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Hitachi Zaxis ZX160 with engcon EC-Oil Automatic Quick Hitch System, EC219 Tiltrotator, Compactor Plate and a Rammer breaker. Contractor: Sundsvalls Grävteknik. Operator: Patrik Garefelt. Photo: Sten Strömgren
OKINAWA, Japan (Sept. 7, 2021) Builder Constructionman Samuel Davidson (left) and Constructionman Electrician Constructionman Courtney Roberts, both assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 5, use a sifter to separate large rocks to extract dirt for backfilling a wash-rack project. The U.S. Navy Seabees assigned to NMCB-5 are deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet, supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific, strengthening our network of allies and partners, and providing general engineering and civil support to joint operational forces. Homeported out of Port Hueneme, California, NMCB-5 has 10 detail sites deployed throughout the U.S. and Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Utilitiesman Constructionman William Ramirez)
Simple tube beads with pattern backfilled. Some of these pattern were made using Kor Tools and other free-hand in a technique shown to me by Nikolina
Made in shop during the week from discarded "Trex" decking.
Were all about green. There has not been one load of trash taken
away. Concrete, block, and non decomposing debris used for backfill !
A bulldozer enters the left side drift of the future north platform cavern to temporarily backfill a portion of tunnel.
Position your beads onto the glue. If you can gently backfill the bead holes with more glue to secure better.
Leave UPSIDE-DOWN to dry!!!
Looking north at construction of the MacArthur Ditch contract (B) and borrow site (A). The backfill continues northward into the Kissimmee River Restoration Project Phase I restoration area floodplain.
As fill is added to the trench around the new culvert under SR 532 near Stanwood, workers are continuously compacting it.
The new culvert will improve fish passage in Secret Creek. Right now salmon and steelhead in the creek have to first find and then swim through a 4-foot diameter pipe under the highway. The 18-foot wide and 10-foot tall wider will improve habitat for fish and other wildlife in the area.
Construction crews completed building the structure of the support for the future Evergreen Point Road lid as concrete workers prepare to pump concrete into it from the top.
polymer clay over a scrap clay armature.
backfilled, sanded and buffed.
trying to recreate the night sky. i used a metalic blue polymer clay and glitter.
unfortunately no matter how much glitter i added the effect wasn't nearly as strong as i wanted
Heavy equipment worked in concert to dig a trench and then install a drainage culvert near the SR 520 interchange at 84th Avenue Northeast.
Howrah Bridge is a cantilever bridge with a suspended span over the Hooghly River in West Bengal, India. Commissioned in 1943, the bridge was originally named the New Howrah Bridge, because it replaced a pontoon bridge at the same location linking the two cities of Howrah and Kolkata (Calcutta). On 14 June 1965 it was renamed Rabindra Setu after the great Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore, who was the first Indian and Asian Nobel laureate. It is still popularly known as the Howrah Bridge.
The bridge is one of two on the Hooghly River and is a famous symbol of Kolkata and West Bengal. The other bridges are the Vidyasagar Setu (popularly called the Second Hooghly Bridge), the Vivekananda Setu, and the newly built Nivedita Setu. It weathers the storms of the Bay of Bengal region, carrying a daily traffic of approximately 100,000 vehicles and possibly more than 150,000 pedestrians, easily making it the busiest cantilever bridge in the world. The third-longest cantilever bridge at the time of its construction, the Howrah Bridge is the sixth-longest bridge of its type in the world.
HISTORY
1862 PROPOSAL BY TURNBULL
In 1862, the Government of Bengal asked George Turnbull, Chief Engineer of the East India Railway Company to study the feasibility of bridging the Hooghly River — he had recently established the company's rail terminus in Howrah. He reported on 29 March with large-scale drawings and estimates that:
- The foundations for a bridge at Calcutta would be at a considerable depth and cost because of the depth of the mud there.
- The impediment to shipping would be considerable.
- A good place for the bridge was at Pulta Ghat "about a dozen miles north of Calcutta" where a "bed of stiff clay - A suspended-girder bridge of five spans of 400 feet and two spans of 200 feet would be ideal.
The bridge was not built.
