INTERA is included in the Engineering News Record’s (ENR) list of the top 200 environmental firms for the second consecutive year. INTERA ranked 181 on the 2017 list—up 11 spots from the 2016 rank of 192. INTERA’s President and CEO, Dr. Marsh Lavenue, said “Congratulations goes to every INTERA employee. This is excellent news and recognizes the hard work of our team.” The ENR Top 200 Environmental Firm survey ranks the top firms in the dynamic environmental services sector based on participants’ 2016 global revenue from market segments that include hazardous waste, nuclear waste, air, water, wastewater treatment, environmental management, and environmental sciences.
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INTERA Coastal Engineering Project Presented with National Award of Merit by Design-Build Institute of America
INTERA served as a consultant on the Sisters Creek Bridge Replacement Design-Build Project (Project), which just received the Design-Build Institute of America’s (DBIA) National Award of Merit. The Project is one of four winners in the Transportation category for the year 2017.
The Project’s goal was to replace the existing bascule bridge with a new, high-level fixed span structure. DBIA has recognized the Project’s success for overcoming “numerous project challenges, such as poor soils, pedestrian safety concerns and a constrained project site to deliver solutions in ways that were never thought possible.” Project construction spanned 34 months with a budget of $43.7 million.
Led by INTERA’s Senior Coastal Engineer, Phil Dompe, PE, our contributions to the Project included: (1) bridge hydraulic analysis – simulating hydraulic conditions that the new bridge would withstand at 50-, 100-, and 500-year intervals; (2) bridge scour analysis – computing general, aggradation/degradation, and local scour at the bridge piers; (3) wave analysis – developing a 100-year wave model; and (4) abutment and wall protection design – developing recommendations for the proposed abutment and wall protection scheme to withstand projected wave and hydraulic conditions for the next 100 years. More details about INTERA’s solutions for shore protection, transportation infrastructure, inlets and waterways, flood risk management, and coastal resources management are available on our Coastal Engineering page.
National Award of Merit winners are eligible to win one of three Awards of Excellence in the areas of design, process, and teaming. The winners of these awards will be announced at the 2017 Design-Build Conference & Expo in Philadelphia, PA on November 8, 2017.
Continue ReadingINTERA’s Patrick Williamson Presents Short Course on “International Best Practices for Environmental Management of Mines” in Mexico
Principal Hydrogeochemist Patrick Williamson recently presented a one-day short course on “International Best Practices for Environmental Management of Mines” at the Forum Internacional de Capacitación y Educación Minera (FICEMIN) in Zacatecas, Mexico. The course provided students with an overview of best management practices for mine environmental management, with a focus on the two topics that present the greatest long-term risk to a mine, waste management and water quality/supply. This was the third year that Patrick has participated in the 3-day FICEMIN training event, which provides a selection of one-day training courses in Spanish to Mexican mining professionals, covering a range of topics in mining engineering, environmental management, metallurgy, geology, health & safety and maintenance. The previous two years, Patrick lectured on geochemical characterization and management of mine waste.
Mr. Williamson received his Bachelor’s Degree in Geology from the Colorado College and a Master’s Degree in Aqueous Geochemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He is a Professional Geologist (CA) and a Qualified Person (MMSA). His 30- year career has focused on environmental geochemistry and hydrogeology, starting in the late 1980s on Superfund remedial investigations and feasibility studies, and evolving over time to focus on regional water resources, mine waste rock characterization and management, social license for mine impacts on water quality and availability, and mine waste management. He speaks fluent Spanish, having lived in Colombia, Venezuela, Peru and Mexico, and managed international mining consulting practices in Mexico.
Continue ReadingDr. Bryn Kimball Joins INTERA
Bryn Kimball, PhD, has joined INTERA’s Southwest Mining and Water Resources Division in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Bryn is a geochemist with expertise and interests focused on solving geochemistry problems associated with mining operations. She brings to INTERA her expertise in designing and implementing geochemical field sampling programs, analytical techniques, and the design and application of geochemical models.
