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New Estimate Makes Groundwater Earth’s Largest Water Reservoir on Land

Source: New Estimate Makes Groundwater – Not Ice Sheets – Earth’s Largest Water Reservoir on Land – Leak Herald Hot springs, which can source deep groundwater, are one of the places on the surface where there is evidence of rainwater circulating to depths of two kilometers and deeper. In the states, the top places for finding groundwater are Mississippi, Kansas, Arkansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota. New research doubles volume of salty water two to 10 kilometers beneath the surface that could store waste fluids, sequester carbon, and direct our search for extraterrestrial life. New research more than doubles the estimated volume of ancient, salty groundwater stored deep within Earth’s crust. Around 24 million cubic kilometers (5.8 cubic miles) of groundwater reside within the top two kilometers (1.2 miles) of Earth’s crust. This shallow groundwater is what we use for drinking and irrigation, and it’s mostly freshwater. But below that are vast reservoirs of brine, some of it hundreds of millions to more than a billion years old, locked away in the rocks. The question was: How much is there? A new study estimates there are around 20 million cubic kilometers of deep groundwater, or enough to fill around 4,800 Grand Canyons. Combined with previous estimates of shallower groundwater, the new research finds underground water is the largest reservoir of water on land, measuring 44 million cubic kilometers and surpassing the volume of Earth’s ice sheets. “This estimate expands our conceptual and practical understanding of the amount of water that Earth holds, and it adds a whole different dimension to the hydrologic cycle,” said Grant Ferguson, a hydrogeologist at the University of Saskatchewan who was lead author of the new study in the AGU journal Geophysical Research Letters, which publishes high-impact, short-format reports with immediate implications spanning all Earth and space sciences. [...]

By kk42|September 29th, 2021|Geotechnical Kansas, Geotechnical Mississippi, Geotechnical Nebraska, Geotechnical Arkansas, Geotechnical South Dakota|0 Comments

Europe on course for healthier, more sustainable soil

Source: On course for healthier, more sustainable soil On course for healthier, more sustainable soil Soil is home to about a quarter of all living species. Credit: Amadeu Biasco, Shutterstock If we want to transition to a greener, healthier and more climate resilient Europe, it is important to ensure our soils are in good condition. However, the quality of soils is worsening because of unsustainable management practices, depletion of resources, climate change and pollution. Soil hosts a quarter of our planet's biodiversity and is home to about a quarter of all living species. But how many of us give this precious resource a second thought? We should, because soil directly or indirectly produces about 95% of our food. Soil is important in so many other ways, too. It provides us with raw materials to fight diseases and ecosystem services that purify our drinking water, lower the risk of floods and droughts, and store huge amounts of carbon to alleviate climate change. Storehouse of life Soil biodiversity is the life that exists within the soil, from bacteria to earthworms. These living organisms keep soil healthy and fertile. Soil biodiversity is key to meeting European Green Deal objectives such as climate neutrality, biodiversity restoration, zero pollution, healthy and sustainable food systems, and a resilient environment. The EU wants to lead the transition towards healthy soils for food, people, nature and the climate by 2030. One problem is that about 970 million tons of soil is lost to erosion each year in Europe. If this underground treasure is so important to us, then why are we allowing it to be destroyed? To repair or reverse the damage to soil's rich yet fragile habitat takes decades—even centuries. We need to preserve the quality of soil before it is too late. Soil health is a major concern for the commission. It [...]

By kk42|September 29th, 2021|Geotechnical Nebraska, Geotechnical California, Geotechnical New Mexico, Geotechnical New York, Geotechnical Vermont|0 Comments

