President's Message
By Joshua Nelson, PE
As many of you know Engineering Week occurs in February each year and most…
Read More »Secretary's Column - High Speed Rail
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Five years ago, the ASCE Region 9 Government Affairs Committee and other engineers were…
Read More »Branch News
By Gary Gilbert, PE, GE
For the Orange County Branch January lunch meeting Eric Strecker, PE presented the development…
Read More »In This Issue
President's Message
By Joshua Nelson, PE
As many of you know Engineering Week occurs in February each year and most of the activities in our section are centered on students (K-12 grades and university level). Therefore, I thought now would be a good time to talk about mentoring. The Orange County Branch is interested in finding ways that we can start a mentoring program that provides value to our members.
Secretary's Column - High Speed Rail
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Five years ago, the ASCE Region 9 Government Affairs Committee and other engineers were advocating for high speed rail in California as an alternative mode of transportation to move people across the state. By the end of 2008 with the passage of the high speed rail ballot initiative, engineers felt like we were finally reaching the public about the need to invest in infrastructure. Since 2008, the public support that we worked so hard to build has decended with the economy. Even videos like the one below that appear relatively neutral on the subject of high speed rail in California, make the project feel like it has already become a failure.
Branch News
By Gary Gilbert, PE, GE
For the Orange County Branch January lunch meeting Eric Strecker, PE presented the development and implementation of the new and re-development requirements of the Water Quality Management Plans (WQMPs) for North and South Orange County Permit Areas. Mr. Strecker provided an overview of the history of the permit adoption and subsequent efforts to come to consensus on the permit requirements as they apply to the WQMPs.
Branch Awards
By Kathereen M. Shinkai, P.E., M.ASCE
We will be celebrating Professional Engineer’s Week (EWeek) from February 19th to the 25th. EWeek was founded in 1951 by the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) and celebrated in conjunction with President George Washington’s Birthday, who was considered the Nation’s first engineer, notably for his survey work.
History and Heritage
By By Bill Lawson
The Great Picture: A few weeks ago my wife and I drove to the Great Park in Irvine, CA to see "The Great Picture" of the former El Toro U. S. Marine Corps Air Station. It was a windy day and our thoughts of also taking a ride in the orange balloon, which is a trademark of the Great Park, were quickly dispelled by the fact that the balloon was tied down and not in service. Being a Sunday there were a number of people at the Farmer's Market, but otherwise only a few visitors braved the gusty wind. The carousel sat idle and rider-less. The wind made a sound reminiscent of Marine aircraft that used to take off and land at the airbase about a decade ago, but the runways were empty...
Photo Album
By By Bill Lawson
The below photographs were taken by Bill and Pat Lawson on January 8, 2012. The exhibition is open Thursdays and Fridays noon to 4:00 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission and parking are free.
Disaster Preparedness
By Ziad Mazboudi, PE
In the last week of January, I represented the American Society of Civil Engineers as a member of the Committee on Critical Infrastructure at a Department of Homeland Security workshop. The workshop was prepared in response to a National Presidential Directive to develop National Preparedness goals, specifically National Preparedness Mitigation framework.
Career Collectibles
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By 1960 “Orange County’s Main Street” ( the Santa Ana Freeway) was extended by Caltrans from Tustin to San Clemente and re-identified as the “Interstate-5”. The Interstate financing was initiated underby by the Federal Interstate Highway Act of 1956, a “Cold War” stimulus act.
BPELSG Hiring Announcement
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The Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists (BPELSG) is pleased to announce that Raymond Mathe, PLS, has accepted the position of Senior Registrar Land Surveyor, effective February 28, 2012.
Transportation Technical Group
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On Tuesday, January 10, 2012, the Orange County ASCE Branch, Transportation Technical Group, hosted a presentation by Rose Casey, Director of Highway Programs, OCTA, entitled, “OCTA’s Freeway and Grade Separation Programs.”
Sustainability
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At a recent ASCE lunch, Eric Strecker provided an overview of the new Stormwater permit requirements for Orange County. The lunch was informative and entertaining as the audience grappled with the reality that preparation of Water Quality Management Plans or WQMPs just got a lot more difficult and a lot more expensive.