Newletters, helpful advice and other pearls of wisdom from Earthworks' staff.
Water used in the concrete washout process has a high level pH, that pH level can be near 12, which is essentially the same as liquid drain cleaner, ammonia or other household cleaning detergents. The safe pH ranges for aquatic life habitats are 6.5 – 9 for freshwater and 6.5 – 8.5 for saltwater. Another issue with concrete washout is it has other toxins include Aluminum, Barium, Chromium, Hexavalent Chromium (Chromium 6), Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Manganese, Nickel, Potassium, Selenium, Sodiu...
by Matthew Trygg // 2020-07-30
Read MoreA Stormwater pollution prevention plan is essential for the development of measures aimed at the elimination of illicit discharges. Although most of the attention toward pollution prevention in the Stormwater Plan is given to the structural BMPs, a plan for the use of non-structural BMP can also play an integral role. One such example is the vacuum street sweeper. While we are all familiar with the street sweepers utilized by most cities and towns, that same methodology of pollution c...
by Mark Hubbard // 2020-07-30
Read MoreSlope stabilization techniques have been around for a long time. However, what many do not realize is that not all stabilization techniques are suitable for every situation. Most traditional methods, i.e., natural fiber stabilization blankets, are only suitable for shallower slope (3:1 and shallower)1 situations. With a greater slope, the demands on the stabilization method increases as the water velocities will also increase. With the heightened erosion potential, many commonly used erosion...
by Rick Jackson // 2020-07-25
Read MoreA common question with the NPDES inspection process regards trash or construction debris and if it relates to the stormwater plan. It absolutely does! Trash and debris directly affect the stormwater plan and is a specific requirement in state Construction General Permits (CGP) to maintain. Most often attention is given to sediment and hazardous material to determine if a site is in compliance, these are only part of staying in compliance as there are many items throughout state CGPs th...
by Brooks Morse // 2020-07-25
Read MoreFive years ago, Cherie Koester left a prominent job with Maricopa County to start her own business. From her residence in Queen Creek, Koester founded Earthworks Environmental LLC. As the woman- and minority-owned environmental consulting firm celebrates its fifth anniversary, the Mesa-based company now boasts 36 employees and almost 800 projects across the country. “While our 5-year celebration is local, I’m extremely proud of my staff for the expansion we’ve made across the country,” ...
Read More2019 Quarter 3 Newsletter Click the link above for the PDF version of our 2019 Quarter 3 Newsletter.
2019-10-01
Read More2019 Quarter 2 Newsletter Click the link above for the PDF version of our 2019 Quarter 2 Newsletter.
2019-08-13
Read MoreMeet Cherie Koester of Earthworks Environmental Today we’d like to introduce you to Cherie Koester. Thanks for sharing your story with us Cherie. So, let’s start at the beginning, and we can move on from there. Briefly is difficult. I was a statistic. I was a native girl in a small town in Wisconsin who then became a teenage mother at the age of 16. I made it a life goal to get out of the small town I grew up in not because I didn’t love it. I do love it; we go home to visi...
2019-07-31
Read MoreRed tide is a phenomenon caused by algal blooms. Algal blooms are when concentrations of algae become so numerous they’ll discolor the coastal waters. These algal blooms will also deplete the oxygen levels in the water while releasing a toxin that will cause illness in wildlife. The algal bloom is a result of excess nutrients, that cause a large growth of algae and green plants. As the amount of algae and green plants grown the other loose the balance and die off. When these algal blooms ...
2018-10-01
Read MoreWhat is a solution for maintaining and improving infrastructure to protect one of our most valuable resources in Southern Chicago and northwestern Indiana? As magnificent the Grand Canyon in the West, at a much smaller scale, the Midwest now relies on the McCook Reservoir for water protection. This tunnel and reservoir project, better known as TARP, construction began back in 2000 as a massive flood and pollution reduction project, evolved to better manage storm water and biosolids. The pre-e...
2018-10-01
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