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I am very excited to introduce the newly redesigned newsletter. As you will see, it is designed to be fun and informative. We have listened to your comments, used some neat technology, and changed some of the focus of it, but we are not stopping there. We want to continue improving it and your feedback is essential, so please keep those comments coming.
As you know, the newsletter helps us communicate internally. We have also embarked in efforts to improve our external communication. One of those is the creation of a new tri-fold brochure highlighting the capabilities of the lab. You will be able to hand these brochures to visitors, sponsors, potential customers and recruits. It is at its final stages of review, so we expect to have it available very soon.
Another effort has been focused on revamping our overview briefings. We want to tell our story in an efficient and effective manner and keep it fresh. As you can imagine, this is not easy because we are engaged in so many different studies each year. CHL works on more than 400 projects a year--truly amazing! So, it can be a daunting task to capture information from everyone in a timely fashion. This is where your assistance is essential.
We are confident that these incremental changes will give us a large return on investment and help us connect with a wider community (internally and externally). CHL has the best people, is doing incredible work, and it is growing to become the best in world!
As you know, the newsletter helps us communicate internally. We have also embarked in efforts to improve our external communication. One of those is the creation of a new tri-fold brochure highlighting the capabilities of the lab. You will be able to hand these brochures to visitors, sponsors, potential customers and recruits. It is at its final stages of review, so we expect to have it available very soon.
Another effort has been focused on revamping our overview briefings. We want to tell our story in an efficient and effective manner and keep it fresh. As you can imagine, this is not easy because we are engaged in so many different studies each year. CHL works on more than 400 projects a year--truly amazing! So, it can be a daunting task to capture information from everyone in a timely fashion. This is where your assistance is essential.
We are confident that these incremental changes will give us a large return on investment and help us connect with a wider community (internally and externally). CHL has the best people, is doing incredible work, and it is growing to become the best in world!
CHL’s Rosati panelist at Marine Board Spring Meeting
--ERDC PAO
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CHL’s Dr. Julie Rosati served on an expert panel at the 2014 Marine Board Spring Meeting at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C. 8 April.
Five panel members each responded to six framing questions provided by the board in a half-day focus session on coastal resilience.
Rosati presented ongoing work in response to the Chief Engineers charge to the Coastal Engineering Research Board (CERB) to “develop a strategy to enable the integration of risk reduction and resilience into Corps practices.”
The response to the CERB charge is being led by Brig. Gen. Kent Savre, North Atlantic Division, and Dr. David Kriebel, U.S. Naval Academy, and is peer-reviewed by a national product delivery team composed of ERDC, district, Institute for Water Resources and academic members.
The Marine Board is an internationally recognized source of expertise on maritime transportation and marine engineering and technology, and serves the national interest by identifying research needs and providing a forum for exchange of information relating to new technologies, laws and regulations, economics, the environment, and other issues affecting the marine transportation system, port operations, coastal engineering and marine governance.
Five panel members each responded to six framing questions provided by the board in a half-day focus session on coastal resilience.
Rosati presented ongoing work in response to the Chief Engineers charge to the Coastal Engineering Research Board (CERB) to “develop a strategy to enable the integration of risk reduction and resilience into Corps practices.”
The response to the CERB charge is being led by Brig. Gen. Kent Savre, North Atlantic Division, and Dr. David Kriebel, U.S. Naval Academy, and is peer-reviewed by a national product delivery team composed of ERDC, district, Institute for Water Resources and academic members.
The Marine Board is an internationally recognized source of expertise on maritime transportation and marine engineering and technology, and serves the national interest by identifying research needs and providing a forum for exchange of information relating to new technologies, laws and regulations, economics, the environment, and other issues affecting the marine transportation system, port operations, coastal engineering and marine governance.
CHL-ling Boat Side!
CHL honored current and former employees for their services with a fleet of five new vessels named after them in a boat dedication ceremony 11 April.
Terry N. Waller of the Field Data Collections and Analysis Branch, and former CHL workers, Dr. Andrew (Andy) Garcia, Dr. William Martin, Clara Jean Coleman and COL. William W. Curtis were selected per contest by staff to represent the boats.
ERDC Commander Col. Jeffrey Eckstein, CHL Director José Sánchez, CHL Deputy Director Dr. Kevin Barry, laboratory personnel, the honorees and their families were all in attendance for the event.
“It is truly an honor to be apart of the CHL family. "These occasions serve as a testament to this laboratory’s history and importance,” said Sánchez.
Financial assistance for the procurement of the vessel was made possible, in part, to fleet upgrades by the U.S. Coast Guard and through pivotal efforts of several CHL workers who aided in the laboratory receiving the boats at no cost. Additionally, the vessels provide an upgraded capability for fresh and salt water studies for the lab’s scientists and engineers.
After the ceremony, Anthony Priestas, Thad Pratt, Ian Floyd, Kevin Winters, Mike Kirklin and Thomas Kirklin treated everyone to a bowl of hot gumbo.
Terry N. Waller of the Field Data Collections and Analysis Branch, and former CHL workers, Dr. Andrew (Andy) Garcia, Dr. William Martin, Clara Jean Coleman and COL. William W. Curtis were selected per contest by staff to represent the boats.
