AEG News July 2019 - Vol. 62, Number 3

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Vol. 62, No. 3 – July 2019

Special Feature

AEG 2019 Asheville

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING A AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING Asheville, North Asheville, North Carolina Carolina September 2019 September17–22, 17-21, 2019

“Old“O Mountains - New ld Mountains - New Beginnings” Beginnings”

Renaissance Hotel Downtown Asheville • 20 minutes from Asheville Airport lki di distance t e to t allll • Walking downtown brewe eries, restaurants and shops

SPECIAL E EVENT: "A A Night in the Mountains" Outdoor southe ern banquet in the heart of the mountains Live entertainm ment, games, local craft beer, and more

Courses FIELDField COURSES ◆ North•Fork Landslides Dam Improvements – Making Asheville’s Water Supply More Resilient Fork Reservoir Dam • North ◆ Breweries and Brownfields – The Environmental • River Arts District/Brewery History of Asheville’s River Arts District Mining and Geology ◆ Debris

Flows, Rock Slides, Rock Falls and Big Slow Movers: Who Could Ask for More?

Guest Tours ◆ These Rocks are Mined, But You Can Look at • Biltmore House & Gardens Them: Mining and Geology

• Lake Lure/Chimney Rock SHORT COURSES the Spectacular Blue • Explore ◆ UAS Remote Pilot Ground School Ridge Parkway/Linville ◆ Equipment for Environmental Field Projects Caverns ◆ GeologicApple Mapping in the Digital Era T Country Wine To our •

and Symposia INVITED SYMPOSIA ◆ Climate Resilience: Sessions Te T echnical Bringing Geoscientists and Climate Scientists Together • Dams ◆ PFAS es, Rockfall, & Debris Flow • Landslide ◆ The Changing Times of Engineering Geology at P Processes & Hazards • Coastal Dams and Levees g Contaminants • Emerging ◆ Speaking Their Language – Communicating tion & Geochemistry • Remedia Science with Non-Scientists – Who, Why, and How Va apor Int rusion •V ◆ NOA • Mining ◆ Tunneling tation & Infrastructure Project • T◆ranspor Landslides • Geophys ◆ The 2019ics Forum on the Geology of Industrial and Minerals more… …

ourses Co GUESTShort TOURS ◆ Biltmore AV VsHouse for Reconnaissance & Gardens • UA ◆ Lake Field Equipment Lure/Chimney Rock • Environmental ◆ Explore the Spectacular Blue Ridge Parkway/ Calibration and Demonstration Linville Caverns Field Mapping • Geologic ◆ Apple

Country Wine Tour

STUDENT & YOUNG PROFESSIONAL NETWORKING EVENTS ◆ Icebreaker StudentReception &Y Yo oung Professional ◆ Poster Reception Events Networking ◆ and andmore… more…..

For updated information and full details, visit: www.aegannualmeeting.org.

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Vol. 62, No. 3 – July 2019

AEG News (ISSN 0899-5788; USPS 954-380) is published five times a year by the Association of Environmental & Engineering Geologists (AEG). This includes three regular issues published in April (#2), July (#3) and December (#5) and two special issues: the Annual Report and Directory (#1) in March and the Annual Meeting Program with Abstracts (#4) in September (digital publication only). Digital copies of the Program with Abstracts are distributed at the AEG Annual Meeting. Association members receive an electronic copy of all five issues of the AEG News as part of their dues. Print subscription for Association members, which includes all three regular issues of the AEG News, is $30 in addition to annual membership dues. Nonmember annual subscription is $40 and includes only the three regular issues; the Annual Report and Directory issue is priced separately. Back copies of AEG News regular issues are $12 each. Inquiries should be sent to AEG Headquarters: Association Manager, 201 East Main St., Suite 1405, Lexington, KY 40507 859-469-5800.

Table of Contents

Periodical Postage paid at Lexington, KY, and additional mailing offices: POSTMASTER: Send address changes to AEG News, 201 East Main St., Suite 1405, Lexington, KY 40507, USA. AEG News is printed by Allen Press, Lawrence, KS, 66044, USA.

News of the Profession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 AEG’s Mathewson Receives the James Hutton Lifetime Service Award . .24

© 2019 Association of Environmental & Engineering Geologists—All Rights Reserved Views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those officially representing the Association of Environmental & Engineering Geologists except where expressly stated.

AEG News Co-Editors Anna Saindon Chrissey Villeneuve Geotechnology, Inc. chrissey.aeg@gmail.com 11816 Lackland Road, Suite 150 Ashley Wachhaus St. Louis, MO 63146 ashley.aegnews@gmail.com 314-581-6286 news@aegweb.org

Managing Editor/Production Andrea Leigh Ptak Communicating Words & Images 6542 52nd Ave. So. Seattle, WA 98118 206-300-2067 www.andrealeighptak.com andrealeighptak@me.com

Submission Information In order of preference: 1. Send files via email, preferably as attachments, to both email addresses above. Optimum file format is MSWord. Users of other software programs should convert their file to ASCII or text only. Photos and other images, charts, graphs, etc.) should be sent as separate images but may be included in the Word.doc for placement purposes.

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For detailed guidelines visit: www.aegweb.org/?page=SubmitToAEGNEWS

Advertising in the News

News of the Association

Special Section: AEG 62nd Annual Meeting Preview

Professional Contributions

25

Issues in Professional Licensure: Issue LXXXI

38

Field Trip: The Alberici Campus

39

The HomeFront

40

On the Cover A view of the city lights of Asheville, North Carolina, the site of AEG’s 62nd Annual Meeting. This issue features a 12-page spread detailing the particulars of the event, including field trips, short courses, guest tours and our special event. Coverage begins on page 12.

The association 2018–19 Officers President: DAVID FENSTER Retired, president@aegweb.org Vice President/President Elect: CYNTHIA PALOMARES Texas Engineering Extension Service, Texas A&M University, VP@aegweb.org Treasurer: WILLIAM GODWIN Consulting Geologist, treasurer@aegweb.org Secretary: MADDIE GERMAN Geologist, Municipal Engineering, secretary@aegweb.org Past President: GREGORY (GREG) L. HEMPEN Geophysical Consultant, PP@aegweb.org

Association Contacts

Submission Deadlines www.aegweb.org/?page=SubmitToAEGNEWS

AEG Foundation—President: WILLIAM FLANIGAN, president@aegfoundation.org

Canada Agreement number: PM40063731; Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to: Station A, PO Box 54; Windsor, ON N9A 6J5; Email: returnsil@imex.pb.com

Communications Director: RYAN MARSTERS, marsters.ryan@gmail.com

April 2019

12

Not Just Another Tank Yank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 A Beekeeper’s Wish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 A Man-Made Disaster – Gleason Beach, Sonoma County, California . . . .28 Geo-hazards Associated with Urban Geology in the City of La Paz, Baja California Sur., Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Headquarters: Association Manager: KRISTY HOWARD AMR Management Services 201 East Main St., Suite 1405, Lexington, KY 40507 859-469-5800, manager@aegweb.org

Contact AEG Headquarters at advertising@aegweb.org.

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The President’s Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Vice President’s Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Treasurer’s Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Secretary’s Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Headquarters’ Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Foundation Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Committee Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Women of AEG: Julia Frazier, PG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

AEG NEWS 62(2)

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NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – THE PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Let’s Make AEG a Fun Place to Be!

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Dave Fenster, AEG 2018–19 President

ave you recently asked yourself, “Why am I a member of AEG?” Frequently, member responses include networking opportunities, professional development through making or attending technical presentations, Chapter meetings with friends, and having fun at a meeting venue—whether it’s a field trip in Texas or a brew pub in Denver or Asheville. Some of us have indicated that they enjoy the camaraderie and leadership opportunities of joining a technical or operational committee and helping to accomplish its goals. A key element appears to be having fun that draws you back to the next event. If you are not attending enough events that have been fun, you can do something about it.

For example, many of us became geologists because we enjoyed going on field trips and liked spending time in the field. If you have an idea for a field trip that other members might enjoy, discuss it with a Chapter officer. You have other resources to help you plan your event. The Chapter Support Committee can provide guidance on how to organize and conduct a field trip. The Meeting Advisory Committee and our Meeting Manager can help you organize and advertise a forum or workshop. If your idea corresponds with the interests of a technical working group (TWG), contact information for all TWGs is posted on our website. A field trip can be a stand-alone event or be part of a technical forum.

Our strategic plan includes a high priority tactic to offer at least two technical forums each year. Recent successful forums have focused on landslides. On April 24–26, 2019, the Dams

Technical Working Group held the highly successful workshop on Risk Assessments for Dam and Levee Foundations. A Grand Canyon Rafting Field Trip was organized by Ken Ferguson and held on June 8–14.

The 7th International Conference on Debris-Flow Hazards Mitigation was held on June 10–13, 2019, in Golden, Colorado, on the campus of the Colorado School of Mines. Thus, we are on track to exceed our Technical Forum goal for 2019.

Although no forums or field trips are currently on our schedule for 2020, we are enthusiastic about early discussions regarding a potential forum on sea level rise hosted by the New England Chapter and a field trip focused on the geology of the Gettysburg battlefield organized by the Mid-Atlantic Region. AEG policies include financial incentives for Chapters that organize and host technical forums. This could be applied to field trips as well. AEG Operating Policy V.3 states that if an event results in surplus revenues greater than $1,500, the first $1,500 goes to the Chapter(s) and any additional surplus is split between the Chapter(s) and AEG with 75% going into the Chapter(s)’ bank account(s) and 25% going into AEG’s operations account.

Let’s reinvigorate the Association and make our activities enjoyable events. For help in implementing forums, workshops, and field trips, please contact: your Chapter officers, Headquarters (Manager@aegweb.org), Chapter Support Committee Cochairs: Stephanie Coffman (Stephanie.Coffman@stantec.com) and Curt Schmidt (cschmidt@h2m.com), Meeting Advisory Committee Chair Sarah Kalika (sarah@georx.net), or Meeting Manager Heather Clark (Heather@aegweb.org).

AEG T-Shirt Design Contest: Join the Fun—Share Your Geo-Creativity AEG is in the process of relaunching our AEG logo apparel store online.

To help us kick off this reopening, we are holding a T-shirt design contest.

Dust off your favorite geology puns and slogans and put your creativity to work by sharing your idea for a new AEG T-Shirt to be sold in the new AEG apparel store and for sale at AEG’s Annual Meeting in Asheville this September.

All T-shirt designs must be submitted by Thursday, August 1, to Kristy Howard at manager@aegweb.org. The winner will receive recognition at the Annual Meeting AND a free T-shirt! Here’s an idea to get your started…

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AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – THE VICE PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

It’s Full Speed Ahead with the Strategic Plan

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Cynthia Palomares, AEG 2018–19 Vice President

major role of the AEG Vice President is to work with the AEG Strategic Initiative Coordinators (SIC) and AEG Operational Committees to help implement AEG’s updated Strategic Plan (SP) and any Committee initiatives.

The SIC has been working at a full speed pace to facilitate the operational committees in moving forward with accomplishing many of the tactics that are in the SP. Many thanks to the current SIC volunteers: Renee Wawczak, Nate Saraceno and Curt Schmidt!

In summary, at the 2018 Annual BOD Meeting, held in conjunction with the joint IAEG-AEG meeting in San Francisco in September, the Board of Directors (BOD) voted to approve an updated Strategic Plan (See inside back cover.). The Strategic Plan identifies three major goals for the Association. These three goals are: 1) Expand communication both within and outside the Association, 2) Benefit the profession by promoting the value of applied geology for the public good, and 3) Increase membership and membership benefits by providing applied geology professionals a forum to thrive both personally and professionally.

For each of these goals, the BOD developed a set of objectives, with their respective tracking metrics, and specific tactics to be completed by volunteers and/or AEG HQ. Each of these goals/tactics has been paired with a “champion” Committee, Working Group, or individual volunteers. As Vice President, I help facilitate collaboration between Committees, Working Groups, and other volunteers in achieving our goals, and help the SIC track progress and completion of these objectives and tactics.

As I mentioned in my previous report, we identified six tactics that will take priority: 1) Develop at least two Professional Forums annually that will benefit the public; 2) Redesign and refresh the AEG website to create a more intuitive resource for members; 3) Develop and improve communication methods between Regional Directors (RDs), Chapter Chairs, and members; 4) Develop a focused internal communication plan; 5) Assess the prior needs assessment for member benefits that have not been furnished or fully implemented; and, 6) Create a roster of nonrenewing members and ask Chapters for personal outreach.

So where are we in implementing these priority Strategic Plan tactics and ultimately improving the AEG experience?

Current progress as of May 30, 2019 for each of these tactics is described below.

1) Two professional forums have been planned for 2019. A Dams Risk Forum chaired by Kevin Mininger was planned

July 2019

and held in April 2019 & Event sponsorships were sold out and registration was full. This forum was very successful both technically and financially. A Debris Hazards Forum chaired by Paul Santi from Colorado School of Mines was held in June 2019. The forum was organized jointly with the School of Mines. Over 140 abstracts have been submitted by the close of the abstract submittal deadline and thus in line to be very successful.

We must now turn our focus to 2020, as no forums are currently planned. If Chapters or Operational or Technical Committees would like to plan a forum, there is a cost sharing policy that will benefit the Chapter/Committee finances. In addition, assistance is available from both Headquarters and our contracted meeting planner as well as the Meetings Advisory Committee to help plan and implement a Professional Forum.

Please contact headquarters at manager@aegweb.org if your chapter or committee is interested!

2) A website revamp workgroup has been created to evaluate recommendations on a revised and updated website. In addition, transition to a new member database is planned to improve website capabilities including the renewal process.

September 2019 is the target date for transition to the new database and website. One major role of the workgroup is to transition relevant material to the new website. During this transition, information and resources will be evaluated to determine what material is relevant and useful and what may need to be discarded. This will improve navigation and the overall website experience for the user.

3 & 4) Two champion volunteers have been selected to evaluate current communication methods between Regional Directors, Chapter officers, and members and identify potential improvements to enhance communications. Teleconferences have been set up with each Chapter to determine their specific needs. Ultimately, a Communications Plan specific to each Chapter is planned.

5) A champion volunteer has been identified to review the outcome of the prior Needs Assessment and determine which member benefits still need to be implemented. This work is ongoing.

6) Membership recruitment is a top priority! AEG membership numbers have been flat for the last several years. This year, we have seen a decrease in membership. As of May 2019, AEG membership is down 10% from 2018. AEG Headquarters, the Executive Council, the Board of Directors, and Chapter officers have been working hard to try and reverse this decline. Many other associations have seen a decline in membership also.

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

continued on page 7…

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HEADER NEWS OFHERE THE ASSOCIATION – TREASURER’S REPORT

Keeping up the Good Work

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William Godwin, AEG 2018–19 Treasurer

his edition of AEG News contains a preview of the 2019 Annual Meeting in Asheville and updates from my fellow Executive Council members on items that are important to them.

While it’s expected as Treasurer that I present a financial summary of AEG through the first third of the year, I do want to first put out a thank you to all the volunteers that make AEG a successful Association. Many members only speak with fellow “AEG’rs” by attending monthly meetings. Others attend workshops or an occasional Annual Meeting, and some only talk on conference calls. Whatever your method of staying connected and contributing to AEG, we appreciate your time, skills, and effort and the sacrifices you make to staying involved.

Below is the current value of our accounts as April 30, 2019, with a comparison to last year.

Account Values

Our Membership Revenue as of April 30 was $177,462—down from $202,070 in 2017. The duespaying membership total is approximately 1,123 members for April of 2019, down from 1,330 members in the same period in 2018. These numbers do not include student members, who do not pay dues.

2019 Annual Meeting The Annual Meeting is coming together with yearto-date revenue of $60,908 and expenses of $34,287 out of total budgeted $252,025. Forecasts for a successful meeting with registrations at or above projections.

Dam Risk Workshop AEG held a very successful workshop in Lakewood, Colorado, in April. This professional forum was attended by 176 with 150 paid attendees. AEG realized a $10k gross surplus from $82k in income. When adjusted for the local Chapter surplus, AEG netted a profit of $6.5k.

Accounts

End of April 2018

End of April 2019

Operations (checking)

$ 205,950

$ 249,380

Going Forward

UBS Investment (CD/MM)

$ 105,006

$ 0

Legislative Fund (savings)

$ 80,620

$ 59,998

Treasurer’s Reserve (investment)

$ 357,204

$ 345,768

As I mentioned previously, based on the good performance and hard work of many people behind the scenes you can rest assured that AEG is on firm ground. I will continue to work with the Executive Council to be diligent in the budgeting and implementing of funds in next year’s budget to support the Strategic Plan and other programs.

2019 End of April Performance Table Revenue Actual YTD

Budget

$ 374,189

$ 629,248

Expenses Actual YTD

Budget

$ 175,125

$ 645,415

Revenue over Expenses Actual YTD $

199,063

$

(16,167)

AEG News Disclaimer Authors alone are responsible for views expressed in signed articles.

Advertisers and their agencies are solely responsible for the content of all advertisements printed and also assume responsibility for any claims arising therefrom against the publisher. AEG and AEG News reserve the right to reject any advertising copy.