Project removes old, disused dams to make healthier waterways

Source: Project removes old, disused dams to make healthier waterways - VTDigger Seen through the window of Patty Smith’s home in East Bethel, James Rogers, left, and Fran Rhynhart, right, watch as Ben Canonica, of Canonica Farm and Forest, makes a buffer to protect the bank of the Second Branch of the White River while preparing to remove the Hyde Dam on Tuesday, Sept. 15. “As kids, this was our playground,” said Rhynhart. “All the East Bethel village kids would swim here.” Photo by James M. Patterson/Valley News EAST BETHEL — A yellow excavator ambled over the uneven bed of the Second Branch of the White River as it rearranged boulders above the Hyde Dam earlier this month. Within weeks, the dam will be gone, opening 60 miles of waterways for fish passage. From the 1700s to the 1950s, hydropower ruled and the Hyde Dam in turn gave life to a sawmill, a gristmill, a creamery and a woolen mill that employed over 30 workers in 1860. The current dam replaced an older dam destroyed in what is known as the Great Vermont Flood of 1927. These days, industry has departed from the Second Branch. A half-acre plot of empty land on the north side of the dam gives no hint of the artifacts of production buried below. The mill that leans on the southern edge of the dam is now a home. Conservation nonprofits and state agencies worked together to remove the dam, part of a statewide effort to remove out-of-use dams to improve rivers for both wildlife and people. Greg Russ, a watershed restoration coordinator at the White River Partnership who is overseeing the project, estimated that it will cost anywhere between $120,000 and $150,000. He listed many reasons to remove the dam, for both the [...]

By kk42|September 29th, 2021|Geotechnical Alaska, Geotechnical Connecticut, Geotechnical Massachusetts, Geotechnical New Hampshire, Geotechnical New York, Geotechnical Rhode Island, Geotechnical Vermont|0 Comments

Himalayan hydropower ‘clean but risky,’ warn scientists

Source: Himalayan hydropower 'clean but risky,' warn scientists With its steep topography and abundant water resources the Himalayas offer sustainable, low-carbon hydropower for energy-hungry South Asia. But there is a catch—the mountain range falls in one of the world's most seismically active regions. A group of 60 top Indian scientists and environmentalists wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this month seeking his intervention in stopping "any more hydroelectric projects in the Himalayas and on the Ganga whether under construction, new or proposed." The letter cites the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's sixth assessment report which says that the Himalayas have been affected by warming. The report warns that "rising temperature and precipitation can increase the occurrence of glacial lake outburst floods and landslides over moraine-dammed lakes" in high mountain Asia. Moraine consists of rocks and soil left behind by moving glaciers. Hydropower, the world's largest source of renewable electric power with1,308 gigawatts of installed capacity in 2019, is expected to play a critical role in decarbonizing power systems, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), an inter-governmental body. Stretching 2,400 kilometers in an arc that includes the world's highest peaks, the Everest in Nepal and K2 in Pakistan, the Himalayas rank high among global hot spots for developing hydropower, though only 20 percent of the estimated 500 gigawatt potential has been tapped so far. But that situation is rapidly changing with hydropower projects mushrooming along the Himalayan arc—which covers territory in Bhutan, China, India, Nepal and Pakistan—despite proven risks from quakes, landslides and glacial lake outburst floods. The immediate trigger for the appeal to Modi was a decision by India's Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to allow the restarting of seven controversial hydropower projects in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand. Three of these projects—Tapovan-Vishnugad (520 [...]

By kk42|September 28th, 2021|Geotechnical Washington, Geotechnical Tennessee, Geotechnical Alabama, Geotechnical California, Geotechnical Idaho, Geotechnical Montana, Geotechnical New York, Geotechnical Oregon|0 Comments

Earthquake: 6.1 quake registered near Adak, Alaska

Source: Earthquake: 6.1 quake registered near Adak, Alaska - Los Angeles Times A magnitude 6.1 earthquake was reported Friday morning at 4:52 a.m. Pacific time 114 miles from Adak, Alaska, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Tsunami Warning System. According to the USGS, the epicenter was more than 100 miles from a city. In the past 10 days, there have been two earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby. The earthquake occurred at a depth of 31.1 miles.

By kk42|September 28th, 2021|Geotechnical California, Earthquakes, Geotechnical Alaska|0 Comments

