2011 Annual Meeting and Conference
More than 450 dam engineering professionals and exhibitors attended the USSD 31st Annual Meeting and Conference, held recently in San Diego, California. Technical and management issues were addressed during Conference plenary and concurrent sessions, and two workshops. Conference participants took field tours to San Vicente Dam, Olivenhain Dam and the Diamond Valley storage project.
Michael F. Rogers, MWH, was elected President, and Walter L. Davis, Seattle City Light, will serve as Vice President. Keith A. Ferguson, HDR Engineering, Inc., is the Society's Secretary-Treasurer. USSD's members are involved in all facets of the dam industry, including design, construction, operations, safety and security, and environmental issues relating to dams and levees.
Outgoing President Daniel J. Hertel presented several awards and scholarships during the closing banquet on April 13.
Glenn S. Tarbox, MWH, was given the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing his 50 years of contributions to the dam engineering profession. He is the Dams Practice Leader for MWH and is responsible for technical leadership in strategy, marketing and execution for MWH's major dam projects. Tarbox began his career at the Bureau of Reclamation in 1961 as a dam design and construction engineer, and later became Assistant Chief, Dams Branch. While at Reclamation, he was a key contributor to Design of Arch Dams and Design of Gravity Dams, and was a leader in Reclamation's pioneering effort into roller compacted dam technology. He served as a member of the USSD Board of Directors, including terms as Secretary-Treasurer, Vice President and President. Tarbox has worked on major design, construction and dam safety projects throughout the United States and in more than a dozen countries.
John J. Cassidy received the President's Award from Hertel in recognition of his outstanding Contributions to USSD and the dam engineering profession. Cassidy has had a distinguished career in the design of dams in the U.S. and abroad, with a focus on hydraulic and hydrologic engineering. He retired from Bechtel Corporation in 1995 as Manager of Hydraulic and Geotechnical Engineering Services, and has since served as a independent consultant to many public and private agencies. He served as a member of the USSD Board of Directors, and as Chair of the Hydraulics for Dams Committee for the International Commission on Large Dams.
The Ridges Basin Dam Project was named the recipient of the Award of Excellence in the Constructed Project. A key feature of the Bureau of Reclamation's Animas-La Plata Project, the Dam impounds water for agricultural, municipal and industrial uses for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Southern Ute Indian Tribe, the Navajo Nation and the people of the four corners area. The earthen and clay dam has a structural height of 275 feet and measures 1,600 feet along its crest. It includes one of the nation's most modern pumping plants. Individuals recognized by USSD for their involvement in the Project were John Cyganiewicz, representing Reclamation's design group; Frederick Ehat, Lead Construction Engineer; and Steven D. Summy, representing the contractor, Weeminuche Construction Authority.
Penstock Scour Formation at Bluestone Dam, a paper by E.F.R. Bollaert, AquaVision Engineering Ltd., was named the Outstanding Paper. The paper, one of more than 100 presented during the Conference, was selected based on the technical content and quality of the paper, as well as the oral presentation.
The Outstanding Poster Presentation was given to B. Dasgupta and co-authors D. Basu, K. Das and R. Green, Southwest Research Institute, for Development of Computational Methodology to Assess Erosion Damage in Dam Spillways.
Everett L. Litton and Dennis Hogan, Black & Veatch Corporation, received the Outstanding Young Professional Paper Award for their paper Quality and Quantity, It Can Be Done! NC NRCS Dam Assessments.
Three scholarships were announced during the meeting. Adam J. Lobbestael, a graduate student at the University of Michigan, received a $10,000 scholarship to support his research, Using Engineered Cementitious Composites to Enhance Risk Mitigation for Levee Systems. Clinton Carlson, University of Michigan, and Julie A. Vano, University of Washington, received $1,000 scholarships.
The 2012 USSD Annual Meeting and Conference will be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, April 23-27.
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