The structural performance of a single-story, wood-stud frame with brick veneer during a Jan. 26 shake-table test at the University of California, San Diego, offered no surprises. However, the structure’s masonry veneer showed distress in places, and that did surprise researchers. The full-scale earthquake test was the first of two designed to help engineers use performance-based design to improve the seismic behavior of masonry and wood buildings, common in residential and light-commercial construction. Related Links: Testing the Strength Of Brick Veneer Seismic Researchers Shake the Brick Veneer “We believe that under many circumstances veneer can help structural performance,” says Richard

To get the world’s tallest building to stretch beyond 800 meters (slide-1), workers jacked, in eight lifts, a steel-pipe pinnacle from a lifting apparatus within the steel spire (slide-2). Crews are expected to finish the cladding, including the spire’s cover (slide-3), several months before the projected fall finish. Slide Show

The reconstituted committee charged with developing the nation’s first green building standard met for the first time on Jan. 27 in Chicago at the winter meeting of the standard’s lead developer, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers Inc. The two-year-old committee stopped work in the fall after ASHRAE decided the panel needed broader industry representation. The new Standard 189 committee has 34 voting members, up from 21. The committee includes more representation from owners, the steel sector and construction, said Kent Peterson, chief engineer of P2S Engineering, Long Beach, Calif., and the panel’s new chair. Panel

Five tidal power schemes, the biggest able to generate 5% of U.K. electricity demand, have been shortlisted for the Severn Estuary, the long sea inlet that separates Wales and Cornwall in the southwest of England. The government's inclusion of a full, $30-billion barrage across the estuary has angered environmental groups. Slide Show DECC Fleming Lagoon's design, looping out from one shore, would not obstruct tidal flows as much as a barrage. Having eliminated five schemes, the Dept. of Energy and Climate Change will now consult on its shortlist till April, aiming to select its preferred option early next year. A

The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, which would get $400 million for watershed infrastructure, partners with local sponsors on 14,000 watershed structures throughout the nation, including many aging dams. It has a potential backlog of more than $1 billion worth of flood prevention work to do, says Douglas McKalip, legislative director. But it is up to the local partners to initiate flood prevention projects. The federal share of new construction is 100%, but if fish habitat restoration or recreation improvements or dam rehabilitation are involved the locals have to pick up a 35% share. Many such potential

According to the House Democrat’s Stimulus Bill report, the Coast Guard alters, repairs, or removes bridges that it deems a hazard to marine navigation, and it says there are 12 eligible bridges that fit that category right now. The bill provides $150 million to “fund authorized bridges that have 90 percent of their design completed and could begin construction during fiscal year 2009.” Although a “subject matter expert” conversant with the Coast Guard’s bridge replacement initiative was not available at press time due to the federal holidays, the service supplied a list of twelve bridges it has declared unreasonably obstructive

The U.K. government gave its approval on Jan. 15 for a third runway and sixth terminal at London’s Heathrow airport. Construction is estimated at $13.5 billion, and a rail hub also could be built at the airport providing high-speed links to London and central England. The project has proved controversial with many opponents, including the Conservative Party, challenging the scheme on environmental grounds. Transportation Secretary Geoff Hoon says measures to reduce the environmental impact include limiting the runway’s early use and allowing access only to the “cleanest planes.” Because of the urgent need, he says permitting will begin soon for

Wood, coal, gas and oil have long-fueled societies since prehistoric times but they all emit carbon dioxide and all are finite. Today, rapid economic growth is straining the Earth’s ability to meet demand for these fuels, and rising greenhouse-gas concentrations are threatening the climate’s stability. Clean, renewable energy alternatives are being proposed to replace these fuels, but many have limitations: Wind may not blow when demand is up, the sun shines only part of the day and drought can cripple a hydropower plant. Because fossil fuels are still abundant and relatively cheap, they will continue to provide the bulk of

Fusion is the sun’s energy source. It is essentially inexhaustible, and that’s a major reason for the interest in developing fusion technology to generate power. In the sun, light nuclei such as hydrogen, under extreme gravitational pressure and excited by temperatures of 10 million to 20 million°C, collide with such force that they are fused into heavier ones. The fusion generates heat, maintaining the high temperature and keeping the reaction going. Slide Show Photo: Agence Iter France Related Links: International Program Aims To Develop Energy Supply Without Limit Fusion in earth’s lower pressure requires a much higher temperature of 100

The nearly decade-long fight over whether to raze or rebuild the Alaskan Way Viaduct on Seattle’s waterfront is nearing a final decision. On Jan. 13, Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire (D) announced that she favors replacing the 55-year-old highway with a $4.25 billion deep-bored tunnel. King County Executive Ron Sims, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and Port of Seattle Chief Executive Officer Tay Yoshitani also support the plan. Elected officials have been debating whether to rebuild or replace the viaduct since 2001, when the double-deck freeway was damaged in an earthquake. A month ago, an advisory committee created to study design options