EC10: IECA's Call for Abstracts!

Environmental Connection EC10, IECA’s Annual Conference and EXPO is scheduled for February 14-18, 2010 in Dallas at the Hilton Anatole Hotel. The theme of the conference is Discover New Frontiers. Time is quickly running out to submit your abstract!

Education is the primary reason attendees register for Environmental Connection with over 100 educational sessions which include full and half day courses and multiple technical paper presentation on topics. Attendees could earn over 28 professional development hours (PDH) during the 4 days of the conference.

IECA Submittal Opportunities

IECA offers a variety of ways to showcase the innovative products, cutting-edge research and revolutionary technology that is shaping the erosion, sediment control and stormwater industries. This is a great opportunity for you to gain recognition among your peers and other industry professionals.

Benefits of Submitting Your Work

- Expand your resume
- Increase the visibility of your project
- Extend the life of your work
- Demonstrate your knowledge and skill
- Assist your colleagues with E/SC/SW issues
- Help others in the industry learn techniques that will improve their work and our environment

Four Steps to Completion
Completing your Presentation includes a four step process:

- Submitting an idea “Abstract”
- Writing a “Paper or Outline”
- Converting a paper into a “Presentation” and creating handouts
- Presenting your “Presentation” at the conference

After each of these steps is completed you will be notified by email to take the next step.

Deadlines
IECA accepts content submittals throughout the year. But only those submitted by conference deadlines will make the Environmental Connection 2010 conference in Dallas. Technical Sessions and Course submittals will adhere to the following timeframe:

May 15, 2009: Abstracts due to IECA

June 30, 2009: Initial Notification of Acceptance and Speaker Guidelines sent to speakers

July 30, 2009: Papers due to IECA

August 31, 2009: Final Notification of Acceptance sent to speakers

September 15, 2009: Corrected Papers due to IECA

October 31, 2009: Final presentations due to IECA

December 1, 2009: Presentation & Course handouts due to IECA

February 14-17, 2009: Presentations of accepted papers and courses

Please think about showcasing your work at EC10: IECA's Environmental Connection! Contact Jimmy Eanes, IECA Education Director (education@ieca.org) at 800-455-4322

While you're at it, share your abstract with the Great Rivers Chapter, as we continue to work on our 13th Annual Conference, to be held in Kansas City in October 2009! Email your abstract to greatriversieca@gmail.com.

FRONTLINE Special - April 21st: "Poisoned Waters"

Be sure to check out a special episode of FRONTLINE on PBS, April 21st for a 2-hour special titled, "Poisoned Waters".

More than three decades after the Clean Water Act, two iconic waterways—the great coastal estuaries Puget Sound and the Chesapeake Bay—are in perilous condition. With polluted runoff still flowing in from industry, agriculture, and massive suburban development, scientists fear contamination to the food chain and drinking water for millions of people. A growing list of endangered species is also threatened in both estuaries. As a new president, Congress, and states set new agendas and spending priorities, FRONTLINE correspondent Hedrick Smith examines the rising hazards to human health and the ecosystem, and why it’s so hard to keep our waters clean.

Check out the show prieview trailer link below. This appears to be one of the most well-produced, high-profile documentaries about our industry that we've seen.

Spring 2009 Newsletter Now Available

The Spring 2009 edition of the Chapter Newsletter is now up and available. Ifyou are a Great River Chapter member, you received a copy of this via your current email address, as we have it. This issue marks the first to be distributed exclusively in digital (.pdf) format.

The newsletter includes a new editorial feature called "The Sediment Stops Here". This will be a regular feature, with guest editorials covering hot topics related to erosion & control BMP's. The first feature, written by Chapter President Tom Wells, talks about hay/straw bales.....in a positive light! Shocking! The newsletter also features a great article from Board Member Rebecca Kauten about a fresh perspective on proper planning for stormwater management.

If you want to be a part of our newsletters, drop us an article! We're always eagerly looking for new stories to cover from our Chapter region. Enjoy!

Welcome to the Bloggosphere!

Ask and ye shall receive! After many thoughts & discussions, the Great Rivers Chapter of IECA is happy to roll out our Blog page! While the page will cater to our Chapter membership, it will also provide useful, timely information for everyone involved in teh erosion & sediment control and stormwater industry. Our plan is to add content on a weekly basis, with hopefully more rather than less content given certain weeks. Industry news, local stormwater events, certification updates, EPA and State news, local success stories....anything that can be useful to you in this industry is what we want to bring you.

With our plans for quarterly newsletters providing our Chapter membership with great articles and information, we hope that this blog site can be a quality location for timely information that you can link to every day or week to catch up on news & happenings you might have missed.

As with our Newsletters, we encourage suggestions and comments! If you want to provide event information or blog content, please send it to greatriversieca@gmail.com.

So enjoy the blog, share it with your friends and colleagues, even link us to your existing web page! Thanks for your sustained and contunied support of the International Erosion Control Association, and the Great Rivers Chapter!