Geotechnical, Water, Ecology, Environmental, Construction Mgmt
Background During redevelopment of this turn of the century ice factory into a charter school facility, a noise E-Designation was required as part of New York City’s CEQR process. Challenge The property is situated on a busy section of heavily traveled Bruckner Boulevard and is adjacent to an active aggregate storage yard, surroundings with … Read more
Challenge The King Philip’s Stockade, an historic area of the larger Forest Park managed by the Department of Parks, had been closed to the public for several years and was in need of new and improved facilities. Additionally, the park did not originally provide comfort stations and there was no sewer service to the site. … Read more
Background The Chicago Regional Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) program improvements are intended to reduce congestion experienced by freight and passenger rail lines throughout the Chicago area. GZA has evaluated noise, vibration, special waste, and natural resource impacts for more than 15 individual CREATE projects. The involvement of multiple regulatory bodies adds complexity: projects are … Read more
Background GZA contributed to the Illinois Department of Transportation’s (IDOT’s) Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 284-mile-long Intercity High Speed Rail (HSR) Project between Chicago and St. Louis and Tier 2 EIS for related regional rail projects. Improvements to existing rail corridors and stations are being completed to accommodate the high-speed trains. … Read more
Challenge The Interstate 290 (I-290) Eisenhower Expressway improvement project, involving reconstruction and/or upgrades for the congested, 50-year-old multi-modal corridor, has a long history and has proceeded in phases commensurate with available funding. Public scrutiny of the project is high, particularly for the traffic noise. The high-profile nature of the project, dense urban development through which … Read more
Challenge This brownfield remediation site presented a risk management challenge to our client due to its location in a dense urban neighborhood with nearby sensitive receptors including a public park. Technical challenges associated with remediating the site and limiting exposure to off-site sensitive receptors included the comingled waste, including former dry-cleaning waste (chlorinated solvents) and … Read more
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) were detected in water samples collected from our client’s on‐site public water supply well in March 2022, as part of the quarterly sampling required by the MassDEP drinking water program. The reported detection of PFAS started an inquiry by MassDEP and prompted a site audit. The MassDEP required the sampling … Read more
Challenge The City of Las Vegas obtains the majority of its municipal water supply from surface flows of the Gallinas River. The Gallinas River is designated as an Active Water Resource Management (AWRM) area by the NMOSE, with flows apportioned to users in low flow years according to shortage sharing agreements administered by the NMOSE … Read more
Challenge In 2021, GGI, a Division of GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc., was hired to measure water flows in selected springs to determine the change in flow between 2009 and 2021. Solution Spring discharge measurements were conducted during this investigation and, when compared to earlier studies, suggests a generally declining trend in spring flows between 1972 and … Read more
The project involves construction and operation of a floodwater storage reservoir at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRDGC) Lawndale Avenue Solids Management Area (LASMA) in two stages. Challenge This project required the stabilization of the reservoir rock wall by means of surface preparation, scaling and installation of reinforcement and support construction. Project … Read more
The North Fork Spillway and Embankment Improvements Project was designed to update the North Fork Reservoir dam to make the dam more resilient in the face of possible but unlikely storm events. Challenge The dam was raised by four feet, with added earth buttressing to reinforce seismic stability, and the principal spillway was improved while … Read more
Challenge Payette Associates, Inc. retained GZA to provide geotechnical engineering, LSP services and natural resources services for design of the reconstruction of the state-owned and operated Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke. The project is made more complicated by the requirement to maintain function of the existing hospital/long-term care facility while the new building is constructed and … Read more
Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) developments are increasingly being built around the country to store energy produced by renewable sources (solar, wind) during off peak, low demand periods for output into the electrical grid during peak energy demand, thus reducing reliance on gas-powered Peaker plants. Challenge Developing BESS facilities presents significant hurdles because the … Read more
Challenge Thomas Heatherwick’s 2.4-acre, $260 million Chelsea Park at Pier 55, (aka Little Island) is an elevated park built on piles. The “island” was conceived by Thomas Heatherwick, an English designer and founder of Heatherwick Studios in London, to resemble a leaf floating on water. Solution As a subcontractor to Weeks Marine, Inc., GZA’s Contractor … Read more
Challenge The Fairfield Road at IL Route 176 Junction project located in Unincorporated Lake County, Illinois, included reconstruction of the Fairfield Road and IL Route 176 intersection, encompassing approximately 6,600 feet or roadway reconstruction, approximately 7,000 feet of bike path reconfiguration, two bike path underpasses of IL Route 176, three wetland/open water stormwater basins, approximately … Read more
Challenge GZA has provided geotechnical and civil engineering services on 14 Independent Spent Fuel Storage Facilities (ISFSIs) at nuclear power plants throughout the U.S. in since 2002 to address the safe storage of spent fuel at the plant sites since a permanent disposal repository by the federal government is not available. During 2008 and 2009, … Read more
Challenge PCCC campuses are in both urban and suburban locations with varied environmental and regulatory obligations. Solution Under an on-call contract, GZA has provided multi-disciplinary services for this institution. Stormwater Pollution Prevention (SPP) Plan: GZA updated the college’s SPP Plan in 2022 for all three campuses, in compliance with NJDEP Permit requirements. Landfill Removal Assessment: … Read more
This project for the NJ Department of Transportation (NJDOT) comprised the installation of a new, above ground fuel facility and standby generator at one of the agency’s maintenance yards. GZA served as sub-consultant on the team, providing demolition specifications for existing fuel facility structures, geotechnical engineering for new facilities, and hazardous materials services and structural … Read more
Challenge This 20-acre brownfield site straddled two townships, comprised two parcels separated by a railroad line, was adjacent to wetlands, and had been used for chemical manufacture and storage for 85 years. GZA was retained to close this complex New Jersey Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA) case which had been initiated prior to our clients’ … Read more
Challenge Soil and groundwater contamination was identified at this active municipal refueling station when a 6,000-gallon gasoline underground storage tank (UST) was removed in 1995 by others. Our project team became involved during the Remedial Investigation phase when we took over the project from another consultant. The station, necessary to refuel police and other municipal … Read more
GZA has provided engineering services for the design and structural remediation of four primary settling tanks at the Bergen County Sewerage Plant. These rectangular, reinforced concrete structures, measuring 35’ x 87.5’ and 10.5’ deep, hold wastewater. Challenge The tanks were originally constructed in the 1950s on timber piles which have since deteriorated. Tank #4 had … Read more
Under an on-call contract with the New Jersey Schools Development Authority (NJSDA) to provide Site Consultant Services, including K-12 school facility projects throughout the state, GZA has conducted numerous hazardous materials, environmental, flood hazard, and geotechnical engineering projects. Challenge In addition to protecting the health and safety of students, staff and administrators, collaboration with occupants, … Read more
Challenge A solar developer with significant success developing rooftop solar arrays in the New Jersey Community Solar Program sought GZA’s assistance to identify potentially suitable landfills, brownfields, or other known contaminated sites to expand into ground-mounted solar arrays. With over 13,500 potential sites in New Jersey, the developer knew they needed an automated way to … Read more
Challenge South Quay Marine Terminal is an undeveloped waterfront site along the Providence River in East Providence, Rhode Island. The site presents up to 80 acres of developable land, with an estimated 1,075 linear feet of quayside that will function as a highly flexible, high-capacity intermodal shipping facility designed to support a variety of cargo, … Read more