Photo Courtesy of Malcolm Pirnie/CH2M Hill Joint Venture Each of the 56 UV units has a 40-million-gallon-a-day capacitysaid to be the largest built to date. Related Links: 2013 Best of the Best Projects Winners 2013 ENR New York's Best Water/Environment Project Winner New York City's $1.3-billion new water system stands as the world's largest-capacity ultraviolet disinfection plant. It is also the country's largest unfiltered surface-water facility, treating and controlling the flow of 2.2 billion gallons of drinking water every day.The project included several firsts, including the installation of equipment thought to be record-setters for size. For example, each of the
Related Links: Clean Water Declaration List of organizations supporting clean water declaration Outraged by rising water pollution in their state, Florida environmental groups are pushing to make protection of the state’s water resources a priority in the 2014 legislative session, which begins on March 4.In the past year alone, record numbers of dolphins, manatees and pelicans have died in the Indian River Lagoon. Investigations placed the blame on pollution from a 146% artificial expansion of the lagoon’s watershed and rapid coastal development.In the same period, heavy rains have increased the water level in Lake Okeechobee, forcing the U.S. Army Corps
Rendering courtesy BC Hydro Design includes an auxiliary spillway (at left) as a safety feature. Map courtesy BC Hydro Site C is in northeast British Columbia, near the W.A.C. Bennett and Peace Canyon dams. Related Links: Site C panel chairman exasperated by mountains of BC Hydro documents Site C dam protesters preparing to descend on Victoria BC Hydro engineers are disputing accusations that a proposed CA$7.9-billion ($7.2 billion) dam in northeastern British Columbia will damage wildlife migratory routes and trample on First Nation aboriginal rights. At public hearings in December and January, BC Hydro submitted more than 27,000 documents to
Photo Courtesy of Waterkeeper Alliance A mix of coal ash and contaminated water spilled into the Dan River over several days. Related Links: Dan River Ash Spill Information Cleanup of TVA Coal Ash Spill (2011) A spill from a coal-ash pond at a retired Duke Energy coal plant near Eden, N.C., that turned the Dan River black, then gray, has been plugged, but environmental advocates worry the spill's ecological impact will be far-reaching.Wet coal ash poured into the Dan River over a period of days, beginning on Feb. 2, as a result of a broken 48-in.-dia stormwater pipe under the
Courtesy Dragados USA The Portugues Dam is the first roller compacted concrete, thick-arch dam attempted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Related Links: The 10 Largest-Capacity Hydropower Plants When the heavy rains come as they do every year, the steep mountain slopes on the southern side of Puerto Rico can become deadly. The Portugués and Bucana rivers often overflow with a rapidity that threatens the municipality of Ponce downstream.The formal completion ceremony for the $386-million Portugués Dam on Feb. 5 marks the end of a long odyssey to solve the flood-control issues that imperil the Caribbean island's second-largest urban
Related Links: Report Shows Improved Water Quality in Chesapeake Bay CH2M Hill Now Will Run Troubled Port of Anchorage Expansion Job Two firms competing for a program and construction-management contract under Miami-Dade County's federally mandated sewer-repairs project are at odds. AECOM Technical Services and CH2M Hill are accusing each other of improprieties during bidding for the $1.6-billion project.AECOM fired the first shot, asserting that CH2M Hill violated Miami-Dade's ethics rules and standard procurement practices by sending hundreds of pages of proposal documentation directly to county officials prior to a Tier 2 presentation before a committee assembled on Aug. 28, 2013,
Image Courtesy of Nalcor Energy The $7.8-billion Muskrat Falls project would ensure a reliable power supply to the province, backers say. Opponents see it as a dubious scheme with little benefit. Related Links: Risks Pile Up At Canada's Muskrat Falls Hydro Provincial Fact Sheet: Muskrat Falls Rolling blackouts and power outages throughout Canada's Newfoundland and Labrador province in January have prompted the Board of Commissioners of Public Utilities (PUB) to launch a probe into Nalcor Energy and its management of power generation and transmission infrastructure.PUB's announcement of the investigation comes after a number of public complaints claimed that utility corporations
Related Links: Environmental Integrity Report Efforts to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus discharges in the Chesapeake Bay's watershed states have made a noticeable impact, according to a recent report, and more improvements are expected in the coming years. Citing Environmental Protection Agency data, the Environmental Integrity Project reports that discharges of nitrogen from industrial facilities and sewage treatment plants declined about 3 million tons, or about 6.5%, in 2012 compared to the previous year."There's been a lot of money spent, and nitrogen discharges have gone down pretty significantly," says Eric Schaeffer, executive director of EIP.Discharges in Pennsylvania, Virginia, the District of
Related Links: New Post-Construction Stormwater Rule Could be Delayed NRDC Report A new report evaluates some of green infrastructure's benefits—green roofs, rain gardens, tree plantings, permeable pavements—to commercial property owners and their tenants.The December 2013 report, produced by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), looked at a range of benefits: energy savings, higher rents and property values, reductions in water bills and local financial incentives, such as tax credits and stormwater fee credits.The report found that the benefit value over 40 years could range from $2 million to $24 million for individual buildings.Larry Levine, senior attorney for NRDC's water program,
Hydropower produces 16% of the world’s electricity and plays a strong role in satisfying the national energy needs of certain countries. Paraguay produces all of its electricity from hydropower, while exporting most of its excess supply to neighboring Brazil and Argentina. Albania, Bhutan and Lesotho also depend exclusively on hydroelectricity. Norway produces more than 98% of its electricity from hydropower, Brazil draws upon it for 85%, Iceland for 80%, Venezuela for 69%, Colombia for 65% and Canada for 61%. Austria (60%), Switzerland (56%) and New Zealand (53%) are other countries that generate the majority of their electricity from hydro sources.