June 1, 2013
A first for landfills in the southeastern United States. By Thomas B. Maier, P.E., and Stéphane Fourmont Introduction In landfill final cover systems, geocomposite drainage products are frequently used as a drainage layer above the geomembrane layer and for surficial landfill gas collection, either in strips or as a continuous layer, below the geomembrane. For …
Geosynthetics for mining waste rock and tailings. By Mark E. Smith and Christos Athanassopoulos Introduction Waste rock dumps and tailings impoundments are common features at mine sites. Many of these waste disposal facilities contain sulfide-rich minerals that generate acid mine drainage (AMD) when they oxidize in the presence of oxygen and water. Control of AMD …
April 1, 2013
Leak location survey at the Columbus Upground Reservoir (CUGR) By Abigail Beck Introduction Once construction is complete later this year, the Columbus Upground Reservoir (CUGR) will be the largest continuously-lined lagoon on the planet, nearly twice as large as the lagoon currently holding that title. The sheer enormity of the project has been compounded with …
By Tarik Hadj-Hamou and Bertrand Breul Abstract Final closures of old abandoned landfills often pose technical and logistical challenges. A small (5 hectares/12 acres) landfill created by pushing waste into a tidal wetland on the edge of Suisun Bay in Northern California was no exception. The initially proposed final cover design called for 60cm (23in.) …
October 1, 2012
Reuse and recycle By Joan A. Smyth and Stacey A. Smith Introduction The Lexington County Highway 321 landfill site was recently awarded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Region 4 Excellence in Site Reuse: Superfund Redevelopment Award. This site, located in West Columbia, S.C., contains several waste disposal areas that were active from the 1950s …
August 1, 2012
The articles in this series encompass all types of geosynthetics and their applications viewed from the context of sustainability. Traditional solutions are compared with geosynthetic solutions from both cost and carbon footprint perspectives. (from the Geosynthetic Research Institute’s 24th conference, 2011) Abstract Mechanically-stabilized earth (MSE) berms are increasingly utilized by landfill owners to efficiently create …
April 1, 2012
Closing the A&L Salvage Landfill By Kevin Harshberger, Ron Zitek, and Chris Eichelberger Introduction Description of the A&L Salvage Landfill site in rural northeastern Ohio: 400-acre site near Lisbon, Ohio, began operations in 2001. a C&D (construction and demolition) landfill with asbestos and “unrecognizable” waste—unauthorized municipal solid waste (MSW). 46 acres of waste with no …
February 1, 2012
This project, submitted by Agru America Inc., won an Outstanding Achievement Award in the 2011 International Achievement Awards(IAA) / Geosynthetics presented by the Industrial Fabrics Association International. Each project in its own special way, exhibits outstanding innovation, technical skill and design excellence. Submissions of geosynthetics projects for the 2011 International Achievement Awards are being accepted …
October 1, 2011
By Steve Roades Introduction The recently completed Upper Chiquita Reservoir in Southern California was built to provide the region with substantial new water reserves to meet customer demand during disruptions of water deliveries. These interruptions can be unanticipated—for example, the 1999 break in a primary supply pipeline—or planned, such as a shutdown of the filtration …
August 1, 2011
Geomembrane performance: Lessons learned—Part 2 By Garrett Q. Dutson Introduction This case history examines the geosynthetic construction, use, failure, and repair of an evaporation pond at an EnergySolutions facility in Clive, Utah. A high priority is placed on management of water that has contacted waste stored in this pond. A geosynthetic investigation into the root …