Join PIANC USA as we kick off our 2022 webinar series with Beneficial Use of Sediment at 2pm ET on Thursday, April 28. This webinar will share details on the work of PIANC Environmental Commission Working Group 214 exploring beneficial use of sediment. Read on for more detail about the topic and webinar presenter. Annually, billions of cubic yards of material are dredged globally to maintain safe navigation for commerce and recreation. Navigational maintenance is integral to the world economy, without which the safe waterborne transport of cargo, cruise ships, and pleasure craft would not be possible. With the need to manage dredged material, several constraints pose challenges to sediment beneficial use due to concerns over impacts to surface waters, displacement of aquatic habitat, release of contaminants into the environment, or logistics. These constraints in the face of growing societal needs motivate the development of innovative and sustainable alternatives, including identifying sediment beneficial uses that foster economic, social, and environmental benefits. Beneficial use is naturally aligned with sustainability, life-cycle analyses, and circular-economy approaches. The use of sediment as a resource represents a paradigm shift toward sustainable practices that can realize engineering, environmental, social, and economic benefits. Sediment beneficial use examples include coastal resiliency management to counteract coastal erosion, manufacturing of locally produced building materials, establishment of wetlands and other natural habitats, and land reclamation. Infrastructure and community resilience, climate-change impacts, habitat management, and costs all can be leveraged to successfully identify and integrate beneficial use into coastal projects. PIANC Working Group (WG) on Beneficial Use (WG214) is developing a report that will provide technical information and guidance regarding the state of the practice for sediment use as a beneficial resource, drawing from existing approaches and best practices. In this manner, the report builds on relevant reports published by PIANC, the Central and Western Dredging Associations (CEDA and WEDA), the International Association of Dredging Contractors (IADC), and the European Sediment Network (SedNet), among others. The report is considering and evaluating the following: Concepts of sediment use and existing scientific knowledge related to different uses; sediment contamination and how contamination can constrain sediment reuse alternatives; and use of cost-benefit and ecosystem services frameworks as tools to better understand how the value of different reuse options can be quantified, and to compare different beneficial use and disposal alternatives. Aspects of the report we will present include an overview of global sediment beneficial use practices, technologies, and limitations. Several case studies will be presented to illustrate recent successes and challenges associated with the beneficial use of dredged material. Dr. Burton Suedel is a research biologist at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Engineer Research and Development Center, Environmental Laboratory in Vicksburg, Mississippi. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in biology and master’s degree in biology from the University of North Texas, and his Ph.D. in biological sciences from the University of Mississippi. His research interests include investigating ways in which sustainable environmental, social, and economic benefits can be incorporated into waterborne transport infrastructure planning. He has received international awards and recognition for applying EWN principles in practice at multiple USACE freshwater and marine coastal projects. He is the Principal U.S. representative to the PIANC Environmental Commission and is the U.S. representative to PIANC Inland Navigation Commission Working Group 203 on Sustainable Inland Navigation and is mentoring the Environmental Commission Working Group 214 on Sediment Beneficial Use. Registration for this event is required. Please click here or visit https://agile.webinargeek.com/beneficial-use-of-sediment to register today!Webinar: Beneficial Use of Sediment
April 28, 2022 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EDT
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