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Treasurer Bill Godwin geologic mapping in the Yuha desert north of Cerro Centinela, Mexico

AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – SECRETARY’S REPORT / HEADQUARTERS’ HEADER REPORT HERE

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The Story of Free Soil Maddie German, AEG 2018–19 Secretary

attended a conference recently where one vendor was giving away bags of a soil additive that amplifies plant growth. This means when you blend their “soil” at the prescribed ratio with the native dirt or planting material, the plants receive additional nutrients boosting their longevity, durability, and size. The sales reps said, “We have to give away our product because the results had been so incredible no one believes we are telling the truth.”

Naturally, as a scientist I wanted to do an experiment. I got myself a free bag and some assorted plants. Unfortunately, I am horrible with plants; many “tough-to-kill” plants have met their demise at my hand. Somehow, I have never understood how or when to water, where to plant for the appropriate amount of light and sun, or even where they should be placed.

Regardless, I forged ahead.

Two weeks into my experiment and let’s say the results are mixed, but no plants have died. How do soil boosters and plant growth experiments relate to AEG and geology? Glad you asked.

AEG has free opportunities for you to experiment with different groups, challenges, and opportunities through one of our numerous committees. If you enjoy sharing geoscience with a K–12 group, planning meetings, or are interested in legislative tracking and licensure, there is a group committed to advocating for the profession in those avenues. Regardless of your interest, there are other people within AEG who are looking to share their talents and passions in the same way.

You don’t have to come into the group as an expert; students and seasoned professionals are both welcome. It doesn’t cost anything except the commitment to learn and make new friends within the organization. (This already sounds like a much better success rate than my plants.)

On AEG’s soon to be re-vamped website there is a committee tab. Under operational committees is a list of the numerous opportunities for members, just like you, to become more involved with the process.

There will be contact information for the Chair or Co-chairs, but you can always email manager@aegweb.org and Kristy Howard will happily connect you with the right person. Don’t see your interest, start your own committee!

Not only do committees provide self-satisfaction, because you have been working towards something that you value, but they connect you with like-minded folks across the country. It is super easy to be “busy” in society today. But when was the last time you made a difference by sharing a geoscience experiment with a first-grade classroom? What was the last field trip you helped organize with your local Chapter? Have you spoken with anyone in your local government about the importance of professional licensure?

You are part of the amazing group of individuals that make up the AEG membership. All the committees are looking forward to a re-invigoration of their members with new ideas and projects to move forward. Just like me with the free soil booster, go ahead and try one. What have you got to lose?

The Vice President’s Message

…continued from page 5

The AEG Association Manager is tasked with and has been providing Chapter officers with a roster of members that have not renewed in 2019. Chapter officers are encouraged to reach out to recruit nonrenewing members to rejoin AEG. In addition, the Chapter Support Committee hosted a training webinar in April 2019 for Chapter officers on membership recruitment.

Several strategies were discussed on how to retain existing membership and encourage new members, including students, to join AEG. If you would like a copy of the membership webinar materials, please contact Headquarters.

A membership taskforce was created at the 2019 AEG mid-year Board of Directors meeting to discuss and provide recommendations to the board on ways to increase membership. Discussions are underway and have included: possibly reducing the number of membership categories, increasing the number of years to qualify for the reduced membership fee for incoming young professionals, and ways to encourage students that graduate to become full-paying members. Final recommendations will be made to the board prior to the 2019 Board of Directors Annual Meeting.

July 2019

As a final note, at the AEG 2019 Mid-year Board of Directors meeting, the board approved budgeting for a Legislative Tracking System. The system will track proposed legislative bills in all 50 states that may cause some potential effect on geosciences licensure. The goal is to become aware of any potential damaging bills early in the process, so that counterattack plans can be implemented quickly. The tracking information will be available to AEG representatives in all states. The AEG Licensure Committee will be working on implementing the tracking system as soon as feasibly possible. In addition, AEG is soliciting other organizations that are interested in licensure to help fund this tracking system.

While we have progressed with our strategic initiatives, we still have a lot to accomplish. Implementation of these tactics within the Strategic Plan will help AEG entice new members and provide a robust set of benefits to our existing members. The SIC, and each of the operational committees and ad hoc workgroups has vested in and participated in this implementation.

If you are interested in joining us in any of these efforts, please contact me at VP@aegweb.org or one of the Strategic Initiative Coordinators.

AEG NEWS 62(3)

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HEADER NEWS OFHERE THE ASSOCIATION – HEADQUARTER’S REPORT

Database Update

A

Kristy Howard, AEG Association Manager

s part of AMR’s ongoing initiative to stay current on association technology, we have been working with a consultant to identify better member database options for our clients. Our goals included affordability, increased functionality, and more intuitive usability for association members. We also want to increase our internal efficiencies on reporting, customer service, etc. by standardizing on as few database platforms as possible. This initiative is meant to be a win-win for everyone involved.

AEG has been using YourMembership (YM) as its database and website platform for several years. YM is a well-established, older product but has limitations in functionality and is not being updated with new features as quickly as other products. There are also issues with usability on the member side, as we have all experienced. We have had issues with the registration module, dues renewal process, and join processes, and we have serious issues with gathering historical data and reporting from the system. Overall, AEG’s current database is a good product but is past its prime and no longer meets AMR’s

standards or AEG’s needs. With this in mind, AMR is moving AEG’s member data to a new database system called MemberClicks.

This database transition will be working synonymously with AEG’s Website Task Force to not only create a better user interface for things such as dues renewals and member directories, but also move to a more modern website that will be easier to navigate and more user friendly. The behind-the-scenes work on this database and website transition has already begun and all involved are doing our due diligence to meticulously take all known factors into account.

We do not anticipate any disruption to our members during the data migration and drafting of the new website. We look forward to exploring new options and features to share with AEG’s membership to make member benefits more accessible and networking with fellow members more streamlined.

We are excited to share the finished product—the new member database and website—with you all before the end of 2019, so stay turned for more updates as they become available.

NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – AEG FOUNDATION NEWS

Time to Tee Up Again!

Join Us for the AEG Foundation’s 2nd Annual Golf Fundraiser

B

Nichole Vetter, Director, AEG Foundation

ecause the event in 2017 was such a success, AEG Foundation will once again invite our golfing members to join us for some tee time prior to the Annual Meeting.

This year’s event will take place on September 16, 2019, the day before the Annual Meeting starts in Ashville, North Carolina. Come out and have some fun while contributing to the AEG Foundation and give back to our professionals and students.

The event will be held at Broadmoor Golf Links. The registration fee includes a box lunch, dinner buffet, and awards. For more information and to register for the event, please visit the AEG Foundation webpage, https://www.aegfoundation.org/golf/. For golf event related questions, including students requesting an available tournament spot sponsored by someone else, please email Bill Flanigan at bill@wdfgeo.com.

L to R: AEG Foundation Board Members, L to R: Jerry Higgins, Secretary Scott Burns, Jane Gill Shaler, and Treasurer Kerry Cato at 2017’s golf fundraiser at Kings Deer Golf Club in Monument, Colorado.

Don’t Forget the 2019 Silent Auction!

The AEG Foundation is looking for some fun, unique, and interesting donations for the Silent Auction Fundraiser to be held in conjunction with this year’s Annual Meeting. Over 90 items were donated for the AEG 2018 meeting, including mineral specimens, fossils, geology books, wine, and jewelry—benefitting the Foundation’s Johnston Operations Fund. If you have an item to donate, please contact staff@aegweb.org.

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AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – COMMITTEE REPORTS

Strategic Initiatives Committee Nate Saraceno, Curt Schmidt, and Renee Wawczak – AEG Strategic Initiative Coordinators

Strategic Plan Updates: Are We There Yet? The Strategic Initiative Coordinators (SIC) are charged with coordinating successful implementation of AEG’s Strategic Plan, as well as reviewing and updating the Strategic Plan on a regular basis. The role of the SIC can be generally described as acting to: ■ Coordinate with AEG leadership to develop and disseminate Association goals and action items; ■ Pair these goals/action items with a “champion” committee, working group, or individual volunteer; and ■ Facilitate collaboration between committees, working groups, and other volunteers in achieving goals.

During the 2018 Annual Meeting, which took place on September 22–23 in San Francisco, California, the Board of Directors (BOD) voted to approve a new Strategic Plan for AEG. The Strategic Plan identifies three major goals for the Association: ■ Communication: To improve the AEG experience and communicate it effectively ■ Profession: To promote and advance the value of applied geology for the public good ■ Membership: To provide applied geology professionals a place to thrive personally and professionally Each of these main goals includes a subset of objectives.

Subsequently, each objective was broken down into a series of tactics. While various AEG leadership have identified high priority tactics in the Strategic Plan, the SICs, along with members of AEG Headquarters (HQ) and the Executive Council (EC) identified six “Top Priority” as of November 2018. These six tactics along with their progress as of the 2019 Mid-Year BOD Meeting, which took place on April 13–14 in Portland, Oregon: 1) Develop at least two Professional Forums annually as a benefit to the public. Two forums have been developed for 2019, including the 7th International Conference on Debris-Flow Hazards Mitigation and the Workshop on Risk Assessments for Dam and Levee Foundations.

2) Redesign and refresh the AEG website to create a more intuitive resource for members. AEG HQ has identified several design options for the updated website; the taskforce has been identified, and, the taskforce has issued a survey to AEG leadership and committees. In addition, transition to a new member database is planned to improve website capabilities including the renewal process. September 2019 is the target date for transition to the new database and website. One major role of the workgroup is to transition relevant material to the new website. During this transition, information and resources will be evaluated on what material is relevant and useful and what may need to be discarded. This will improve navigation and the overall website experience for the user.

July 2019

3) Develop and improve communication methods between Regional Directors (RDs), Chapter Chairs, and Association members. The Tactic Champions have discussed the communications goals as well as reviewed the results of the 2018 Governance Model Review Metrics and the notes from the Strategic Planning Workshop that was held during the 2018 Mid-Year Board Meeting. The Tactic Champions discussed the communications needs and have concluded that the internal communications needs vary from Region to Region. Currently, the Tactic Champions are working to get calls set up for each Regional Director and their Chapter leadership to discuss creating tailored Regional Plans.

4) Develop a focused, coordinated, internal communications plan (including communications calendar, social media, and email/message delivery methods). This tactic has many levels and is expected to be coordinated through the Communications Committee. AEG is working with the committee to identify tactic champions and identify SMART goals associated with the tactic. If you are interested in co-chairing this committee, please let us know!

5) Assess the prior Needs Assessment for member benefits that have not been furnished or fully implemented. The Tactic Champions have begun reviewing the results of the 2013 Needs Assessment. A formal summary will be developed and shared as soon as possible.

6) Generate a roster of non-renewing members and ask Chapters for personal outreach. The Tactic Champion has been identified and membership recruitment is a top priority!

Our membership numbers have been flat for the last several years and as of May 2019, membership is down 10% from 2018. AEG leadership has been working hard to try and reverse this decline. A membership taskforce was created at the 2019 Mid-Year Board Meeting. Discussions are underway and final recommendations will be made to the Board prior to the 2019 Annual Meeting.

The SICs will continue to work with Tactic Champions and Committees to continue to implement the Top Priorities of the Strategic Plan. As certain Top Priority Tactics are implemented, new priorities will be identified, and “lower” priority tasks will be investigated and completed. Additionally, the goals will continue to be revisited to ensure that AEG is meeting the needs of its members. A strategic coordinator participates in just about every committee conference call. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at sic@aeg.org.

Finally, AEG’s foundation is its members and volunteers. If you are a volunteer on one of AEG’s many Operational Committees, Technical Working Groups, have been involved in your local Chapter operations, or in any other capacity, THANK YOU for all you do! If you are looking for ways to get involved, we need more Champions on our committees to help us and advance AEG’s Strategic Plan. We have a wide range of opportunities that provide networking and leadership-building, and perhaps most importantly, camaraderie. Contact manager@aegweb.org or sic@aegweb.org if you’re interested in volunteering!

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

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NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – COMMITTEE REPORTS

Advocacy Committee Phyllis Steckel, Chair As of May 31, 2019, the Advocacy Committee includes nine members: David Bieber – Martin-Marietta; Golden, Colorado (Incoming Co-Chair); Brent Chapman – AMEC; Washington DC metro area; Briget Doyle – University of South Carolina – Upstate; Spartanburg, South Carolina; Eldon Gath – Earth Consultants; Santa Ana, California (Incoming Co-Chair); Bill Lund – Utah Geological Survey; Cedar City, Utah; Jim O’Donnell – BC-Geophysics; Boulder City, Nevada; Stephen Semmens – Colorado School of Mines; Golden, Colorado; Phyllis Steckel – Earthquake Insight LLC; Washington, Missouri (Chair, Retiring September 20, 2019); and, Paul Weaver – ESP Associates; Greensboro, North Carolina.

The AEG Strategic Plan was reviewed for action items that fall within the Advocacy Committee’s area. The highest-priority objective is “Advocate for the profession through public and private outreach.” Seven of the eight Tactics to achieve this Objective have been assigned to the Advocacy Committee. A list of Action Items for AEG Advocacy Committee has been prepared.

After a review of nominees, the Advocacy Committee has selected a recipient for the 2019 Advocacy Award to be presented at the 2019 AEG Annual Meeting. The award includes a commemorative plaque and small honorarium.

The Advocacy Committee is planning Geologists’ Day, which will be recognized on Friday, September 20, 2019. The theme of Geologists’ Day is “Do Something Extra.” Articles and announcements were sent to AEG News and the AEG Insider to encourage members to “do something extra”: write a letter to their legislator, lead a community field trip, visit with high-school earth-science students, or give an informational talk to a local community group. These outreach-type commitments do not have to be completed exactly on Geologists’ Day, but AEG members are encouraged to promise themselves to “do something extra” on that day.

How to Schedule a Jahns Lecture The individual Jahns Lecturer does almost all of their own scheduling and logistical coordination with the local Chapter. In addition, the Lecturer is conducting talks in other areas— all while trying to perform their "real" day job back home.

Setting up a Jahns Lecturer takes patience and understanding on both ends, but the product is invaluable in its knowledge transfer, career guidance, and mentoring to students.

If your AEG Chapter would like a Jahns Lecturer’s visit to your area, check out the helpful tips on our website at www.aegweb.org, under the Jahns Lecturer tab.

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We will be discussing the AEG Media Kit at the September 2019 AEG Board Meeting. The protocol is about 95% finished for press-release issuance, however, we still need to define and agree on internal review protocols.

The Student and Young Professional Support Committee (SYPSC) Morley Beckman The SYPSC is hard at work preparing a variety of events for the 2019 Annual Meeting this September in Asheville. We look forward to our third “Young at Heart Happy Hour” event as well as several informal meetups. Our calls are held on the second Monday of each month at 10:00am Pacific /1:00pm Eastern.

SYPSC thanks Kevin Mininger for his many years of service as Committee Chair, and we wish him all the best as he steps down from that role. Morley Beckman, the acting Chair, is seeking a new Co-chair to help out. Reach out to him at morley.beckman@gmail.com if you are interested!

e t a r o p r o C r o s n o p S Kilauea HomeAdvisor 877-800-3177 https://www.homeadvisor.com/c.Lexington.KY.html An investment in AEG is an investment in the future of engineering and environmental geology. For information on sponsorship opportunities: www.aegweb.org/?page=BecomeASponsor

Planning a Short Course?

AEG’s MEETINGS ADVISORY COMMITTEE (MAC) has put together a list of useful tips to help your Chapter/Region host a short course or other similar event. These tips will guide your path to success.

Short courses, symposiums and conferences are essential to help your Chapter financially as well as advocate for the geologic sciences and promote membership in your Chapter and AEG in general.

These tips cover everything from the size of your planning committee to scheduling and locating and working with the venue.

Go to the MAC page on aegweb.org and download your copy of the “Conference Tips” today so you and your team can get planning!

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

July 2019

NEWS OF THE ASSOCIATION – WOMEN HEADERINHERE AEG

Julia Frazier, PG Entrepreneur, Geoscientist, AEG Mountain Prairie Regional Director

M

y passion for geology and earth science was sparked while attending California State University, Long Beach. After learning a few extraordinary facts presented in an Introduction to Geology course, I promptly switched my focus to Geological Science and never looked back. I gained applied field experience working as a paleontology monitor while finishing my undergraduate degree. I continued my education at the University of California, Santa Cruz where I obtained my MS in Earth Science and was lucky enough to join two research cruises to New Zealand and Norway as a sedimentologist. After graduate school, I worked as a geologist focusing on fault investigations in southern California. I moved to Colorado in 2006, where I worked for two geological and geotechnical engineering firms.

I am currently a Colorado Professional Geologist and a licensed Professional Geologist in Wyoming and Utah. I love mapping and fieldwork, opining at outcrops, digging for minerals and fossils, and pulling my husband and kids along on geology hikes. I absolutely adore what I do for a living and I don’t mind getting my boots dirty (in fact, I look forward to it).

In 2018, I started Skyline Geoscience, providing geology and geologic hazard support services to a variety of sectors. Skyline Geoscience has allowed me to evolve in a new direction and view the industry from a different angle. This opportunity also provides me the flexibility to diversify and explore interests such as paleoseismic studies, non-mainstream slope monitoring techniques, UASs applied to geological investigations, and others.

I have been an AEG member since 2005, but attended meetings as a student and early professional for years before that. It is uniquely rewarding to get involved in AEG at the local and national levels and I have participated as Mile High Chapter Secretary (2007–10) and Chair (2011–13), AEG Annual Meeting Co-Chair (2017), and Mountain Prairie Regional Director (current, 2018–21). Attending AEG Chapter and Annual Meetings and getting involved has provided me the valuable opportunity to connect professionally with new people, develop friendships, challenge myself, and to learn something interesting.