PONTOON BRIDGE
In view of the increasing traffic across the Hooghly river, a committee was appointed in 1855-56 to review alternatives for constructing a bridge across it. The plan was shelved in 1859-60, to be revived in 1868, when it was decided that a bridge should be constructed and a newly appointed trust vested to manage it. The Calcutta Port Trust was founded in 1870, and the Legislative department of the then Government of Bengal passed the Howrah Bridge Act in the year 1871 under the Bengal Act IX of 1871, empowering the Lieutenant-Governor to have the bridge constructed with Government capital under the aegis of the Port Commissioners. Eventually a contract was signed with Sir Bradford Leslie to construct a pontoon bridge. Different parts were constructed in England and shipped to Calcutta, where they were assembled. The assembling period was fraught with problems. The bridge was considerably damaged by the great cyclone on 20 March 1874. A steamer named Egeria broke from her moorings and collided head-on with the bridge, sinking three pontoons and damaging nearly 200 feet of the bridge. The bridge was completed in 1874, at a total cost of ₹2.2 million, and opened to traffic on 17 October of that year. The bridge was then 1528 ft. long and 62 ft. wide, with 7-foot wide pavements on either side. Initially the bridge was periodically unfastened to allow steamers and other marine vehicles to pass through. Before 1906, the bridge used to be undone for the passage of vessels during daytime only. Since June of that year it started opening at night for all vessels except ocean steamers, which were required to pass through during daytime. From 19 August 1879, the bridge was illuminated by electric lamp-posts, powered by the dynamo at the Mullick Ghat Pumping Station. As the bridge could not handle the rapidly increasing load, the Port Commissioners started planning in 1905 for a new improved bridge.
PLANS FOR A NEW BRIDGE
In 1906 the Port Commission appointed a committee headed by R.S. Highet, Chief Engineer, East Indian Railway and W.B. MacCabe, Chief Engineer, Calcutta Corporation. They submitted a report stating that Bullock carts formed the eight-thirteenths of the vehicular traffic (as observed on 27 August 1906, the heaviest day's traffic observed in the port of Commissioners 16 days' Census of the vehicular traffic across the existing bridge). The roadway on the existing bridge is 48 feet wide except at the shore spans where it is only 43 feet in roadways, each 21 feet 6 inches wide. The roadway on the new bridge would be wide enough to take at least two lines of vehicular traffic and one line of trams in each direction and two roadways each 30 feet wide, giving a total width of 60 feet of road way which are quite sufficient for this purpose . . . . . The traffic across the existing floating bridge Calcutta & Howrah is very heavy and it is obvious if the new bridge is to be on the same site as the existing bridge, then unless a temporary bridge is provided, there will be serious interruptions to the traffic while existing bridge is being moved to one side to allow the new bridge to be erected on the same site as the present bridge.
The committee considered six options:
- Large ferry steamers capable of carrying vehicular load (set up cost ₹900,000, annual cost ₹437,000)
- A transporters bridge (set up cost ₹2 million)
- A tunnel (set up cost ₹338.2 million, annual maintenance cost ₹1779,000)
- A bridge on piers (set up cost ₹22.5 million)
- A floating bridge (set up cost ₹2140,000, annual maintenance cost ₹200,000)
- An arched bridge
The committee eventually decided on a floating bridge. It extended tenders to 23 firms for its design and construction. Prize money of £ 3,000 (₹45,000, at the then exchange rate) was declared for the firm whose design would be accepted.
PLANNING AND ESTIMATION
The initial construction process of the bridge was stalled due to the World War I, although the bridge was partially renewed in 1917 and 1927. In 1921 a committee of engineers named the 'Mukherjee Committee' was formed, headed by Sir R.N. Mukherjee, Sir Clement Hindley, Chairman of Calcutta Port Trust and J. McGlashan, Chief Engineer. They referred the matter to Sir Basil Mott, who proposed a single span arch bridge.
In 1922 the New Howrah Bridge Commission was set up, to which the Mukherjee Committee submitted its report. In 1926 the New Howrah Bridge Act passed. In 1930 the Goode Committee was formed, comprising S.W. Goode as President, S.N. Mallick, and W.H. Thompson, to investigate and report on the advisability of constructing a pier bridge between Calcutta and Howrah. Based on their recommendation, M/s. Rendel, Palmer and Tritton were asked to consider the construction of a suspension bridge of a particular design prepared by their chief draftsman Mr. Walton. On basis of the report, a global tender was floated. The lowest bid came from a German company, but due to increasing political tensions between Germany and Great Britain in 1935, it was not given the contract. The Braithwaite Burn and Jessop Construction Company Limited was awarded the construction contract that year. The New Howrah Bridge Act was amended in 1935 to reflect this, and construction of the bridge started the next year.
