Welcome to Delaware Valley Geo-Institute!

Coming Soon: DVGI October 2024 Meeting

DVGI will continue its meeting schedule on Thursday, October 17th (note the Thursday date!). Registration for the meeting is available here.

Topic and Presenter: “The Status of Coastal Resilience Designs in Our Region” by Mark Gallagher (Princeton Hydro)

Abstract: Threats to humans and biodiversity such as sea level rise and inundation, increased coastal storm surges, land subsidence, and habitat loss are prevalent in every corner of the globe and are felt especially heavily on the planet’s coastlines. When these threats operate synergistically, substantial economic damage and biodiversity loss often result. To stem the damage associated with current climate-related issues, our society needs to make difficult decisions, and we must change our strategies to deal with issues such as coastal resilience and flood management. Many current approaches, such as levees and storm surge barriers, are very controversial and engineering-heavy. It is equally important that we begin to understand the value that natural systems have for enhancing resiliency and sustainability both along our coasts and within inland areas.

This presentation will review the current threats that we all face due to climate change and the highly developed landscape in which we live and will offer examples of existing and upcoming resilience projects.  Much of the presentation will focus on the design and construction of nature-based solutions along the coastal and riverine systems, such as the construction of dunes, thin layer placement of dredged material in marshes, installation of living shorelines and living breakwaters, the reclamation of lands lost to coastal erosion, and the creation and enhancement of floodplains and wetlands.

Bio: Mr. Gallagher is the vice president of Princeton Hydro, a water resources-oriented consulting firm. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology from Moravian College and Master of Science Degree in Plant Ecology from Rutgers University. He has nearly 40 years of experience in environmental consulting, much of which has been devoted to habitat restoration.

Mr. Gallagher has managed numerous wetland and habitat restoration projects, including: the enhancement of floodplains; hydrologic enhancement of wetlands; estuarine wetland creation and enhancement; urban wetland restoration; and vernal habitat creation and enhancement. He has also helped develop restoration designs for floodplain and riparian areas in association with dam removal projects. His natural design experiences have focused on integrating natural design elements into stormwater management facilities and on resilience relative to climate change. Mr. Gallagher serves on the Board of Friends for the Abbott Marshlands and is an advisory board member for the Outdoor Equity Alliance; he also recently served on the Board of Trustees at Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve. He also teaches as an adjunct professor in the Landscape Architecture program at Temple University.

DVGI Receives Best Chapter Award from ASCE Geo-Institute
During ASCE’s GeoCongress 2024, held February 25th to 28th in Vancouver, BC, DVGI was honored to receive the ASCE Geo-Institute’s 2023 Best Chapter Award. With the award, the Geo-Institute recognized DVGI’s accomplishments for its members and community. DVGI thanks the many volunteers whose dedicated service led to its selection out of the many deserving local Geo-Institute chapters.

DVGI members attending GeoCongress, including several present and former board members, accept the ASCE Geo-Institute’s 2023 Best Chapter Award from G-I President Jie Han, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE, at GeoCongress 2024 in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Recap: DVGI September 2024 Meeting
After its annual summer break, DVGI kicked off its 2024-25 season on Tuesday, September 17th. Members enjoyed a relaxing social hour and a scrumptious dinner before being treated to a presentation by Eli Brinker, EIT, and Elisabetta Iannetti, EIT, of Pennoni Associates on the 2024 DVGI Project of the Year, the SPARK – Gene Therapy Innovation Center in University City. Mr. Brinker and Ms. Iannetti, giving their second Project of the Year presentation within two years, delivered an excellent overview of the project’s design and construction challenges. Their review of how the team successfully overcame them through careful software modeling, vigilant field inspection, and a dash of good old-fashioned geotechnical ingenuity captivated the audience and started the DVGI season off strong.

Presenters Eli Brinker and Elisabetta Iannetti, flanked by several of their Pennoni peers, hold the firm’s 2024 DVGI Geotechnical Project of the Year award.