My advice to women entering the geoscience industry would go something like this: Never stop growing, learn new things, volunteer, and network. While staying focused on your professional goals, remain flexible in your career plans and do not be afraid to choose an alternate path, start something new, or even take a detour. I highly recommend internships or gaining part-time experience during school if you can make that work. Get involved in professional associations (especially AEG!) and geoscience activities outside the office. Step out of your comfort zone whenever possible—amazing things can happen when you do! It would be fantastic to see more examples of women leaders, mentors, speakers, authors, advocates, and business owners in the geoscience industry and overlapping sectors.

Julia with her two children (curious earth scientists-in-training), exploring the K-T boundary on South Table Mountain in Golden, Colorado.

Julia Frazier standing for scale in a rockfall mitigation catchment ditch in Vail, Colorado.

July 2019

AEG NEWS 62(3)

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PREVIEW

AEG 62nd Annual Meeting “Old Mountains – New Beginnings” Asheville, North Carolina – September 17–22, 2019

Geology of Asheville Asheville, the largest city in western North Carolina, has a long and diverse geologic history. The city is in the widest part of the Blue Ridge geologic province of the southern Appalachian Mountains. This province, composed of multiple terranes, includes Mesoproterozoic gneisses, Neoproterozoic to Paleozoic volcanic and sedimentary assemblages, and Paleozoic plutons. These rocks were variably metamorphosed and deformed by three distinct Paleozoic orogenic events. The final orogeny culminated with the creation of Pangea and continental collision that transported terranes hundreds of kilometers to the west, creating a large complex of stacked thrust sheets.

A result of this diverse geologic history is the varied and numerous mineral resources found in western North Carolina.

These include mica, feldspar, quartz, corundum, copper, gold, talc, marble, and olivine. Mining has helped shape western

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North Carolina and the region currently leads the nation in the production of feldspar, mica, and high purity quartz.

The Mesozoic breakup of Pangea and uplift during the Cenozoic may have helped create prominent N-S and E-W trending lineaments that define the drainage channels and topographic basin structure that make Asheville a natural transportation corridor and ideal place to inhabit. Local relief can be as much as 4,000 feet and Mount Mitchell, less than an hour’s drive from Asheville, is the highest elevation east of the Mississippi river at 6,684 feet. Although the exact mechanism is debated, most geoscientists agree that the current topographic expression of the mountains is the result of Cenozoic rejuvenation of the landscape.

Although beautiful, Asheville and its surrounding mountains have their share of geologic hazards. These include damaging landslide events, flooding, and minor earthquake activity.

AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Your Stay in Asheville Meeting Venue & Hotel Renaissance Hotel Asheville www.renaissanceasheville.com 31 Woodfin Street, Asheville, North Carolina 28801 (828) 252-8211 Welcome to the Renaissance Asheville nestled in the beautiful Great Smoky Mountains. We are proud to offer deluxe rooms and suites that feature complimentary Wi-Fi, premium workstations, stunning marble bathrooms and scenic views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. You’ll also enjoy unbeatable amenities including, a sparkling indoor pool, complimentary on-site parking and much more! We are conveniently located in the heart of Downtown Asheville, just walking distance to attractions, shopping and restaurants. Discover the best Asheville has to offer and explore everything from local breweries to world-class museums to adventurous outdoor activities. No matter what you are looking for, the City of Asheville has something for everyone. Once your meetings are done, enjoy delicious on-site dining and beverage options complete with live music on Friday evening. Stop in for farm-to-table cuisine at The Writer’s Bistro and refreshing drinks at The Lobby Lounge. Plus, our room service offerings are top-notch! Come discover luxury in downtown Asheville!

Group Rate: $189/night* *Group rate only available until 8/16/19

Directions to the Renaissance Asheville 15 miles rom Asheville Regional Airport Link to Airport shuttle services on Yelp

Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) With frequent daily flights to major hubs (Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C.), year-round service to New York (Newark) and seasonal service to Denver, New York (LaGuardia), Vero Beach, Florida, and the Washington, D.C. area (Baltimore), Asheville Regional Airport is rated one of the best connected regional airports in America. Served by Allegiant, American, Delta, Elite, Spirit, and United Airlines, Asheville Regional Airport is an easy and welcoming gateway to and from Western North Carolina. Daily nonstop service to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) began on May 3, 2019 on American Airlines. Daily nonstop to Philadelphia and weekend nonstop service to LaGuardia also started in May. Delta Air Lines is adding nonstop, seasonal flights to Detroit from Asheville Regional Airport beginning June 8 and running through Nov. 2. American Airlines is also starting a new daily flight to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport from AVL starting in May. July 2019

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

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AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Climate/What to Wear One of the best times to visit Asheville is from September to early November, when temperatures hover between the upper50s and the mid-70s—ideal weather for exploring the foliage in the fall. Asheville is a very relaxed town so plan on dressing comfortably. Bring season-appropriate clothing and a light jacket or sweater for the cooler evenings. The meeting attire is business casual. The only event that is more formal is the Annual Banquet where formal or semi-formal attire is suggested but not mandatory.

Asheville: Edgy, Artsy & Inviting www.exploreasheville.com

locally owned-shops and art galleries, distinctive restaurants and exciting entertainment venues. The city prides itself on its fascinating Appalachian past and celebrates its culture. While many cities underwent major overhauls in past decades, Asheville’s historic and architecturally diverse downtown remains beautifully preserved. This thriving mountain city features a funky and eclectic downtown, 30-plus art galleries in downtown alone, a burgeoning culinary scene, a thriving live music scene and, of course, the awe-inspiring scenery of the Appalachian Mountains.

ASHEVILLE MURAL–DAVID WILSON–FLICKRCC

There’s more to life than the climb. There’s the view. Come up for air in Asheville. There’s something unexpected around every bend. Visit Asheville and find yourself immersed in our unmistakable mountain vibe. Asheville is that type of unique, special place that lingers sweetly in your mind and memories for years to come. The city’s rich architectural legacy with its mix of Art Deco, Beaux Arts and Neoclassical styles is the perfect retrourban backdrop to the edgy energy that emanates from the

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AEG NEWS 62 (3)

July 2019

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Pre- & Post-Meeting Field Courses Field Course Disclaimer: Field courses will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis and registration will be limited to the number of spaces shown. The indicated minimum and maximum numbers of participants are based on a combination of factors, including transportation, accessibility, and safety at roadside outcrops. Field courses are subject to cancellation if the minimum number of registrants is not met. Field course logistics (e.g., schedule, duration, route, transportation, location/number of stops, etc.) are also subject to change. Participants should be prepared for variable weather conditions and hiking on uneven ground.

Field courses will proceed rain or shine. Additional information regarding the logistics of each field course will be provided to the paid registrants by the field course leader(s) at a later date, but well in advance of the course. Costs shown are per person.

Field Course 1 North Fork Dam Improvements – Making Asheville’s Water Supply More Resilient Date:

Tuesday, Sept. 17

Time:

Departs at 12:00pm and returns at 4:45pm

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby Cost:

$70 before 8/1/19, $95 after 8/1/19

Leaders: Alex Rutledge, PE, PG (Schnabel Engineering, Inc.); Mark Landis, PE, PG (Schnabel Engineering, Inc.); Aaron Collins (Schnabel Engineering, Inc.); Zach Ostrum (Schnabel Engineering, Inc.); Minimum 25; Maximum 56

on the Main Dam (133 feet tall) and Saddle Dam (63 feet tall), and the modification of gates and a concrete chute overlay of the principal spillway are currently underway. This exciting construction project is set within the grand and beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, just below the Blue Ridge Parkway. On this trip we will discuss the challenges and design of the auxiliary spillway, principal spillway modification, and embankment improvements.

Additionally, the trip will include an overview of the geologic history of the site and region. Expect a few bear and wild turkey sightings during this eventful afternoon field trip.

Field Course 2 Breweries and Brownfields – The Environmental History of Asheville’s River Arts District Situated in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina and adjacent to Pisgah National Forest, North Fork Dam is a high-hazard earthen embankment located approximately 20 miles east of Asheville. The impounded body of water, Burnett Reservoir, is the primary water source for the City of Asheville and other surrounding communities. Completed in the early 1950s, North Fork Dam is undergoing a series of improvements that will allow for the controlled discharge of the Probable Maximum Precipitation event and increase the global stability of the Main Dam and Saddle Dam during a seismic event. To these ends, the construction of a new 530-foot-long and 218-foot-wide auxiliary spillway with Fuse Gates, the placement of two stability berms

July 2019

Date:

Tuesday, Sept. 17

Time:

Departs at 8:00am and returns at 12:00pm

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby Cost:

$65 before 8/1/19, $90 after 8/1/19 (includes a BBQ lunch)

Leader:

Susan Avritt, PE, PG (Wood Environment & Infrastructure Solutions, Inc.); Chuck Pippin, PG (Anchor QEA)

Minimum 27; Maximum 32 Asheville’s River Arts District (RAD), located along the French Broad River, has seen a significant transformation over the past

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

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AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING Pacolet River valley, we will visit sites affected by damaging debris flows triggered by intense thunderstorms on the evening of May 18, 2018. Attendees will visit a large-scale debris slide moving within landslide deposit impacting a development at the edge of the Blue Ridge Escarpment. At Chimney Rock State Park in Hickory Nut Gorge, we will see spectacular but challenging terrain that poses challenges from debris flows and rock falls that have been documented there since 1916 and more recently in May 2018. In the afternoon, we will stop and see a large, weathered-rock slide that closed Highway 9 in June 2018. Topics to be discussed are the landslide history of the area and the geologic controls on landforms at a variety of scales that are prone to landslides and relationships between rainfall and landslides.

25 years. In this half-day field course, we will explore the rich history of the RAD beginning with the industrial development in the late 1800s and early 1900s. We will survey the impacts this historical development has had on the environment and how developers are taking advantage of the North Carolina Brownfields Program to redevelop properties in this unique and desirable area of Asheville. We will begin with a presentation at the Wedge Brewing, which is located at a Brownfields site, and then take a trolley tour to sites with environmental impacts located in the River Arts District. Topics discussed will include the status of sites in the Brownfields Programs and other environmental programs in the RAD, as well as initiatives by the City of Asheville for redevelopment of the area. We will have lunch catered by 12 Bones Barbecue at Wedge Brewing.

Field Course 3 Debris Flows, Rock Slides, Rock Falls and Big Slow Movers: Who Could Ask for More?

Date:

Tuesday, Sept. 17

Time:

Departs at 8:00am and returns at 5:30pm

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby Cost:

$95 before 8/1/19, $120 after 8/1/19 (includes box lunch and admission to Chimney Rock State Park)

Leaders: Jennifer Bauer, PG (Appalachian Landslide Consultants; PLLC), Rick Wooten, PG (NC Geological Survey); Jody Kuhne, PE, PG (NC Department of Transportation); Stephen Fuemmeler, PG (Appalachian Landslide Consultants, PLLC); Bart Cattanach, PG (NC Geological Survey) SOLD OUT! BUT— Another Bus WILL be added with 20 additional registrants!

This one-day field course will examine a variety of landslides in the mountains of western North Carolina. We will visit locations along the steep, rugged terrain of the Blue Ridge Escarpment with over a century of historic landslide activity. In the steep 16

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

July 2019

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Field Course 4 These Rocks are Mined, But You Can Look at Them: Mining and Geology Field Course Date:

Saturday, Sept. 21

Time:

Departs at 8:00am and returns at 5:00pm

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby Cost:

$70 before 8/1/19, $95 after 8/1/19 (includes box lunch)

Leaders: Rick Wooten, PG (NC Geological Survey); Bart Cattanach, PG (NC Geological Survey) Minimum 20; Maximum 28 Spend the day learning about western North Carolina’s complex geology and rich mineral history. In the morning we will visit an operating aggregate mine to examine the geology and some of the challenges presented by mining in the mountains. We will then explore a classic pegmatite mine. The area mining industry began in the Spruce Pine pegmatites, which were the source for high quality feldspar and mica. Today Spruce Pine leads the nation in feldspar production and the world in high purity quartz production. After lunch we will tour the Museum of

North Carolina Minerals along the Blue Ridge Parkway and visit two stops along Linville Gorge to see the geology and spectacular views. Topics to be discussed include regional metamorphic and structural history as well as slope instability associated with the Blue Ridge escarpment, the steep, rugged transition from the piedmont into the mountains.

Sponsor Opportunities–Large & Small Why You Should Sponsor…

Sponsoring at AEG’s Annual Meeting is effective advertising that builds lasting recognition and good will for your company.

Network with Industry Professionals: ■

■ ■ ■ ■

Public and Private Owners of Utilities, Cities, Municipal Water Districts, Water and Sewer Departments, Waste Treatment Plant and Facilities Transportation Departments, Developers, Financiers and more Integrated Project Team Leaders Senior Level Executives representing Environmental Engineers, Contractors and Specialists All the major suppliers and specialty contractors that support major Infrastructure projects

Plus these benefits: ■ ■ ■ ■

Increased brand exposure to potential clients and teaming partners Reconnect with past colleagues and clients Expand your business to a global market Build lasting recognition for your company

Who Should Become a Sponsor?

There are opportunites for large corporations—like the Gold Event Package for $2500 which includes among other things two full meeting registrations or one of two Silver Event Packages at $950 which includes one full registration.

July 2019

Smaller companies have numerous options at the $500 Level including: ■ AEG Corporate Business Meeting ■ One of the Technical Sessions/Symposia The $250 Level opportunities include: ■ 1 of 3 Short Courses ■ 1 of 3 Speaker/Moderator Breakfasts (Wed., Thurs., or Fri.) ■ 1 of 4 Technical Session Breaks ■ Exhibit Hall Map ■ Student Mini-Grant Program – This shared sponsorship provides the Student/Professional Networking Session giveaway to offset student travel expenses.

■ Young@Heart Student and Young Professional Event (shared sponsorship) ■

Sponsorship of Field Courses 1–3* are still available at the $200 Level. *FC #4 SOLD

■

Sponsor 1 of the 4 Guest Tours that provide excursions for spouses and guests of our registrants at the $150 Level.

■

Mobile App Push Message Notifications (offered Wed.–Fri. only!) $100 per message. Send real-time messages to app users! Notifications appear on user’s phone even if they’re not currently using the app!

We are flexible! Please contact AEG Meeting Manager, Heather Clark at 303- 518-0618 or heather@aegweb.org.

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

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AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Short Courses (CEUs will be offered for each Short Course) For complete detais and information on instructors, go to https://www.aegannualmeeting.org/short-courses.

Short Course 1 UAV Remote Pilot Ground School Date:

Tuesday, September 17

Time:

8:00 am–5:00 pm

Fee:

$250 Member Professionals $300 Non-Member Professionals $50 Students (Limited to 5 students)

Instructor: Darshan Divakaran, NCDOT Division of Aviation Credits:

.8 CEU Credits, 8 PDHs

This course is focused on individuals who will be taking the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Remote Pilot (RP) Part 107 Knowledge Test. Earning FAA RP certification allows an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS), a.k.a. drone, pilot to fly UAS as a government operator.

Participants in the course should be prepared to study on their own after the class to cover the remaining topic areas.

However, with a concentrated effort most should be able to take the test within a couple of weeks after the class and should schedule accordingly (testing center information provided in the course). Our focus is on the two most difficult subject areas; aviation weather and airspace plus a brief overview of the remaining topics. We provide all of the materials, come and enjoy the class.

Flight Demo: NC Public Safety Drone Academy along with NCDOT Division of Aviation will organize a flight demo and show you the different UAS platforms and talk about the systems.

(Weather permitting)

Short Course 2 Equipment for Environmental Field Projects: “Be Prepared” – Equipment Selection and Troubleshooting for Project Managers and Field Personnel Date:

Saturday, September 21

Time:

8:00 am–12:00 pm

Fee:

$150 Member Professionals $200 Non-Member Professionals $25 Students (Limited to 5 students)

Instructor: Joseph (Joey) Cocciardi, Pine Environmental Credits:

.4 CEU Credits, 4 PDHs

Presented by Pine Environmental, this short course will focus on how those in decision-making roles on environmental projects can properly select the equipment necessary for a specific project in order to be properly prepared and equipped prior to and during the field portion of projects. The course will 18

delve in-depth on the processes and questions necessary to ensure that the proper equipment is chosen. The course will also cover troubleshooting for various commonly utilized equipment that can be performed by field personnel. This troubleshooting can be invaluable in regards to project schedule and costs in that something as a push of a button, the toggle of a switch, or a factory reset could prevent a costly project delay. The course will also provide field and management personnel ample opportunity to ask questions in regards to the types and uses of environmental equipment available for various project needs, and will include hands-on demonstrations of various commonly used equipment.

