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PIANC members sought to represent U.S. on new Small Island Ports working
group
The PIANC Committee on International Cooperation (CoCom) is setting up its first Working Group, on Small Island
Ports. It will be a joint venture with the International Association of Ports and Harbors
(IAPH). Click here for the Terms of Reference. Candidates for
the position of U.S. Representative on this working group are asked to send a brief c.v. (in
electronic form) by June 1, 2004, to Anne Sudar, Institute for Water Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 7701 Telegraph Road, Alexandria, VA 22315, Phone (703) 428-7166, e-mail: R.Anne.Sudar@usace.army.mil.
RSM and CHL exhibit
at Economic and Environmental Annual Conference
Mr. John Paul Woodley, Jr., Assistant Secretary to the Army (Civil Works), and Maj. Gen. Carl Strock,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Director of Civil Works, speak with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' 2004
National Economic and Environmental Conference attendees after giving plenary session speeches about
Civil Works Perspectives.
The conference took place in Baltimore, Maryland,
13-15 April 2004. The Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory along with the Regional Sediment Management
Program exhibited their tabletop displays to introduce ongoing research topics to the planning community represented at the conference.
RSM displays at Sustainable Beaches Summit,
supports speakers
The Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory of the Engineer Research and Development
Center (ERDC) and the Mobile District helped sponsor the first Sustainable
Beaches Summit in Sandestin, Florida, 29-31 March 2004. Organized by
the Clean Beaches Council, the summit included several technical tracks
assembled by the U.S. Geological Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, and the Corps. The
Corps-organized track on Sand and Sediment included sessions on coastal
processes, coastal engineering, beach management, environmental issues,
and regional sediment management. Attendees included federal and state
representatives and representatives from county governments and local
beach communities. The summit considered all aspects of developing and
maintaining healthy and enjoyable beach experiences across the nation.
Dr. James Houston, ERDC Director, was the keynote speaker and presented
"The Value of Beaches," a review of the tourism and economic contribution
of beaches. (POC: Joan Pope, 703-428-6281, Joan.Pope@erdc.usace.army.mil)
International workshop for MOPEX to be held
in Paris
MOPEX (Model Parameter Estimation Experiment) was established to aid in the development of techniques for the a priori estimation of parameters used in land
surface parameterization schemes of atmospheric and hydrological models. Workshops have been
held each of the past three years to investigate various issues related to parameter
estimation and regional applications. The 4th International MOPEX workshop will be held
this summer in Paris, focusing on the estimation of parameters for ungaged watersheds in
humid regions. To allow for maximum participation, the workshop is designed so that
modelers can chose varying levels of involvement (based on resources and the number of
basins they wish to study). A well-defined set of science objectives is also planned
to allow for a coordinated and meaningful analysis of workshop results. A last objective
for the workshop is the development of an international database with basins from various
countries. Please visit the MOPEX website for more
information at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/oh/mopex and
information on the Paris Meeting at http://www.seas.ucla.edu/~thogue/MOPEX/
RSM bulletin rewarded with PRism by Public
Relations Association of Mississippi
The Regional Sediment Management (RSM) Information Exchange Bulletin
garnered a coveted 1st Place, a PRism, at the Public Relations Association of Mississippi (PRAM) annual
conference in Jackson, Mississippi, on 26 March 2004. The category was "Innovation," a reformatting of the
publication from a "print format that was placed online," to "Web-friendly format that could also be printed." The concept had previously been recognized with a 2nd place Lantern Award in the Southern Public Relations Federation (SPRF) 2003 annual competition among practitioners from Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The design was conceptualized by Elke Briuer, APR, RSM technology transfer manager. ERDC Vicksburg's Betty Watson created the online version of the new format. Metrics point to greater acceptance for online reading, as Web analysis shows a sharp decline in downloading of second issue, while maintaining similar access statistics between the two initial issues. The PRism presentation took place after Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour gave the Keynote Address in front of more than 125 awards luncheon attendees in the Edison Walthall Hotel's ballroom. Access the latest version of the IEB at the top of the current News and Calendar page.
RSM activities briefed to Georgia state and local
government officials
Alan Garrett, Savannah District Project Manager for Regional Sedimentation,
made a presentation on Regional Sediment Management for local and state
government officials attending the Savannah District Legislative Workshop
27 February 2004. His presentation included regional sediment management
initiatives in Savannah and Brunswick Harbors, Georgia.
