Coffey Managing Director John Douglas has been listed amongst the most influential engineers in Engineers Australia's annual Top 100 publication. Mr Douglas was recognised in the Consulting category, alongside the Managing Directors from SKM, Worley Parsons, Parson's Brinkerhoff and Arup Australia. Coffey businesses include strong activity in mining, environmental and geotechnical engineering, including with geosynthetics.

ASTM Internnational Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has announced work item WK38128, Guide for Identification, Packaging, Handling, Storage and Deployment of Fabricated Geomembrane Panels. The title and scope are in draft form and are under development within this ASTM Committee (D35.10 - Geomembranes). Learn more here.;

The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) has published the second 2012 issue of its IGS News. Issue 28, Volume 2 is packed with content, including the 2012 - 2016 Election Candidate Profiles & Election Schedule for the IGS Council, a profile of the IGS Council (geographical and professional composition), a "Filtration User" survey, translation of the Society's key mathematical symbols document, a GeoAmericas 2012 conference report, Dennes Bergado's retirement symposium (on climate change and geosynthetics) and much more. Read the issue here (PDF).

ASTM Committee D18 on Soil and Rock has announced work item WK38062, Revision of D6459 - 11, Standard Test Method for Determination of Rolled Erosion Control Product (RECP) Performance in Protecting Hillslopes from Rainfall-Induced Erosion. The balloted issue regards revising issues associated with Note 7 in the standard. Note 7 reads: "Distribution of rain drop size and intensity over the plot may affect results and needs to be evaluated on a case-specific basis." Learn more here.;

CETCO Lining Technologies has announced the official release of three new product lines in its GCL portfolio. The names of the new product lines are InterLoK, Resistex and Continuum. Each product features a unique engineered clay technology designed by the research and development team at CETCO to enhance the permeability and/or chemical resistance. InterLoK, Resistex, and Continuum GCLs are now available in the U.S. with an expected release in Europe later this year.

On June 28, Senators Daniel Akaka (D-HI) and John Boozman (R-AR) introduced the National Dam Safety Act of 2012, which would reauthorize the National Dam Safety Program (NDSP), first authorized through the Water Resources Development Act of 1996. The NDSP focuses on the safety of the nation's dams by providing vital support for the 50 state dam safety programs. Forty-nine states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico have established state dam safety programs; Alabama is the lone exception.

Dan Rohe, president of Environmental Protection, Inc. will present information on the use of PVC geomembranes at the Colombian Mining Conference 2012, to be held in Santa Marta, Colombia from July 17 to 19. The conference is the 9th version of the Intersectoral Mining Congress in South America. Conference topics will include items such as new port developments for mining in Colombia, the Infrastructure on the TLC (river), environmental impact analysis vs the growth of the national economy through mining, and the new mining code, among others. Santa Marta is the only port on the Colombian Caribbean that has rail service, which interfaces with the Interior Andino, the valley of the Magdalena and the Cesar coal zone.

GSE Environmental's "Geosynthetics for Success" Technical Seminar Series returns with two dates in August and another in October. These events bring top-tier speakers together on major engineering topics, new technologies, new designs and more. For attendees, it is an opportunity not only to learn about the latest regulations and engineering approaches but advances in geosynthetic technologies that are helping make some applications possible and others more economical and sustainable. Professional development credits are also available for attendees. In August, the technical seminar series will arrive in Australia, first in Perth (August 7) and then in Brisbane (August 9). In October, the seminar returns to the USA for a session in Chantilly, Virgina. Learn more.

Manasanat's Mohammad Reza Ashgbousi has provided us with some notes on the use of geotextile tubes to stabilize the harbor front at Bandar-e Anazali along Iran's Caspian Sea coastline. The sea's rise in the late 1970s has led to decades of hard armor coastal protection strategies and land reclamation operations; but the cost of hard armor has risen sharply. Here, they've incorporated geotextile tubes for the first time and found them to be an excellent solution. Read about the project.

Colorado Lining International, Inc and Castagra Products, Inc. have paired up to bring the containment industry an environmental benign containment solution to market using a safe, non-toxic, vegetable oil based plastic that has a 20-year pedigree of protecting ships and concrete structures. The Ecodur Spray Liner System is also a solvent free spray-on liner system comprised completely of natural products with no harmful manufacturing emissions. It is NSF 61 Certified as a product suitable for use in drinking water storage tanks, piping systems and related structures and surfaces as a lining or coating. Uses include secondary fuel containment, tank linings and coatings, waste water treatment, landscape water containment, fuel storage, and pipeline secondary containment. Learn more.