Special Series

In the Netherlands several management systems are under development that will help organisations and authorities to make the right decision at the right time. These systems are able to predict situations based on experience and artificial intelligence. Deltares is offering a three-day course 17-19 November 2009 on "Understanding Dike Safety." A focus is placed on understanding failure, predicting it, and monitoring installations. Learn more here.;

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said today that cleanup of arsenic-contaminated soil at nearly 500 South Minneapolis homes will begin after Labor Day. This project is supported by $20 million in funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Residents pay nothing for the cleanup. From 2004 to 2008, an EPA Superfund team cleaned up 197 properties with arsenic levels above 95 parts per million, or ppm., at the South Minneapolis Residential Soil Contamination Site The work beginning in September targets properties with lower levels of contamination. Read more.

Following the recent contract for the US Army range at Fort Jackson, J & S Franklin will once again be demonstrating DefenCell, a multi-purpose force protection system at this years' Defence Systems & Equipment International (DSEi09) which will be held at Excel London from the 8th to the 11th September 2009. Read more. Learn more here.;

A fire broke out on the night of August 2 at a facility formerly used by Ten Cate Nicolon. The Tencate name is well known globally for geosynthetics. Water from the Almelo-Nordhorn Canal has been used to calm the blaze, which crews expected to burn into mid-day on August 3. The cause of the fire is being investigated. (Article in Dutch.) Learn more here.;

More from the Dutch news regarding the fire that broke out on the night of August 2 at a facility formerly used by Ten Cate Nicolon. Learn more here.;

The International Erosion Control Association (IECA) publishes a members-only newsletter titled Environmental Connection. The July education e-newsletter update from IECA includes part 2 of 2 in the "Best of…" series from Environmental Connection. Read a sample here. Learn more here.;

CONSTRUCT2010, in conjunction with the 54th CSI Annual Convention and co-located with The TFM Show, will be held 11-14 May 2010 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A Call for Presentations has been announced for CONSTRUCT, which has established itself as a leading source in providing quality education to the commercial building industry. Presentations are sought. DEADLINE: 27 July 2009. Read more.

Approximately 50 people from North America, the United Kingdom, Austria, Spain and Norway, attended Applied Market Information's (AMI) "Plastics in Underground Pipe 2009" conference in Orlando, Florida on 6 and 7 May. Pipe conferences are invariably good events to learn about the performance characteristics of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) for extension to geomembranes and other geosynthetics. This conference was no exception.

UK-based New Civil Engineer reports that a veteran geotechnical and geosynthetic expert, Peter Rankilor, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison on child abuse charges. The charges stem from incidents between 1980 and 1996. Learn more here.;

India's Ministry of Water Resources (MoWR) is putting forth geotextile tube-based erosion control pilot projects. Five kilometers of embankments are being reconstructed with the tubes. Flood damage and breaches in the Lakhimpur district have prompted the government to seek these new technology solutions. If successful, the geotextile tube strategy will be incorporated in other flood-prone areas. Learn more here.;

Applied Market Information (AMI) has produced a new market study on the global polyethylene film market in order to assist companies in making key investment and marketing decisions which can enhance the performance of their company. "The Global Market for Polyethylene Film Products: Market development and the evolution of trade" forecasts through 2012. It is available at a 10% discount for orders placed by 31 January 2009. Read more in the release.

United Kingdom-based WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) has announced a new programme of work on what it's calling "Geosystems" – a holistic approach to reducing cost, carbon and landfilling. The plan, still in need of many details, intends to benefit the entire construction supply chain. Case studies and technology suggestions are welcomed by Capita Symonds, which is conducting a supporting study for WRAP. Learn more.

In Souderton Borough, Pennsylvania, Richard Halbom, 55, has been appointed to fill a vacant seat on the local council. Halbom is a construction contractor with Coopersburg-based Environmental Geosynthetics Inc. We wish him well on his new civic role. Learn more here.;

Over at Environmental-Expert, a review of Messe Frankfurt's Eco Expo Asia 2008 has been published. Messe Frankfurt is the organizer of the Techtextil conferences (in Germany and North America) and the recent Canadian Waste & Recycling Expo in Canada. Learn more here.;

The A to Z of Materials (AZOM) website has published an account of the global waterproofing membranes industry from Russia to the Middle East, including market information revealed at the recent Waterproof Membranes 2008 event in Cologne, Germany. Learn more here.;

The Outdoor Fabric Products Association of New Zealand (OFPANZ) has joined the America-based Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI). Among OFPANZ's members' diverse interests, one will find agricultural and transportation-related products. Learn more here.;

Building on the success of the first Advanced Textiles conference in June 2008, and the endorsement of the international audience, Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) has announced a second conference to be held 2-3 April 2009 in Brussels, Belgium. For Advanced Textiles '09,IFAI will partner with Brussels-based association Fedustria.

Three new plants that will have a combined capacity of 1300 kt of polyolefins per year are to be built at Karabatan in Kazakhstan by Kazakhstan Petrochemical Industries Inc LLP. The plants are based on LyondellBasell’s PE and PP technologies. Learn more here.;

A link to the Associated Press article referenced in geosynthetica's 24 September 2008 news item "Animal Waste Debate." Learn more here.;

The EPA has updated the Superfund's National Priorities List (NPL) with 6 new sites and 11 proposed sites.

A private residential development's wall collapse in Saugus, Massachusetts sent nearly a ton of stone crashing down a 70-foot slope. Investigators have found that bad stone blocks--rejects from the Big Dig--were used, and some of the geogrid reinforcement was installed in the wrong direction. Learn more here.;

Shares of Royal Ten Cate, the Netherlands-based parent company of TenCate Geosynthetics in North America, have been promoted to the MidKap Index in Amsterdam. Royal Ten Cate is one of only a handful of companies the AMX invited to the index after spots opened due to company mergers. AMX is part of NYSE Euronext. Learn more here.;

Netherlands-based Royal Ten Cate--of which TenCate Geosynthetics in North America is part--has reported significant growth for 2008. Learn more here.;

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