Special Series

Asia Miner magazine is preparing an 8 to 16-page section on mining safety with a special focus on China for an upcoming issue. Companies with geosynthetic solutions--such as for safer, more economical access roads--are invited to submit case studies or participate in interviews with the edtiorial staff of Asia Miner. More information is available here. Learn more here.;

Unlicensed asphalt batch plants used to operate in a Whitefield, Maine gravel pit. Now, a proper operation is being established with a multi-layered lining system to guard against petroleum products spills seeping into groundwater. This system includes a 60 or 80 mil geomembrane. Learn more here.;

Reliant Energy has been fined $120,000 in New Castle, Pennsylvania, for overfilling a landfill. Nearly 12 of the site's 50 acres had an overfill average of two feet. Reliant is currently in the permitting process to create new landfill space by putting a new liner system over the old waste and piggybacking. Learn more here.;

AMI is organising an international conference, Polyolefin Additives 2008. The conference will be held in Cologne, Germany from 14 - 16 April 2008. One of the major areas for discussion at the event will be polyolefin use in geomembranes and pipe. Read more about it at the "continued" link below. Learn more here.;

BCH has finished the publishing of the July-September issue of TechTex India. There is a two-page spread titled Geotextiles: Road to the Future." It is available on their website. Download the issue now. Learn more here.;

The US Senate Appropriations Committee has approved a bill that will allocate $600,000 for erosion and sediment control in the Great Lakes Basin. Next up, the bill will go to the Senate floor for a vote. The three states to benefit from the plan are New York, Minnesota and Michigan. Learn more here.;

Tensar International now offers a downloadable installation guide for its coastal and waterways erosion protection system, Triton. The technology has even been evaluated and reported on by the US Army Corps of Engineers (available at this link: http://www.tensarcorp.com/uploadedFiles/E_TRITON_TTN_CHETN_2.06.pdf). A copy of the Triton system installation guide is available at the link below. Learn more here.;

The Matanuska River Watershed Coalition has come up with an interesting way to teach residents about environmental issues including erosion control. They're holding a road rally. Learn more here.;

Casper, Wyoming is debating a new regional landfill. A standard comment period has been opened by the state's Department of Environmental Quality. Cost concerns abound, of course, particularly in a state that is in need of landfill modernization. The Casper facility aims to consolidate much of the state's waste in cells with modern linings and leachate collection layers. Comments are welcomed through August 4. Learn more here.;

Gauteng, South Africa's first eco-friendly industrial park is being developed. The South African Engineering News reports that the 90-ha project includes permeable pavers with geotextile separators over a crushed stone subbase. The base creates a 30% reservoir capacity while the geotextile filters solids from the subbase. Read about it here. Learn more here.;

GEOTALK is published by Tensar International Corporation and features articles and case studies of special interest to engineers, architects, and contractors. Read the latest issue Tensar International Corporation: Checking in at One Year. 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. Committee D35 will meet Jan. 30-Feb. 1, 2008, at the January Committee Week in Tampa, Fla. All interested parties are invited to join in the standards developing activities of D35. For membership or meeting information, contact Christine Sierk, manager, Technical Committee Operations, ASTM International (phone: 610/832-9728; csierk@astm.org). Subcommittee D35.04 on Geosynthetic Clay Liners Responding to shrinkage issues involving geosynthetic clay liners, Subcommittee D35.04 has launched work on a proposed new standard, WK12239, Test Method for Linear Dimensional Changes of Restrained Geosynthetic Clay Liners Under Cyclic Temperature and Hydration Conditions. WK12239 is an index test that covers the measurement of changes in linear dimensions of a geosynthetic clay liner that result from exposure to changes in temperature and moisture conditions over time. “The proposed standard will be used to evaluate product specific and project specific potential shrinkage for GCLs exposed to changes in moisture and temperature conditions,” says Richard Erickson, D35.04 member and senior engineer, Vector Engineering, Inc. “Potential shrinkage can then be utilized by designers and construction quality assurance monitors in compensating specified GCL overlaps to allow for anticipated GCL panel shrinkage.” Erickson says Subcommittee D35.04 would like to expand the circle of participants involved in the development of WK12239. All interested parties, particularly those from the design and construction quality control/assurance areas, are invited to join in the ongoing development of WK12239. For further technical information, contact Richard Erickson, Vector Engineering, Inc., Grass Valley, Calif. (phone: 530/272-2448; erickson@vectoreng.com). Subcommittee D35.10 on Geomembranes Subcommittee D35.10 is currently developing two proposed new standards, WK14305, Specification for Non-Reinforced PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) Geomembrane Seams, and WK14311, Guide for the Installation of Non-Reinforced Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Geomembranes. Learn more here.;

