CIVIL ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS HELP PREVENT FLOODING IN NEW ORLEANS

As a coastal city, New Orleans has a love-hate relationship with the Mississippi River. On the one hand, it plays a key role in food supply, commerce and transportation. On the other hand, living so close to the water means the ever-present threat of flooding.

Recently, New Orleans has been on high alert for the latter since the waters at the Carrollton gauge has risen to 16 feet in May—just one foot below the official flood stage. As a result, east bank levee authorities have put a temporary ban against digging, pile driving, and underground work within 1,500 feet of the levees. Such construction work may provide a pathway for the water in the river to push past the levees, which might lead to failure of the levees and therefore flooding in the city. If contractors and companies wish to undertake such work, they would need to secure a permit from flood protection authorities first.

Engineering at Work

While this restriction might delay crucial work from being completed, civil engineers agree that taking such precautions are a must if massive flooding is to be avoided. As you might know, the network of levees around the city represent one of the biggest engineering measures against the Mississippi River’s encroaching waters, and ensuring their structural integrity is a must. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2uq0FT6

Structural Engineering Services Lend a Hand in Protecting Local Wetlands

Infrastructure wasn’t the only sector that suffered when heavy rains and massive flooding relentlessly afflicted the Pelican State. Even the coastline and wetlands weren’t spared from rapid erosion and land loss. With this in mind, most of post-Katrina efforts had to make a shift. Authorities looked beyond restoring infrastructure and urban areas to also protecting the coasts and keeping the integrity of the land.

Identifying the Problem at Hand

The Louisiana coast stretches for up to 300 kilometers, and its wetlands cover up to 130 kilometers inland, covering a total area of over 3 million acres. According to the U.S. Geological Service (USGS), about 75 square kilometers of land are washed out and lost to the sea every year. Some identified natural causes are fluctuations in the sea level, changes in water salinity, movement of currents and more. Similarly, human activities like farming, construction and drainage digging have also contributed to the area’s degradation.

Within the past decade, state officials consulted with the USGS and with firms offering structural engineering services to examine possible ways of slowing down the irreversible soil erosion. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2vgBPSO

HOW STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING FIRMS HELP BUILDINGS AVOID AND RECOVER FROM EARTHQUAKE DAMAGE

You may have heard that hundreds of earthquakes happen everyday. Most of them are so weak, however, that they pose no danger to your building. But every so often, a big one that can potentially destroy your property occurs.

The good news is that you have an ally against such calamities: structural engineers. Find out how they can be of service to you.

Constructing a Resilient Building

While you can’t predict when the next big one will hit, you can reinforce your building to withstand the seismic beating that an earthquake can dish out. And in this regard, structural engineers have a few considerations to look at before commencing work.

Perhaps the most important factor is the kind of materials used in a building. Generally speaking, engineers will use more flexible materials such as wood and steel as these are less likely to snap or break in the event of a quake. Hence, many buildings built along fault lines are made from these materials. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2uYxSlu

Flood Control and Green Infrastructure: The Mission of Civil Engineering Companies

In recent years, Louisiana has had its fair share of hurricanes and floods. The lessons learned from the aftermath of Katrina has paved the way for achievable stormwater management goals that both the public and private sectors can work on. How can flooding be solved, and are there sustainable ways of doing so? Such is decades-long the mission of local agencies in collaboration with engineers and private firms.

Implementing Stormwater Management Strategies

Indeed, the job is not just about getting water away from homes and urban areas, but in planning long-term solutions that are based on sustainable land use. The Journal of Contemporary Water Research and Education published a paper on the best management practices for controlling stormwater and preventing floods.

As local authorities turn to civil engineering companies and other private firms, the primary objective is to lessen the movement of debris and sediments from stormwater on the land and to the existing groundwater supply. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2uGTwOj

CIVIL ENGINEERING FIRMS ARE KEY TO SUCCESSFUL ROAD CONSTRUCTION

A city is like a dynamic organism, changing and shifting its shape constantly. That’s why in cities like New Orleans, there’s always something new to discover, from new restaurants, to new art installations and other novel attractions. However, the infrastructure doesn’t always keep up with the ever-changing nature of the city. In fact, many of them stay the same over the years, falling behind the times—and often falling into disrepair. In particular, city streets are often the last to see upgrades, which can hinder transportation in an area as populations grow and more vehicles ply the roads. Luckily, New Orleans is investing heavily in upgrading the roadways in select areas of the city as part of the Capital Improvement Program, a $2.4 billion initiative.

Improving neighborhoods

One of the beneficiaries of this program is South Galvez Street in Central City. In particular, the Hoffman Triangle artery will be fully reconstructed, leading to smoother flow of traffic in the area. As part of this project, South Galvez Street will see a replacement of sewer, drainage and water lines, as well as the installation of a new absorbent concrete pavement. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2upUMoU