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  • South Atlantic Division (SAD) Regional Sediment Management Optimization Pilot

    Purpose: The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) South Atlantic Division (SAD) Regional Sediment Management Optimization Pilot (RSM-OP) Tool was developed and implemented under a pilot effort to help define sustainable solutions across USACE missions and to support regional implementation strategies across project business lines. The goals of the RSM-OP are to (1) develop and provide an actionable and optimized Regional Sediment Management (RSM) strategy on a USACE division scale that will most efficiently execute the Navigation (NAV) and Flood Risk Management (FRM) Business Line budgets and (2) maximize the amount of dredging while also increasing the amount of RSM opportunities implemented to create value to the nation. Value created and funding saved as identified through the RSM-OP will allow the USACE to execute a greater number of projects under flatlined or reduced budgets. While RSM principles and strategies have been explored and implemented in many USACE districts, the RSM-OP is the first comprehensive approach to define and optimize RSM opportunities for coastal NAV and FRM projects and to quantify economic benefits across a USACE division.

  • Readily Available Hydrologic Models: Pertinence to Regulatory Application

    Purpose: Water is the driving force of wetlands. Hydroperiod represents both the frequency and duration of inundation or soil saturation whether it is from flooding or ponding. The formation of hydric soils and an expression of hydrophytic vegetation are evidence of the hydroperiod, which can be described along a gradient of hydrologic conditions (Figure 1). Hydrologic modeling provides a means to establish wetland hydroperiod, including current wetland hydrologic conditions and forecasting future conditions in response to future with and without wetland impacts or restoration actions. Today, fast computer processing and hydrologic models allow the user to make a large number of computations very rapidly on potentially large volumes of data. Currently, there is a myriad of hydrologic models available that offer an array of applications. For regulatory application, accurate determination of wetland hydrology is paramount to the following: - Confirm wetland hydrologic criteria in accordance to the US Army Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual (1987 Manual) and Regional Supplements. - Establish frequency and duration (hydroperiod) of wetland ponding and flooding. - Conduct wetland functional assessments including identification of predominant water source(s). - Estimate wetland impacts from regulated activities. - Determine ecological lift in response to restoration actions (compensatory mitigation). - Establish performance standards and success criteria for compensatory mitigation. - Facilitate development of a monitoring and adaptive management plan. The objective of this report is to provide a treatise of hydrologic models that offer specific application to establish wetland hydrology for existing and future conditions in response to regulated activities and restoration actions. The emphasis is on the suitability of existing hydrologic models to hydrogeomorphic (HGM) wetland classes. HGM subclasses are not addressed in this technical note. For more details on HGM classification, see Brinson (1993).

  • Investigation of Testing Materials for the Chickamauga Lock and Dam Reconstruction Project

    Abstract: In support of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Nashville District, a preliminary investigation of concrete materials was conducted pursuant to re-construction at the Chickamauga Lock and Dam located near Chattanooga, TN. Local materials provided to the U.S. Army Engineer Research Development Center (ERDC) for testing included three different coarse aggregate gradations, two fine aggregate sources, two type I/II cements, a fly ash sources, a slag cement, a silica fume, and a limestone powder. Aggregate tests consisted of sieve analysis, specific gravity, absorption, materials finer than No. 200, organic impurities, soundness, LA abrasion, clay lumps and friable particles, flat and elongated particles, lightweight particles, petrography, and freezing and thawing. All cementitious and admixture materials were tested for chemical and physical properties based on appropriate specifications. This report presents the material characteristic results determined by laboratory testing in accordance with American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) procedures or regulating specification criteria.

  • Study of Sand Boil Development at Kaskaskia Island, IL, Middle Mississippi River Valley

    Abstract: Mississippi River flooding in 2013 and 2016 caused severe underseepage and development of several medium to large high-energy sand boils behind the landside levee toe at Kaskaskia Island, IL. This levee system is located between St. Louis and Cape Girardeau, MO, and is part of the Kaskaskia Island Drainage and Levee District on the Middle Mississippi River. Flooding on the Mississippi River in 2013 and 2016 was below the design flowline for this levee. This report documents a case history study into the causes of seepage, piping, and sand boil development at a levee reach at Kaskaskia. Site-specific geotechnical data were collected and evaluated to determine the causes for poor performance at the studied levee reach locations. Data collected involved design documents, geologic and geotechnical borings, closely spaced cone-penetrometer tests (CPTs), electrical resistivity surveys, laboratory soil testing of sand boil ejecta, CPT samples from targeted stratigraphic horizons in the subsurface, and both piezometer and river-stage data. These data indicate sand boils present within this levee reach involved a chronic seepage condition that became progressively worse through time. This condition was directly related to the underlying site geology, namely the top stratum thickness and the depositional environment in this levee reach.

  • Integrated Rule-Oriented Data System (iRODS) and High Performance Computing (HPC) Architecture Design

    Abstract: The Integrated Rule-Oriented Data System (iRODS) proof-of-concept will be deployed within the existing U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Department of Defense Supercomputing Resource Center (DSRC) to test additional capabilities and features for high performance computing (HPC) users. iRODS is a data-grid middleware that virtualizes access to data, regardless of which physical storage device the data resides within. Users, and HPC jobs on behalf of users, can leverage the various application programming interfaces (APIs) within iRODS to search and retrieve data using metadata and a unified data namespace. In addition to facilitating data discovery and retrieval, iRODS has a robust security system to implement fine-grained access control and auditing rules.

  • New Lock moves forward with Phase 2 contract award

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials announce the New Lock at the Soo second phase construction contract is awarded to Kokosing Alberici LLC of Westerville, Ohio. The much-anticipated mega-project will take three phases to construct. Kokosing Alberici will receive more than $111 million to complete phase two. This contract will stabilize the existing approach walls, allowing modern vessels to tie up and wait their turn to pass through the new lock. Construction will begin in spring 2021 and take about two years to complete. "The Corps looks forward to beginning construction on the upstream approach walls next spring, and we continue to work hard to maintain the pace and meet all milestones in bringing our nation's New Lock at the Soo to fruition,” said Detroit District Commander Lt. Col. Scott Katalenich.

  • Corps publishes final EA for wetland restoration project near Fargo, N.D.

    ST. PAUL, Minn. –The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, published its final

  • USACE to go door-to-door to secure rights-of-entry from individual landowners in Freeport vicinity to access property as part of the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay Project

    GALVESTON, Texas –The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District, Real Estate Division will be going door-to-door in the vicinity of Freeport on September 28-29, to secure rights-of-entry from individual landowners in order to access property as part of the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay, Texas Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) and Ecosystem Restoration Project. The rights-of-entry are necessary to conduct various investigative activities (surveys, cultural resource investigations, geotechnical investigations) and will be mostly along the existing levee alignment.

  • Lock chamber repairs complete at John T. Myers

    The motor vessel John Vaughn was the first to lock through the 1,200 foot lock chamber at John T.

  • PDT awards drainage channel cleanout contract

    Congratulations to the Iron Mines Creek Channel Cleanout Project Delivery Team (PDT). The PDT recently reached its contract award milestone, awarding the contract to small business contractor Innovative Performance Construction. Work on the contract includes the cleanout of 3.9 miles of the Iron Mines Creek channel located in Marked Tree, Poinsett County, Arkansas.