Chaired by David Wood of David F. Wood Consulting Ltd
info@dfwood.com

The goal of this committee is to establish an industry standard for testing criteria of anchors used in dynamic rockfall mitigation systems. This type of anchor testing differs from typical PTI testing standards as the anchors are fully grouted and have no free bond zone. We would like to establish testing procedures that more directly deal with the types of loads that would be applied to rockfall system anchors. These standards then can be implemented and understood within the rockfall industry as a new way of testing anchors for rockfall mitigation systems. This will provide more accurate data as to the loads that the anchors can withstand and which apply directly to the type of load the anchor gets under system loading.

Chaired by Dr. Clarence Choi, The University of Hong Kong
cechoi@hku.hk

Secretary: Sunil Poudyal
spoudyal@connect.ust.hk

As human development continues to encroach upon hillsides and extreme rainfall events occur with increasing frequency due to climate change, dangers associated with geophysical flows will inevitably increase. Despite efforts on improving scientific understanding and mitigating geophysical hazards, as many as 2,250 deaths resulted from 444 fatal landslides in 2016. There is undoubtedly a need to dedicate resources to mitigate geophysical hazards. The focus of this committee is to collect, disseminate, and produce reliable data, develop new technology and resources for the mitigation of debris flows that will be made available through the Association. It is envisioned that the committee will consist of individuals from a wide range of backgrounds including industry professionals, consultants and academics that are actively engaged in planning, constructing and researching mitigation measures.

Chaired by Frank Amend of GSI
frank@gsi.us

The Education Committee strives to provide training and tools to all aspects of the profession and to improve the quality and delivery of constructed products. This would include contractor-led seminars on construction methods and quality assurance, engineer/geologist-led workshops on design and standards of practice, and professional development opportunities such as project management.

Chaired by Martin Derby of Golder
Martin_Derby@golder.com

Co Chaired by John Metzger of AssetAssurance Monitoring
john.metzger@aamonitoring.net

Monitoring Lead: Steve Borron of Global Slope Monitoring Consultants steveborron@gsmconsultants.com

Instrumentation Lead: Nolan Seles of GEOKON
nseles@geokon.com

The goal of this committee is to provide a current and substantive base of information in the fields of Geohazard Monitoring and Instrumentation. The current working environment for Geo-professionals requires an opportunity to learn, share, develop, and review the Best Practice and Initiatives in this dynamic field. Remote sensing instrument review and education, traditional instrumentation, project planning and development will be offered for the benefit of the Association members and practicing professionals and administrators. Committee members will work together to align various methods and techniques with the view of providing a solution driven exchange and methods for broader sectoral and national use.

Co-chaired by Reza Mohamadi of EA UpKeep
Rmohamadi@eaupkeep.ca

&

Madalena Marchelli of Politecnico- Corso Duca
maddalena.marchelli@polito.it

Geosynthetics have a long history of use in civil engineering where they have a wide range of applications, most commonly for the stabilization or reinforcement of both natural slopes and man-made earth structures, as well as geo-environmental solutions. They are also extensively used for controlling erosion of unstable slopes. More recently, geosynthetics are increasingly being used for other geohazard mitigation purposes, such as in the construction of semi-rigid barriers to help protect against rockfall, debris flow and avalanche.

The focus of this committee is to better help define the role of geosynthetics in geohazard mitigation practices and foster the transfer of knowledge between manufacturers, engineers, contractors and owners.

Some initial goals for the committee are to create resource documents related to:

• • Current trends in the application of geosynthetics for geohazard mitigation
  • Design approaches and guidelines for rockfall, debris flow and avalanche catchment structures
  • Modeled and Full-scale testing experiences
  • Educational resources (e.g. webinars, workshops, etc.)

Another focus of the committee will be to establish relationships with other associations and industry groups in the field of geosynthetics to help in the dissemination of knowledge throughout the industry.

Chaired by Frank Amend of GSI
frank@gsi.us

The purpose of this committee is to develop strategies that encourage involvement and investment in the Association’s mission. The Marketing Committee will strive to promote the Association’s goals and present recommendations on programs and activities that support the Association’s direction.

Chaired by David J. Scarpato, P.E. of SCARPTEC, INC.

Historically, rockfall barrier post support consisted of a small concrete block (generally 1 yd) often without reinforcement. Field experience with these foundations was very good, and showed acceptable performance even during significant and beyond design energy impacts. Recent post support design has changed to much larger foundation as a result of designers needing to design more massive foundations in order to provide something that satisfies the foundation loads provided by barrier manufacturers. In the absence of industry-specific post support methodologies and guidelines, designers have been forced to design according to standards that do not apply to the performance needed from a rockfall barrier post support.

Chaired by John D. Duffy 
johnduffy@charter.net

Currently, there is no available training or certification for rope access workers specific to the geohazard industry. Standard training for recreational climbing, search and rescue, arborists, security, avalanche control, and structures are very task specific. The difference between working on slopes in the geohazard industry and working in these other fields is significant. Each requires different skills, techniques and equipment. The purpose of this committee is to develop a standard of best practice that insures safe and appropriate procedures for the Geohazard Industry.

Chaired by Ahren Bichler

Up to now, there are no standard specifications for geohazard solutions in North America. Often they are referring to the wrong ASTM or federal specification. New standards will help to improve the quality of the project and the image of the geohazard industry. The objective of this committee is to develop new standard specifications for the North America geohazard market.