Short Course 3 Geologic Mapping in the Digital Era: Data Collection and Rock Slope Stability Analysis Date:

Saturday, September 21

Time:

8:00 am–5:00 pm

Fee:

$275 Member Professionals $325 Non-Member Professionals $50 Students (Limited to 5 students)

Instructors: Arthur Merschat, United States Geological Survey and Jody Kuhne, NCDOT, Geotechnical Engineering Unit Credits:

.8 CEU Credits, 8 PDHs

Collecting geologic data in the field is an integral part of a geoscientist. Mobile devices, smartphones, tablets, toughbooks, and other digital devices have revolutionized the methods by which geologic data is collected in the field and incorporated in to maps, and engineering and environmental projects. This short course will focus on integrating mobile devices and apps into the collection of geologic data in the field. It will consist of an overview and instruction during the morning, followed by a hands-on exercise in the afternoon that will involve the use of a smartphone or tablet to collect data at a roadcut and export the data to visualize. There are many apps that exist for geologic data collection. The apps that we will use to collect data is Clino (Free) and FieldMove (around $20). For the hands-on exercise the participants will need to have a smartphone or tablet with either of the aforementioned apps installed. Tablets will need to be GPS enabled or connected to a device that is GPS capable (e.g., wireless Bluetooth GPS device or smartphone). Hard hats, high-visibility vests, and sturdy boots or shoes are highly recommended. Any digital maps, imagery, or other geologic datasets will be provided. Possible UAS Rock Face Mapping Demo by NCDOT.

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

July 2019

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Guest Tours* Guests of attendees are a special part of the Annual Meeting. The local committee takes great care to help make their time at the meeting pleasant and entertaining by offering a variety of activities while attendees participate in the daily sessions. Guest Registrations are a great value and include the Opening Welcome Icebreaker and unlimited entrance to the Exhibit Hall with all-day coffee.

*Must have a Annual Meeting or Guest Registration to attend Guest Tours. Costs are per person.

Guest Tour 1 Biltmore House and Gardens

Guest Tour 2 Chimney Rock and Lake Lure Boat Tour

Date:

Tuesday, September 17

Date:

Wednesday, September 18

Time:

10:00 am–4:00 pm

Time:

9:30 am–3:00 pm

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby

Location:

Cost:

Cost:

$95 by 8/1/19, $120 after 8/1/19

PHOTO COURTESY BILTMORE HOUSE & GARDENS

$102 by 8/1/19, $127 after 8/1/19

Departs from the hotel lobby

Elegance and grandeur abound at Biltmore, America’s largest home. This French Renaissance castle in the heart of Asheville and the Blue Ridge Mountains is an architectural jewel. The home features 250 rooms, including 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, and 65 fireplaces. In addition to the house, the 8,000-acre estate is home to forested trails and beautiful gardens, which include one of the country’s most complete collections of azaleas. Biltmore is also where you’ll find the nation’s most-visited winery. Biltmore is as magnificent today as it was when it was built more than a century ago. George W. Vanderbilt created the estate in the 1890s as a grand retreat in the mountains of North Carolina. The estate officially opened to his friends and family on Christmas Eve 1895.

Vanderbilt brought in Frederick Law Olmsted, the father of American landscape architecture, to design the gardens and trails. Biltmore was the last great project for Olmsted, whose work also includes New York’s Central Park and the grounds of the US Capitol. The estate is still privately owned and operated by George Vanderbilt’s descendants. The excursion includes transportation, a self-guided audio house tour and wine tasting.

July 2019

Our tour begins at Chimney Rock State Park. Chimney Rock is more than just a walk in the woods or an awe-inspiring view. It’s an unforgettable experience with one of North America’s truly great natural wonders. Next we will discover the beauty and charm of Lake Lure on a covered boat tour.

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

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AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING Cruise along viewing local attractions and landmarks such as those used in the filming of “Dirty Dancing.” Listen to the legends of the lake and learn about the natural and cultural history of Hickory Nut Gorge, home to Lake Lure, North Carolina. Tour includes a box lunch.

Guest Tour 3 Explore the Spectacular Blue Ridge Parkway/ Linville Caverns

daily craft demonstrations. Along the way we will visit Linville Caverns to explore the amazing work of nature on the “inside” of a mountain. North Carolina’s only show caverns features stalactite and stalagmite formations, an underground stream with native trout, hibernating bats, amazing mineral colors, the Bottomless Pool, and total darkness. The guided tour educates you on the cavern’s ecosystems, geological history, and the local history of the area.

Date:

Thursday, September 19

Guest Tour 4 Apple Country Wine Tour

Time:

9:30 am–4:00 pm

Date:

Friday, September 20

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby

Time:

9:30 am–3:00 pm

Cost:

Location: Departs from the hotel lobby

$75 by 8/1/19, $100 after 8/1/19

$108 by 8/1/19, $133 after 8/1/19

PHOTO CREDIT: EXPLORE ASHEVILLE

Cost:

Situated along the highest ridge tops of the Southern Appalachians, the Blue Ridge Parkway serves as the gateway to beautiful fall colors and breathtaking mountain vistas. We will begin the day at the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center located just outside of Asheville. This environmentally designed “green” building features museum quality exhibits, a 22-foot “I-Wall” interactive Parkway map, and a dramatic 25-minute movie about the Parkway and its unique culture and heritage. Our next stop will be the Folk Art Center, home of the Southern Highland Craft Guild representing craft artists from the Southern Appalachia. The center houses three fine galleries and offers

The Apple Country Wine Tour showcases the award winning wines and ciders of Western North Carolina. The tour includes wine tastings, cider tasting, behind the scenes tours, and lunch.

We invite you to enjoy a relaxing day exploring wineries where warm hospitality and impressive wines are the order of the day.

AEG would like to thank the Meeting’s

Premium Sponsors PHOTO CREDIT WWW.CAROLINACOUNTRY.COM

CLEAN VAPOR www.cleanvapor.com

CASCADE DRILLING www.cascade-env.com

GANNETT FLEMING www.gfnet.com

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AEG NEWS 62 (3)

July 2019

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

"A Night in the Mountains” Wednesday, September 18 Special Event Fee: $100 per person Taylor Ranch is a fifth-generation, privately owned, 500-acre, working quarter horse and Texas longhorn cattle ranch. Scenic mountain views, gently rolling hills, a 7-acre lake stocked with brim and bass, and a beautiful lakeside post and beam pavilion make Taylor Ranch the perfect place for our special event. Casual attire suitable for strolling a ranch is recommended.

6:30–10:00 pm – Enjoy true Appalachian culture with the sounds of a professional bluegrass band. Listen as local musicians play their favorites and take your requests. A member of the band will call and instruct audience participation at square dancing and mountain broom dances.

6:30 pm–Dark – Go back in time as you travel across the ranch for a tour in one of their authentic horse-drawn covered wagons.

7:00 pm – Dinner is served! The dinner bell rings as the aromas from the grill call all to dinner.

Tentative Timeline 6:00 pm Buses depart from Hotel Lobby 6:30 pm Arrival at Taylor Ranch. Try your hand at sport fishing, horseshoes, corn hole, and other varieties of lawn games, or sit by our lake, relax and enjoy the views and view the wildlife that calls Taylor Ranch home. All recreational equipment provided. Fishing poles and artificial bait are provided with good fishing assured as the ranch allows sport fishing with a catch-and-release policy.

8:30 pm – Sit by the campfire and have a s’mores roast, or sip on your cold local brew and listen to the tales of true Appalachia as told by the ranch’s professional story teller.

Guests of all ages will be mesmerized as they take you back to the era of the Cherokee Indian, the homesteaders, the moonshiners, and many more.

10:00 pm – Guests depart Taylor Ranch with memories made that will last a lifetime.

6:30 pm – Watch in awe as a member of the Taylor Ranch staff calls and feeds the herd of registered Texas Longhorn cattle. There will be a great photo opportunity with one of their prize steers.

6:30–10:00 pm – Enjoy bottomless non-alcoholic beverages to include: a large assortment of soft drinks, freshly brewed iced tea and coffee, lemonade, and a variety of infused waters. A literal cash bar will be available (they DO NOT accept credit cards); one drink ticket is included. They feature several of the local breweries in Asheville, aka Beer City USA!

You don’t want to miss what promises to be a truly Special Event!

Be sure to check the box and include the event fee for you and your guest on the Registration Form.

July 2019

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

21

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Optional Events

Technical Program A complete schedule and abstracts will be included in both the Program with Abstracts and the Annual Meeting App.

“Young@Heart” Student/Professional Special Event

Technical Sessions

Tuesday, September 17 – 7:00–9:00 pm Students attend Free, all others $10

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Rockfall Mitigation

This social event is a great way to start your week in Asheville. Mix or mingle with your friends in environmental and engineering geology while you enjoy free appetizers (and a free drink ticket if you arrive early!). Just a short walk from the hotel, this event is an excellent opportunity to build connections with peers, mentors, senior fellows, and potential employers. We encourage students and young professionals to join the event and welcome experienced professionals who are “young at heart”!

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The Profession of Geology

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Hydrogeology, Groundwater and Karst

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Environmental Characterization and Remediation

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3D Modeling and Risk-Based Methodology

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Geophysics

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Transportation and Infrastructure

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Environmental Remediation and Geochemistry

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Drones for Geologic Applications

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Geologic and Geotechnical Site Characterization

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Geologic Hazard Mapping

Women in AEG/AWG Luncheon* Thursday, September 19 – 12:00–1:30 pm Event fee: $35 per person Join us for this popular networking event that focuses on current issues in the industry and offers an open forum for discussion and education. Men are welcome to attend! *New this year, the event has been moved from a breakfast to a luncheon gathering.

Annual Banquet Thursday, September 19 – 7:00–10:00 pm Event fee: $75 per person This is a well-attended, high-profile event at which the Association's major awards are given. Join us for a gourmet dinner, fine wine, and a chance to visit with friends and associates—both old and new. Semi-formal attire is recommended, though not required.

Invited Symposia ■

Climate Resilience: Bringing Geoscientists and Climate Scientists Together

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PFAS

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The Changing Times of Engineering Geology at Dams and Levees

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Speaking Their Language – Communicating Science with Non-Scientists – Who, Why, and How

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NOA

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Tunneling

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Landslides

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The 2019 Forum on the Geology of Industrial Minerals

Awards Ceremony and Corporate Business Meeting Friday, September 20 – 3:15–5:00 pm FREE Event included with all registration types The Awards Ceremony and Corporate Business Meeting is a time for Association officers, board members, and committee members to participate, report on their activities, and witness the installation of new officers, the transition of the outgoing and incoming Presidents, and the presentation of some of the AEG and the AEG Foundation awards. Closing beer and wine reception will follow with a complimentary drink ticket for all full registrations.

L to R: AEG Past-President Greg Hempen and AEG Foundation Past-President Kerry Cato at last year’s Corporate Business Meeting.

22

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

July 2019

AEG 62ND ANNUAL MEETING

Student Opportunities

Registration Rates and Deadlines

Volunteer Interested in volunteering 8 hours in exchange for a complimentary meeting registration? Contact Heather Clark for all of the details: heather@aegweb.org or 303-518-0618.

Annual Meeting Mentor Program The Student and Young Professional Support Committee (SYPSC) is developing a mentor program to pair professionals that plan to attend the 2019 Annual Meeting with interested student attendees. We hope mentors can provide advice and support both before and during the event to make the meeting more relaxing, enjoyable, and beneficial for students. Students interested in being paired with a mentor will identify themselves when they register for the meeting, and will be provided with the contact information of a professional who has volunteered to be a mentor. The student can then contact the professional with questions ranging from “What should I wear?” to “Could we meet during the Ice Breaker?”

Student/Professional Networking Reception Tuesday, September 17 – 5:15–6:30 pm Be sure to attend this fun and relaxed event—the perfect place for you to make new friends and meet future employers or fellow employees! You don’t want to miss it! Be sure to sign up on your registration form.

“Young@Heart” Student/Professional Special Event

by 8/1/19

after 8/1/19

AEG Member $475.00 $575.00 Non-Member $575.00 $675.00 AEG Student Member $95.00 $125.00 Events included with Full & Student Registrations: - Student / Professional Networking Reception - Icebreaker Reception with drink ticket and appetizers - Exhibitor Hosted Luncheon - Poster Session Reception with drink ticket - Opening General Session - All Technical Sessions and Symposia - Exhibit Hall with All-Day Coffee and Technical Session Breaks

Guest Registration* Per Adult $125.00 $150.00 *Must be linked to a full or one-day registration Events included with Guest Registration: - Icebreaker Reception with drink ticket and appetizers - Exhibit Hall with All-Day Coffee - Ability to sign up for Guest Tours

One-Day Registration AEG Member Non-Member

$275.00 $325.00

$325.00 $375.00

Optional Events for Additional Fees:

Tuesday, September 17 – 7:00–9:00 pm This social event is a great way to start your week in Asheville.

Make or mingle with friends in environmental and engineering geology while you enjoy free appetizers (and a free drink ticket if you arrive early!) Just a short walk from the hotel, this event is an excellent opportunity to build connections with peers, mentors, senior fellows, and potential employers. We encourage students and young professionals to join the event and welcome experienced professionals who are “young at heart!” Cost to Students is Free, all others $10. Be sure to sign up on your registration form.

L to R: Mike George and SYPSC CoChair Morley Beckman at last year’s Young@Heart event in San Francisco.

July 2019

Rate Full Registration

Special Event: “A Night in the Mountains” $100.00 “Young@Heart” Social Event (free for students!) $10.00 Women of AEG/AWG Luncheon $35.00 Annual Banquet $75.00 Weekend Field Courses, Guest Tours and Short Courses** **See pages 15–20 for more information, including rates and deadlines to sign up.

Cancellation Policy All cancellations and requests for refunds must be made in writing to the Annual Meeting Committee Chair(s). Verbal requests will not be accepted. Refunds may be issued 4–6 weeks after the close of the meeting.

For cancellations received at least 30 days prior to the start of the Annual Meeting: A $75 processing fee will be applied for cancellation of a full professional registration. • A $45 processing fee will be applied for cancellation of a daily professional registration. • A $40 processing fee or the cost of the activity, whichever is less, will be applied for cancellation of each Annual Meeting activity: Short Courses, Events, Field Courses, Workshops A 50% refund will be issued for cancellations received between 15 and 30 days prior to the start of the Annual Meeting. No refunds will be issued within 15 days of the start of the Annual Meeting. Special consideration will be given for verifiable personal and medical emergencies.

AEG NEWS 62 (3)

23

NEWS OF THE PROFESSION

AEG’s Mathewson Receives the James Hutton Lifetime Service Award

T

he National Association of State Boards of Geology (ASBOG) recognized Dr. Christopher C. Mathewson, Regents Professor Emeritus at Texas A&M University, with the James Hutton Lifetime Service award at their recent Council of Examiners meeting in Nashua, New Hampshire.

ASBOG is composed of 32 member states that license Professional Geologists/Geoscientists by examinations produced by the Council of Examiners. This unique honor is not an annual award but one that is based on lifetime service and contributions to the community of geology. The award’s namesake, James Hutton (1726–1797), is the founder of modern geology as a true science. He developed the “uniformity” theory of Earth structure with a massive heat source in the core, the idea that the Earth is millions of years old and is the author of a book The Theory of the Earth (1795).

The James Hutton award recognizes Dr. Mathewson’s service that significantly advanced the profession of geology through his teaching, professional society service, and public education activities. Dr. Mathewson received his BS Degree in Civil Engineering from Case Institute of Technology in 1963 and his Masters and PhD degrees in Geological Engineering from the University of Arizona in 1965 and 1971. He served as a commissioned officer in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) from 1966–1970, served as a Professor of Applied Geology at Texas A&M University from 1971–2011, and was named a Regents Professor Emeritus in 2011 by the Texas Board of Regents. Dr. Mathewson is a recognized scientist and engineer through his 70+ funded research projects, 125+ published papers, 700+ professional and public presentations, and his award-winning textbook in Engineering Geology.

Dr. Mathewson was recognized for his lifetime of service to Texas A&M, to the profession, and to the public. He served as

the Facility Manger and Building Proctor of the geology building from 1980–2006, as an Academic Mentor to units of the Corps of Cadets from 1988–2011, as Director of the Center for Engineering Geoscience, as a member of the Faculty Senate 2009– 2014 and in many other positions.

Dr. Mathewson continues to serve the profession through his more than 25 years as a Subject Matter Expert on the Council of Examiners of ASBOG, where he prepares questions and reviews the Fundamentals of Geology Examinations.

He also has a long career of service in the Association of Environmental and Engineering Geologists (AEG) where he has served as Editor of their Bulletin, Section Chair, Executive Director, and President since he joined in 1974. He has also served in numerous other local and national professional organizations throughout his career. He was appointed to the Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists by Governor Rick Perry from 2012–2018.

His service to the public includes numerous public education presentations and short courses on the interaction between the public and their geological environment, geologic hazards, flooding and landslides, and natural resources. The Texas Master Naturalists and many geology departments throughout Texas are sites of his presentations on geology and geologic licensure.

Dr. Mathewson was specifically recognized for his lifetime efforts to merge science and people through his service, but more importantly through his mentoring of his many students who continue to carry the geologic message to the public. The dedication to service by his students is shown by the five that have served as President of AEG, as members of the Council of Examiners of ASBOG, service on Licensure Boards and in many other service positions.

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Volunteer Editors Needed for the 24

AEG NEWS 62(3)

Both our Acquisitions Editor and Content Editor will be leaving their posts at the end of 2019. Contact Kristy Howard at manager@aegweb.org for full details about these fulfilling volunteer opportunities.

July 2019

PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Not Just Another Tank Yank Abandonment-In-Place of USTs at Complicated Sites

M

Anna Saindon, PE, RG, PhD, Member–St. Louis Section

any environmental and engineering geologists are familiar with “tank yanks” or Underground Storage Tank (UST) removals to address USTs that are out of service, damaged, or leaking. Some complicating issues when removing USTs include adjacent structures, utilities, poor subsurface conditions, and disruption to site activities. In these instances, in-place closures may be the preferred option to keep operations going while costing less than UST removal.

