News

News, announcements, policy updates, spotlighted websites, software updates and other info that may be of interest to practicing geotechnical engineers, engineering geologists, geophysicists, hydrogeologists and related professions.

Oregon man laments losing his house to fire after a landslide knocked it off its foundation
Geologic Hazards

Oregon Landslide News and Map

January 5, 2009 rockman Comments Off on Oregon Landslide News and Map

Oregon man laments losing his house to fire after a landslide knocked it off its foundationThis is definitely the season for landslides, mudslides, debris flows and other mayhem in Oregon and elsewhere in the pacific northwest. It seems like every time I turn around there is another Google Alert in my inbox about a landslide related issue in that area. Having a hard time keeping up with it all, I decided to try something new. Click through to see a map of automatically updated landslide news in Oregon. Lets call it a Beta…so we’ll see if it works out. If it does, maybe I’ll try something similar for other areas or other items that tend to make it into the news. (Photo by Ross William Hamilton/The Oregonian)

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TVA coal ash dyke failure
Failures

TVA Coal Ash Disaster

January 5, 2009 rockman Comments Off on TVA Coal Ash Disaster

On December 22 of 2008, there was a massive failure of a fly ash landfill (tailings dam?) at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) Kingston power plant. The failure caused a torrent of coal ash sludge […]

Rockman's Ramblings

Top Content of 2008

January 2, 2009 rockman Comments Off on Top Content of 2008

Happy New Year to all GeoPrac.net members and visitors! I send you warmest wishes for a happy, healthy and fulfilling 2009. As is the custom on most blogs, I’ve taken a look at the most popular items on the site from 2008. I define popularity as highest average hits/day, not just the most hits, otherwise it biases things towards those articles that have been posted longer. I also break down the most read articles of 2008 including those published earlier, and the most popular items published in the last quarter. Click through for the lists.

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Space Navigator by 3D Connexicon
Giveaways and Contests

GeoPrac.net Giveaway – Space Navigator!

December 30, 2008 rockman Comments Off on GeoPrac.net Giveaway – Space Navigator!

Space Navigator by 3D Connexicon[Update 2009-01-12] The deadline for this contest has been extended to 11:59PM CST on January 31, 2009. Get your comments in to win the Space Navigator! [/Update]

Announcing the first of what I hope will be many giveaway contests at GeoPrac.net! The first prize up for grabs is the Space Navigator from 3D Connexicion. Use it to fly through 3D worlds such as Google Earth, Microsoft Virtual Earth, increase productivity in AutoDesk apps or just use it to play Second Life! How can you win? Leave a comment with a valid email address on any GeoNews blog post or Article…even old ones. See full rules and more info on the Space navigator after the break.

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Erosion control wattles on palletes from Earth-Savers.com
Available Resources

BMPs for Geotechnical Drilling and Well Drilling

December 29, 2008 rockman Comments Off on BMPs for Geotechnical Drilling and Well Drilling

Stormwater Pollution Prevention regulations require the use of best management practices (BMPs) for any project involving site disturbance of over an acre. Usually for geotechnical drilling and well drilling, the sites are much smaller, so […]

American Society of Testing Materials Logo - ASTM
Standards and Codes

ASTM Standards December Update

December 29, 2008 rockman Comments Off on ASTM Standards December Update

American Society of Testing Materials Logo - ASTMThis month there are a number of changes to standards relating to masonry units, bricks, dimension stone, etc. There are also some changes to a few standards related to asphalt paving, and groundwater testing. ASTM D6453 – Standard Guide for Format of Computerized Exchange of Soil and Rock Test Data was withdrawn. Read on for the full list.

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Installation of Geokon vibrating wire crackmeter in Roman Galleries beneath Lisbon, Portugal
Geoarchaeology

Crack Monitoring in Ancient Roman Galleries

December 26, 2008 rockman Comments Off on Crack Monitoring in Ancient Roman Galleries

I came across an interesting case study involving the installation of several vibrating wire crack monitors and data collection equipment at the 1st century B.C. to 1st century A.D., Roman built galleries beneath Lisbon, Portugal. […]

SR 87 Landslide Between Payson and Phoenix, March 2008
Geologic Hazards

SR 87 Landslide Coverage and Update

December 26, 2008 rockman Comments Off on SR 87 Landslide Coverage and Update

SR 87 Landslide Between Payson and Phoenix, March 2008Back in March of 2008 there was a landslide that closed SR 87 in between Phoenix, Arizona and Payson. It’s been of great interest to me since it is in my state and affected a highway. I was hoping my firm (NCS Consultants, LLC) might be asked to work on the remediation through our on-call contract but it didn’t happen. Its probably for the best, it sounds like it’s been a troublesome geotechnical engineering problem. Fast forward to last week, and the slide area was in the news again because the slope is still moving and apparently causing some additional deformation of the roadway. (Photo by ADOT)

I had heard about this a while ago through our ADOT contacts, but I make it a policy not to take advantage of my contacts through my day job for GeoPrac.net content (not without permission anyway). So I didn’t want to blog about it until it hit the mainstream media. Last week, the Arizona State Geologist blogged about the SR 87 slide moving again, as did Ken through his AEG Arizona Section blog. It was even covered on one of my favorite blogs, Dave’s Landslide Blog. I finally have a chance to wade through these blog posts and some of the reports and videos to present a summary of the situation, available information and offer my own perspective. (More after the break)

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