Gaming to improve geotechnical engineering education—and broaden diversity

Source: Gaming to improve geotechnical engineering education—and broaden diversity | Rowan Today | Rowan University A new research project at Rowan University’s Center for Research and Education in Advanced Transportation Engineering Systems (CREATES) aims to teach students real-world geotechnical engineering concepts and attract diverse candidates to the field using interactive video games. Called MERGE (Multiphysics Enriched Mixed Reality for Integrated Geotechnical Education), the project is led by Dr. Cheng Zhu, an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Dr. Ying (Gina) Tang, an expert in serious games and professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Dr. Sarah Ferguson, an assistant professor in the College of Education; Dr. Sarah Bauer, an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; as well as collaborator Dr. Lei Wang, assistant professor of geotechnical engineering at the University of the District of Columbia, a historically Black college and university. Both universities are located on the East Coast of the United States near Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia. The study is supported by a $299,210 grant from the National Science Foundation. While college civil engineering programs nationwide focus on concepts like soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering, some course content and textbooks don’t reflect emerging technology and research methods. MERGE games will include real-world scenarios students are likely to encounter in internships and careers in the geotechnical engineering field. Because the games are computer-based, students don’t need access to a lab or expensive equipment, making the learning scenarios accessible anytime and anywhere. It is expected that such authentic, fun and engaging play in games will promote learning. “Most universities don’t really use games to teach students, especially in our field,” Zhu said. “When we design these games, we want to make it very different from the current efforts.” The [...]

By kk42|September 28th, 2021|Geotechnical West Virginia, Geotechnical Delaware, Geotechnical New Jersey, Geotechnical Virginia, Geotechnical Maryland, Geotechnical Pennsylvania|0 Comments

Crews wrap up yearslong landslide project on Columbia Parkway in Cincinnati, Ohio

Source: Columbia Parkway Hillside Stabilization - Transportation & Engineering Source: Crews wrap up yearslong landslide project on Columbia Parkway Crews have wrapped up construction on a years long project to stabilize a large swath of hillside along Columbia Parkway in Cincinnati, Ohio — a stretch that has long been a landslide risk. Contractor crews officially wrapped up the $17.6 million project this week, city officials announced. The project’s footprint extends over two miles on the uphill side of the parkway from Bains Street near downtown to just east of the William Howard Taft Road-Torrence Parkway intersection in East Walnut Hills. Cincinnati’s Department of Transportation & Engineering began developing a long-term stabilization plan for the parkway in the spring of 2019 following a series of landslides in multiple locations along the uphill side. Landslides in the area began increasing in frequency and significance in recent years, peaking in the winter and early spring of 2019. The threat to public safety also was increasing with mud and debris frequently spilling over existing retaining walls onto the roadway, prompting emergency closures along the five-lane thoroughfare that carries approximately 30,000 vehicles a day from the city’s east side into downtown. The parkway was built in the late 1930s as a Depression-era public works project situated along a bluff overlooking the Ohio River. The Ohio River traces a path along Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Mitigation efforts in the 1990s helped reduce the impact of landslides on the downhill side of the parkway but didn’t address the uphill side. City council approved funding for an emergency mitigation project in late spring 2019 and it started to take shape that summer once Canton-based Beaver Excavating was selected as the prime contractor. The proposed dual solution including soil nailing for the steepest sections, and [...]

By kk42|September 28th, 2021|Landslides, Geotechnical Ohio, Cincinnati, Geotechnical Services|0 Comments

Breakwaters aim to halt ongoing erosion at coastal refuge

Source: Breakwaters aim to halt ongoing erosion at coastal refuge | ASCE Although the new breakwaters were primarily intended to stop erosion, sediment is already building up behind the barriers as a side benefit. (Courtesy of CPRA) A series of breakwaters to protect a coastal wildlife refuge in southwestern Louisiana incorporated an innovative, lightweight design. Despite extremely poor soils and ongoing erosion that kept changing the shoreline throughout the project, the breakwaters are already showing dramatic results. The Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge in southwestern Louisiana, which borders the Gulf of Mexico for 26.5 mi, is disappearing at an increasingly rapid rate. The Gulf of Mexico has shores on Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. When it was created in 1920, the refuge originally encompassed 86,000 acres of biologically diverse coastal wetlands in Cameron and Vermillion Parishes. But over time, ongoing coastal erosion has reduced the refuge to 71,000 acres. Twenty years or so ago, a key 9.2 mi stretch of the refuge was losing about 50 ft of land per year, notes Phillip “Scooter” Trosclair III, a biologist program manager for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, which manages the refuge. The rate of loss in that region increased to around 70 ft a year, then 100 ft, and then by 2016 surveys indicated that more than 300 ft of land had disappeared in a single year, Trosclair says. People worried that “if we keep getting hit with this pattern, we’re not going to have any land left,” Trosclair recalls. But even as the refuge seemed in greater danger, a solution was already in the works. When erosion losses started to accelerate around 2000, the Rockefeller Refuge Gulf Shoreline Stabilization Project was taking shape. Implemented by the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority and the National Marine Fisheries Service [...]

