The Association of Geohazard Professionals (AGHP) is a new professional association that has emerged to serve and promote an engineering sector that has been largely unsupported in the United States. With a steadily growing membership base, the association has now advanced to opening geohazard committees for member participation. Current committees and chairs include: Education Committee - Chaired by William F. Kane...

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 to establish and recognize the two organizations’ common interests in order to commit to working together to advance the mutual interest, mission and objectives of each organization. Specifically, each organization agrees to...

The biennial Global Waste Management Symposium will be held 22 – 24 June 2014 in Orlando Florida. GWMS 2014, organized by Penton, offers a strong international perspective on waste management best practices, research, construction, and new technologies. More than 100 presentations will be delivered over the three day event, covering topics such as capping and closure, waste cell design,...

Following the historic and overwhelmingly bipartisan passage in the US House and Senate of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA), Geosynthetica’s Chris Kelsey talked to Boyd Ramsey, GSE Environmental’s Chief Engineer and the Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) Executive Council Chairman. GMA's lobbying efforts over the past seven years—the period of time it took for a new water...

The effort to get geosynthetics specifically mentioned in the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) extends back many years. It began, in fact, roughly seven years ago following the passage of the last major water resource bill. The Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) had drafted a strategic plan in 2004 that identified a need for a stronger voice at...

On May 22, the US Senate passed the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA). The $12.3 billion conference report, passed by the House on May 20, enjoyed staggeringly strong bi-partisan support (91 – 7 in Senate, 412 – 4 in House). It will now go to President Obama’s desk to be signed into law. Of note: the bill...

The human and infrastructure devastation inflicted by 2005’s Hurricane Katrina has led to years of levee design revisions and reconstructions in the New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) region. The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has been the principal driver of these projects, and geosynthetics have played new and significant roles. For the 5.2-mile-long “Levee 111” project, which borders...

Senator Boxer's Floor Statement on the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 (WRRDA) (Remarks as prepared for delivery) I am so pleased that the bipartisan conference agreement on the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 (WRRDA) is before the Senate today following yesterday's overwhelming and bipartisan approval in the House of Representatives by a vote of 412-4....

Washington, D.C. -- Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, and EPW Ranking Member, Senator David Vitter (R-LA), issued the following statement after the Senate voted 91 to 7 to adopt the Senate-House conference report for the Water Resources and Reform Development Act of 2014 (WRRDA). The House of Representatives passed the measure Tuesday...

(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Sen. David Vitter, the lead Senate Republican negotiator for the Water Resources Reform & Development Act (WRRDA), today announced that it passed 91-7. "This is a huge win for Louisiana that will provide significant coastal restoration, hurricane and flood protection, reforms to the Corps, accelerated projects, and of course, jobs," Vitter said. "It’s easily one of...