This topic is being presented in full at the AEG Annual Meeting in September. This summary article is designed to provide an overview of the UST removal and in-place abandonment process, common regulatory items to keep in mind, and information needed to generally assess if in-place closure of USTs is a good option for your site.

UST Removal Basics USTs are typically removed and recycled at the end of their useful life. This process is dictated by state and federal regulations, which generally follow a similar process. States have a list of USTs that are regulated and those that are not. For instance, heating oil USTs in Missouri are not regulated. The public can access state UST registries to verify if the onsite UST they have is registered, needs to be registered, or may be eligible for petroleum storage tank insurance funds.

Petroleum storage tank insurance funds vary widely in what they cover and what information they need, so they will not be included herein.

The first step is notifying the state regulatory agency and state fire marshal that there is a UST that will be removed.

Some states require the state fire marshal to be on site during the removal activities. Some counties also require additional notifications or permits.

Next, the remaining liquid contents (sometimes a waterproduct mix) are removed from the UST and disposed of by a licensed company for either recycling or disposal as special or hazardous waste prior to additional work to reduce the potential for spills during the removal process. The overburden is then removed to expose the UST and placed in a separate pile for analytical testing and potential reuse as backfill (Figure 1).

The UST is removed, placed on plastic, made inert, cut open, and cleaned prior to recycling or disposal.

Soil sampling and analytical testing occur on the floor and walls of the UST pit, typically biased toward areas that have obvious contamination based on staining, odors and elevated field screening readings. Often, a small amount of impacted soils can be removed with the tank without triggering a full remedial action as long as it is tested, manifested, and disposed of properly. Groundwater sampling and analytical testing occurs if groundwater enters the UST excavation. Impacted soils are tested, disposal permits obtained, and commonly disposed of at a permitted non-hazardous landfill. The UST cleaning material is also tested and disposed of appropriately.

Clean backfill is compacted into the UST pit based on the client’s requirements for future use.

A UST closure report is submitted to the regulatory agencies and either a No Further Action (NFA) letter is obtained or further remedial action occurs.

This process is both time and financially effective as long as there is enough excavation space, no utility issues, and the activities are not disrupting site operations.

Challenges to UST Removals Maintaining the structural integrity of adjacent building foundations becomes an expensive condition for UST removal due to the added cost and time to properly shore the excavation while

Figure 1. Exposed UST ready for removal

July 2019

AEG NEWS 62(3)

25

PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Figure 2. A building addition was placed over part of the UST pit.

performing the removal (Figure 2). Similar issues occur if the UST is adjacent to a property boundary, roadway, or a retaining wall. Utilities that cross over or near the UST would require protection and care before and during excavation activities.

If the UST removal is being conducted on an active site, or if the UST is in or near a roadway, other USTs in use, fuel pumps, or in an area of work, there could be a large disruption to the business or safety issues for multiple parties if removing the UST (Figure 3).

Another type of challenge to UST removals is missing or inaccurate information. Unknown product lines, existence of private utility lines, inaccurate size and contents of the UST, and type and stability of backfill material can turn a UST removal into a costly effort. Some of these issues can be reduced by performing geophysics to locate lines or the extent of the UST pit.

Abandoning a UST in place mitigates many of these issues including adjacent structures, adjacent product/utility lines, unstable fill material, high water table, and on-site operations.

UST Abandonment-in-Place Basics The notification process and UST content removal for a UST abandonment-in-place project is basically the same as for a UST removal. After that point, the process diverges.

Access to the UST is created using a temporary manhole and cutting open an access point to the UST for a person to enter under confined space procedures (Figure 4). The cleaning procedures are otherwise the same as for a UST removal. If groundwater is entering the excavation or other conditions make it unsafe for a person to enter the UST, a robotic cleaner can be used (Figure 5).

Figure 4. Creating a manhole to access the UST and cleaning out overburden as the manhole is advanced

Figure 3. Seven USTs were between a retaining wall on the property line, an active roadway, and other active USTs on site.

26

After the UST is cleaned, it is backfilled with either kilndried sand or grout. All connections to the UST are either removed or grouted to prevent accidental reuse. The surface concrete or other material is replaced (Figure 6).

Since native soils adjacent to the UST are not exposed for sampling and testing, a drilling program is used to obtain this information. Reporting is similar to the UST removal method.

AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Figure 6. Completed UST abandonment-in-place

Figure 5. Example of a robotic cleaner used on USTs that are unsafe to enter

At the completion of the project, a notice of the location, size, and backfill material of the USTs abandoned-in-place are filed with the property deed.

Conclusion If there are complications to UST removal at the site, early discussion and assessment of the abandonment-in-place option could result in significant time and money savings. If there are unknowns, discussing what conditions during UST

removal could trigger switching to an abandonment-in-place can avoid unnecessary delays and fees since most UST removal contractors can also perform UST abandonment-in place if they are aware of the potential up front.

Author Contact Information Geotechnology, Inc., 11815 Lackland Road, Suite 150, St. Louis, Missouri 63146, asaindon@geotechnology.com, 314-997-7440 Ext 3345

A Beekeeper’s Wish

O

Jill James

ne-third of our food is the result of pollination. Our native bees do their part—like the Mason bee (they love apple blossoms and blueberries) or the bumblebee (large enough to work a tomato or squash blossom by buzz pollination—literally vibrating the flower to release the pollen). But did you know that 80% of pollination is done by honeybees? Living in a colony of nearly 80,000 bees, honeybees can cover a large area.

Worker honeybees typically live about six weeks (first three weeks as house bees and then graduate to foraging bees for the last three weeks). The survival of the colony depends heavily on the forager bee’s success. The foraging bee is responsible for bringing nectar and pollen back to the hive, which is fed to growing bee larvae. Nectar (80% water) is fanned by house bees and converted into honey (16–18% moisture). Honey is capped and preserved for winter food. Honeybees do not hibernate. They cluster together, disengage their wings and shiver their bodies to generate heat to survive cold temperatures.

A foraging bee works very hard. She typically covers a 2– 3-mile radius from the hive (approximately 8,000 acres!) searching for food. Now consider that she will make 8–10 trips per day, visiting between 50-500 flowers each time (depending on the quality and quantity of the source). These last three weeks of her life, the honeybee may travel 800 miles or more.

So what is my wish? That we make it just a little easier for July 2019

our bees, and all pollinators, to get an ample supply of quality food. Planting a small pollinator garden (3’ x 3’) provides an excellent snack station. Can one garden really make a difference, you ask? Yes, every blossom counts. But…what if you challenge your neighbors, friends, family, classmates, or co-workers to plant a pollinator garden too? All of a sudden, many snack stations become a pollinator buffet! You don’t have a yard? No problem. A large planter (or two) can be just as valuable. Check out these websites for tips on creating your pollinator garden: https://www.gardendesign.com/perennials/pollinators.html https://www.gardeners.com/how-to/pollinator-garden-designfor-bees/9144.html

AEG NEWS 62(3)

Bee-friendly plants: bee balm, coreopsis, yarrow, Queen Anne’s lace, and liatris.

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

A Man-Made Disaster

G

Gleason Beach, Sonoma County, California Erik E. Olsborg, EG

leason Beach is located on the Pacific coast approximately 50 miles northwest of San Francisco. The Gleason Beach community consisted of a row of houses and cabins on the upper edge of a 60- to 80-foot-high ocean bluff over-looking abroad, sandy beach. The houses and cabins were westerly-adjacent to Highway 1, approximately 4.5 miles north-northwest of Bodega Bay. The sand originated from the Russian River before transport along offshore currents for distribution down the coast. The site location and the lower Russian River are shown on the Site Map, Plate 1.

The first houses or cabins in the Gleason Beach Community were constructed in the 1940s and 50s with a few later ones added in the 1960s. Most were vacation homes with just a few full-time residents. Most of the homes had cess pools with no leach fields for effluent disposal.

The broad, sandy beach protected the bluff from the ocean waves. The beach was accessible to foot traffic except during storms, and vehicle traffic except at high tide or during storms.

Scotty Creek forms the lower, southern boundary of Gleason Beach. The creek outlet emptied into the thick beach sand; there was no exposed creek channel going into the ocean. The Scotty Creek outfall could be walked or driven over without noticing there was creek water below.

Aerial Photograph A, Plate 2

Site Map, Plate 1

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All of this changed in the late 1960s. The beach elevation began dropping; ocean waves were now hitting and eroding the bluffs above the beach. The bluffs at Gleason Beach are comprised of Jurassic- Cretaceous Franciscan Complex claystone/ shale. These rocks are mainly friable, intensely fractured, and deeply weathered; easily erodible. As the bluffs started to erode, the homeowners began building non-engineered sea walls at the bluff toes (Aerial Photograph A, Plate 2). The ocean waves back-filled the walls with beach sand. The homeowners reacted to this by extending drain lines from their cesspools down to the sand deposited behind the walls. They called their new disposal fields their “sand boxes.�

Further wave erosion undermined portions of the initial sea walls. After a while, the homeowners started building new walls under the first wall. As the second walls were beginning to be undermined, the homeowners added third and even fourth walls under the first two walls. Site Photograph A, Plate 3, shows the progression of the typical wall construction. The later walls were in the range of 12 to 15 feet in height (Site Photograph B, AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Site Photograph A, Plate 3 Site Photographs D & E, Plate 6

Site Photograph B, Plate 4

Site Photograph F, Plate 7

Site Photograph C, Plate 5

Plate 4). Site Photograph C, Plate 5 shows excavation equipment working on the beach at low tide. The equipment would be in or under water at the photo location today.

As the beach dropped in elevation, the bluffs uphill became unstable. In some cases, landslides developed on the bluffs, endangering the houses above. In other cases, the bluff creeped downslope gradually. One local resident, an architect who is now deceased, told this author that he hadn’t realized that his bluff was creeping downslope until one day he was looking at family photographs. Family members in the photographs were standing on the bluff where the bluff was not there anymore. The bluff creep was so gradual that the vegetation adjusted to the movement; there were no abrupt scarps or slope bulges.

Beaches are constantly being eroded by ocean waves but also being replenished with sand from offshore currents. If the sand replenishment equals or exceeds the sand being eroded, the beach remains relatively stable. The source of sand replenishment in this region is from the mouth of the Russian River.

July 2019

Sand typically builds up at the mouths of rivers when the sand carrying velocity of the river meets the “still” water of the oceans. When the stream velocity decreases, the sediment carrying capacity of the stream is reduced and sand drops out. As the sand builds up at the river bar during low-velocity stream-flow periods, flooding behind the river bar can occur.

Such periodic flooding in the river community of Jenner is a seasonal problem.

During the “El Nino” years of 1998–99, the ocean waves caused considerable damage. The waves were continually in contact with the crumbling sea walls. There was very little beach sand left. Most of the sea walls were destroyed by the early 2000’s, as shown on Site Photographs D and E, Plate 6.

The natural beach replenishment cycle had ended. Gleason Beach today is a disaster zone (Site Photograph F, Plate 7 and Aerial Photograph B, Plate 8). The beach that had remained relatively stable since before the 1940s was now gone. In addition, many former “pocket beaches” further down the coast are now almost sandless rock piles at low tide. So, what happened?

AEG NEWS 62(3)

continued…

29

PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Aerial Photograph B, Plate 8

Sand Source Reduction We have researched two pertinent articles from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat newspaper. The first—dated October 2, 1966—shows a large suction dredge in operation at the mouth of the Russian River. Utah Construction Company (Utah) was dredging the sand from the mouth of the Russian River in order to open a navigation channel through the river sand bar. Utah was intending to mine as much as 20 to 30 million cubic yards of gravel from the lower few miles of the river for use as construction aggregate. Their first major project was to provide fill material for cover over the Bay Area Rapid Transit District’s trans-bay tube. Utah intended to barge the gravel through the river mouth navigation channel. It was hoped by many that the open navigation channel would also reduce the sand bar buildup and flooding potential in Jenner.

Press Democrat Article, Plate 10

Press Democrat Article, Plate 11

Press Democrat Article, Plate 9

30

According to the Press Democrat article, the suction dredge (Plates 9 and 10) had a “reasonable” rating of about 250 cubic yards of sand per hour. The dredge was operating on a 24-hour, six day a week schedule. The suction dredge was to be joined in mid-October by a 112 feet long by 53 feet wide clamshell dredge that could remove 5 cubic yards of sand every 70 seconds. The dredges piled up the sand along the side of the river, where the sand was loaded into trucks and hauled away to inland disposal areas.

AEG NEWS 62(3)

July 2019

PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS We understand that much of the removed sand was brought to Forestville for use as fill material over a number of acres for the Sonoma County Water Agency’s groundwater extraction facility. The fill was needed to raise the ground level above the Russian River flood elevation at that location.

According to the Press Democrat January 15, 1967 article (Plate 11), the sand extraction operation was going to be shut down for the next “few weeks” to await calmer weather. Utah planned to return with another larger, barge-mounted mining tool in a continuing effort to open the river mouth for navigation. The sand extraction operation resumed in February and continued to April 1967. An April 16, 1967 Press Democrat article (Plate 12) stated that the sand excavation at the river mouth was finally going to be abandoned. No gravel was ever extracted from the lower Russian River.

Sand Loss Summary

Press Democrat Article, Plate 12

The sand removal operation had gone on for approximately 6 months. The volume of sand removed from the river mouth from September 29, 1966 through January 15, 1967 is estimated as follows:

Suction dredge: From approximately September 29, 1966 to April 15, 1967 (minus an uncertain amount of down time), approximately 5.5 months, 25 days per month = 138 days x 24 hours per day = 3,312 hours x 250 cubic yards/hour = 828,000 cubic yards.

Clamshell dredge: From approximately October 15, 1966 to April 15, 1967 (minus estimated down time) approximately 5 months, 25 days per month = 125 days x 24 hours per day = 3,000 hours x 257 cubic yards per hour = 771,000 cubic yards.

Total sand removed from the river mouth was approximately 1,599,000 cubic yards or 36.7 acre-feet. This number includes a rough account for down time, including maintenance, moving, setting-up and repairs. In contrast, consider an assumed beach profile at Gleason Beach consisting of 1,000 feet long by 150 feet wide rectangle. The sand prism from the ocean up to the bluff could be assumed to vary from 0 to 15 feet in thickness.

Thus, the former beach would be 1,000 feet by 150 feet by 7.5 feet = 1,125,000 cubic feet or 25.8 acre feet, which is much less than the amount of sand removed from the Russian River mouth.

beach has not been restored by the continuing bluff erosion, as shown in the site and aerial photographs on Plates 7 and 8. The beach and bluff erosion at Gleason Beach was caused by the reduction in natural sand replenishment from the offshore current.

Approximately one and one-half million cubic yards or more of sand was removed from the mouth of the Russian River in 1966–67. The removal of sand from the mouth of the Russian River interrupted the sand replenishment cycle for beaches along the Sonoma County Coast, including Gleason Beach. Starting in the late 1960s, when the broad, sandy beach at Gleason Beach began eroding (dropping in elevation) due to lack of replenishment, sea walls were erected by the homeowners. The sea walls were futile; nothing could resist the relentless ocean waves as the beach eroded away.

Mankind’s misguided attempt to alter the natural environment, removing the sand and opening the river mouth to navigation, appears to have had the unintended consequence of destroying a beach community.

Author’s Information Erik E. Olsborg is a Vice President and Principal Engineering Geologist at Brunsing Associates, Inc. Engineers and Geologists.

Conclusions The “official” policy of the California Coastal Commission is that seawalls are bad for beaches. The theory is that seawalls damage beaches by preventing sand from reaching the beach, which eventually causes beaches to shrink until they disappear. That may be the case in other parts of California, but that doesn’t apply at Gleason Beach. The sea walls were mostly eroded away by the early 1990s. Since then, the bluffs behind where the seawalls once stood have been badly eroded. The Franciscan Complex claystone-shale that comprises the bluffs have very little sand content. Thus, the

July 2019

CORRECTION: In the April 2019 issue of AEG News on Page 18, the article on Pitcairn Island has an error in the location.

Pitcairn Island is 1,300 miles WEST of Easter Island not east as stated in the article.

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Geo-hazards Associated with Urban Geology in the City of La Paz, Baja California Sur., Mexico Joel Hirales-Rochin and Francisco Javier Urcadiz-Cazares

Abstract: Geology as a tool to identify areas of geological risk is useful to determine the relationship between the geological space and the sustainable urban development of a city. At the national, regional, and local level where the study area is located, there is a growing need to create new urban areas. However, these are not linked to an adequate analysis of the geology and the main factors that control risk conditions. Consequently, the risks and its impacts have been manifested due to different factors. The methodology to reach the objectives was based on the compilation of the existing information of the study area, data collection, and observation of the geohydrological conditions. All this information was complemented using RS (remote sensors) & GIS (geographic information systems) technology supported by satellite data prepared in Arcgis software. Finally, several thematic maps and a final map of risk vulnerability were generated. The results represent the first stage of a larger scale project to contribute new geotechnical knowledge to be used in the more precise zoning of geological and hydrogeological risks and that together they are useful for planning and building sustainable urban development of La Paz city.

1. Introduction1 Geological and hydrometeorological risks are currently responsible for high levels of affectation and destruction in urban areas. Only in the twentieth century, it is estimated that more than one million people worldwide have been killed as a result of earthquakes. In Latin America, these earth movements are constant and bring a secondary effect of landslides and rocks. The predictions of these landslides have received great attention and study due to the socio-economic impacts they produce [1–3], as well as for their usefulness as a tool urban planification.

