A forty-year anniversary for the first hardbound book on geosynthetics

October 1, 2019  |  GSI News

By Robert M. Koerner In the late 1970s, I regularly invited speakers to make presentations to my geotechnical engineering classes at Drexel University. Two of them were very memorable: Bill Ragen of Mirafi and Bill Witherow of Carlisle. Their respective topics were “filter fabrics” and “pond l…
Read More
Commentary on flood abatement using geosynthetics

August 1, 2019  |  GSI News

By Robert M. and George R. Koerner On Sept. 8, 1900, a Category 4 hurricane struck Galveston, Texas, which is situated on the Gulf of Mexico about 8 feet (2.4 m) above sea level. The storm created a 15-foot (4.6-m) storm surge, killing 8,000 to 12,000 people and causing massive destruction. Subseque…
Read More
Reflections on sustainability with respect to geosynthetic materials

June 1, 2019  |  GSI News, News

By Robert M. and George R. Koerner Listening to and reading the news, there seems to be regular criticism of all plastics insofar as concerns as to their post-use disposal in light of their exceedingly long lifetimes. Rarely, if ever, is the distinction made as to which plastics are really necessary…
Read More
MSE wall failures can be mitigated through the use of geotextile filters

April 1, 2019  |  GSI News, News

For the past 17 years, the Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) has been accumulating data on failures of geosynthetic reinforced mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) retaining walls. We presently have 320 cases, of which 201 (63%) have been caused in whole or part by water within, or adjacent to, the reinfo…
Read More
Changing the ‘one per 500 feet’ paradigm on geomembrane field seam sampling

February 1, 2019  |  GSI News, News

The late Henry Haxo Jr., Ph.D., former president of Matrecon Inc., deserves considerable credit for developing many of the concepts and practices involved in waste containment liner and cover systems. Beginning in the 1970s, various projects, many of them funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection …
Read More
GSI to host short course on QA/QC in waste containment, GMA members get discounted rates

December 20, 2018  |  Events, GSI News, News

The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) will sponsor a short course “Quality Assurance/Quality Control of Geosynthetics in Waste Containment Facilities,” Jan. 14–16, 2019, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 3:30 pm EST. Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) member companies and their employe…
Read More
GSI to host webinar on pond liners, GMA members get discounted rates

December 18, 2018  |  Events, GSI News, News

The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) will sponsor a webinar “Pond Liner Design and Performance,” on Jan. 10, 2019, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT. GMA member companies and their employees receive discounted rates on all GSI webinar and short course registrations. The first ponds lined with geomembran…
Read More
GSI to host webinar on stability designs for landfill covers, GMA members get discounted rates

November 29, 2018  |  GSI News, News

The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) will sponsor a webinar “Stability Designs of Landfill Cover Soils,” on December 12, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT. GMA member companies and their employees receive discounted rates on all GSI webinar and short course registrations. This webinar focuses on the sta…
Read More
GSI to host webinar on lifetime predictions of geosynthetics, GMA members get discounted rates

November 21, 2018  |  GSI News, News

The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) will sponsor a webinar entitled “Lifetime Predictions of Covered and Exposed Geosynthetics,” on November 28, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT. GMA member companies and their employees receive discounted rates on all GSI webinar and short course registrations. A most…
Read More
GSI to host webinar on disposal of CCR this Wednesday, GMA members get discounted rates

October 22, 2018  |  GSI News, News

The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) will sponsor a webinar entitled “Disposal of Coal Combustion Residuals,” on Oct. 24, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT. The webinar will be hosted by Dr. Robert M. Koerner. GMA member companies and their employees receive discounted rates on all GSI webinar and short…
Read More