ERDC Commander Col. Jeffrey Eckstein, CHL Director José Sánchez, CHL Deputy Director Dr. Kevin Barry, laboratory personnel, the honorees and their families were all in attendance for the event.
“It is truly an honor to be apart of the CHL family. "These occasions serve as a testament to this laboratory’s history and importance,” said Sánchez.
Financial assistance for the procurement of the vessel was made possible, in part, to fleet upgrades by the U.S. Coast Guard and through pivotal efforts of several CHL workers who aided in the laboratory receiving the boats at no cost. Additionally, the vessels provide an upgraded capability for fresh and salt water studies for the lab’s scientists and engineers.
After the ceremony, Anthony Priestas, Thad Pratt, Ian Floyd, Kevin Winters, Mike Kirklin and Thomas Kirklin treated everyone to a bowl of hot gumbo.
The River Engineering Branch held a cook-out for its employees on the back patio of the lab on Friday, 25 April 25 2014.
CHL's Talbot assists in dam Safety Training
Dr. Cary Talbot of the Technical Programs Office assisted in the instruction of two Dam Safety workshops in Viet Nam in May of 2014.
From 5-8 May he participated in teaching a Dam Safety workshop to delegations from the member countries of the Mekong River Commission (MeRC) in Ho Chi Minh City. The workshop was taught by USACE personnel from the Risk Management Center (RMC), Kansas City District (NWK), Great Lakes & Ohio River Division (LRD), and the Engineer Research Development Center (ERDC).
The workshop was sponsored by USPACOM with logistical administration from the USACE Pacific Ocean Division (POD) and the MeRC. Participating in the workshop were 10-member delegations comprised from the Mekong National Water Committees (MNWCs) of Viet Nam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand and the MeRC.
The workshop consisted of a 3-day training session with a group exercise building upon material presented in a Phase I Dam Safety workshop held in March 2013 in Thailand. The workshop concluded with a day-long field trip to the Tri An Dam, a hydroelectric dam on the Đồng Nai River located approximately 75 km from Ho Chi Minh City.
The following week, Dr. Talbot, together with Jake Owen of NWK, taught a 3-day workshop on USACE Dam Safety principles to representatives from the Viet Nam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Viet Nam Disaster Management Center (DMC) and other Government of Vietnam (GoV) stakeholders from 12-14 May 2014 in Hanoi.
The workshop was organized as a Phase II activity of the Flood Modeling & Early Warning Capacity Development (FEW2) program sponsored by USAID and the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) with logistical assistance from the Pacific Ocean Division,( POD).
"I can honestly say that I never thought I'd travel to Viet Nam on TDY, but it was a rewarding and fascinating experience” said Talbot.
“It was encouraging to see how interested and eager the participants were to learn from the USACE the lessons we have learned regarding Dam Safety and how to improve the safety and useful life of the water resources infrastructures in their countries.”
Both workshops were organized in an effort to promote partner nation capacity development in the area of water security.
From 5-8 May he participated in teaching a Dam Safety workshop to delegations from the member countries of the Mekong River Commission (MeRC) in Ho Chi Minh City. The workshop was taught by USACE personnel from the Risk Management Center (RMC), Kansas City District (NWK), Great Lakes & Ohio River Division (LRD), and the Engineer Research Development Center (ERDC).
The workshop was sponsored by USPACOM with logistical administration from the USACE Pacific Ocean Division (POD) and the MeRC. Participating in the workshop were 10-member delegations comprised from the Mekong National Water Committees (MNWCs) of Viet Nam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand and the MeRC.
The workshop consisted of a 3-day training session with a group exercise building upon material presented in a Phase I Dam Safety workshop held in March 2013 in Thailand. The workshop concluded with a day-long field trip to the Tri An Dam, a hydroelectric dam on the Đồng Nai River located approximately 75 km from Ho Chi Minh City.
The following week, Dr. Talbot, together with Jake Owen of NWK, taught a 3-day workshop on USACE Dam Safety principles to representatives from the Viet Nam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Viet Nam Disaster Management Center (DMC) and other Government of Vietnam (GoV) stakeholders from 12-14 May 2014 in Hanoi.
The workshop was organized as a Phase II activity of the Flood Modeling & Early Warning Capacity Development (FEW2) program sponsored by USAID and the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) with logistical assistance from the Pacific Ocean Division,( POD).
"I can honestly say that I never thought I'd travel to Viet Nam on TDY, but it was a rewarding and fascinating experience” said Talbot.
“It was encouraging to see how interested and eager the participants were to learn from the USACE the lessons we have learned regarding Dam Safety and how to improve the safety and useful life of the water resources infrastructures in their countries.”
Both workshops were organized in an effort to promote partner nation capacity development in the area of water security.
ERDC Blood Drive
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CHL has joined in along with countless others to help fellow team member and cancer patient Afton Wallace on her “mission to remission”. The seventeen-year old Vicksburg native was recently diagnosed with an malignant tumor in late May and has since been battling the disease at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, Tenn.