The interactions between factors such as climate, topography, geology, soil, precipitation, vegetation, the mechanical strength of the rock (index of geological resistance) [4], and mechanical soil conditions play a very important role as trigger mechanisms to processes of removal, landslides, and fallen rocks. In addition to this, these conditions are influenced by the occupational conditions of the area in relation to the population and infrastructure, since the settlements located at the foothills and mountains are very vulnerable if the surface of the terrain with a pronounced slope is found with loose material and without vegetation cover; the problem becomes more acute if there is a channel in the high slope area [5].

In Mexico annually, more than 50% of the disasters that occur in the country are triggered by phenomena of hydrometeorological origin, highlighting hurricanes and other types of torrential rains, floods, droughts, frosts and hailstorms, 32

among others [6]. In Baja California Sur, the state has an incidence of cyclones in average of a tropical cyclone of the Northeast Pacific and two approaches less than 300 km.

Between 1966 and 2010, 39 cyclones arrived at the state, 20 of which have arrived in September [7]. In addition, if it is considered that the volume of runoff (11 Mm3/year, product of a precipitated volume of 351 Mm3/year) by the streams that make up the La Paz Basin extend and cross the urban zone with low speeds [8].

The geological characteristics of the southern region of the Baja California Peninsula, where the city of La Paz is located, have been described in several research works by various authors and institutions at the regional and local geology level [9-14]. More recently in the work done by Pérez-Venzor, 2013 [15], a geological-geochemical study of the Southern portion of the State (Los Cabos Block) refers to the present study area as part of a Plutonic Geological Complex of La Paz. The government has undertaken isolated studies of the location of risk areas in a general way. In the official documents of the urban development plan (UPD-2018) of the city of La Paz, as well as in the municipality of Los Cabos [16], Baja California Sur, and recently in the 2012 Atlas of Natural Risks was elaborated upon at the state level.

Therefore, a more precise geological recognition is required on a scale (urban suburb) where the possible geological risks and the risks derived from hydrometeorological events are characterized and identified.

All previous antecedents are focused in different objectives of geological character, but there is little investigation of regional and local form that includes the urban geology directed toward geological engineering and applied geotechnical purposes. For example, in Guaymas, Sonora [17], where the area was characterized based on local geology in several aspects and several thematic maps were developed, while in the city of Tijuana Baja California, a diagnosis of urban risks was made [18] with a geological characterization of the city.

One of the most important measures for the prevention and reduction of losses by mass movements refers to the zoning of the territory’s susceptibility and threats. Therefore, a systematic mapping of the most susceptible areas is needed, these being defined, usually expressed in a cartographic form that is generated with the support of GIS (geographic information systems), satellite images, use of the slip SIM (susceptibility index method) and field geological work.

The objective of this study was to zonify the geo-hazards associated with urban geology based on areas susceptible to landslides, fallen rocks and flood-prone areas, in the northwest portion of La Paz using RS and GIS techniques.

AEG NEWS 62(3)

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

3.1 Estimation and Numerical Assignment of Slip Factors

Figure 1. Location and lithology-structural map of the study area, where outcrops are generally displayed

2. Study Zone La Paz, capital city of the state of Baja California Sur, is located in the southern portion of the Peninsula of Baja California, Mexico. Within the Köppen classification, the dominant climate is very dry and very warm, with an average annual temperature between 22°C and 24°C, with rainfall in summer and winter mainly, where the winter precipitation is 10.2%, with great influence of atmospheric disturbances originated in the Pacific Ocean of cyclonic type that produces very intense precipitations. The city of La Paz is characterized by a morphology dominated by basins and sierras, resulting from the interaction of magmatic-tectonic processes, which is settled in Holocene deposits that correspond to the alluvial material (varying from sand to sandy gravel) of the active streams, where the thickness of the material varies and can reach a few meters in the main streams [19]. Geologically, volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks (sandstone and volcaniclastic conglomerates, rhyolitic tuffs, andesitic lahars and lava flows) are represented by the Comondú Formation with an age between 30 and 12 Ma in the central portion [20-24]. The city of La Paz has a population of 251,871 [25]. The study area (163.89 km2) is located in the northwest portion of the city of La Paz, between the coordinates UTM 12 R 570000-580000 N and 2666000-2674000E (Fig. 1).

3. Methodology The present study represents the first stage of a larger-scale project, comprising several stages divided into different areas of the city of La Paz, in order to understand the comprehensive geological-urban knowledge. The methodology applied was the AHP (analytic hierarchy process) development by Saaty (1980) [26], which consists of matrix analysis and involves value judgments. In this way, the matrix of preference over the selected criteria was generated, obtaining the weighting of the eight chosen variables. It was important the knowledge of the study area, the documentation and local studies generated to date, where the criteria of the specialists are taken up.

July 2019

The determination of the numerical assignment of the landslide risk assessment factor is a numerical system that depends on the relevant factors. By superimposing the elements or parameters indicating threats and/or risks, a zoning map of landslide susceptibility can be drawn up, delimiting the risk areas, giving each factor a specific weight and value, and analyzing the situations site by site, with the help of the various thematic maps [27].

For this reason, factors specific to the physical environment were identified for the study area and numerical values were assigned to the factors based on the degree of influence on the instability of the slope. The different classes within each causative factor were also assigned values according to their influence in causing instability, in order to give a more precise assignment of each causative factor and its respective subclasses.

The relevant factors for the zoning mapping of susceptibility to landslide risks include lithology, slope, elevation, use and land cover, density of urban roads, lineament density, drainage density, and precipitation.

The stability of an area is multifactorial and the behavior of each factor has different degrees of influence, so the maximum numerical estimate of the slip hazard evolution factor for different categories is determined based on its estimated importance to cause instability. The important factors responsible for the area of landslides were assigned numerical values (range) on a scale of 1 to 5 in order of importance. The rating was assigned to the classes of the factors in ordinal scales from 1 to 5, where a higher rating indicates a greater susceptibility to the occurrence of landslides.

This part of the methodology is the basis for giving weight (wi) to each parameter and defining its relative importance to induce landslides (Ri). These weighted factor maps were superimposed using a multivariate criteria analysis (Table. 1) to prepare a risk susceptibility map (RSM) for the present study area [28].

3.2 Data Used In this study, various types of remote sensing data were used to detect characteristics of landslides, for example, remote sensing products stereo, which revealed the actual morphodynamic characteristics of the areas susceptible to removal and fallen rocks for EOS (Earth Observing System) data and Landsat 7-8 (2014-2018). In addition, published reports, field studies, and interpretation of digital aerial photographs (FAD) (50,000 scale 10,000) were used. This data set was compared with the landslide characteristics generated from aerial photographs and satellite images (WorldView-4) (November 2016), which are also generated in the UTM reference system.

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS Table 1. Values assigned to the conditioning factors for areas susceptible to geo-hazards

No

Factor

Class

No.

Weight (wi)

Index

Observations The lithology with greater susceptibility to slip is the riodacíte, for its high fracturing and accumulation of rock masses

20

20 40 60 80 100

16

16 32 48 64 80

The highest percentage of the slope is concentrated in moderately inclined (25 ° -28 °) to inclined. The direction of the slope are North, Northeast and Northwest are located in the high parts of the relief where the areas of removal and fallen rocks and are located.

The highest elevation is located NE of the city increasing the possibility of landslides, rockfalls, and floodplains.

Lithology

Alluvium Sandstone Tuff Conglomerate Riodacite

1 2 3 4 5

Slope

0.0–10.8 10.8–21.6 21.6–32.4 32.4–43.4 Higher to 43.2

1 2 3 4 5

3

0.0–76 77–153 154–229 230–306 307–382

1 2 3 4 5

15

15 30 45 60 75

4

Urban Settlements Urban Zone Forest Soil

3 2 1

14

14 28 42

The use of soils dominates by its use in housing, with surrounding areas of soil and endemic vegetation.

1 2 3 4 5

12

12 24 36 48 60

Drainage flows through the urban center of the study area, which denotes its risk influence.

5

0.0–59.7 59.7–119.4 119.4–179.2 179.2–238.9 238.9–298.0

1 2 3 4 5

10

10 20 30 40 50

Landslides in forms of removal and/or falling rocks do not occur near the communication routes.

6

0–5.6 5.6–11.2 11.2–16.8 16.8–22.4 22.4–28.0 0.0–6.0 6.0–8.0 8.0–9.0 9.0–21.0 21.0–25.0

1 2 3 4 5

Fractures, stratigraphy and foliation plans are a factor to consider in the vicinty of inhabitated areas.

8

8 16 24 32 40

<100 >100

1 2

5 10

The average annual rainfall for the El Cajoncito basin, where the area is located is 200mm/year. The climatological station near the study area presents the rainfall in periods of decade.

1

2

7

3.3 Mapping Risk Vulnerability The risk vulnerability map is based on a ZLR (zoning of landslide risk - rock removal, debris flow and falling), which was prepared when calculating the landslide potential index and classifying the slip potential index in several lands susceptible to landslide, as low, medium, high and very high.

The slip potential index (SPI) is defined as: (SPI) = Σn i = 1 (wi * Ri) Where wi denotes the weight for the factor i and Ri denotes the classification of the factor i. In this study, the total number of factors (n) is 8, where the classification varies from 1 to 5.

The landslide model was created and the weighting and classification are assigned to each category. Depending on the issues and their impacts, different areas were delineated. The total estimated ZLR was calculated as follows: Value ZLR = L + SL+ EL + SL/U-SL + DD+ URD + SD + RF

34

Where: value of ZLR = Sum of ratings of all the causative factors, ZLR = Lithology + Slope + Elevation + Soil/Use Soil + Drainage Density + Urban Road Density + Structural Density + Rainfall.

The different thematic layers were reclassified using the Jenks method, which is based on Jenks’ natural break algorithm, thereby minimizing the internal variability of the classes and maximizing the differences between classes. In addition, the Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) was used to prepare the RSM, whereby all the layers of the map were superimposed and validated using the landslide incidence points collected during fieldwork.

Based on this methodology and using the Arcgis software, several thematic maps based on and related to the DEM (digital elevation model) were generated: General geological map, elevations, slope, aspect, drainage, land/vegetation use, precipitation and as a final product, a vulnerability map.

AEG NEWS 62(3)

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Figure 2. Map showing the vulnerability by urban settlement

4. Results 4.1 Geological and Geohydrological Vulnerability The physical characteristics of the study area are influenced by some phenomena with potential for affectation, which are described below: 4.1.1 Floods Due to its climate, topography, soil type, and slopes, the Valley and city of La Paz characterizes its surface hydrology due to the lack of rivers or permanent surface flows. However, the extension of the basin is defined by the intermittent streams originated in the Sierras de Las Cruces and El Novillo and the plain in which these runoffs are distributed until their discharge into the Bay of La Paz, which are reactivated during the rainy and hurricane season, constituting important flood areas in the area peripheral of the city of La Paz (Fig. 2).

La Paz city is conformed by 278 urban settlements and the analysis of the study area shows nine sites with low to very high degree vulnerability (Fig. 3). The characteristics of risk vulnerability are described below: (a) Rock slides that behave as a package of masses of volcanic clasts and that are classified as less competent materials. In this category, incoherent material is included, corresponding to the lithology of volcanic origin (pyroclastic deposits not welded by rhyodacite) and the rest of the material (sandstone and conglomerate sandstone) somewhat weathered. (b) Events that have occurred properly as falling rocks (materials of greater competition) that correspond to blocks of rhyodacite composition that are located on a topographic slope of 25째-28째 and vary in dimensions from 2 to 4 m in length, which approximate in a weight of 3 to 10 tons each (Fig.3). (c) Using the AHP, the LSI values were computed by using equation [1]. The LSI values are divided into five classes based on the natural breaks range, which represent five different zones in the landslide susceptibility map. These are VLS (very low susceptibility), LS (low susceptibility), MS (medium susceptibility), HS (high susceptibility), VHS (very high susceptibility) and the percentage of area covering each susceptibility class are shown in Table 2.

From the analysis (Table 2 and Fig. 4), it is evident that 18.6% of the total area fall under the VHS, 14.99% to HS and, followed by medium susceptible zones (18.77%), LS (23.38%), and very low susceptibility VLS (24.26%).

Table 2. Distribution of Areas and Percentages that Represent the Susceptibility of Geohazards in the Study Area Landslide Susceptibility Class

4.1.2 Landslides and Fallen Rocks Within the study area, two processes of rock movements were recognized: (a) Landslides (Removal rocks, debris flow) (b) Fallen rocks The distribution of these events was located within the middle and high portions of the topography (328 to 164 ft above sea level and slope of 25째 to 28째), which is limited by the streams that cross most of the urban settlements (Fig. 3).

Processes susceptible to landslides in the whole area were recognized (26 debris flows and 12 rockfalls).

Area (Sq. km)

Area (%)

Very Low (VLS)

39.77

24.26

Low (LS)

38.32

23.38

Medium (MS)

30.77

18.77

High (HS)

24.56

14.99

Very High (VHS)

30.47

18.60

163.89

100.00

Total Area

5. Discussion

Fig. 3. Photographic series supported by satellite image to illustrate some sites of potential susceptibility to landslide and fallen rocks

July 2019

The results and the methodology of this research work was the generation of maps of vulnerability (susceptibility) in geological risks focused on different geological issues of the urban and suburban area, which can be used as a basis for the future sustainable urban development of the city of La Paz. These areas include urban development zones where streams and stream flooding areas are currently located, as well as hill slopes, with processes susceptible to landslide.

The location and description of the phenomena were carried out in two groups: the one of those that occurred in rock

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS (14) drainage density (12) and the three least influencing factors are density of urban roads (10), density of structural features (8), and rainfall (5).

In terms of criticality and based on the validation of the susceptibility maps obtained, 33.59% of the total area presents geo-hazard susceptibility conditions from high to very high.

The percentage of very low to medium susceptible areas is close to 66.41% maximum.

The results represent a first stage of a larger scale project and with this it is possible to contribute new geotechnical knowledge to be used in the more precise zoning of geological and hydrogeological risks and that together they are useful for the planning and sustainable urban development of La Paz city.

Figure 4. The zonation in terms of landslide susceptibility of the study area.

(materials of greater competition) and those that occurred in rocks of less competent materials. In particular, in this category incoherent material, of volcanic origin (non-welded pyroclastic deposits) and very widespread material, including immature soils is included. Of these two sets, 12 landslides (rockfall, removal) were identified on rocks and 26 in soils (volcanic deposits or severely overwhelmed rocks). The rock movements found in the area correspond mainly to the classification of Dikau [29] to fall processes, simple transitional slides and blocks.

The movements were generated from the combination of geological factors (slope, lithology and geological structure), hydrogeological (drainage density) and geotechnical (mechanical behavior of materials). The mechanism of failure and mode of detachment were controlled by geological and geotechnical factors.

This aspect of the results coincides with the research carried out by Momeni et al. [30], when affirming that in landslides and fallen rocks, slope and appearance play an elementary role in the flow of material since the slope provides speed and appearance indicates the direction of that slope.

6. Conclusions The current research presented a methodological model for the evaluation and zoning of the susceptibility of geo-risks according to the characteristics of the study area.The methodological proposal also complements the results obtained with a new landslide susceptibility map, which did not exist until the present date and defines areas of sensitive urban development at the urban settlement scale. The conclusions of this research work are presented below: The conditions of the physical environment, which were used to weight the most influential factors for the susceptibility of landslides (Removal rocks, debris flow & rockfall), can be inferred that lithology, slope, and geomorphology (elevation) are the most dominant factors.

Based on the analysis of the most influencing factors to landslide activity (judged from their associated weights) are lithology (20), geomorphology (16), slope (15), land/use cover 36

Acknowledgments The author thanks the Technological Institute of La Paz for the logistical support provided.

Notes 1

Corresponding author: Joel Hirales-Rochin, head of research projects, research fields: urban geology, petrology & hydrology.

References 1.

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“Integrated Landslide Susceptibility Analysis and Hazard Assessment in the Principality of Andorra.” Natural Hazards 30: 421–35.

2. Magliulo, P., Lisio, A. D., and Russo, F. 2009. “Comparison of GIS-Based Methodologies for the Landslide Susceptibility Assessment.”

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3. Mohammady, M, Pourghasemi, H. R., and Pradhan, B. 2012. “Landslide Susceptibility Mapping at Golestan Province, Iran: A Comparison between Frequency Ratio, Dempster-Shafer, and Weights-of-Evidence Models.” J Asian Earth Sci 61: 221–36.

4. Hoek, E. 1994. “Strength of Rock and Rock Masses.” ISRM News Journal 2 (2): 4–16.

5. Bathrellos, G. D., Karymbalis, E., Skilodimou, H. D., Gaki-Papanastassiou, K., and Baltas, E. A. 2016. “Urban Flood Hazard Assessment in the Basin of Athens Metropolitan City, Greece.” Environ. Earth Sci. 75: 319.

6. Oropeza, O. 2008. Prevención de desastres de origen hidrometereológico, una prioridad nacional. El caso de las inundaciones. En: Rodríguez, D., S. Lucatello y M. Garza (Coordinadores). Políticas Públicas y Desastres. Instituto Mora-Red Mexicana de Estudios Interdisciplinarios para la Prevención de Desastres, A.C. México, D. F., pp. 125–44.