By kk42|September 28th, 2021|Geotechnical Alabama, Geotechnical Florida, Geotechnical Mississippi, Geotechnical Louisiana, Geotechnical Texas|0 Comments

Informed Streets Pavement Management Solution

Source: Horrocks' Informed Streets Pavement Management Solution Road maintenance is an essential component of city infrastructure. However, deciding what needs to be fixed and when is often a subject of debate. That's where Horrocks' new pavement management system comes it. Using data-driven analysis, it takes some of the guesswork out of the entire process making road maintenance more cost-effective. This will be an exceptionally great tool for cities like Anchorage, Atlanta, Boulder, Chicago, Indianapolis, Little Rock, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Phoenix. Informed Streets for Pavement Management Horrocks’ new pavement management system has been dubbed Informed Streets. This is simply because it helps create road maintenance schedules, allowing our clients to maximize their budgets by applying the right treatment to the right road at the right time. This system assesses existing pavement conditions and uses predictive models to develop unique, data-driven management plans that optimize costs and upkeep. These plans are created through the following four stages: 1. Initial Assessment and Survey Horrocks’ mobile LiDAR unit during initial survey In the initial phase of service, Horrocks’ in-house survey crews complete a thorough survey and pavement assessment of the roadways. This is done using a truck-mounted Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) unit to assess the pavement by collecting one million survey-grade points every second. Our experts then use this data to develop a baseline for a pavement management plan by providing one of two pavement ratings, depending on our client’s needs: the Pavement Surface Evaluation and Rating (PASER) or Pavement Condition Index (PCI). 2. Data Analysis and Planning Once the pavement rating is complete, an online platform is set up for our client, which includes the Informed Streets3D Viewer. Horrocks’ Informed Streets 3D Viewer integrates GIS systems, LiDAR point clouds, and photography in one robust platform that allows for [...]

By kk42|September 28th, 2021|Anchorage, Indianapolis, Chicago, Atlanta, Phoenix, Little Rock, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Boulder, New York|0 Comments

International Conference on Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering ICEGE in February 2023 in Paris

Source: International Conference on Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering ICEGE in February 2023 in Paris The International Research Conference Aims and Objectives The International Research Conference is a federated organization dedicated to bringing together a significant number of diverse scholarly events for presentation within the conference program. Events will run over a span of time during the conference depending on the number and length of the presentations. With its high quality, it provides an exceptional value for students, academics and industry researchers. International Conference on Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering aims to bring together leading academic scientists, researchers and research scholars to exchange and share their experiences and research results on all aspects of Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering. It also provides a premier interdisciplinary platform for researchers, practitioners and educators to present and discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns as well as practical challenges encountered and solutions adopted in the fields of Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering Call for Contributions Prospective authors are kindly encouraged to contribute to and help shape the conference through submissions of their research abstracts, papers and e-posters. Also, high quality research contributions describing original and unpublished results of conceptual, constructive, empirical, experimental, or theoretical work in all areas of Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering are cordially invited for presentation at the conference. The conference solicits contributions of abstracts, papers and e-posters that address themes and topics of the conference, including figures, tables and references of novel research materials. Guidelines for Authors Please ensure your submission meets the conference's strict guidelines for accepting scholarly papers. Downloadable versions of the check list for Full-Text Papers and Abstract Papers. Please refer to the Paper Submission Guideline, Abstract Submission Guideline and Author Information before submitting your paper. Conference Proceedings All submitted conference papers will be blind peer reviewed by three competent reviewers. The peer-reviewed conference proceedings are indexed in the Open Science Index, Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, Zenedo, OpenAIRE, BASE, WorldCAT, Sherpa/RoMEO, and [...]

By kk42|September 27th, 2021|Geotechnical Nebraska, Geotechnical California, Geotechnical New York, Geotechnical Texas, Earthquakes, Conferences, Geotechnical Florida|0 Comments