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Chicago MWRD to disinfect effluent from North Side and Calumet wastewater treatment plants
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June 13, 2011
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CHICAGO — Board members of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) adopted a policy to disinfect the effluent discharged from its North Side and Calumet water reclamation plants. The motion directs the MWRD’s Acting Executive Director Kevin Fitzpatrick to begin the process to study, plan, design, and construct disinfection facilities at the two plants. |
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AMEC finalizes MACTEC purchase and renames business unit
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June 10, 2011
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ATLANTA — AMEC rebranded its Earth & Environmental business unit to Environment & Infrastructure (E&I) to better reflect the services and scope of the current business and its global growth strategy. This follows the completion of the MACTEC acquisition, which adds 2,600 people and 70 offices to E&I’s U.S. presence. |
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Philadelphia launches green stormwater strategy
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June 10, 2011
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PHILADELPHIA — On June 1, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) and Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) signed an agreement that allows the PWD to implement a strategy that uses green stormwater infrastructure to substantially reduce combined sewer overflows (CSOs) to its waterways. PWD submitted the plan to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and PADEP in September 2009 after publically vetting the plan. |
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Report: Design-build used for more than 40 percent of non-residential construction projects
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June 9, 2011
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — A new study analyzing the design-build project delivery method in the United States shows it was used on average in more than 40 percent of non-residential construction projects in 2010, a 10 percent increase since 2005. The study was commissioned by the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) and was completed by RSMeans Reed Construction Data Market Intelligence. Design-build is an integrated approach that delivers design and construction services under one contract with a single point of responsibility. |
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Santa Paula water recycling facility celebrates opening
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June 9, 2011
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SANTA PAULA, CALIF. — Local and regional government officials, members of the local community, and project team members participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony of the award-winning Santa Paula Water Recycling Facility on June 2nd. In 2007, the city of Santa Paula's non-compliant, almost 70-year-old wastewater treatment facility faced severe compliance fines and needed to be replaced quickly. However, the city lacked certainty of funding, cost, and schedule to achieve its compliance mandate. Realizing traditional delivery methods would not provide adequate certainty, they chose to utilize a public-private partnership. |
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IECA members accept regionalization plan
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June 9, 2011
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DENVER, COLO. — The membership of the International Erosion Control Association (IECA) voted to accept a proposed regionalization plan. The voting period, which closed May 23, 2011, saw the measure pass with an almost 9-to-1 margin. The accepted regionalization plan will divide IECA membership into two regions. Region One will consist of North and South America and Europe; Region Two will be centered in what has been the Australasian Chapter and include Africa, Oceania, and Asia. This move will allow closer management and coordination with each region and better service to IECA’s diverse membership. |
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Forecast: Design and construction markets poised for recovery in 2012
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June 3, 2011
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Management consultants Farkas Berkowitz & Company forecast that designers for transportation, power, water infrastructure, remediation, and facilities should see low single-digit growth this year and stronger growth next. Design markets related to environment, infrastructure, and facilities were unchanged in 2010 after declining 12 percent in 2009. The firm presented its 23rd annual State-of-the-Industry Report to the 17th annual Farkas Berkowitz Forum, an invitation-only conference of CEOs from leading design and construction companies. |
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BergerABAM acquires Flores Lund Consultants
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June 2, 2011
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FEDERAL WAY, WASH. —BergerABAM, a 60-year-old Northwest-based civil and structural engineering, project management, and construction administration firm, completed the acquisition of Flores Lund Consultants (FLC) of San Diego. FLC has provided civil and structural engineering services for more than 30 years to a client base in the Southwest region, including California, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. The acquisition immediately broadens BergerABAM’s geographical reach and presence into a region within the firm’s detailed strategic growth plan. |
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AECOM names University of Colorado Boulder winner of water and wastewater design competition
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June 2, 2011
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NEW YORK — AECOM Technology Corporation announced today that a team from the University of Colorado Boulder (CU-Boulder), located in Boulder, Colo., won first prize in AECOM’s 2010-2011 Water/Wastewater Academic Design Competition. In its eighth year, the annual design competition challenges students from post-secondary institutions in North America to develop solutions to real-life engineering problems, then present and defend their solutions to a panel of water and wastewater industry professionals. |
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National Park Service awards $2.6 million construction management contract for Elwha River Dam removals
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June 2, 2011