7. Romero-Vadillo, et al. 2007. Romero-Vadillo E., O. Zytsev, R. MoralesPérez.Tropical cyclone statistics in the northeastern Pacific Atmósfera, 20: 197–213.

8. Monzalvo, M. 2010. “Simulación hidrodinámica del acuífero de La Paz y su aprovechamiento como fuente de desalación: La Paz, Baja California Sur, México.” Doctoral tesis, Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM).

9. Mina-Uhink, F. 1957. “Bosquejo geológico del territorio sur de la Baja California.” Bol. Asoc. Mex. Geol. Pet. 9: 188–92.

10. Ortega-Gutiérrez, F. 1982. Evolución magnética y metamórfica del complejo cristalino de La Paz, Baja California Sur., Soc. Geológica Mexicana, Convención Nacional, Programas y Resúmenes. México D. F, p. 90.

11. Pérez-Venzor, J. A., Aranda-Gómez, J. J., Hirales-Rochin, J., Pérez-Espinoza, J. E., and Velez-Galido A. 1996. Rasgos morfoestructurales de la región meridional de la Península de Baja California, México. XIII Convención Geológica Nacional realizada en La Paz B. C. S del 24 al 28 de noviembre, libro de resúmenes, p. 28.

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PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS 12. Pérez-Venzor, J. A., Aranda-Gómez, J. J., Schaaf, P., and Böhnel, H. 1997.

“Geología del Borde Oriental del Bloque de Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, México. Reunión anual de La Unión Geofísica Mexicana. GEOS.” Boletín informativo época II 17: 228.

13. Schaaf, P., Bohnel, H., and Pérez-Venzor, J. A. 2000. “Pre-Miocene Palaeogeography of the Los Cabos Block, Baja California Sur: Geochronological and Palaeomagnetic Constraints.” Tectonophysics 318: 53–69.

14. Mattern, F., Perez Venzor, J. A., Perez Espinoza, J. E., and Hirales Rochin, J. 2010. “Cretaceous to Cenozoic Sequential Kinematics of the Forearc-Arc Transition: Effects of Changing Oblique Plate Convergence and the San Andreas System with Implications to the La Paz Fault (Southern Baja California, Mexico).” International Journal of Earth Sciences (Geologische Rundschau) 99: 83–99, Berlin (Springer).

15. Pérez-Venzor, J. A. 2013. Estudio Geológico –Geoquímico del Borde Oriental del Bloque de los Cabos Baja California Sur, México: México, D. F., Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. tesis doctoral, p. 297.

16. Rojas-Soriano, H., and Alvarez-Arellano, A. D. 2007. “Zonas de peligro por inundación y erosión en el área de Cabo San Lucas.” B.C.S., México, Jornadas Internacionales sobre Gestión del Riesgo de Inundaciones y Deslizamientos de Laderas.Brasil, p. 15.

17. Vega-Granillo, E. L., Vega-Granillo R., De la O-Villanueva M., and ArauxSánchez, E. 2004. “Geología Urbana de la región de Guaymas y San Carlos, Sonora.” Revista GEOS 24 (2): 188.

18. López-Álvarez, L. A. 2002. Diagnostico de riesgos urbanos en el área metropolitana de Tijuana. Ayuntamiento de Tijuana Baja California. Dirección Municipal de Protección Civil. Tijuana Baja California. México, p. 103.

19. Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI). Consultado 20-052018 en http://www. inegi.org.mx/geo/contenidos/geodesia/default.aspx.

20. Aranda-Gómez, J. J., and Pérez-Venzor, J. A. 1988. “Estudio Geológico de Punta Coyotes Baja California Sur. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.” Instituto de Geología, Revista 7: 1–21.

21. Aranda-Gómez, J. J., and Pérez-Venzor, J. A. 1989. Estratigrafía del Complejo Cristalino de la región de Todos Santos, Estado de Baja California Sur. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.” Instituto de Geología, Revista 8: 149–70.

22. Aranda-Gómez, J. J., and Pérez-Venzor, J. A. 1989. La Evolución geológica del Complejo Cristalino Mesozoico a lo largo de la zona de falla de La Paz, Baja California Sur. Tercer simposium sobre Geología Regional de México, organizado por Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Geología, del 29 al 30 de mayo, resumen en memorias, p. 11.

23. Ortega-Gutiérrez, F., Mitre-Salazar, L. M., Roldán-Quintana J., ArandaGómez, J. J., Morán-Zenteno D., Alaniz-Alvarez, S. A., and NietoSamaniego, A. F., 1992. Texto explicativo de la Carta Geológica de la República Mexicana. 5th. ed. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Geología; y Secretaria de Energía-Minas e Industria Paraestatal, Consejo de Recursos Minerales. Mapa con texto explicativo, escala 1: 2 000,000, p. 74.

24. Pérez-Venzor, J. A. 2013. Estudio Geológico-Geoquímico del borde oriental del bloque Los Cabos Baja California Sur, México, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) Tesis de doctorado, p. 294.

25. Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI). Consultado 10-062018 en http://www. inegi.org.mx/geo/contenidos/geodesia/default.aspx.

26. Saaty, T. L. 1980. The Analytic Hierarchy Process, New York: McGraw Hill.

27. Chingkhei, R. K., Shiroyleima, A., Singh, L. R., and Kumar, A. 2013.

“Landslide Hazard Zonation in NH-1A in Kashmir Himalaya, India.”

International Journal of Geosciences 4: 1501–8.

28. Gupta, R. P., and Joshi, B. C. 1990. “Landslide Hazard Zonation Using the GIS Approach—A Case Study from the Ramganga Catchment, Himalayas.”

Engineering Geology 28: 119-31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0013-7952(90)90037-2 29. Dikau, R., Brunsden, D., Schrott, L., and Ibsen, M.-L., eds. 1996. Landslide Recognition. Identification, Movement and Causes. Chichester: Wiley & Sons.

30. Momeni, R., Aplin, P., and Boyd, D. S. 2016. “Mapping Complex Urban Land Cover from Spaceborne Imagery: The Influence of Spatial Resolution, Spectral Band Set and Classification Approach.” Remote Sensing 8: 88.

Authors Information Joel Hirales-Rochin – Area of Earth Sciences, Department of Civil Engineering, Technological Institute of La Paz, La Paz 4120 Baja California Sur, Mexico (South California Chapter AEG).

Francisco Javier Urcadiz-Cazares – Department of Geology; Autonomous University of Baja California Sur (UABCS), La Paz 23080, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Call for Papers: AEG Members are encouraged to submit papers on interesting case histories, original research or other projects to its journal on the following topics: • Environmental geology • Engineering geology • Feasibility studies • Geotechnical engineering • Geomorphology • Low-temperature geochemistry • Applied hydrogeology • Near-surface processes • Review papers in applied geosciences and technical notes (< 6 pages)

Benefits Include: • 4 Issues Per Year • Papers Are Peer Reviewed • Best Student Paper Award • Best Paper Award Instructions for Authors: http://eeg.allentrack.net/ July 2019

AEG NEWS 62(3)

37

ISSUES IN PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE FOR GEOLOGISTS

Editor’s Note: In this series, we present the opinions of the author as he explores the issues that are important in the implementation and operation of statutory licensure for geologists. The author’s opinions are not necessarily those of the Association of Environmental & Engineering Geologists or any other organization or entity.

ISSUE LXXXI: How Unregulated Is the Profession of Geology in Your State?

(Calculating the Unregulation Index) Robert E. Tepel, PG, and AEG Past President

Introduction One of the points made by the Institute for Justice (IJ) in their anti-licensure slide show (and testimony in Texas) is that regulation of the professions is often too inclusive: people who don’t need to be regulated are being regulated. Regulation should be minimal and only cover those who need to be regulated in the state’s interest. What the IJ does not recognize is that minimal regulation already exists. In all states, there are exemptions in the laws that license design professionals: the industry exemption, the subordinate exemption, and employment field exemptions (teachers, resource geologist, for example). See the Institute for Justice web site at www.ij.org for more information.

Here I describe, in preliminary fashion, a way that geologists can provide a numerical index of the degree to which our profession is unregulated in each state. This “Unregulation Index” could be a useful number in discussing and defending licensure in a variety of situations. I encourage geologists in all states with licensure to go through the exercise, using current information and modifying the details of input data to suit their situation.

So, the question, for any particular state, is: just how “unregulated” is the profession? This “Unregulation Index” is simply the percent of all geologists working in a state who are unlicensed (presumably because they do not need a license).

The Idealized Calculation We need to know only two numbers to calculate the Unregulation Index: A) The number of geologists employed as geologists in a particular state, and B) The number of geologists who are licensed by that state.

With these two numbers, we can calculate an Unregulation Index, Ru, defined by the equation Ru = 100(A-B)/A Where Ru = percent of all geologists working in a state who are working in positions for which licensure is not required, and A and B are as defined above.

Assumptions and Limitations Implicit in this calculation are the assumptions that the data sets used are of suitable integrity, compatible for input into the equation, and produced at fairly recent dates.

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Quantity A, the number of geologists working in a state is based on a periodic survey of employers in that state by the US Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. It would be reasonable to assume that all, or nearly all, of the geologists enumerated in that survey are residents of that state. For quantity B to be closely compatible with quantity A, we need the number of licensees with in-state addresses, which might not be available from all state boards. With the exception of Louisiana, the number of out-of-state licensees is likely to be small, and not significantly affect the output from the equation.

A further consideration in determining quantity B is that some licensees might be working in positions that do not require licensure, or they are retired, or working in foreign lands, or otherwise not actively engaged in practice in that state. If this number were known, it could affect the calculation in a small way. For our purposes, a simple calculation will suffice, but if adjusted input numbers are available, they will enhance the quality of the answer.

Sample Calculation Data Acquisition In this example, the quantity A is taken from the American Geosciences Institute (AGI) State Fact Sheet at https://www. americangeosciences.org/policy/factsheet/states.

AGI takes the employment number from a survey conducted by the US Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The survey methodology is described at https://www.bls.gov/ oes/current/methods_statement.pdf (Link supplied by Leila Gonzales at AGI) Quantity B is the number of geologists licensed by the state. It is available from the state licensure board, and is also provided by ASBOG® in the documentation found by clicking on a state on its interactive map at www.asbog.org.

Procedure Using currently available numbers, there are 1,716 Floridalicensed geologists (assumed for this example to all be living in Florida and offering services there), and 13,696 geologists working in Florida (from the AGI web site Florida page), the degree of unregulation of the profession (the Unregulation Index) is, using the equation derived above, Ru = 100(A-B)/A Where A = 13,696, (from the AGI’s State Page) and B = 1,716 (from the Registrant Count on the Florida information document

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ISSUES IN PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE FOR GEOLOGISTS

found by clicking on Florida on the map at https://asbog.org /state_boards.html.

Ru = 100(13,696 – 1,716)/13,696 = 87.47% of the profession is unregulated.

Conclusion This result allows the inference that in Florida the profession of geology is unregulated to a significant degree. We can conclude that only those geologists whose work critically affects the public health, safety, and wellbeing are being licensed by the state. We can also conclude that there are ample opportunities to work in Florida as an unlicensed geologist, and that licensure there is not depriving geologists of work.

Call for Professional Contributions…

AEG News is looking for professional contributions on a variety of topics, especially engineering and environmental geology. We would like the articles to be 4–6 pages in length. Examples of previous published work include research, case studies, and industry innovations. See page 3 for details.

FIELD TRIP

Alberici Campus Field Trip St. Louis Chapter

O

Phyllis Steckel, RG

n Friday, May 31, 2019, AEG’S St. Louis Chapter was invited to tour the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum, Green Building Certified campus of the corporate headquarters of Alberici. Alberici is a major contractor in the St. Louis region, and has on-going and completed projects across the US, and in Canada and Mexico.

The Alberici campus, located on the southeast quadrant of the I-170 and Page Avenue interchange, was one of the first LEED Platinum projects in the country.

Eight members of AEG were present to take the tour. Our tour leader was none other than John Alberici, Chairman of the Board. A gracious and patient host, Alberici showed our group a fascinating tour. He explained the details that were addressed in the design, reconfiguration, remodel, and new construction that were needed to redevelop the site, which originally was a steel-fabrication plant built in the 1950s. Several hundred Alberici employees, as well as several hundred employees of another company (Vi-Jon) that rents office space, are now housed in the space.

The 13-acre campus now includes two small ponds with bass and bluegill, native prairie plantings, numerous bird feeders, nest boxes, and a recycled ‘chimney’ for swifts, and beehives. The honey harvested from the beehives is used as a company giveaway to clients. Several pathways wind through the prairie plantings, and native flowers bloom from April through October. We could hear the traffic on the adjacent highway, but the sounds of crickets, frogs, and birds definitely muffled the traffic noise.

One part of the old plant has been converted to a multistory garage for employees and guests. Between the covered garage and the present office space is an open-air driveway July 2019

and breezeway, planted with native trees and ground cover.

There is no lawn to mow on the entire campus, which saves many thousands of dollars annually in irrigation and maintenance costs. Runoff from the structures is captured in a recycled cistern and used to flush toilets. A recycled windmill and solar panels on the garage roof subsidize the energy requirements of the campus.

Energy-efficiency, recycling, and smart re-design is in the forefront. LED lighting (upgraded since the original construct), re-purposed structural-steel elements, cork and bamboo finish materials, all were showcased. Heating and cooling systems take advantage of natural ventilation. Windows can open. Natural light dominates. A wall of windows that faced southeast, was reconfigured, via a saw-tooth design, to a series of eastfacing window-walls and a series of south-facing solid walls.

This results in optimal, annual solar exposure.

The campus also includes an onsite kitchen and cafeteria that uses locally-sourced ingredients. Hot lunches are available for $2.00 a day. And there are no throwaways here: all dishes and utensils are washed to minimize trash headed for a landfill, and kitchen scraps are composted.

Perhaps most importantly, every recycled, green, energyefficient, or passive architectural, engineering, and operational decision that was made during the development of the Alberici campus had to prove its value to the company before it was applied. Every feature pays for itself or actually adds to the company’s bottom line. This makes business sense as well as environmental sense.

Our two-hour tour of the Alberici campus was a great opportunity to think a little differently. Many thanks to John Alberici and others who made our tour possible.

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t n o r f e m o The H

Inland Empire Chapter

Nashville Chapter

James Burns, Secretary

A. Bruce Rogers, Secretary

In March, AEG Inland Empire welcomed Dr. Nicolas Barth of University of California Riverside who presented Someone Else’s Fault!: What Can New Zealand’s Alpine Fault Tell Us about the San Andreas? Topics covered in this meeting included next generation paleoseismology, utilizing lidar data to reveal surface rupture distribution and slip partitioning, exploiting a unique regional 8km strike-slip offset to determine high-precision fault slip rates, assessing the role very large landslides play on Alpine Fault seismic hazard, and numerical simulation of the fault to constrain controls on earthquake behavior. Throughout the talk comparisons were drawn to the San Andreas Fault System, highlighting what the comparatively simple Alpine Fault can possibly tell us about the messy, complex faulting in California.

In April, we welcomed Dr. Thomas L Davis of the Geologic Maps Foundations who presented Fault Displacement Hazards at Aliso Canyon and Honor Rancho Natural Gas Storage Fields, Southern California, USA. This talk covered topics concerning the hazards of faults that have a significant potential for future displacement and intersect natural gas storage wells in the subsurface are an underappreciated hazard to well integrity. A fault rupture in this scenario would have the potential for methane leakage to the surface and create a risk to public safety, the environment, energy supply, and a valuable resource. In addition, Davis demonstrated the difficulty of stopping an underground leak from one well in a pressured gas storage field such as the at the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Field and showed the need to evaluate all hazards to gas well integrity and to estimate and mitigate the risks.

In May, AEG Inland Empire joined the Inland Geological Society (IGS) and The Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) at the Inland Geosocieties Annual Joint Meeting where we welcomed the SME Henry Krumb Lecturer Jennifer Baar who presented Ore Control in the Modern Mining Era— Are We Doing Enough? This talk covered topics concerning the importance of an ore control program in mining, a practice that seems more and more to be a neglected aspect in mining. She showed how ore control should not simply be a tool to delineate ore from waste but it should also be used to assist in short-range mine design, development drilling, metallurgical and material designation, and blast-pattern design and how those who run such programs can maintain relevancy in an ever changing industry.

AEG IE would like to thank all of our speakers for their interesting and informative talks.

The AEG Nashville Chapter has been busy with our monthly Chapter meetings that coincide with our guest speakers presenting seminars. We are currently planning the 2019 field trips and working on the selection of new officers in August. Our goal is to bring in some new officers and promote existing officers in order to maintain continuity and experience. We wish to take this opportunity to thank Mike Arles, PG, our current Chapter Chair and a key founding member of this Chapter for his outstanding service and leadership the past two years. He has been a leader in securing lecturers, meeting venues and providing guidance to all of our members. Without him, this Chapter would not have been successful. We are happy to report that as a Past President, he will remain on our board of directors as long as he so chooses.

We continue to reach out to prospective members and cordially invite anyone interested to attend our monthly Chapter meetings. Our continuing mission at AEG Nashville is to provide a forum for the exchange of technology and fellowship for both professional and aspiring engineering and environmental geologists in our region, regardless of the stage of their career. We are pleased to announce that AEG Nashville is up to 32 full-time members. Our Chapter is one that is very diverse in experience, occupation and age!