RSM tabletop display used at CIRP workshop
The Regional Sediment Management tabletop display was featured at the
Coastal Inlets Research Program's (CIRP) 5th Annual Technology Transfer
Workshop, held in Orlando, Florida, 9-11 February 2004. The exhibit
supported Julie Rosati's presentation on RSM program updates. POC: Julie
Rosati, National RSM Demonstration Program Manager.
RSM briefed to South American visitors
On 3 February 2004,
Julie Rosati briefed five visitors from the nation of Suriname on the National RSM Demonstration and
Research Programs. The presentation was part of a larger ERDC Vicksburg information exchange project
for the visitors. POC: Julie Rosati, National RSM
Demonstration Program Manager.
RSM large exhibit reaps Gold from marketing
professional
The RSM marketing outreach effort in consonance with an RSM series of presentations at the Coastal Zone 2003
in Baltimore garnered the Gold Award of Excellence for "Trade Show Exhibits" in the 2004 Annual Advertising
Awards Competition of the Vicksburg Association of Marketing Professionals. The exhibit resulted in
64 direct contacts who signed up for list server notification and 17 mailed in requests. The highest day
in the year for Internet traffic to the RSM site took place in the week immediately following the
presentations and exhibition. POC: Elke Briuer, APR,
RSM Technology Transfer.
ERDC research to be featured at Sustainable
Beaches Summit in March
Regional sediment management philosophy, policy,
technology, and examples will be featured at the Sustainable Beaches Summit, Sandestin, FL,
during 29-31 March 2004. The Summit, under the auspices of the Clean Beach Council and a
variety of federal sponsors, will take place on the Beaches of South Walton, Florida, at the
Sandestin Beach Resort. In addition to presenters from the RSM programs, other Corps and
ERDC experts in the area of coastal processes, engineering solutions, coastal ecosystem
concerns, and beach management will be speaking. Other sponsors include the U.S. EPA, USGS,
NOAA, the Center for SeaChange, and a plethora of professional and conservation organizations,
as well as other federal and state government organizations. For more information see calendar
below or view online at http://www.cleanbeaches.org/sustainable/host.cfm.
Florida conference and workshops to include ERDC
research and field applications
Coastal Inlets Research Program presents its Fifth
Annual CIRP Technology Transfer Workshops: Calculating Sediment Transport and Morphology
Change, preceding and as part of the FSBPA's National Conference on Beach Preservation
Technology in Lake Buena Vista, FL (11-13 Feb). U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development
Center Regional Sediment Management information will be presented at both events. Specifically,
Sand By-Passing at Perdido Pass, Alabama and Influence of the Improved Impoundment Basin
on Estuarine Circulation and Sediment Transport Patterns Within St. Lucie Inlet are
presentations in shich ERDC researchers are participating. Additional information is available
from Julie Rosati, e-mail Julie.D.Rosati@erdc.usace.army.mil.
ERDC CHL to recover and classify historic
photographs of the nation's coasts
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Beach Erosion Board, a
predecessor organization to today's Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory, amassed an
extraordinary collection of aerial photographs, charts, and other materials covering
the period 1930 to 1960. The collection includes at least 20,000 vertical aerial images
covering most coasts of the United States. Many of these images may no longer be available
from any other source. An effort is under way to inventory and organize the collection and
scan selected images in support of coastal projects and research. The photographs are an
invaluable source of data for studies of shoreline change and morphological evolution,
particularly at regional scale, as well as for assessing population and development trends. Additional information is available from Andrew.Morang@erdc.usace.army.mil. See online at http://chl.wes.army.mil/shore/default.htm.
RSM Demonstration Workshop and Meeting attended
by Corps and State participants
A Regional Sediment Management Demonstration Project Workshop/Meeting with the Coastal States Organization was held in Portsmouth, NH, 22-23 Oct 03. The status of regional demonstration projects from around the country was summarized and discussed, and lessons learned were shared. Other topics were presented by Division/District teams and discussed including applying RSM concepts District/Division-wide, building RSM teams, obtaining funding for RSM projects (leveraging and timing), and quantifying RSM benefits. Technologies to facilitate RSM and technology transfer vehicles were discussed. Prior to the workshop, a meeting with the Coastal States Organization was held. State and Corps participants met in small groups to discuss RSM opportunities by region and identified impediments to pursuing these RSM opportunities. (POC: Julie Rosati, 601-634-3005, Julie.D.Rosati@erdc.usace.army.mil).
