens association EDANA, the production of nonwovens in Europe grew around 6.5% in 2006 to reach 1,494,000 tons. This includes an 11.3% growth in the nonwoven geotextiles market. More figures are available in the release. Learn more here.;

The latest issue of the journal Waste Management & Research includes Geoffrey E. Blight's article "Failures During Construction of a Landfill Lining: a Case Analysis." The paper addresses a particular site's tension failures that resulted from changes in the sequence of construction. Access to the article is by subscription or a single-day online access (fee applies). Learn more here.;

The Philo/Duncan Falls Bridge in Zanesville, Ohio will be closed for two days for repaving and the installation of paving fabric. Road fabrics, whether fabric interlayers or geotextiles or geogrids for subgrade support and separation, have consistently been shown to extend the service life of roads and reduce maintenance costs, particularly those associated with reflective cracking. Learn more here.;

A concrete retaining wall at a development near San Diego collapsed atop a construction worker. The worker suffered numerous injuries but has survived and is recovering. San Diego's NBC television affiliate has sought comment from the wall-building firm but has received none. Images of the collapse have been posted here. Learn more here.;

Fissures continue to plague Arizona roadways. Last year it took geogrid installed along a 900-foot stretch of cracking earth to stabilize a heavily traveled road. But other roads in that project's vacinity are experiencing fissures and might benefit from a similar stabilization design. Learn more here.;

In British Columbia along the Nechako River, one community saved itself from considerable flooding damage by purchasing and installing 10-km of gabion dikes. The gabions were lined with geotextile. While the community spent roughly $1.5 million for them, the estimated property damage and repair would have exceeded the investment. Also, the system can be reused. Learn more here.;

GSE Lining Technologies has now posted informational videos on YouTube. Use of YouTube certainly does not replace GSE's main website, but it does give another form of easy access to short videos on conductive geomembranes, GundSeal, StudLiner and more. A suite of five videos is available at the link below and three more are available by cutting and pasting this URL into your browser http://youtube.com/profile_videos?user=ossadef&p=r Learn more here.;

Triple-digit temperatures and 40,000 daily cars have added more than a bit of character to the $11 million Maple Grove Road widening project in Boise. But crews have moved steadily forth. A geotextile is being placed for subgrade stability and will be followed by 4-inch minus gravel and plant-mixed asphalt. For more, read the article in Pacific Builder and Engineer. Learn more here.;

Harrison Township, New Jersey's old landfill is being capped for environmental safety, and the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has approved the work. Still, the capping methods have become an election matter. At issue is the use of non-residential-grade soil cover. But the contractor is progressing and the DEP's monitoring indicates that this is a safe approach. A geosynthetic cap will be installed next. Learn more here.;

In La Jolla near San Diego, a homeowners association has charged each of its residents $4000 to begin immediate, emergency erosion control measures. The upfront $2.4 million job aims to install numerous pipes and import and stabilize 80,000 cubic yards of soil to correct the current stormwater runoff scheme that has caused such severe erosion in the canyon. Even though the city has been found to be at fault, it will require further lawsuits to reimburse the association members. Learn more here.;

Congratulations are due for Leon Alexander. The Arkansas Wildlife Foundation is presenting him with an award for his two-year campaign to stop runoff from the Overlook Estates development (previously reported on here). Alexander brought the violations to the attention of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ). After the site was finally put in compliance, the county established a rule requiring proof from developers of ADEQ approval. Learn more here.;

Contractors in the Bowling Green, Kentucky area are preparing for fines to replace warnings when their erosion and sediment control practices are not up to snuff. The education period is over. Officials are now ready to make stormwater code compliance and issue with teeth and tickets. Learn more here.;

"Three subcommittees of ASTM International Committee D35 on Geosynthetics are currently developing several proposed new standards. The topics covered in the following proposed standards are geosynthetic clay liners, geomembranes, and the development of a mechanistic-empirical design guide for pavements." Learn more here.;

The 59th Montgomery County Agricultural Fair will take place in Maryland soon. Fair organizers are responding to changing county demographics and issues with events. Included in this year's activities: erosion and sediment control education. Learn more here.;

The Philippines-based News Today features an article on university student Jacel Temblador. Ms. Temblador is working towards being named a Bayer Young Environmental Envoy, and to do so is promoting the use of coco geotextiles for sustainable development. Her project uses recycled coco husks. They are being transformed into coco textiles and installed as blankets for erosion control along a river. Learn more here.;

The Daily Sentinel newspaper from Nacogdoches, Texas reports at the very end of an electronic sign ordinance article that commissioners also approved funding for the next phase of landfill capping. Without full details, though, it's difficult to know why they've approved a soil-only cover when geomembranes had previously been used. Looks like the self-titled "Oldest Town in Texas" is using the oldest possible landfill design. Learn more here.;