Our April Chapter meeting was held at the Bavarian Bierhaus in Nashville. Our speaker was the 2018–19 Richard H. Jahns Distinguished Lecturer, Deborah Green PG. Her presentation, A Tale of Two Waste Sites, was a very informative insight on the contrast between intelligent waste disposal site planning and what can go wrong when the underlying geology of a waste site is not taken seriously in design. Green is a very experienced field geologist and we are thankful for the quality of her lecture, which was very well received by our members.

AEG Nashville also invited members of the local AIPG chapter to attend this meeting so as to create better communication between our organizations.

Don’t See Your Chapter?

Ask your Chapter Offiers to be sure to submit something for the December issue of AEG News.

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Deborah Green at the April AEG Nashville Chapter Meeting

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THEHEADER HOMEFRONT HERE lead to difficulties in modeling these systems and determining contaminant pathways. Her lecture was well received and we appreciate her taking the time from her teaching duties to give a presentation at our chapter meeting.

Upcoming Meetings

AEG’s Deborah Green presenting the Jahns Lecture at the Geology Department of Austin Peay State University

Earlier that day, Green and Chapter President Mike Arles met with students of the Geology Department of Austin Peay State University (ASPU) in Clarksville, Tennessee. This presentation, How to Build a Geology Career You Love, provided key information to the students on career development. As we all know, finding your area of expertise within your chosen field is critical to a happy and successful career in geology. Since we all have different preferences on what, where, and who we work for, this lecture helped our student members at APSU determine the direction they might want to take their geology career.

Great advice from two of our most experienced geologists and their presentation was very appreciated by both faculty and students. A big Thank You! to Deb Green for taking the time and energy to give two outstanding lectures on the same day for our Nashville Chapter—in two cities no less!

Our May Chapter meeting was held at the Bavarian Bierhaus in Nashville. Our speaker was Dr. Kallina Dunkel, Professor of Geology at Austin Peay State University. Her presentation, Karst Development and Hydrogeologic Issues in Montgomery County, TN, provided very insightful information on the interdisciplinary nature of this karst setting and the challenges related to handling hydrogeologic issues, especially contamination. The complicated groundwater flow systems were highlighted, including sinkhole development, and how it

Dr. Kallina Dunkel presenting at the Nashville Chapter’s May meeting

July 2019

The next AEG Nashville Chapter will be on August 29, 2019, at the office of Barge Design Solutions in Nashville. We are excited to announce that AEG President Dave Fenster PG is scheduled to give his presentation on Why is Applied Geology Important for Nuclear Power Plant Siting?. This will be our first meeting and lecture after summer break and we are looking forward to having President Fenster visit our and start off the fall meeting lectures. Details will be posted on our Chapter page on the AEG website.

At this meeting, we will also hold officer elections. I would like to take this opportunity to recognize Mike Arles, Chairman; Tom Ballard, Vice Chairman; and Mark Elson, Treasurer; for their outstanding service and dedication in the founding of this Chapter and making it a success. It goes without saying that AEG Nashville would not have happened without them.

Our fall field trip is still in the planning stages, but will likely be held in central Tennessee this year. We invite all interested AEG, AIPG, and GSA members and all geologists to attend our monthly meetings. We will begin recruiting new student members this fall and encourage them to come and present their research topics and term papers at our annual Student Night in November. Part of the mission of AEG-Nashville is to allow all of our members and area geologists a technical forum in which to present their ideas and research.

New York-Philadelphia Chapter Loren Lasky, Newsletter Editor The New York-Philadelphia (NYP) Chapter’s fifth annual Student Night on March 28, 2019, was a great success, with 24 students from 8 different area colleges presenting posters on their original research.

Our members were impressed with the savvy, young representatives from Montclair State University, Rutgers University-Newark, Kean University, Bergen Community College, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, William Patterson University, Dickinson College, and New Jersey City University. Their research projects ranged from theories on the extinction of the largest ever mega-toothed shark (Otodus Megalondon), to the development of a GIS Sewer Atlas for Jersey City, to the analysis of long-term changes in ocean geochemistry based on comparing heavy metals in modern-day Bahamian stromatolites with the metals in the fossilized stromatolites found in New Jersey. The top three presentations were awarded cash prizes and all participants received a handy, laminated, grainsize chart for future use in the field!

The NYP Chapter appreciated all our wonderful sponsors who supported Student Night, including: Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, Chemtech Lab, Hawk Drilling, York Analytical Laboratories, GEI Consultants, Renova Environmental

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THE HOMEFRONT HEADER HERE

Students from 8 area colleges celebrate after competing for prizes at New YorkPhiladelphia’s 5th Annual Student Night on March 28.

The Student Chapter at Rutgers University-Newark created t-shirts with a clever nod to the local geology.▼

Services, Hager Richter Geophysics, DPK Consulting, H2M Architects and Engineers, EPI Environmental Probing, Hampton-Clarke Labs, and Woodard & Curran Consultants.

Special thanks are also due our Student Outreach Coordinators, Professor Alexander Gates (Rutgers University-Newark) and Amanda Forsburg (Langan), for all the hard work they put into making Student Night a success.

The NYP Chapter also held the third in our series of Mesozoic rift basin talks in March. Michael Gefell (Anchor QEA, LLC), noted ITRC researcher and associate editor of Groundwater journal, earned our appreciation by flying out from Denver on March 14, on the heels of a giant snow storm that had closed all the Colorado roads and airports. He presented his work at a well-known, solvent-recovery Superfund site, set in fractured bedrock in the Hartford basin.

On April 11, we held our fourth and final talk in our featured series on east coast Mesozoic rift basins with a presentation on the local Newark Basin, by New Jersey hydrogeologist Bob Bond (Langan).

He presented a case study and remedial approach for a complex, comingled plume that was found to bifurcate and move in two different directions. He discussed high resolution mapping of the fracture network, and the hydraulic conductivity 42

Videographer recording Bob Bond’s fracture network discussion Speaker Bob Bond (R), who presented on New Jersey’s Newark Basin in April, compares notes with our previous speaker, Jesse Drummond, (L), who ▼ presented on the Culpepper Basin in Virginia in February.

and groundwater velocity data measured in discrete fracture zones.

Overall, he stressed the importance of applying Conceptual Site Models (CSMs) in order to understand complex groundwater flow regimes. As with previous talks in this series, a lively debate among participants kept guests at the bar long after the formal talk ended.

Plans are afoot for a field trip to the Delaware Water Gap area in the fall, after our usual summer break. Many of us in the New York-Philadelphia Chapter are looking forward to attending AEG’s Annual Meeting in Ashville, North Carolina, this September.

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Oregon Chapter Nancy Calhoun, Secretary The Oregon Chapter enjoyed a lively spring with several wellattended talks and meetings.

Deb Green, the 2019 Distinguished Jahns Lecturer, engaged members with an in-depth reflection on how we communicate our science and, importantly, how to connect with our audience. Deb emphasized that it takes consideration of our audiences’ perspective, as much perhaps as the content, without which we may stay stranded with scientific misinformation swirling ankle deep around us.

Bill Burns, Oregon Department of Geology, and Will Struble, University of Oregon PhD candidate, gave a joint talk in April on dating landslides and associated dammed lakes in the Oregon Coast Range using dendrochronology, lidar, and radiocarbonwith annual resolution! With geologists salivating over the possibilities, they related their research to the greater Cascadia region, as well as other subduction zone earthquakes and questions of associated co-seismic landslides.

Our standby, Old Market Pub, with folks gathered for our monthly meeting and talk

L to R, speaker Bill Burns (DOGAMI), Oregon Chapter Chair-Elect Ben George (Cornforth) and Past Chair Mark Swank (Aspect) at the April meeting

Finally, our grand finale—the May Student Night! We had fourteen undergraduate and graduate students present research posters to more than 30 AEG members, with seven awardees. It was a great opportunity for all to engage in diverse topics, for students to demonstrate presentation skills, and to encourage critical local networking—as well as an opportunity to win some awards! This year, the topics included liquefaction susceptibility of local Missoula silt, refining geochronology of rhyolites, drive pile foundation guidelines and the effect of woody debris on debris flow runout—to name a few. Scott Burns, Past President-IAEG, concluded the annual Student Night with a retrospective and discussion on Oregon’s state licensing board (OSBGE) and licensure—a critical issue for students, early career folks and professionals alike.

Speaking of students, the local Portland State Student Chapter had a banner year with several organized events. They hosted a local speaker at an event “Life and Professional July 2019

Development as a Hazard Consultant,” with opportunity for questions and discussion—a practical approach to bringing the perspective of a professional to the students themselves.

Another student-organized endeavor was the well-orchestrated Earthquake Preparation Event, coordinated with many organizations including ASCE and the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute. The Student Chapter representatives, Jessica Moore and Aleysa Orr, demonstrated creative outreach and a proactive approach to engaging the geologic and broader campus communities with several well-received events.

Our summer hiatus from monthly meetings has since commenced and we look forward to introducing our new board member in the fall, in the next HomeFront News. Thank you to our members and volunteers for contributing to this year’s continued success of the Oregon Chapter of AEG!

St. Louis Chapter Jessie Goodwin, Chapter Editor On March 28, Joel Daniel of Geotechnology presented Subsurface Geophysical Methods for Urban Areas and Other Challenging Conditions. Joel discussed interferences and limitations of various geophysical technologies in urban areas, and shared experiences from challenging projects with innovative solutions.

Dr. John Encarnacion of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Saint Louis University presented at our April meeting. In his presentation Paleotectonics of Southeast Asia: What We Learned about Subduction Initiation, Dr. Encarnacion discussed the challenges of studying subduction initiation in the field and the importance of field tests in addition to modelling, and the tectonic conditions that his research indicates are conducive to for subduction initiation.

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HEADER THE HOMEFRONT HERE extensive re-use of materials from the metal manufacturing facility and an office building that were formerly on the site enabled the project to be completed within the budget that was set before the LEED Platinum goal was established. For a full report, see Phyllis Steckler’s report in the Field Trips section on page 39 of this issue.

San Joaquin Valley Chapter Alex Pytlak, Chapter Member

Dr. John Encarnacion of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Saint Louis University

Geotechnology’s Joel Daniel presenting at the March St. Louis Chapter meeting

On May 31, members of the St. Louis Chapter toured Alberici’s Corporate Headquarters building in Overland, Missouri. The tour was led by John Alberici, CEO, who was instrumental in the 109,000-square feet LEED Platinum project.

The building was formerly a metal manufacturing facility. Rather than demolishing the building, Alberici chose to convert the existing structure into a new headquarters building consisting of a parking garage and an open concept office building. The site incorporates rainwater collection, a photovoltaic solar array on the parking garage, and a wind turbine. The grounds of the facility include two sizeable water features and incorporate almost exclusively native plants, including urban prairie, savannah, and wetland habitats, planted almost exclusively with native plants. Many innovative construction practices and 44

Greetings from the newly formed, San Joaquin Valley Chapter!

We have had an exciting first year and we look forward to the many upcoming speakers and networking opportunities. In January, our scheduled speaker, Dr. Greg Stock, a geologist for Yosemite National Park, was unable to share his research due to the recent government shutdown. Unfortunately, this caused us to miss our first scheduled meeting of the year. While our first meeting was unsuccessful, we were not discouraged.

Bringing us back on track, on February 21, Bruce Myers (CED, CHg, GE) a senior engineering geologist/geotechnical engineer at Salem Engineering Group in Fresno, California, presented Highly Unstable Dispersive Soil, OR…Now, Where Did That 11 Cubic Yards of Soil Go?. Bruce’s talk brought in many familiar and new faces interested in sodic, dispersive, and slaking soils and made clear why the right soil tests are important to ensure underlying soil are effectively addressed. Bruce’s enthusiasm during his presentation was a great way to kick off the year for us paired with great food, beverages, and people. What more could one ask for?

On March 21, we held our Vernal Equinox Networking Night and AEG Foundation Fundraiser. Attendees of this meeting engaged in fruitful networking with local professionals and were instantly entered a raffle to win the recently published reference book, The Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology. In addition to our raffle, our Chapter collected donations for one of four AEG Foundation Funds, chosen by votes from our chapter members. Our Chapter raised $479 and chose the John Moylan Fund which supports AEG Student Chapters. Our donations will be put to work supporting meaningful activities at the Student Chapter level, including field trips, guest speakers, and other special events that will encourage continued student involvement in AEG and the professions of environmental and engineering geology.

On April 18, Fresno State graduate student, Cameron Alfving presented his research, Assessing the Environmental Impacts of a Beach Nourishment Operation, Morro Bay, CA. Cameron’s talk gave us a different perspective on dredging of coastal channels by focusing on a 2016 dredging operation located at Morro Bay. Attendees learned how Cameron was able to identify dredge material’s unique qualities and the impacts of dredging within the Morro Bay area.

And finally, on May 16, the guest speaker for our most recent meeting brought us back full circle. Dr. Greg Stock was able to present his talk, 2017 El Capitan Rockfalls, which discussed specific monitoring techniques he uses for predicting rockfalls. Greg’s talk illustrated the importance of hazard

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THE HEADER HOMEFRONT HERE awareness and what lengths Yosemite National Park goes to protect guests. Attendees were able to view the latest GPR images of the El Capitan rockface before and after the 2017 rockfall. All meetings for the year were held at our “Northern Headquarters” at Sequoia Brewing Company. Overall, we’ve had an exciting start and look forward to the many upcoming events our Chapter will hold.

Texas Chapter Melissa Cordell

AEG Texas Chapter Spring 2019 Meeting, Corpus Christi, Texas April 6-7, 2019 Board Attendees: Rusty Branch, Pat Frost, Melissa Cordell, and Skye Ibarra For our Spring Meeting, we went to the Texas coast to learn more about barrier islands, the impacts from Hurricane Harvey, and the use of sediment cores for determining changes in water quality chemistry. On Friday night, we enjoyed delicious pizza and appetizers from B and J’s Pizza. We had a good turnout of twelve professionals, three speakers, and two students who traveled from Fort Worth, Austin, Houston, and other areas around Texas.

On Saturday morning, we met at the hotel and networked over breakfast and coffee. Pat Frost, Texas Chapter Interim Vice-Chair and Treasurer, and Rusty Branch, Texas Chapter Chair, led us through the AEG announcements. Jeff Neathery, our AEG Regional Director, discussed the upcoming 2019 Annual Meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, and the planning and volunteer opportunities for our Chapter members for the meeting to be held in San Antonio, Texas, in 2021. AEG VicePresident Cynthia Palomares discussed information regarding AEG membership.

After a good discussion on AEG matters, we were ready to listen to the excellent speakers lined up. They passionately presented their concerns for the status of the Texas barrier islands and the bay environments and educated us on the extensive impacts caused from Hurricane Harvey.

We listened first to Juan Moya PhD, from Freese & Nichols, who presented his research on the Geomorphological Approach to the Resiliency of Barrier Islands which is part of the work the USACE Galveston District and the Texas General Land Office is conducting on the Texas EIS of the Coastal Study.

We then heard from Mark Besonen PhD, from the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies, on the Longterm Changes in Baffin Bay Water Wuality Based on Sediment Cores.

After altering his travel arrangements from flying to driving to Corpus Christi due to severe weather, Timothy Dellapenna PhD, from Texas A&M University-Galveston, presented on the Cyclone Effects on an Urbanized Estuary: The Impact of Hurricane Harvey on Galveston Bay and How Historical Alterations Created a Human-Made Disaster. His research and his love for oysters was fascinating!

July 2019

Juan Moya PhD from Freese & Nichols

Mark Besonen PhD from the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies

After lunch, we went on a field trip led by Mark Besonen PhD to two locations: the northeast Nueces delta are—to view and learn about the erosion and dissected valley area of the delta that has occurred over time—and to a stop on Ocean Drive to view and discuss bayside slumping/collapse features.

After our awesome field trip to the Gulf Coast, we headed back to the hotel, all discussing what we had learned and possible research projects or applications. Texas has several different geology and environmental issues to offer, it was beneficial and educational to look at this coastal area and geological concerns in more depth.

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HEADER THE HOMEFRONT HERE AT LEFT: Texas Chapter board members with Spring Meeting speakersâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;L to R: Skye Ibarra, Rusty Branch, Pat Frost, Timothy Dellapenna, Juan Moya PhD, Mark Besonen PhD, and Melissa Cordell

BELOW: Mark Besonen PhD discusses slumping features.

ABOVE: Timothy Dellapenna PhD from Texas A&M University-Galveston

AT RIGHT: The AEG Texas Chapter members listen avidly to Mark Besonen in the afternoon sun.

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AEG STRATEGIC PLAN Goals and Objectives

1

Communication Goal To improve the AEG experience and communicate it effectively Objectives

2

1.1

Advocate for the profession through public and private outreach.

1.2

Enhance external awareness by strengthening the AEG brand.

1.3

Communicate internally in a cohesive and effective manner.

1.4

Advocate for the Association and its members.

Profession Goal To promote and advance the value of applied geology for the public good.

Objectives

3

2.1

Improve the utility and visibility of the AEG professional network.

2.2

Offer professional development opportunities.

Membership Goal To provide applied geology professionals a place to thrive personally and professionally Objectives 3.1

Provide membership benefits designed around membersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; needs, expectations and values.

3.2

Engage applied geologists, non-renewing past members and graduating student members to begin or continue their AEG membership and involvement.

3.3

Create opportunities for volunteer leadership, growth, and engagement.

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