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DENVER — The National Park Service's Denver Service Center awarded the contract for construction management services for removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams, scheduled to begin in September 2011. The contract was awarded March 18 to URS Corporation of Seattle, with a total value of $2,563,395.79. |
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Bill introduced to encourage use of green stormwater technologies
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May 31, 2011
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-NM), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ben Cardin (D-MD) introduced legislation to help address the nation's water challenges by encouraging research, development, and promotion of new green infrastructure technologies and designs that use natural processes to combat polluted stormwater runoff. Companion legislation also was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD). |
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PB/STV joint venture awarded contract for LA light rail extension
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May 31, 2011
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LOS ANGELES — ConnectLAX, a joint venture of Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB) and STV, was awarded a contract by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) to provide environmental and preliminary design services for an extension of the Metro Green Line light rail to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The Green Line LAX Extension will link the planned Metro station at Century and Aviation, about 1.5 miles from the airport, with the central terminal area of LAX, by one of three alternatives — an aboveground or underground extension of the Green Line light rail, or an automated people mover. |
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In memory: C.E. Vick, Jr., P.E., AICP
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May 31, 2011
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RALEIGH, N.C. — Ed Vick, Jr., retired chairman of Kimley-Horn and Associates, died on May 13, 2011. He was one of the founders of Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc., a Raleigh-based engineering, planning, and environmental consulting firm. |
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GEI Consultants opens office in Providence, R.I.
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May 27, 2011
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. — GEI Consultants Inc. opened an office in Providence, R.I. It is the firm’s 20th location and its fourth in New England. Opened to respond to the growing needs of GEI’s Rhode Island clients, the office is jointly led by Tim Olean, an environmental professional with 25 years of remediation design, implementation, and construction oversight experience, and Matt O’Neil, P.E., with more than 14 years of environmental consulting experience. |
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Kleinfelder acquires InSite Environmental Inc.
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May 27, 2011
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SAN DIEGO — Kleinfelder acquired InSite Environmental Inc., a firm headquartered in Stockton, Calif., that offers a diverse set of environmental planning and permitting services. The transaction closed on May 23, 2011, following a long-standing relationship between the two firms. |
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Patrick Engineering sells energy affiliate to SAIC
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May 26, 2011
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LISLE, ILL. — Patrick Engineering completed the sale of its affiliate, Patrick Energy Services, to Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). SAIC said that the acquisition will enhance its energy and smart grid services portfolio, adding transmission and distribution engineering services to the company’s existing capabilities in the market. As a result of the deal, approximately 200 employees will join the SAIC Energy, Environment & Infrastructure, LLC, subsidiary. |
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Stanley Consultants CEO receives ASCE OPAL award
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May 26, 2011
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MUSCATINE, IOWA — At a black tie gala on March 30, 2011, in Washington, D.C., Gregs Thomopulos, Chairman and CEO of Stanley Consultants Inc., received the 2011 Outstanding Projects and Leaders (OPAL) award from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) for lifetime achievement in management. Based in Muscatine, Iowa, Stanley Consultants provides program management, planning, engineering, environmental and construction services worldwide. |
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Survey: Design firm upper management using social media
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May 26, 2011
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FAYETTEVILLE, ARK. — In an era where creativity, reputation, and interconnectivity are highly desirable, more design firm leaders are turning to social media to strut their stuff, according to an informal online survey held by The Zweig Letter. According to the results, 75 percent of firm leaders said they actively participate in their firm’s social media efforts, while 12.5 percent don’t, and another 12.5 percent are thinking about it. |
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WEF board adopts position statement on stormwater management
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May 25, 2011
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ALEXANDRIA, VA. — On May 6, the Water Environment Federation’s (WEF) board of trustees approved a revised position on stormwater management designed to protect water quality and advance its long-standing involvement in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) stormwater regulatory program. The revised position includes recommendations to improve the national stormwater program and provides a platform from which related policy can be developed. |
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Geosynthetic Institute seeks proposals for research projects
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May 25, 2011
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FOLSOM, PA. — The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) announced a worldwide call for requests-for-proposals (RFPs) focusing on innovative geosynthetics research and development projects. There will be multiple awards made, each for $10,000 for the first year, and they are renewable for a second and third year up to a total amount of $20,000 per student. Students must have completed their candidacy examinations leading to a doctorial degree in engineering or science to be eligible. |
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GEI Consultants opens office in Providence, R.I.