Her project experience includes conducting field studies in Au-Cu-As deposits in Chile and Peru to determine whether native microorganisms can be used to improve metal recovery and/or optimally bioremediate mine waste for safer long-term storage, and evaluating trace metal speciation and mobility in mine waste environments, with an emphasis on the influence of secondary minerals on metal speciation.
Prior to joining INTERA, Bryn was a Visiting Professor of Geology at Whitman College, completed post-doctoral research at Queens University, and conducted research on trace-metal speciation and mobility in mine waste environments as a Mendenhall Fellow at the United States Geological Survey. Her research has been published in Environmental Science and Technology, Applied Geochemistry, and Geochimica et Cosmochimca Acta.
Continue ReadingINTERA’s Dan Haddock Moderates Panel on Groundwater Challenges and Progress in Utility Planning
The new director of the water utility services for INTERA is attending an annual conference in Philadelphia focusing on long-term water management planning. Daniel Haddock, PE, is one of a panel of experts sharing experience on water resource management at the 2017 American Water Works Association (AWWA) Annual Conference and Exposition (ACE). Dan will be working with a team of scientists to moderate a panel, “Drilling Deep: Groundwater Challenges and Progress in Utility Planning,” on Tuesday, June 13, 2017, from 1:30-4:30 p.m. Eastern time in Philadelphia, Penn. The presentations and discussion at the session will explore current and emerging groundwater issues, and include approaches to improving long-term management of aquifer systems.
The session will be coordinated by Texas A&M Engineering’s Susan Roberts and California Water Service Company’s Dr. Jonathan Keck — will include panelists Sandra Eberts, of the U.S. Geological Survey; Steven Colabufo, from Suffolk County Water Authority; Michael Orbon, from Wake County Water Quality; Vincent Monaco, of New Jersey American Water; and Anona Dutton, with EKI Environment and Water. The session will include breakout groups to dive deeper into the many problems faced by water utilities dealing with these nationwide groundwater concerns.
“Efficiency and reliability are only part of the puzzle for utilities today. These water supply systems need to protect the quality of the groundwater used by more people each year and the utilities need to prepare for drought and shortage,” said Van Kelley, INTERA’s Vice President of the water resources division. “Dan’s panel is hoping to generate a more collaborative approach all over the country. We need to improve how we characterize and understand the resource so we can meet the needs of a changing customer base in the future.”
Mr. Haddock received his engineering degree at Rice University in Houston, Texas and he is licensed as a PE in Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Virginia, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Texas. He has worked for utilities as a project engineer and as a manager in consulting firms that evaluated, designed and built large well fields. He has 25 years of experience in water resources engineering that includes design, and oversight of public water supply and treatment facilities; water system planning. He currently serves on several AWWA Committees, including the Water Resources Sustainability Division.
Continue ReadingINTERA Uses Workify to Enhance Millennial Engagement
For the past year, INTERA has been using Workify, a people management software platform, to gain insight into employee engagement. This has led to finding new ways to successfully hire and retain millennials and integrate them into the company’s 40-year tradition of high-quality geosciences and engineering consulting. INTERA’s President and CEO, Dr. Marsh Lavenue, recently sat down to share the benefits of using the Workify platform (see the full video here). He discusses INTERA’s efforts to develop and nurture long-term employee engagements with a generation often characterized by its tendency to seek new employment frequently (a 2016 study by Deloitte found that 55% of millennials expect to leave their job in two years or less).
According to the results of recent Workify surveys completed by INTERA employees, an average of 95% of the company’s entry-level employees can see themselves remaining with INTERA beyond the next two to four years. Of that 95%, 56% expect to be with INTERA beyond the next four years. INTERA’s success in retaining staff stems from the company’s culture of ownership, engaging millennials in mediums with which they are familiar and comfortable, and providing employees with opportunities to express ideas and opinions. Recognizing that a consulting firm’s most valuable asset is its people, all feedback from INTERA employees that is collected through the Workify surveys undergoes a comprehensive review to assist in developing and implementing new engagement and retention strategies.
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