Related Links: More news from the ENRMidAtlantic 4/14/2014 issue In an industry whose services often are out of public view, the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority, known as DC Water, is making a big splash. DC Water, an independent public authority, serves more than 2.2 million people in a 725-sq-mile area around the nation's capital.The agency also operates what it says is the world's largest advanced wastewater treatment plant. Now partway through a 10-year, $4-billion capital program, DC Water is experiencing the largest expansion in its history. To meet that challenge, the authority is embracing innovative technology and
Related Links: EPA Federal Register Notice on New Stormwater Rule March 6, 2014 EPA Will Revise Flawed Effluent Rule for Construction Sites (ENR 2/4/2013) Contractors will have greater flexibility in controlling stormwater discharges from construction sites under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's new revisions to its effluent guidelines.The final rule, to take effect on May 5, addresses concerns industry groups have had with the rule since it was implemented in 2009, especially its numeric discharge limit of 280 nephelometric turbidity units for construction sites in which 20 or more acres are disturbed at one time.A 2012 settlement in a lawsuit
Related Links: Duke Energy's Dan River page NCDENR page on spill The two stormwater pipes that caused the early February release of as much as 39,000 tons of coal ash into the Dan River in North Carolina have been plugged.But while damage to the downstream environment is still being assessed, the event appears certain to have far-reaching effects for the utility that owns the site and the state agency that regulates it.In the weeks since the leak was first discovered on Feb. 2 at a former Eden, N.C., coal-fired powerplant owned by Charlotte-based Duke Energy, the U.S. Attorney's Office in
Related Links: Q&A: 10 Minutes With DOT's Ray LaHood Call To Upgrade Infrastructure Transportation policy leaders agree that infrastructure funding is a bipartisan issue, but consensus on raising the federal gas tax remains elusive.Former U.S. Dept. of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, addressing a Feb. 4 forum in Washington, D.C., said, "We should have raised the gas tax already and index it to inflation. I would've raised it by 10¢," he said to applause.But a fellow panelist on the Bloomberg Government-hosted discussion of U.S. infrastructure investment, Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), Chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, said it was
Ask Bala Sivakumar about his nearly 30 years in bridge engineering, and he dutifully recites biographical information. But ask him about the need for accelerated bridge construction (ABC), and, suddenly, there's excitement and passion in his voice.
Considerable perseverance by the city of Orlando—along with some design and construction stagecraft—was needed to bring to life the first phase of a long-delayed performing arts center project. Related Links: Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center Ranks Among Southeast's Top Starts of 2011 Orlando Backs Financing for Arts Center Project The saga of turning the plans for the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts—originally priced at nearly $400 million—into reality was reminiscent of the big-budget musicals that will be staged at the performance venue: big dreams, adversity met with resolve and, of course, a happy ending.Named for a local citrus
Photo and Map Courtesy of NCDOT Crews delivered repair components to bridge site in late November. The lawsuit aims to protect an adjoining wildlife refuge. The Herbert C. Bonner Bridge on North Carolina's Outer Banks has reopened after the discovery of excess scour around underwater pilings forced a two-week closure. The closure isolated more than 4,000 full-time residents on Hatteras Island and added fuel to the long-simmering debate over replacing the half-century-old, 2.5-mile structure spanning Oregon Inlet.Because of the highly volatile and dynamic nature of the inlet's currents between the Atlantic Ocean and Pamlico Sound, the North Carolina Dept. of
A Philadelphia grand jury has charged demolition contractor Griffin Campbell with six counts of third-degree murder for his role in the city’s deadly June 5 building collapse.Campbell, owner of Campbell Construction, is accused of using improper and unsafe methods to bring down an abandoned four-story building owned by New York developer Richard Basciano to make way for a mixed-use development.An unsupported multi-story wall collapsed onto an adjacent one-story Salvation Army store, killing six and injuring 14.An investigation revealed that Campbell had not installed proper bracing on the building’s sidewalls, electing to begin the project by removing the facade and floor
The Nemours Foundation had a clear vision for its new children's hospital in Orlando: a world-class facility that would offer Central Florida a new level of pediatric specialty care, from minor injuries to the most complex of illnesses and conditions.
