October 2022

How Civil Engineers Can Bring Communities Together
ASCE

In 2001, Tropical Storm Allison dumped massive amounts of rain across the Houston area. The City of Houston, Harris County and other stakeholders created a plan to address the inadequacies of the region’s flood infrastructure. Unfortunately, large parts of the plans were not implemented. In 2010, the City of Houston adopted Rebuild Houston, a plan championed by engineers, to create a dedicated funding source for drainage improvements. But the pay-as-you-go funding stream meant that the projects defined in the plan would take decades to complete. That plan is still in place. After large storm events in 2015 and 2016, a variety of organizations united to decry the lack of progress by Harris County and the Corps on flood control infrastructure. On August 27, 2017, the largest rain event in U.S. history, Hurricane Harvey, made landfall, causing $125 billion in damage and loss of life. Many organizations that had decried progress on flood control infrastructure organized into Houston Stronger, an advocacy association.

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Rethinking How We Develop Our Cities – Going Green
Old Miss Edu

“Without green stormwater infrastructure, a city is not doing all it can to reduce water pollution,” Alexander said. “Wise use of green infrastructure allows a city to address its stormwater runoff obligations while also improving the livability of the community. “Ordinances have to be popular to get passed, so the first step for officials is to show how green infrastructure can help make their city a better place. They can do this without ordinances by making changes to city-owned property. Put in rain gardens or even planters. Reduce curbs that prevent water from flowing into landscaped areas, especially in parking lots. This lets the water soak in, instead of flow away quickly.”

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How can you prevent erosion and stormwater runoff in your yard?
Soils Matter

Erosion – the displacement of soil from one place to the other – can happen on large properties and small. When soil from your yard runs into the street, it can block storm water systems. Erosion is unsightly at best and an environmental problem at worst. But you can do some simple things to protect your yard – and our environment – from erosion. The best way to prevent erosion is by covering your soil. Bare soil is vulnerable to both wind and rain erosion. Soil needs to be covered year-round in order to be protected.

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Fort Worth storm drain rehab program earns national award
Fort Worth Report

The Storm Drain Rehabilitation Program builds on the city’s previous efforts and lessons learned, and it provides a strategic, long-term framework to guide condition assessment and rehabilitation. The program leans heavily on data-driven decision-making, which requires structured coordination of the data and key priorities of the internal stakeholders. “This has been a very successful program, as inspection metrics were exceeded in Year 1 and Year 2, and more than 100 high-risk pipes were identified with structural concerns and packaged as capital projects for near-term repair,” Fort Worth stormwater infrastructure manager Cannon Henry said.

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Technology reduces the risks of most construction related accidents
Geospatial World

As construction bounces back from the pandemic, industry leaders are placing a stronger emphasis on safety. Minimizing illness and injury on-site can improve employment rates and job satisfaction. The digital revolution is helping engineers create supportive construction technologies. When builders adopt job-site technologies, they reduce injuries and anxiety levels. Researchers notice higher employee productivity when individuals use technology in the workplace. Technology also increases employee morale and satisfaction by limiting injury risks.

From Gray to Green to Smart
With Smart Infrastructure, the sky is the limit.

With smart infrastructure the sky is the limit. Imagine the next hurricane approaches your region and all of your ponds are now Smart Ponds equipped with a motherboard, a telecommunication system, and an automated valve or weir.

• By the year 2040 there will not be enough water in the world to quench the thirst of the world population and keep the current energy and power solutions going if we continue doing what we are doing today.
• The number of people living in river basins under severe water stress is projected to reach 3.9 billion by 2050, totaling over 40% of the world’s population.
• Compared to today, five times as much land is likely to be under “extreme drought” by 2050.
• Feeding 9 billion people by 2050, will require a 60 percent increase in agricultural production and a 15 percent increase in water withdrawals.
• Water demand is projected to grow by 55 percent by 2050 (including a 400-percent rise in manufacturing water demand).
• By 2050, 1 in 5 developing countries will face water shortages, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization.
• Between 2050 and 2100, there is an 85 percent chance of a drought in the Central Plains and Southwestern United States lasting 35 years or more.
• If farmers in Kansas keep irrigating at present rates, 69 percent of the Ogallala Aquifer will be gone in 50 years.

Lounge & Learn with the Experts at Greenrise
Tell us what you would like to know and we will tell you.

If you and your team would like to learn more about any of the wide variety of products and services we offer, schedule a LOUNGE & LEARN today. We can discuss with your team anything from our turnkey compliance services during construction activity to our post-construction stormwater management systems; or our stormwater quality treatment to our erosion and sediment control solutions. Just let us know what you would like to talk about.

Contact Us

We offer stormwater consulting and value-engineering services, turnkey SWPPP compliance services during construction activity, erosion control solutions for slopes and channels, and post-construction compliance services for stormwater management systems for detention and stormwater quality treatment. Need help? Contact us today.