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  • Buxton FUDS property receives end-of-year funding – mission continues

    SAVANNAH, Ga. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Savannah District has received additional funding for the Buxton Naval Facility Formerly Used Defense Sites property located within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, in Dare County North Carolina.

  • Contract awarded for Brooks Lake Closure Structure and Guide Levee as part of the Comite River Diversion project

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District, recently awarded a contract for constructing a segment of the Comite River Diversion project. The Brooks Lake Closure Structure and Guide Levee contract will construct approximately 3,350 linear feet of the diversion.

  • State of Practice and Recommendations to Enhance Probability of Failure Estimates for Civil Works Infrastructure Components

    Abstract: As the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) continues to improve its asset management system, it is imperative that maintenance investments across its wide infrastructure portfolio are maximizing risk reduction. A key component of risk is probability of failure. Presently, USACE estimates probability of failure for asset components in a variety of ways across business lines, activities, and decision spaces. This document explores the variations in the state of practice for probability of failure estimates across USACE and contrasts them with available best practices and methodologies. The review found several key gaps between the state of practice and best practices, including a lack of component failure and life data useful for time-to-failure parameter estimates, a lack of codified definitions of failure, no clear and consistent guidance for probability of failure estimates across business lines or decision spaces, and no methodologies that account for environmental variation at a facility. These gaps are addressed by a research strategy that compares and contrasts several probability of failure calculation methods using presently available data, identifies relevant life data for future collection, and defines a framework for investing in improved probability of failure assessments at facilities.

  • Planning-Level Wetland Delineation of Fee-Owned and Trust-Held Properties of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians

    Abstract: A planning-level wetland delineation is an important visualization tool for identifying the location and type of wetlands on the landscape, prioritizing areas for conservation and restoration practices, performing alternative analysis, and informing design and development of infrastructure needs. This study used a combination of off-site data analysis and field data collection to identify the location and extent of wetlands on 1,428 acres of fee-owned and trust-held properties of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians (LTBB). The study found that a wide variety of wetlands occur across approximately 313.6 acres, including 65 acres of wetland-nonwetland mosaic features. These wetlands benefit local communities by providing flood risk reduction, habitat for a wide array of species, and improved water quality. Opportunities to increase wetland functions through management activities, including restoration, were identified. This wetland delineation was conducted under the Planning Assistance to States Program, which provides technical assistance to states, tribal communities, and local governments and was administered via an agreement between the US Army Corps of Engineers–Detroit District and the LTBB. This approach has the potential to provide similar information to other tribal groups interested in identifying and delineating wetlands to improve the management of valuable natural resources.

  • River Training Structure Design Study for Stabilization at Bonanza Bar

    Abstract: The Huntington District (LRH) has repeatedly dredged within the navigation channel at Ohio River Mile (RM) 353, adjacent to a location known as Bonanza Bar. An in-channel bar has developed from the placement of the dredged material along the left-descending bank where a bar was historically present. Recently, the frequency of dredging in this area has decreased, suggesting that the presence of the bar is providing some degree of channel constriction. LRH approached the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center to model possible river training structures to provide channel constriction and stabilize the placement of dredged material at Bonanza Bar. A two-dimensional hydraulic numerical model was developed to test structural alternatives by estimating the impacts on the velocities within the main channel, along the length of the bar, and along the mussel habitat within the side channel. Various rock dikes with bank protection were modeled and general design guidance and modeling results are presented. Modeling results indicate increases in main channel velocities and decreases in flow behind the structure for all modeled alternatives. Rootless dikes and bullnose chevrons provide adequate space and flow for side channel presence as opposed to the continuous and notched dikes.

  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Reopens Overlook Scenic Viewing Area and Dam Service Road at Canyon Lake

    Officials with the Fort Worth District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, have announced the reopening of the overlook and the dam service road at Canyon Lake.

  • West Point Project Implements Updated Shoreline Management Plan

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, West Point Project Office, has released an updated Shoreline Management Plan, effective Oct. 1, marking the first revision since 1993.

  • Demonstration of Innovative Patching Technologies for Asphalt Pavement Sustainment

    Abstract: iHMA and RapidPatch are two asphalt repair materials developed at the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) to provide asphalt patching materials that are readily available, support rapid return to traffic, and yield high quality, long-term performance solutions. The primary objective of this project was to complete multiple demonstrations of asphalt patching with iHMA and RapidPatch at four installations in different climate zones around the United States. These locations included Fort Wainwright (Alaska), Fort Drum (New York), Fort Huachuca (Arizona), and Bradshaw Army Airfield (Hawai‘i). Overall, demonstrations were completed successfully in all climates, providing an opportunity to evaluate patching technologies in real-world environments, some of which are considered untraditional conditions for repairing asphalt. In total, 111 tubes of iHMA and 90 buckets of RapidPatch were used to complete 55.3 ft3 and 49.8 ft3 of patching, respectively, with patch sizes ranging from 4 ft2 up to 20 ft2. Both iHMA and RapidPatch repairs performed well under accelerated trafficking at all installations, exhibiting no more than 6 mm of rutting (less than 1⁄4 in.) after 1,000 passes of heavy truck loading. After 9 to 12 months of operational traffic and environmental exposure, both iHMA and RapidPatch repairs have performed well.

  • Introduction of the Pivox System—A Low-Cost, Rapidly Deployable Modular Lidar System

    Abstract: Terrestrial light detection and ranging instruments can provide extremely valuable data for a multitude of applications in a wide variety of science and engineering fields. However, terrestrial lidar systems (TLS), are prohibitively expensive for many projects and require significant power and data resources to allow for the collection and transmittal of real-time lidar data, limiting their use in remote applications. To address the need for low-cost lidar data collection capabilities in remote environments, the US Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research Development Center, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, and Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory (GSL) developed the Pivox System. The Pivox System integrates a Livox lidar sensor to a Raspberry Pi, allowing for real-time data collection, processing, and transmittal using a self-contained unit that also includes the power supply and communications equipment. We present data collected using the Pivox System in three diverse environments to measure changes in snow depth, the presence of lake ice, and erosion during a levee overtopping experiment.

  • USACE awards contract for SELA 26.1a: Widening of Florida Avenue Canal Phase IV, St. Ferdinand Street to Peoples Avenue, Orleans Parish, Louisiana

    The United States Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District, awarded the SELA 26.1a contract on September 26, 2025, in the amount of $51,547,144.00 to M.R. Pittman Group, LLC of St. Rose, Louisiana.