THe IECA Great Rivers Chapter Blog

Build Your Own Rain Barrel

2011-01-18T08:49:00.000-08:00

A great video from our friends at the City of Columbia, Missouri.

Build Your Own Rain Barrel

Timelapse: Low Water Crossing

2011-01-18T08:04:00.000-08:00

Perhaps not exactly from a location within the Great Rivers Chapter boundaries, this is a timelapse video shot from a perspective/technique I had never seen before. This is a project shot by James Swirsky of Blink Works, the same outfit that films Dirt Time TV, shot on location near Sacramento, CA. Taking large construction and making it look as if it's back in the hands of us as 5 year-olds, just playing around in the dirt. Take a look!

EDIT: Whoops....it won't let us embed the actual video, so take a look at it over here......it's well worth it! Here's some pics to give you a bit of an idea....

Video Blog: Stormwater, Impervious Surface, and Stream Health

2010-09-30T09:11:00.001-07:00

Welcome Back!!

We thought that a 1-year hiatus from the blog was quite long enough. So, here's to many new updates and goodies from th IECA Great Rivers Chapter area, as well as some great stuff from across the country and beyond! Look for regular updates to the blog page, and follow us via Facebook or by using the RSS Feed feature on this page. It's good to have you back!

Up first, here's a really good video blog recently produced by USGS titled "Stormwater, Impervious Surface, and Stream Health". Urban development is associated with an increase in impervious surfaces, that is, surfaces such as rooftops, sidewalks, and streets that prevent precipitation from infiltrating into the groundwater. Impervious surfaces increase the volume and energy of stormwater that reaches streams and can lead to adverse physical and water quality impacts, including erosions and increased nutrient runoff. In this video USGS scientist Tom Cuffney and Tom Schueler, director of the Chesapeake Stormwater Network, discuss the effects of impervious surfaces on stream health.

Summer Newsletter 2009

2009-09-10T09:49:00.000-07:00

Better late than never (for the Blog, that is), here's the Summer edition of the Great Rivers Chapter Newsletter. Some highlights...

An Omaha consulting firm's new sustainable landscape feature

Chapter President Tom Wells' Mid-Summer Blues

Researcher's Corner: Water Environment Research Foundation

Meet Your Board Member: Shirley Morrow

The Sediment Stops Here: Erosion Control Blankets

Click the page below and enjoy!

Dave Derrick - Duck Creek Bank Stabilization Video in Davenport

2009-05-08T10:59:00.000-07:00

IECA Instructor Dave Derrick of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Vicksburg, MS talks about the different techniques employed on a particularly tough stretch of Duck Creek on some parks ground in Davenport, IA. This particular phase of construction was done in the summer of 2008.

Highlighted stream restoration techniques/BMP's in this video include:

Longitudinal Peakedstone Toe Protection
Self-Launching Stone
Locked Logs
Bendway Weirs
Live Staking
Keyways/Living Dikes

Speaking from a non-engineer's perspective, geomorphology and stream restoration really need to be experienced in the field for a quality learning experience. Seeing different techniques in action is really where the learning begins. If you've never had the opportunity to hear David give a presentation, or participated in one of his many in-field learning opportunities, you definitely want to try and catch one. He's one of the very best!

(Video courtesy of BlinkWorks, and the City of Davenport, IA)

David Derrick - Duck Creek Bank Stabilization from BlinkWorks -James Swirsky on Vimeo.

BlinkWorks Creates Great Training Videos for Minnesota

2009-05-01T08:01:00.000-07:00

Although not within the Great Rivers Chapter boundaries, there are some great IECA friends and colleagues "Up North" in Minnesota. Many of those IECA brethren were instrumental in putting together a great set of training & educational videos targeting various state and municipal parks & recreation departments focusing on stormwater-related issues. Created by James Swirsky and his BlinkWorks company (DirtTime TV ring a bell, anyone?), with help from a ton of Minnesota folks, they created some really smart, light-hearted, and funny stuff that hits the mark perfectly.

Here's the prestigious (and quite fictitious) "Minnesota Parks & Recreation Training Academy" video on Rain Garden Maintenance, made for the Washington County, MN Soil & Water Conservation District in Stillwater (Catch District manager/IECA Instructor Jay Riggs in his on-screen debut, robbed of his hot dog!). Pure Genius.

I've always marveled at how difficult it can be sometimes to make this kind of stuff fresh and exciting to the layperson. This is as close as I've seen to hitting that mark. Kudos to all involved!

Parks & Recreation - Raingarden Maintenance from BlinkWorks -James Swirsky on Vimeo.

EC10: IECA's Call for Abstracts!

2009-04-21T07:13:00.000-07:00

Environmental Connection EC10, IECA’s Annual Conference and EXPO is scheduled for February 14-18, 2010 in Dallas at the Hilton Anatole Hotel. The theme of the conference is Discover New Frontiers. Time is quickly running out to submit your abstract!