CONSTRUCTION
The bridge does not have nuts and bolts, but was formed by riveting the whole structure. It consumed 26,500 tons of steel, out of which 23,000 tons of high-tensile alloy steel, known as Tiscrom, were supplied by Tata Steel. The main tower was constructed with single monolith caissons of dimensions 55.31 x 24.8 m with 21 shafts, each 6.25 metre square. The Chief Engineer of the Port Trust, Mr. J. McGlashan, wanted to replace the pontoon bridge, with a permanent structure, as the present bridge interfered with North/South river traffic. Work could not be started as World War I (1914-1918) broke out. Then in 1926 a commission under the Chairmanship of Sir R. N. Mukherjee recommended a suspension bridge of a particular type to be built across the River Hoogly. The bridge was designed by one Mr. Walton of M/s Rendel, Palmer & Triton. The order for construction and erection was placed on M/s.Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company in 1939. Again World War II (1939-1945 ) intervened. All the steel that was to come from England were diverted for war effort in Europe. Out of 26,000 tons of steel, that was required for the bridge, only 3000 tons were supplied from England. In spite of the Japanese threat the then (British) Government of India pressed on with the construction. Tata Steel were asked to supply the remaining 23,000 tons of high tension steel. The Tatas developed the quality of steel required for the bridge and called it Tiscom. The entire 23,000 tons was supplied in time. The fabrication and erection work was awarded to a local engineering firm of Howrah - The Braithwaite Burn & Jessop Construction Company. The two anchorage caissons were each 16.4 m by 8.2 m, with two wells 4.9 m square. The caissons were so designed that the working chambers within the shafts could be temporarily enclosed by steel diaphragms to allow work under compressed air if required. The caisson at Kolkata side was set at 31.41 m and that at Howrah side at 26.53 m below ground level.
One night, during the process of grabbing out the muck to enable the caisson to move, the ground below it yielded, and the entire mass plunged two feet, shaking the ground. The impact of this was so intense that the seismograph at Kidderpore registered it as an earthquake and a Hindu temple on the shore was destroyed, although it was subsequently rebuilt. While muck was being cleared, numerous varieties of objects were brought up, including anchors, grappling irons, cannons, cannonballs, brass vessels, and coins dating back to the East India Company. The job of sinking the caissons was carried out round-the-clock at a rate of a foot or more per day. The caissons were sunk through soft river deposits to a stiff yellow clay 26.5 m below ground level. The accuracy of sinking the huge caissons was exceptionally precise, within 50–75 mm of the true position. After penetrating 2.1 m into clay, all shafts were plugged with concrete after individual dewatering, with some 5 m of backfilling in adjacent shafts. The main piers on the Howrah side were sunk by open wheel dredging, while those on the Kolkata side required compressed air to counter running sand. The air pressure maintained was about 40 lbs per square inch (2.8 bar), which required about 500 workers to be employed. Whenever excessively soft soil was encountered, the shafts symmetrical to the caisson axes were left unexcavated to allow strict control. In very stiff clays, a large number of the internal wells were completely undercut, allowing the whole weight of the caisson to be carried by the outside skin friction and the bearing under the external wall. Skin friction on the outside of the monolith walls was estimated at 29 kN/m2 while loads on the cutting edge in clay overlying the founding stratum reached 100 tonnes/m. The work on the foundation was completed on November 1938.
By the end of 1940, the erection of the cantilevered arms was commenced and was completed in mid-summer of 1941. The two halves of the suspended span, each 86 m long and weighing 2,000 tons, were built in December 1941. The bridge was erected by commencing at the two anchor spans and advancing towards the center, with the use of creeper cranes moving along the upper chord. 16 hydraulic jacks, each of which had an 800-ton capacity, were pressed into service to join the two halves of the suspended span.
The entire project cost ₹25 million (£2,463,887). The project was a pioneer in bridge construction, particularly in India, but the government did not have a formal opening of the bridge due to fears of attacks by Japanese planes fighting the Allied Powers. Japan had attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The first vehicle to use the bridge was a solitary tram.