ERDC’s partnership with the Mississippi Blood Services, allowed CHL, along with other ERDC personnel, to request to donate single or double red blood cells to assist Afton in getting better. Due to the higher than expected turn-out of donors requesting to give for her, the service pulled in 125 units and even had to turn volunteers away as all their equipment was entirely spent.
ERDC’s partnership with the Mississippi Blood Services, allowed CHL, along with other ERDC personnel, to request to donate single or double red blood cells to assist Afton in getting better. Due to the higher than expected turn-out of donors requesting to give for her, the service pulled in 125 units and even had to turn volunteers away as all their equipment was entirely spent.
Erosion Experiment on Sand-mud Mixtures
Jarrell Smith and David Perkey of the Data Collection and Analysis Branch, and Anthony Priestas of the Estuarine Engineering Branch, conducted erosion experiments on sand-mud mixtures with varying mud content to define the relationships between mud content, critical stress for erosion, and erosion rate in an effort to improve the general understanding of silt(sediment) combinations. The experiments were performed with the Corps’ Sedflume on a suite of mixed sediment beds constructed in the laboratory. The mixed sediments were prepared by mixing varying fractions of mud with 250-500 μm sand. Sand-mud mixtures were paired with three different mud sources: 1) a non-swelling clay (kaolinite), 2) a swelling clay (bentonite), and 3) a natural mud from the lower Mississippi River. Analysis of the experimental data will, in time, inform development of mixed sediment algorithms for the various USACE sediment transport models.
PIANC Conference in San Francisco
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Coraggio Maglio and Lihwa Lin of the Coastal Engineering Branch, were part of the Regional Sediment Management (RSM) teamed composed of members of CHL and the Galveston District awarded the International Association of Dredging Contractors’ Award (IADC), for best paper written by young professionals at the PIANC Conference.
The paper entitled, “Reducing Shoaling in the GIWW and Erosion of Barrier Islands along West Galveston Bay” by: Kimberly Townsend, Coraggio Maglio, Rob Thomas, Derek Thornton, Jantzen Miller, Tricia Campbell, Lihwa Lin, Sheridan Willey, and Eric Wood was presented by Maglio at the PIANC World Congress in San Francisco on June 5th.
The paper entitled, “Reducing Shoaling in the GIWW and Erosion of Barrier Islands along West Galveston Bay” by: Kimberly Townsend, Coraggio Maglio, Rob Thomas, Derek Thornton, Jantzen Miller, Tricia Campbell, Lihwa Lin, Sheridan Willey, and Eric Wood was presented by Maglio at the PIANC World Congress in San Francisco on June 5th.
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Dr. Bridges of the Environmental Laboratory accepted the award on behalf of the RSM team. The award was presented by the Secretary General of IADC, Rene Kolman, during the concluding session of the conference, which was chaired by MG Peabody. Dr. Bridges of the Environmental Laboratory accepted the award on behalf of the RSM team.
Other notables in attendance at the concluding ceremony included the Honorable Jo-Ellen Darcy (ASACW), Mr. Steve Stockton (Director of USACE Civil Works), and many other senior leaders within USACE, PIANC and the numerous countries represented at the meeting.
Other notables in attendance at the concluding ceremony included the Honorable Jo-Ellen Darcy (ASACW), Mr. Steve Stockton (Director of USACE Civil Works), and many other senior leaders within USACE, PIANC and the numerous countries represented at the meeting.
GEN DeLuca Note Presentation 17 June: L-R, Mr. Sanchez, David May, Don Ward, Steve Scott, Matt Taylor, Bryan Herring, Loren Wehmeyer, William Butler, and Keith Martin
Vicksburg Gumbo Cook-off
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During Vicksburg's 3rd Carnival de Mardi Gras, 1 March, CHL employees decided to try their luck in its Gumbo Cook-off. Organizers with the Vicksburg Foundation for Historic Preservation said the event earned about $10,000 for the nonprofit organization through the $10 admission cost for gumbo tasting.
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Natalie Elwart, Administrative Services Assistant in the Hydrologic Systems Branch, and her team won best display with their booth in the contest.
Our name was Couyon La Roux, which is Cajun for Crazy Red Head--our head cook and several girls on our team are red headed...
--Natalie Elwart, Hydrologic Systems Branch
Ryan Pickett (Hydrologic Systems Branch), Ian Floyd (River Engineering Branch, and Anthony Priestas (Estuarine Engineering Branch), also participated in the gumbo cook-off
We were the 'Booth with No Roof'!
--Ryan Pickett, Hydrologic Systems Branch
* Ty Wamsley and his son, Max also participated in the Gumbo cook-off.*
9th Annual CHL Photo Contest
It's time to start sending in your photos for the 9th Annual CHL Photo Contest! CATEGORIES: 1) Sunrise/Sunset, 2) Coasts, 3) Rivers, Lakes and Streams, 4) People, 5) Pets and Wildlife, and 6) Miscellaneous. (You may enter up to 3 photos per Category). Be sure to include the category and a brief description of each photo in your submission. DEADLINE : 10 October 2014
For more information contact Mrs. Smithhart (601)-634-2021
For more information contact Mrs. Smithhart (601)-634-2021