August 1, 2017
‘Here, sir, the people govern.’ Alexander Hamilton said these words in 1788, remarking on the U.S. House of Representatives during debate on the adoption of the Constitution. At the time, the United States system of government was unique in a monarchical world. Even today, America’s experiment with democracy makes it impossible to go to Capitol …
April 1, 2017
The U.S./Canadian geosynthetics market includes geotextiles, geomembranes, geogrids, geosynthetic clay liners, drainage materials, geocells, and erosion control materials. In 2016, the size of the U.S./Canadian geosynthetics market was $2.6 billion, up 3.5% over 2015. It is expected to swell to $2.7 billion in 2017, up 4% compared to 2016. In a survey of Geosynthetic Materials …
Introduction The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI), formerly the PVC Geomembrane Institute, in collaboration with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (Minn. DNR), has been conducting a study assessing the long-term durability of PVC geomembranes. Samples of three different 30-mil PVC geomembranes were placed at the bottom of a settling basin near the northern Minnesota town …
August 1, 2016
Introduction A hefty new addition to civil engineering and geosynthetics libraries around the world was unveiled earlier this year. Geotextiles: From Design to Applications debuted in March 2016. Number 175 from the U.K.-based Textile Institute/Woodhead Publishing Series in Textiles, the 640-page book contains 26 chapters by 35 authors, including many of the most-renowned and well-known …
The GeoAmericas 2016 conference held April 10-13, 2016, at the Loews International Hotel in Miami Beach, Fla., attracted more than 1,100 participants from around the world, 80 exhibitors, along with several related association exhibits and upcoming geo-conference exhibits. Prior to the opening keynote address on Sunday afternoon, four full-day, and nine half-day short courses, with …
More than 20 years ago, the founders of the PVC Geomembrane Institute (PGI) and the succeeding entity, the Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) set out to test materials that were in actual field use. They wanted to exhume numerous samples for testing on a periodic basis without ruining the integrity of the installed primary liner system. …
June 1, 2016
The International Geosynthetics Society–North America chapter (IGS–North America, formerly NAGS) and the Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA) co-sponsored a day-and-a-half seminar March 22–23 in Syracuse, N.Y., that focused on the design of waste containment systems. The seminar drew more than 100 participants, including representatives from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the New Jersey …
The above title is not about military, political, or social issues; it is about the knowledge base of graduating students and other new employees entering the field of geosynthetics. In both situations (i.e., graduating students and other new employees), entry level men and women have little or no idea of the plethora of available geosynthetic …
March 2016 was a great month for GMA to ramp up its 2016 federal and state lobbying efforts. GMA members and I had the opportunity to meet with three federal agencies in Washington, D.C. These meetings allowed GMA to educate government officials about the benefits of geosynthetic materials and at the same time encouraging federal …
April 25, 2016
The incidence of geomembrane whales/hippos in surface impoundments containing various types of liquids is, unfortunately, not uncommon. See, for example, GSI White Paper #30, which discusses corrective actions after they occur. This article, however, addresses the situation before it occurs. Clearly, the presence of a geomembrane creates anomalies in the underlying subgrade that can cause …