Education is the primary reason attendees register for Environmental Connection with over 100 educational sessions which include full and half day courses and multiple technical paper presentation on topics. Attendees could earn over 28 professional development hours (PDH) during the 4 days of the conference.

IECA Submittal Opportunities

IECA offers a variety of ways to showcase the innovative products, cutting-edge research and revolutionary technology that is shaping the erosion, sediment control and stormwater industries. This is a great opportunity for you to gain recognition among your peers and other industry professionals.

Benefits of Submitting Your Work

- Expand your resume
- Increase the visibility of your project
- Extend the life of your work
- Demonstrate your knowledge and skill
- Assist your colleagues with E/SC/SW issues
- Help others in the industry learn techniques that will improve their work and our environment

Four Steps to Completion
Completing your Presentation includes a four step process:

- Submitting an idea “Abstract”
- Writing a “Paper or Outline”
- Converting a paper into a “Presentation” and creating handouts
- Presenting your “Presentation” at the conference

After each of these steps is completed you will be notified by email to take the next step.

Deadlines
IECA accepts content submittals throughout the year. But only those submitted by conference deadlines will make the Environmental Connection 2010 conference in Dallas. Technical Sessions and Course submittals will adhere to the following timeframe:

May 15, 2009: Abstracts due to IECA

June 30, 2009: Initial Notification of Acceptance and Speaker Guidelines sent to speakers
July 30, 2009: Papers due to IECA
August 31, 2009: Final Notification of Acceptance sent to speakers
September 15, 2009: Corrected Papers due to IECA
October 31, 2009: Final presentations due to IECA
December 1, 2009: Presentation & Course handouts due to IECA

February 14-17, 2009: Presentations of accepted papers and courses

Please think about showcasing your work at EC10: IECA's Environmental Connection! Contact Jimmy Eanes, IECA Education Director (education@ieca.org) at 800-455-4322

While you're at it, share your abstract with the Great Rivers Chapter, as we continue to work on our 13th Annual Conference, to be held in Kansas City in October 2009! Email your abstract to greatriversieca@gmail.com.

FRONTLINE Special - April 21st: "Poisoned Waters"

2009-04-08T13:24:00.000-07:00

Be sure to check out a special episode of FRONTLINE on PBS, April 21st for a 2-hour special titled, "Poisoned Waters".

More than three decades after the Clean Water Act, two iconic waterways—the great coastal estuaries Puget Sound and the Chesapeake Bay—are in perilous condition. With polluted runoff still flowing in from industry, agriculture, and massive suburban development, scientists fear contamination to the food chain and drinking water for millions of people. A growing list of endangered species is also threatened in both estuaries. As a new president, Congress, and states set new agendas and spending priorities, FRONTLINE correspondent Hedrick Smith examines the rising hazards to human health and the ecosystem, and why it’s so hard to keep our waters clean.

Check out the show prieview trailer link below. This appears to be one of the most well-produced, high-profile documentaries about our industry that we've seen.

Spring 2009 Newsletter Now Available

2009-04-01T09:36:00.000-07:00

The Spring 2009 edition of the Chapter Newsletter is now up and available. Ifyou are a Great River Chapter member, you received a copy of this via your current email address, as we have it. This issue marks the first to be distributed exclusively in digital (.pdf) format.

The newsletter includes a new editorial feature called "The Sediment Stops Here". This will be a regular feature, with guest editorials covering hot topics related to erosion & control BMP's. The first feature, written by Chapter President Tom Wells, talks about hay/straw bales.....in a positive light! Shocking! The newsletter also features a great article from Board Member Rebecca Kauten about a fresh perspective on proper planning for stormwater management.

If you want to be a part of our newsletters, drop us an article! We're always eagerly looking for new stories to cover from our Chapter region. Enjoy!

Welcome to the Bloggosphere!

2009-04-01T09:14:00.000-07:00

Ask and ye shall receive! After many thoughts & discussions, the Great Rivers Chapter of IECA is happy to roll out our Blog page! While the page will cater to our Chapter membership, it will also provide useful, timely information for everyone involved in teh erosion & sediment control and stormwater industry. Our plan is to add content on a weekly basis, with hopefully more rather than less content given certain weeks. Industry news, local stormwater events, certification updates, EPA and State news, local success stories....anything that can be useful to you in this industry is what we want to bring you.

With our plans for quarterly newsletters providing our Chapter membership with great articles and information, we hope that this blog site can be a quality location for timely information that you can link to every day or week to catch up on news & happenings you might have missed.

As with our Newsletters, we encourage suggestions and comments! If you want to provide event information or blog content, please send it to greatriversieca@gmail.com.

So enjoy the blog, share it with your friends and colleagues, even link us to your existing web page! Thanks for your sustained and contunied support of the International Erosion Control Association, and the Great Rivers Chapter!