Related Links: Transcripts of Supreme Court Oral Arguments High Court to Hear Water, 'Takings' Cases In one of the first cases it heard in its new term, the U.S. Supreme Court plunged into the murky task of determining whether damage caused by federally directed flooding is a "taking" of private property.The court heard oral arguments on Oct. 3 in Arkansas Game & Fish Commission v. U.S. The commission contends that water releases from an Army Corps of Engineers dam in six consecutive years destroyed valuable timber. The commission says the flooding is a property "taking," which under the Fifth Amendment
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Digital Visual Library Parts of the Corps' waterway network, including Lock and Dam No. 25 on the Mississippi, are more than 50 years old. Related Links: National Research Council Report ENR Blog: Signs of Life for a New WRDA Bill A new National Research Council study says the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is losing ground in maintaining and upgrading the agency's huge, aging water-resources infrastructure.The Corps-sponsored report, released on Oct. 4, comes as there are stirrings in the Senate about a new, multiyear water-resources bill that would authorize Corps river locks and dams, harbor
Related Links: President Obama's CHP Executive Order Link to USCHPA website Administration officials say they are making a push to incentivize the use of combined heat-and-power, or CHP, energy systems to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and increase energy efficiency in facilities ranging from Veterans Administration medical centers to industrial plants.Speaking at the U.S. Clean Heat & Power Association's annual meeting in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 3-4, officials from the White House and the Environmental Protection Agency described recent efforts to encourage greater use of CHP systems, which advocates claim are more efficient than dual-turbine systems. Currently, there are approximately 82 gigawatts
Related Links: New WEF Chief Outlines Key Priorities WEFTEC Convention website Finding solutions to the intractable challenges facing the health of the nation's waters "must be rooted in innovation and technology," said Lisa Jackson, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator, at the Water Environment Federation's annual conference.Speaking at the WEFTEC gathering, held from Sept. 29 to Oct. 3 in New Orleans, Jackson noted that the U.S. is a global leader in terms of environmental technologies and innovations. Getting countries to share knowledge and helping them access American know-how will address global water challenges, she said. To that end, Jackson and Francisco
Related Links: 2010 Disciplinary Action Against M.R. Wright & Associates Co. Aggressive, Owner-Oriented Approach to Liability for Inspection Mistakes New lawsuits target the engineering firm whose principals wrote the owner of a southern Ontario hotel and retail concourse that the roof parking deck above the shops was structurally sound two months before part of it collapsed June 23, killing two women.The families of Doloris Perizzolo, 74, and Lucie Aylwin, 37, filed suit Oct. 1 in Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Sault Ste. Marie for about $5 million against engineer M.R. Wright & Associates Co. Ltd., Sault Ste. Marie, and
Related Links: National Conference of State Legislatures searchable ballot-measure database Ballotwatch 2012-Initiative & Referendum Institute-University of Southern California ENR story on 2010 construction-related bond issues and initiatives on ballots Construction Firms, Groups, Mixed on Romney Policies A Second Obama Term Could Look Much Like the First Infrastructure bond issues have roared back onto statewide ballots in this year's presidential election, with more than $4 billion dollars' worth tallied in nine states, up from $1.9 billion in five states two years ago, says the National Conference of State Legislatures, or NCSL.In addition, there are finance measures on municipal or regional ballots,
Related Links: New Corps of Engineers Commander Bostick Taking Stock ASCE Report Sees Big Maritime Infrastructure Funding Gap ENR Blog: Signs of Life for a New WRDA Bill The Army Corps of Engineers is facing an “unsustainable situation” in maintaining its huge and aging water infrastructure, as current funding isn't keeping up with the needs, a new National Research Council study says.The report, released on Oct. 4, says that the Corps' sprawling network of river locks and dams and other civil works “is wearing out faster than it is being replaced or rehabilitated.” The system includes about 700 dams, 14,000
Related Links: Supreme Court docket file for Arkansas Game & Fish Commission v. U.S. Supreme Court docket file for L.A. County Flood Control District v. NRDC As the U.S. Supreme Court begins its new term, construction officials will be watching the cases that deal with water issues. Two cases on the court's docket focus on aspects of the Clean Water Act, and a third centers on whether timberland damaged by water releases from an Army Corps of Engineers dam are a federal "taking" of property.First up is the takings case, Arkansas Game & Fish Commission v. U.S., on which the
Related Links: WEFTEC Offical Website WEFTEC Opening Day Schedule The Water Environment Federation has put innovation and reaching out to the global community at the center of its new strategic direction, says Cordell Samuels, the association's incoming president. SAMUELSSamuels says that, over the past two years, the association's leaders have taken a hard look at the group's strategic plan and decided "to strengthen some of the things we have always done and to craft new initiatives going forward."Association officials planned to outline the new strategic direction for WEF at the group's annual WEFTEC convention, set for Sept. 30-Oct. 3 in
Related Links: Amid PPP Slowdown, India Turns to Cash Contracts Green Building Booms in India The American Institute of Architects and the Commerce Dept. are gearing up for a trade mission, which will begin on Oct. 14, to major cities in India. The aim is to promote the services of U.S. design and architecture firms in India and Sri Lanka.The trip, which comprises Chennai, Calcutta and Bangalore, is the first of three such missions planned over the next three years. All of the trips will be financed by a recently announced Commerce Dept. grant to AIA as well as the
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