Demolition of one 102,000-sq-ft facility amid many others on the 586-sq-mile Hanford nuclear waste site may seem minuscule, but not when the facility contains some of the world’s highest radiation levels. Photo: Washington Closure Hanford Work to demolish large and highly radioactive research cells is soon to start. Washington Closure Hanford, a joint-venture cleanup contractor at the U.S. Energy Dept.’s former weapons-making site in eastern Washington, and a subcontracting team will soon remove five massive steel-reinforced concrete “hot cells.” While no longer in use, they previously allowed site employees to work with nuclear materials without radiation exposure. Removal of the
Southern California will spend hundreds of millions of dollars to repair water treatment and wastewater treatment infrastructure damaged in the April 4 Baja Earthquake, which was registered at 7.2 magnitude, state and city officials say. In the city of El Centro, Director of Public Works/City Engineer Terry Hagen estimated that local public and private interests sustained $25 million in damage, although that estimate could grow. As many as 24 condominium units were evacuated when four of six 2-inch-dia anchor bolts sheared off an empty landmark, a 1924-era water tank. The city awarded an emergency $77,000 contract to remove the tank
Although combinations of in-cylinder systems and exhaust after-treatment are the most likely ways manufacturers will meet clean-diesel requirements over the next five years, researchers are looking at alternative fuels, including gasoline. This alt-fuel interest is being pushed by the industry’s hope of finding a cleaner and more cost-effective way to power construction machinery. Photo: Ricardo Inc. Ricardo’s dual-fuel, flex-fuel mill debuted this year in a pickup truck. Related Links: Next Round of Federal Regulations Has Suppliers Retooling Clean Diesel Three Ways Manufacturers Will Meet the Tier 4 Standards Electrification already has made its debut in commercially available construction equipment during
Image: West 8 Art New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on April 12 an agreement that gives the city long-term planning and development control of Governor’s Island, a 172-acre chunk of largely undeveloped real estate in New York Harbor. The announcement of the agreement preceded the mayor’s unveiling of a sweeping redevelopment plan for the onetime military base that includes the creation of an 87-acre public park, a waterfront promenade and public space. The city also has plans to build a high school on the island, while setting aside 30 acres for private development, which could include a satellite
The contractor for an occupied, 26-story apartment building in Seattle that has corroding post-tensioning cables disagrees with the owner’s assertion that the nine-year-old high-rise will become unsafe. McCarthy Building Cos. also disputes the cause and scope of the damage to McGuire Apartments, built for $33 million, stated by the local owner, Carpenter’s Tower LLC. Photo: Ken Lambert, The Seattle Times Problems of Seattle high-rise are too costly to fix, says owner. The contractor disagrees. On April 10, the owner announced plans to vacate the building over several months “due to extensive construction defects, which are financially impractical” to repair. A
Several months ahead of schedule and less than a year after driving the first 66-inch concrete cylinder pile, Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure Group is rapidly completing a 7,490-ft.-long storm-surge protection wall that is the central part of a roughly two-mile long surge barrier in New Orleans. Photo: Angelle Bergeron April 2 Manson made a 475 CY concrete pour, the last large casting for the barge gate. var so = new FlashObject("http://natalie.feedroom.com/construction/natoneclip/Player.swf","Player", "300", "169", "8", "#FFFFFF");so.addVariable("skin", "natoneclip");so.addVariable("site", "construction");so.addVariable("fr_story", "06d97bec5b824c5cbfecead78733721f891f8f9f&rf");so.addVariable("hostURL", document.location.href);so.addParam("quality", "high");so.addParam("allowFullScreen", "true");so.addParam("menu", "false");so.write("flashcontent"); Early Protection: Surge Barrier Is Ahead of Schedule Photo: Angelle Bergeron The placement of a significant portion of
The anticipated cost to build a controversial water-supply project in northern Colorado has increased 15% from 2006 estimates, to $490 million, project officials say. That total is up sharply from the original $350-million estimate at the project’s 2003 inception. The Northern Colorado Water Conservancy is coordinating the Northern Integrated Supply Project, or NISP, for 11 funding cities and four water districts in Weld and Larimer counties. At completion, NISP will supply 40,000 acre-ft of water per year to area residents. Additional capacity is critical: A recent water study says that, by 2050, Colorado’s population will double, and 80% of the
Plans are moving forward for the first, $750-million, 25-mile section of the long-awaited $4.5-billion Baton Rouge Loop transportation project. Photo: HNTB Crossing designs are evaluated by the captains who will guide ships beneath them. Related Links: Piloting Virtual River Crossing The overall project includes an 80- to 90-mile controlled access toll roadway that will encircle Louisiana’s capital city metro area and alleviate congestion by providing additional capacity to Interstates 10 and 12 and alternate routes for local traffic. The first 25-mile section “has been broken out into an independent project,” which means it can advance ahead of the rest of
After contractual juggling and debates over the alleged dangers of steel rail ties, Austin’s Capital Metro opened its 32-mile MetroRail commuter line between the city of Leander, Texas, and Austin’s downtown Convention Center on March 22, a year later than originally planned. “The overall integration of the Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) system took longer to implement than anticipated,” Capital Metro spokesman Adam Shaivitz says. Last August, board-meeting minutes indicate, a system used for switching from freight to passenger rail had field-test problems. The opening comes more than five years after voters approved the “All Systems Go Plan” referendum. The agency
Crews have filled in about 80% of nine voids leftover from a 2-mile tunneling job through Seattle’s Beacon Hill. Japan’s Obayashi Corp. did not discover the voids while boring the parallel, 1-mile tunnels as part of its $280-million contract, which has since increased to $312 million. Owner Sound Transit contends the contractor is at fault. Photo: Sound Transit Crews pump low-density concrete into tunnel voids found by drilling. The new, $2.6-billion, 16-mile Link Light Rail from downtown Seattle south to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport required tunnels and a station 180 ft deep beneath Beacon Hill. Obayashi in 2004 won the contract
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