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March 2014 Technical Institute Seminars

First Technical Institute Seminar at 11:00 am

The Dallas Transportation & Development Institute (T&DI) Chapter will hold a seminar prior to the March 10, 2014 meeting/luncheon at 11:00am.  The seminar is titled “Using LiDAR (Laser Scanning) for Design at Existing Facilities.”  This seminar will introduce LiDAR, or laser scanning, and explain how it is used to acquire vast amounts of data that can be imported into CAD to create BIM models.  The technology is ideal for projects at existing facilities, and thus has applications for historic and adaptive re-use projects.  Capabilities and limitations of the technology are discussed.  The seminar concludes with a short demonstration of the importation of point cloud data into CAD and the modeling required to prepare BIM and/or 2D drawings.  The LiDAR approach can be applied to all facilities and infrastructure remodeling/renovation projects.

The presentation will be made by Jason Hart, PE, LEED AP, Principal and Jason Koehn of JQ (Jaster – Quintanilla) of Dallas.  Mr. Hart leads the Industrial Facilities group at JQ.  The group works with industrial and power companies to design structures for plant capital improvements, renovations and maintenance.  Mr. Koehn is a survey technician and LiDAR specialist at JQ.  He has been a leader in JQ's implementation of laser scanning in its 3D modeling of existing facilities.

For additional information on the Institute or the seminar, contact Roger Behgam, P.E., T&DI Chapter President at: 214.215.8321 or [email protected].

Second Technical Institute Seminar at 1:10 pm

The Dallas Environmental & Water Resources Institute (EWRI) Technical Institute Chapter will hold a seminar following the March 10, 2014 meeting/luncheon. The seminar is titled "State-Listed Threatened Mussels & Invasive Zebra Mussels: What You Need to Know to Avoid Project Delays". 

In 2010, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) listed 15 native freshwater mussel species as state “threatened.”  State law prohibits “take” of state-listed species.  State-listed mussels are known to occur in the Red, Neches, Sabine, San Jacinto, Trinity, Colorado, Guadalupe, San Antonio, Nueces-Frio, Brazos, Rio Salado, Pecos, and Rio Grande river basins.  Construction projects that have proposed impacts to rivers, tributaries, and/or reservoirs within these river basins, may require mussel presence/absence surveys and associated relocation activities prior to construction.  These activities must be coordinated with the applicable TPWD Kills & Spills Team representative.  If mussel relocation activities are necessary, a TPWD-approved Aquatic Resource Relocation Plan and Public Stocking Permit are required, and mussel relocation activities must be completed prior to construction activities.  In addition, zebra mussels have been recently documented in Lake Texoma, Lake Ray Roberts, the Elm Fork of the Trinity River below Lake Ray Roberts, Lewisville Lake, Lake Bridgeport, and Lake Belton; therefore, zebra mussel presence should be taken into consideration when performing TPWD-required activities near these areas.  Depending on the size, scale, location, and proposed schedule of the construction project, mandatory mussel compliance activities may require 1-4 months for completion.  From 2012-2013, the City of Dallas, Dallas Water Utilities conducted rehabilitation and structural maintenance on three dams along the Elm Fork Trinity River for the Western Dams Rehabilitation Project in Dallas County, Texas.  Required mussel surveys identified 21 species, including three state-listed threatened species, the Texas pigtoe (Fusconaia askewi), the Louisiana pigtoe (Pleurobema riddellii), and “probable” Texas heelsplitter (Potamilus amphichaenus).  This project will be discussed as a case study in order to demonstrate TPWD-required mussel compliance activities for a construction project.

The presentation will be made by Ms. Kimberlie Brashear and Ms. Ashley Oliver.  Ms. Brashear has over 20 years of experience in water and wastewater facilities design and construction.  She has both a BSCE and MSCE from Texas Tech University.  After spending 16 years with consulting firms, eventually owning her own design firm, she joined the City of Dallas Water Utilities where she is a Project Manager in the Water Facilities Group.  Since joining the City, Ms. Brashear has managed pump station and dam design and construction projects and has co-managed the EPA grant Early Contamination Warning System project.  Ms. Oliver is an Environmental Project Manager at Halff Associates, Inc. in Richardson, TX.  She has a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology from Texas A&M University and a Master’s of Environmental Management from Duke University.  She has over 12 years of technical environmental experience primarily focusing on impact analyses for site development and transportation projects.  She is a Certified Ecologist with extensive experience in performing surveys for state- and federally-listed freshwater mussel species in Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.  In addition, Ms. Oliver has a Scientific Collection/Research Permit from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and is authorized to lead projects involving native state-listed threatened mussels.  She has successfully conducted presence/absence surveys and/or relocations of freshwater mussels for more than 50 bridge projects, more than 20 highway projects, more than 5 pipeline projects, and several dam projects.  She has performed this type of work for a variety of clients including, state and federal regulatory agencies, state departments of transportation, water utilities, municipalities, and private developers.