RSM Information Exchange Bulletin earns award
in "Application of New Technology" category
The USACE ERDC RSM IEB (http://www.wes.army.mil/rsm/pubs/pdfs/RSM-v1n1.pdf) brought home a Lantern Award of Excellence, second place, for its design as a page-turning, easy-to-read-online publication that can also be printed. The Southern Public Relations Federation (SPRF) sponsors the Lantern Award Competition as part of the annual conference. This year's event took place at Auburn, Ala., with members competing from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. Individuals named to the award are Elke Briuer, APR, RSM technology transfer, Betty Watson, visual information specialist, and Jamie Leach, editor. Briuer and Leach are SPRF members through the Public Relations Association of Mississippi, River City Chapter.
Gulf Guardian Awards presented during ceremony
ERDC RSM Demonstration project at Mobile District won 3d Place Gulf Guardian Award for 2003 in Government Category. The partnership project can be viewed at http://gis.sam.usace.army.mil/Projects/RSM/. POC at ERDC is Julie Rosati, RSM Program Manager, e-mail Julie.D.Rosati@erdc.usace.army.mil.
| At the recent Gulf of Mexico award ceremony, (from left) Bryon O. Griffith, Acting Director, Gulf of Mexico Program; W. Jeff Lillycrop, Chief, Spatial Data Branch, Mobile District, and Research Hydraulic Engineer, Engineer Research and Development Center; LTC Joseph W. Corrigan, Deputy District Engineer, Mobile District; and Jimmy I. Palmer, Jr., Regional Administrator, EPA Region IV, line up to show off award plaques. (EPA Photo) |
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North Atlantic Division Jump Starts RSM Program with Workshop
Brigadier General Merdith W.B. Temple, Commander, North Atlantic Division (NAD), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, recently established Regional Sediment Management Teams at the Division and District levels, following an early September RSM workshop. Commitment to the RSM concept, with expectations of improved watershed planning through three clearly defined goals, was expressed in a September Division Memorandum.
These goals can be broadly summarized as: Outreach to all affected stakeholders and audiences; improved project execution by using RSM practices at Division and District levels; and a GIS information system and RSM website for information distribution and exchange.
More information is available from Larry Cocchieri, NAD Planning & Policy Division, e-mail Lawrence.J.Cocchieri@NAD02.usace.army.mil.
RSM News from North Western Division (NWD)
NWD RSM projects are moving forward. A press release resulted in an article published in the Columbian Basin Bulletin about ongoing activities.
Anyone interested in progress of the NWD RSM projects may monitor a website under construction at the Portland District https://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/ for new information, as it becomes available. Point of contact for more information at NWD is Doris J. McKillip, email Doris.J.McKillip@usace.army.mil.
Call for Papers: One-day conference: Controlling
the loss of soil to water
A one-day conference, "Controlling the loss of soil to water," will take place January 21, 2004, at The Geological Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1J 0BG, UK.
The National Soil Resources Institute, in collaboration with the British Geomorphological Research Group, invites the submission of abstracts for this one-day conference.
The meeting aims to provide a forum for all those involved in the practical control of soil erosion to: exchange practical research experiences; present innovative erosion control technologies; and identify and discuss future research needs for the control of soil loss from land to water.
The enhanced or excessive movement of soil from land to water represents one
of the main environmental problems within the UK. Onsite, soil erosion
generates a range of negative impacts, including decreased soil biodiversity
and productivity, and economic losses associated with the loss of fertilizers
and soil nutrients.
Off-site impacts such as increased siltation in watercourses, and the
transfer of sediment-associated contaminants, pathogens, and nutrients,
lead to implications for water quality, infrastructure, fish stocks,
and biodiversity in both freshwater and marine environments. Predictions
also suggest that future changes in climate, and in land use and management,
will exacerbate these problems.
By bringing together researchers investigating the processes and causes
of accelerated soil loss to water, with those involved in the practical
mitigation of associated problems, this conference aims to promote exchange,
discussion, and innovation of ideas, knowledge, and techniques between
research producers and end users.
All those actively involved in the research, management, and practice
of controlling soil loss and maintaining water quality, such as scientists,
consultants, policy-makers, and environmental managers, should attend.
The conference venue will be The Geological Society. Organizers include
Drs. Michelle Clarke, Alison Collins, Marianne McHugh, and Phil Owens,
National Soil Resources Institute (NSRI). NSRI provides education and
research on the sustainable management of soil and land resources both
in the UK and around the world.