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May 24, 2011
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. — GEI Consultants Inc. opened an office in Providence, R.I. It is the firm’s 20th location and its fourth in New England. |
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California water reclamation and reuse projects receive more than $11 million in funding
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May 24, 2011
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation selected eight construction projects in California for funding under WaterSMART's Title XVI Water Reclamation and Reuse Program. Together, these two-year projects will receive $11.34 million, which will be leveraged to help fund construction totaling more than $99 million. |
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Bureau of Reclamation to reevaluate seismic hazard at Ochoco Dam in Oregon
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May 23, 2011
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PRINEVILLE, ORE. — The Bureau of Reclamation announced that a technical review of Ochoco Dam completed in 2010 concluded that further onsite investigations are warranted in order to evaluate the dam’s ability to withstand the forces of a major earthquake. These investigations were prompted by recent reevaluation of the seismic hazard in the region. Ochoco Dam was constructed between 1918 and 1920 by private interests. The dam is a zoned earthfill constructed by hydraulic fill techniques. |
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Stanford researchers: Seaports need a plan for weathering climate change
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May 23, 2011
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PALO ALTO, CALIF. — The majority of seaports around the world are unprepared for the potentially damaging impacts of climate change in the coming century, according to a new Stanford University study. In a survey posed to port authorities around the world, the Stanford team found that most officials are unsure how best to protect their facilities from rising sea levels and more frequent Katrina-magnitude storms, which scientists say could be a consequence of global warming. |
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KPFF expands to 20 offices with Chicago addition
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May 23, 2011
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CHICAGO — KPFF Consulting Engineers — a civil and structural engineering firm with headquarters in Seattle — recently opened its 20th office. The new office in Chicago hosts three well-known engineer-consultants knowledgeable in design, construction, and repair of bridges; highway and airport pavements; underground and elevated transit structures; and large-diameter pressure pipelines. Their expertise also includes materials durability and performance in diverse environments; non-destructive testing; and construction quality improvement. |
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Bentley Issues 2011 Be Inspired Awards call for entries
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May 20, 2011
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EXTON, PA. — Bentley Systems Inc. is accepting entries for the 2011 Be Inspired Awards competition, which brings together infrastructure professionals from around the world as well as members of the academic community to advance best practices and innovation in information modeling leading to higher-performing infrastructure and more cost-effective project realization and promote the extraordinary achievements of architects, engineers, constructors, geospatial professionals, and owner-operators in sustaining infrastructure empowered by Bentley software. |
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AMEC acquires MACTEC for $280 million
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May 19, 2011
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ATLANTA, GA. — AMEC, the international engineering and project management company, agreed to buy MACTEC, an engineering and environmental services company, for a cash consideration of $280 million. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Ga., MACTEC has some 2,600 employees, mostly highly skilled technical professionals, and 70 offices, the majority of which are in the Eastern U.S. It provides a wide range of services similar to AMEC’s existing Earth & Environmental (E&E) business, including environmental planning, assessment and remediation, infrastructure engineering, water resources and construction support services. |
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HNTB ranks among top 100 majority employee-owned U.S. companies
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May 19, 2011
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KANSAS CITY, MO. — The HNTB Companies once again has been ranked among the largest majority employee-owned companies in the United States. The annual ranking is compiled by the National Center for Employee Ownership, a national nonprofit information and membership organization designed to promote employee leadership. HNTB’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan was established in 2000 and has increased in value every year since its inception. |
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Veolia Water launches website examining water’s economic, envirionmental, and societal impact
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May 19, 2011
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CHICAGO — Veolia Water launched GrowingBlue.com, a data-driven resource that is designed to help municipalities, businesses, and consumers gain a better understanding of today’s and tomorrow’s global and local water challenges and best practices. Focused on nature’s essential but often forgotten element — water — GrowingBlue.com uses a variety of tools, including animated maps, infographics, and case studies, to provide a visually compelling, user-friendly representation of the current state of water in 180 countries. |
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Research shows green roofs prevent sewer overflow
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May 19, 2011
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NEW YORK — Green roofs can be a cost-effective way to keep water from running into sewer systems and causing overflows, Columbia University researchers have found. Stuart Gaffin, research scientist at Columbia’s Center for Climate Systems Research, has been supervising a green rooftop monitoring project at Con Edison’s Learning Center in Queens, N.Y., home to 21,000 plants on a quarter acre. He estimates the green roof retains 30 percent of precipitation, allowing plants to release the water as vapor, rather than overflowing the city’s sewage systems. |
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