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  • Corps moves into 22nd year of cleanup on tribal land in Southeast Alaska

    Nestled 20 miles south of Ketchikan, Alaska, the Metlakatla Indian Community resides on Annette Island.  The tribe opted out of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act when Congress passed the legislation in 1971.  Today the Annette Islands Reserve is the only Native American reservation in the state and the tribe lives among the remnants of past military and federal use of the land. Through the Native American Lands Environmental Mitigation Program, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Alaska District and the Metlakatla Indian Community are working together to continue environmental cleanup efforts for the 22nd year.

  • Modeling the dynamics of the Modular Causeway System

    In contingency operations, the Modular Causeway System (MCS), an assembly of floating modules, is often used for loading and unloading supplies and equipment from ship to shore. The U.S. Transportation Command has enlisted the help of researchers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) to numerically model the MCS and provide data that will aid in expanding the guidance to increase safety and efficiency for the warfighter.

  • Public scoping period to begin for Gavins Point Dam, Lewis and Clark Lake master plan update; virtual public meeting scheduled

    OMAHA, Neb. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District will be hosting a virtual public scoping meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 15, at 6:00 p.m. This meeting will kick off the public scoping and comment period for the update and revision of the Gavins Point Dam, Lewis and Clark Lake master plan.

  • VERELL ATTENDS MARINE WING LIAISON KADENA RIBBON CUTTING

    Colonel Thomas J. Verell Jr., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Japan District commander, joined Brig. Gen. William J. Bowers, Commanding General of Marine Corps Installations Pacific, Brig. Gen. Christopher A. McPhillips, Commanding General of 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Brig. Gen. Joel L. Carey, Commander of the 18th Wing, and Lt. Gen. H. Stacy Clardy, the commanding general for III Marine Expeditionary Force, during a ribbon cutting ceremony Nov. 24 introducing the newly-minted facilities and hangers that are now part of the Marine Wing Liaison Kadena. Also attending the ceremony were construction partners from Prime Projects International, and Tokyu Construction.

  • Army Corps of Engineers announces Chiefs Report signing for the Hudson River Habitat Restoration Study

    Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon, USACE Commanding General and 55th U.S. Army Chief of Engineers, has signed the Hudson River Habitat Restoration Ecosystem Restoration Chief’s Report representing the completion of the study and making it eligible for congressional authorization.

  • Seamless Digital Elevation Model (DEM) Creation for the Mississippi River in Louisiana to Support Hydrologic Modeling

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  • Vibration Survey of Room 47 with a Laser Doppler Vibrometer: Main Laboratory Basement, U.S. Army ERDC-CRREL

    ABSTRACT:  Plans are underway to create an acousto-optic laboratory on the campus of the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. For this purpose, existing space in the basement of the Main Laboratory will be renovated. Demanding measurement techniques, such as interferometry, require a sufficiently quiet vibration environment (i.e., low vibration levels). As such, characterization of existing vibration conditions is necessary to determine vibration isolation requirements so that highly sensitive measurement activities are feasible. To this end, existing vibro-acoustic conditions were briefly surveyed in Room 47, a part of the future laboratory. The survey measured ambient noise and ambient vertical floor vibrations. The ambient vibration environment was characterized according to generic velocity criteria (VC), which are one-third octave band vibration limits. At the time of the survey, the ambient vibration environment fell under a VC-A designation, where the tolerance limit is 2000 µin/s across all one-third octave bands. Under this condition, highly sensitive measurement activities are feasible on a vibration-isolated working surface. The conclusion of this report provides isolation efficiency requirements that satisfy VC-E limits (125 µin/s), which are necessary for interferometric measurements.

  • Improving Design Methodologies and Assessment Tools for Building on Permafrost in a Warming Climate

    Abstract: The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) operates numerous Arctic and Subarctic installations, including Alaska. Changes to permafrost can threaten critical built infrastructure. It is critical to accurately characterize and compare site conditions in permafrost regions to enable the efficient, cost-effective design and construction of an infrastructure well suited to the permafrost environment and that meets DoD requirements. This report describes three research efforts to establish (1) field investigation approaches for ground ice detection and delineation, (2) methods and modeling for early warning detection of thawing permafrost under infrastructure, and (3) an outline of a decision support system that determines the most applicable foundation design for warming and degrading permafrost. Outcomes of these interrelated efforts address needs to improve construction of DoD mission critical infrastructure on Arctic and Subarctic permafrost terrains. Field investigation processes used systematic methodologies including borehole data and geophysical measurements to effectively characterize subsurface permafrost information. The Permafrost Foundation Decision Support System (PFFDSS) tool implements and logically links field survey information and foundation type assessments. The current version of PFFDSS is designed to be accessible to design-engineers of a broad range of experience, that will reduce the effort and cost, and improve the effectiveness of site assessment.

  • Formulation of a Multi-Scale Watershed Ecological Model Using a Statistical Approach

    Abstract: The purpose of this special report is to provide a statistical stepwise process for formulation of ecological models for application at multiple scales using a stream condition index (SCI). Given the global variability of aquatic ecosystems, this guidance is for broad application and may require modification to suit specific watersheds or stream reaches. However, the general statistical treatise provided herein applies across physiographies and at multiple scales. The Duck River Watershed Assessment in Tennessee was used, in part, to develop and test this multiscale, statistical approach; thus, it is considered a case example and referenced throughout this report. The findings of this study can be utilized to (1) prioritize water-sheds for restoration, enhancement, and conservation; (2) plan and conduct site-specific, intensive ecosystem studies; and (3) assess ecosystem outcomes (that is, ecological lift) applicable to future with and without restoration actions including alternative, feasibility, and cost-benefit analyses and adaptive management.

  • Evaluation of New Endothall and Florpyrauxifen-benzyl Use Patterns for Controlling Crested Floating Heart and Giant Salvinia

    Purpose: The purpose of this research was to (1) evaluate concentration exposure time (CET) relationships for florpyrauxifen-benzyl (ProcellaCOR) for control of the floating leaved plant crested floating heart (Nymphoides cristata, CFH) and (2) evaluate foliar applications of endothall (Aquathol K) for control of CFH and the floating fern giant salvinia (Salvinia molesta).