20 Apr 2020

PUBLICATION NOTICE: Design considerations for beneficial use sites along the Channel to Victoria, Calhoun County, Texas

Purpose: This U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Regional Sediment Management (RSM) investigation considered implementation of new or historically underutilized beneficial use (BU) sites for the Channel to Victoria (CTV) in Calhoun County, Texas. The utilization of alternative  placement areas is justified on two main grounds: (1) there is cost savings associated with the shorter pump distance compared to the existing upland confined placement areas and (2) shoaling reduction relative to a without project condition. Additional benefits realized by utilizing the proposed sites include (1) increased safety for vessels navigating CTV due to the reduction/elimination of open fetch and currents, (2) additional placement options available in times of emergency dredging, and (3) increased bird habitat, particularly for the endangered whooping crane. These sites have received National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) clearance in previous project documents, and it is anticipated minimal or no additional NEPA coordination will be required to construct/restore these sites.

20 Apr 2020

PUBLICATION NOTICE: New and Enhanced Tools for Civil Military Operations (NET-CMO)

Abstract: Civil Military Operations (CMO) associated geospatial modeling is intended to enable increased knowledge of regional stability, assist in Foreign Humanitarian Assistance (FHA), and provide support to Force Health Protection (FHP) operational planning tasks. However, current geoenabled methodologies and technologies are lacking in their overall capacity to support complex mission analysis efforts focused on understanding these important stability factors and mitigating threats to Army soldiers and civilian populations. CMO analysts, planners, and decision-makers do not have a robust capability to both spatially and quantitatively identify Regions of Interest (ROI), which may experience a proliferation in health risks such as vector-borne diseases in areas of future conflict. Additionally, due to this general absence of geoenabled health assessment models and derived end-products, CMO stakeholders are adversely impacted in their Military Decision Making Process (MDMP) capabilities to develop comprehensive area studies and plans such as Course of Action (COA). The NET-CMO project is focused on fostering emerging geoenabling capabilities and technologies to improve military situational awareness for assessment and planning of potential health threat-risk vulnerabilities.

20 Apr 2020

Corps announces April 30 LOSOM Project Delivery Team Meeting via Web

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, announces the next Project Delivery Team (PDT) meeting for the Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM), to be held from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 30, as an online Web Meeting (revised meeting date).

20 Apr 2020

Alternate Care Facility construction complete in Michigan

DETROIT – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, announces that construction is complete at Michigan’s second Alternate Care Facility at Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi. The facility is expected to begin accepting patients by the end of the week. The Suburban Collection Showplace Alternate Care Facility is one of the first in the Nation to be turned over to the state. Modeled after the TCF Regional Care Center in Detroit, construction included a triage area, patient support services such as showers and toilets, staff changing areas and administrative space, a command center and pharmacy. The 250,000 square foot conversion of the convention center into a medical facility with 250 bed spaces was originally designed to a capacity of up to 1,100 beds. “Engineering solutions to the Nation's toughest challenges is what we do,” said Lt. Col. Gregory Turner, commander, USACE, Detroit District. “We've worked closely with the State of Michigan to respond to the evolving situation in Michigan and to rapidly deliver projects to help our communities.”

20 Apr 2020

Power of the pump, no telework

While many people are at home working in front of a computer, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have people out in the field operating equipment and facilities that, at this point in time, cannot be controlled from a workstation at home. The Graham Burke Pumping Plant is one of those “pieces” of equipment that requires people to be on-site for safe operation. Pumping Plant Operator Leaderman William “Billy” Ray and Pumping Plant Operator John “Brady” Foran are two of those valuable employees who are called upon to run one of the Corps’ most valuable facilities.

20 Apr 2020

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Turns Over 7 Alternate Care Sites Over the Weekend

Between Friday, April 17 and Monday, April 20, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finished seven alternate care sites in response to COVID-19. Together with the previous three completed locations, this brings the total to 10. This weekend the Corps of Engineers finished the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage, AK; Wisconsin State Fair Expo Center in West Allis, WI; Gibson Medical Center in Albuquerque, NM; Miyamura High School in Gallup, NM; and the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, FL. The Corps of Engineers is turning over two sites today. They are the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi, MI and Westchester County Center in White Plains, NY. 

17 Apr 2020

Discovering the Mural in Permafrost

In the forests of Fox, Alaska, carved into a frozen hillside is a unique manmade 350-meter long research tunnel. Situated on a 16-acre parcel near the confluence of Goldstream and Glenn Creeks, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory’s Permafrost Tunnel Research Facility was excavated deep into a large block of discontinuous permafrost that has been going through several recent periods of expansion. The expansion project began back in 2011, taking advantage of the digging seasons when the ground is at its coldest, with an overall project goal of expanding the tunnel facility to better support ongoing and growing research and engineering needs. The most recent expansion effort, this year, has added 300-feet of new tunnel, improved 200 feet of the existing tunnel and added links between the old and new tunnel sections at several locations, to include at an interface between subsurface bedrock and overlying gravels.

17 Apr 2020

Take time to think about your future needs for National Healthcare Decisions Day

While April 16 was National Healthcare Decisions Day – a day set aside to take time to think about current and future healthcare needs – these needs take on new meaning when we are confronted with an unexpected healthcare challenge like the COVID-19 coronavirus.

17 Apr 2020

Home Offices, Antique Cars and Cork Boards

From the comfort of their own homes, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District staff are finding innovative ways to adapt and embrace the challenges of coronavirus. 

17 Apr 2020

Primary Construction Work Completed at Harpersfield Dam

All major work within the Grand River has been completed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo District of the Harpersfield Dam Sea Lamprey Barrier project located on the Grand River, in the town of Geneva, Ohio, with funding through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and the non-federal partners.