More details can be obtained from Dr. Michelle Clarke, NSRI, Cranfield
University, Silsoe, Bedfordshire MK45 4DT, UK tel: + 44 (0) 1525 863120,
fax: +44 (0) 1525 863253, email: michelle.clarke@cranfield.ac.uk;
Dr. Marianne McHugh, NSRI, Cranfield University, North Wyke, Okehampton,
Devon EX20 2SB, UK tel: +44 (0) 1837 883547, fax: +44 (0) 1837 82139,
email: marianne.mchugh@bbsrc.ac.uk
Mobile District's RSM Demonstration Project brings home Gulf
Guardian Award
Eighteen Gulf Guardian Award winners from all five Gulf of Mexico States
will receive recognition on Sept. 24, 2003, during the Southern States Environmental Conference and Exhibition
at the Coastal Coliseum, Biloxi, Miss. The award is sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
"Our oceans and coasts are precious resources," said Jimmy Palmer,
EPA Regional Administrator in Atlanta. "Coastal and marine waters provide some of the most diverse
and biologically productive habitats on the planet," he added. "This year's Gulf Guardian Award
winners are doing their part to keep these valuable resources healthy and productive."
Gulf of Mexico Program Office Acting Director Bryon O. Griffith
said, "Our 2003 Gulf Guardian Award winners are to be commended for taking action to preserve and
restore the Gulf of Mexico. One out of every six jobs in the United States is marine-related,
generating $54 billion in goods and services annually. Protecting these waters makes sense
economically, aesthetically, and environmentally. Acting as one community to protect our one
and only Gulf of Mexico is essential to our way of life and our standard of living."
The 3d Place winning project in the Government Category is the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile (Ala.) District's, Northern Gulf of Mexico Regional
Sediment Management Demonstration Program. The project is a joint effort between the Mobile
District and the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's Coastal and Hydraulics
Laboratory RSM Demonstration Program, managed by Julie Rosati and Jack Davis. First Place
went to the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources for the Derelict Crab Trap Removal
Program, Biloxi, Miss, and Second Place was won by the Northwest Florida DEP/Navy Partnering
Team, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., for Environmental Training.
Additional information about the RSM demonstration program
can be found at
http://www.wes.army.mil/rsm/pubs/demobriefs.html.
Links to the Mobile RSM pages are also available from http://www.wes.army.mil/rsm/RSM-NDP/demos.html.
Corps Divisions and Districts team-building on RSM
concept, plan meetings, presentations
The North Atlantic Division's Regional Sediment Management
(RSM) Workshop is scheduled for Sept. 8 and 9, 2003. Each district within NAD will be represented.
The workshop will be held in New York District's office building known as the Jacob
K. Javitts Federal Building ("26 Federal Plaza") located at 26 Federal
Plaza. Lawrence (Larry) J. Cocchieri
is the local point of contact for additional information.
ERDC's RSM Demonstration Program is organizing its
third annual workshop. Point of contact is Julie Rosati,
ERDC Vicksburg, Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory. Bookmark this page for upcoming information on the workshop.
ERDC RSM exhibit's inaugural appearance at Coastal Zone 2003, July 15-17,
Baltimore
The exhibit drew visitors from NASA, the Coast
Guard, and NOAA, among others from around the world who were interested in the
subject matter. The marketing effort resulted in several additions to the RSM
list server for notification when new information products are available on-line
from the RSM website. To sign up via the web, click
here: http://www.wes.army.mil/rsm/pubs/listserv.html.
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Julie Rosati at Coastal Zone 03,
ready to present. |
Corps special session at Coastal
Zone 2003 introduced Regional Sediment Management
A special session on Regional Sediment Management was organized by Barry Holliday,
Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, for the Coastal Zone 2003 conference.
Barry is the Navigation Business Area Leader at HQ, and is one of the main proponents for
regional sediment management within the Corps. In the session, Jack Davis and Julie Rosati
presented overviews of Regional Sediment Management concepts and the ongoing research program,
and Paul Peloquin Northwestern Division, and Susan Rees, Mobile District, presented ongoing work
and results for their demonstration projects in the Upper Columbia River and Northern Gulf of
Mexico, respectively. |
The Corps' RSM team prepares
for a special session
at Coastal Zone 03. From left, Dr. Susan Rees,
Mobile District; a convention
center employee; Dr. Jack Davis, RSM program manager; and
Barry Holliday, USACE Business Area Leader; are setting up computer-driven slide presentations. |
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