The closing date to submit articles for this edition is Friday 10 August. This is an opportunity to publicize your company to a select audience in Southern Africa as well as around the world. GIGSA News allows members to inform the specifying and buying community of their services, products, and scope of work, as well as new and innovative work being done. It is sent directly to around 1500 e-mail contacts (all of whom have shown interest in geosynthetic matters in the past). It is also posted on the International Geosynthetics Society official web page at http://www.geosyntheticssociety.org as well as the GIGSA web site at www.gigsa.org and thus receives a lot of international as well as local exposure. Please observe the following guidelines for submissions: Ensure that articles are written in a professional technical style, and avoid "puffery" (A flattering commendation - especially when used for promotional purposes). GIGSA News will either edit out any such content, or return the material to the sender. There should be no product or company name in the title of the article. However, product, company or system names may be used and their benefits described in the text. Comparisons which purport to illustrate that a given organisation, product or type of product is superior to others on the market will be returned to the submitter for modification. Articles that present design or test methods that are related to only one product will not be acceptable. Limit submissions to one A4 page in 11 point Arial font where possible (including high-quality photographs and sketches - material that does not print well, or appear well on computer screens may be rejected). Longer articles may be considered if they are considered to be particularly interesting, but there is no guarantee that there will be space for such material in any particular publication. GIGSA News is published in two-column newspaper format, and is only issued electronically in Adobe pdf format. Please take this into consideration when composing your submission, as it does affect how it will appear onscreen, and in print. Articles will be accepted on a first-come first-placed basis, and this invitation to submit material is open only to paid-up GIGSA members. Please send all material to the GIGSA News Editor at vanessa@artincentive.co.za Learn more here.;

The landfill expansion in Defiance County, Ohio continues...though some of the information reported in the Crescent-News is incorrect. The liner was installed by American Environmental Group Ltd. (AEGL) last week. AEGL reports that 23-foot-wide panels of 60-mil smooth and textured geomembranes from Agru were installed with an 8 oz. geotextile cushion and filter. The site is approximately 8.5 acres. Agru geomembrane data can also be found on geosindex.com. Learn more here.;

According to Performance Materials, "Huntsman Corp has announced that it has terminated its merger agreement with Basell AF dated June 26, 2007 and has agreed to a definitive merger agreement with Hexion Specialty Chemicals Inc. The Hexion/Huntsman transaction will have a total value of approximately $10.6 billion." Read the full announcement on Performance Materials' site. Learn more here.;

To judge by normal press coverage, the general public is not well informed about landfill engineering; and reporters are not doing a tremendous amount to change that. The Middle Point Landfill in Murfreesboro, Tennessee has been found to have some radiation in leachate. The Daily News Journal's latest coverage includes public comments that question the safety of liners and a consulting engineering given numerous quotes questioning the exactness of designs and materials selected for them. Learn more here.;

The US Environmental Protection Agency and global corporation General Electric have come to an agreement on reducing public exposure to PCBs in the Hudson River. Where flooding has caused PCB contamination of properties, geotextile liners will be installed with fill placed above. Read more in the Post-Star. Learn more here.;

Columnist Neil Sperry has recommended pond liners in trenches as one method of deterring the spread of roots towards structures. He also recommends barriers. Firestone (pond liners) and Fiberweb (barriers) are a few ready providers of these materials down to a residential scale. Learn more here.;

Erosion Control Blanket has added another four products to geosindex.com! To see the data, visit the Temporary Erosion Control Products page. Learn more here.;

Are we making progress in the use of geosynthetics? Of course we are, but one wonders when a recent specification for an 80 mil HDPE liner required the following: factory fabrication of large panels; 1.5 in. wide welds; welding right to the edge of the overlap; air lance testing of seams; ASTM D1693 stress crack testing; no shear elongation and no peel separation for seam tests; no frequency requirement for destructive seam tests; no requirement for number of seam specimens passing for sample passing; full scale hydrostatic leak test with water loss of < 0.062 in. in 7 days. Obviously, there's still a great need for education and knowledge transfer.

1st Vice Chairman and Chairman Elect - Peter McKernan, 2nd Vice Chairman - Kevin Yonce, Directors - David Clarke (TenCate Geosynthetics), Faith Roberts and Joey Underwood. Independent nominations close August 15, contact IFAI for more information. Learn more here.;

A former Fulton County, Georgia erosion control inspector has been indicted on bribery charges. Three times in 2007 the inspector, Don Mitchell, a 10-year veteran, sought and received money from a contractor whose site he was inspecting. Mitchell now may face prison time and a $250,000 fine. And what did he get in exchange? Two payments of $1000 and a $100 gift certificate to Red Lobster. Learn more here.;

New York State's landfill design and operation codes are perhaps the strictest in the United States, but that doesn't guarantee success. Albany's landfill was plagued by poor gas management that prompted plenty of complaints. Suddenly, at the peak of summer, residents are realizing the landfill no longer stinks. A plastic liner and clay cover is being installed. Even the Colonie village mayor--appropriately named Frank Leak--has conceded there has been a favorable change. Learn more here.;

From the Denver Post comes an interesting article about leaking CO2 pipes in Sand Canyon. The leaking gas condenses and forms dry ice around the aged, cracking pipeline within ancient Pueblo ruins. The corporation that manages the CO2 line has been making repairs gradually, but the degradation has outpaced them. Last year a holding pond was cleaned up and a new liner installed. A great deal more is needed. Learn more here.;

In Malsch, Germany, the site of a closed hazardous waste landfill has been converted into a solar power farm. The facility has been designed as part of a carbon-reduction plan. It's expected capacity is roughly 590,000 kilowatt hours per year. Learn more here.;