DESCRIPTION
SPECIFICATIONS
When commissioned in 1943, Howrah was the 3rd-longest cantilever bridge in the world, behind Pont de Québec (549 metres) in Canada and Forth Bridge (521 metres) in Scotland. It has since been surpassed by three bridges, making it the sixth-longest cantilever bridge in the world in 2013. It is a Suspension type Balanced Cantilever bridge, with a central span of 460 m between centers of main towers and a suspended span of 172 m. The main towers are 85 m high above the monoliths and 23 m apart at the top. The anchor arms are 99 m each, while the cantilever arms are 143 m each. The bridge deck hangs from panel points in the lower chord of the main trusses with 39 pairs of hangers. The roadways beyond the towers are supported from ground, leaving the anchor arms free from deck load. The deck system includes cross girders suspended between the pairs of hangers by a pinned connection. Six rows of longitudinal stringer girders are arranged between cross girders. Floor beams are supported transversally on top of the stringers, while themselves supporting a continuous pressed steel troughing system surfaced with concrete.
The longitudinal expansion and lateral sway movement of the deck are taken care of by expansion and articulation joints. There are two main expansion joints, one at each interface between the suspended span and the cantilever arms, and there are others at the towers and at the interface of the steel and concrete structures at both approach. There are total 8 articulation joints, 3 at each of the cantilever arms and 1 each in the suspended portion. These joints divide the bridge into segments with vertical pin connection between them to facilitate rotational movements of the deck. The bridge deck has longitudinal ruling gradient of 1 in 40 from either end, joined by a vertical curve of radius 1,200 m. The cross gradient of deck is 1 in 48 between kerbs.
TRAFFIC
The bridge serves as the gateway to Kolkata, connecting it to the Howrah Station, which is one of the four intercity train stations serving Howrah and Kolkata. As such, it carries the near entirety of the traffic to and from the station, taking its average daily traffic close to nearly 150,000 pedestrians and 100,000 vehicles. In 1946 a census was taken to take a count of the daily traffic, it amounted to 27,400 vehicles, 121,100 pedestrians and 2,997 cattle. The bulk of the vehicular traffic comes from buses and cars. Prior to 1993 the bridge used to carry trams also. Trams departed from the terminus at Howrah station towards Rajabazar, Sealdah, High Court, Dalhousie Square, Park Circus and Shyambazar. From 1993 the tram services on the bridge were discontinued due to increasing load on the bridge. However the bridge still continues to carry much more than the expected load. A 2007 report revealed that nearly 90,000 vehicles were plying on the bridge daily (15,000 of which were goods-carrying), though its load-bearing capacity is only 60,000. One of the main reasons of overloading was that although vehicles carrying up to 15 tonnes are allowed on the structure, vehicles with 12-18 wheels and carrying load up to 25 tonnes often plied on it. 31 May 2007 onwards, overloaded trucks were banned from plying on the bridge, and were redirected to the Vidyasagar Setu instead. The road is flanked by footpaths of width 15 feet, and they swarm with pedestrians.
MAINTENANCE
The Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) is vested with the maintenance of the bridge. The bridge has been subject to damage from vehicles due to rash driving, and corrosion due to atmospheric conditions and biological wastes. On October 2008, 6 high-tech surveillance cameras were placed to monitor the entire 705 metres long and 30 metres wide structure from the control room. Two of the cameras were placed under the floor of the bridge to track the movement of barges, steamers and boats on the river, while the other four were fixed to the first layer of beams — one at each end and two in the middle — to monitor vehicle movements. This was in response to substantial damage caused to the bridge from collisions with vehicles, so that compensation could be claimed from the miscreants.
Corrosion has been caused by bird droppings and human spitting. An investigation in 2003 revealed that as a result of prolonged chemical reaction caused by continuous collection of bird excreta, several joints and parts of the bridge were damaged. As an immediate measure, the Kolkata Port Trust engaged contractors to regularly clean the bird droppings, at an annual expense of ₹500000 (US$7,900). In 2004, KoPT spent ₹6.5 million (US$100,000) to paint the entirety of 2.2 million square metres (24 million square feet) of the bridge. Two coats of aluminium paint, with a primer of zinc chromate before that, was applied on the bridge, requiring a total of 26,500 litres of paint.
The bridge is also considerably damaged by human spitting. A technical inspection by Port Trust officials in 2011 revealed that spitting had reduced the thickness of the steel hoods protecting the pillars from six to less than three millimeters since 2007. The hangers need those hoods at the base to prevent water seeping into the junction of the cross-girders and hangers, and damage to the hoods can jeopardize the safety of the bridge. KoPT announced that it will spend ₹2 million (US$32,000) on covering the base of the steel pillars with fibreglass casing to prevent spit from corroding them.
On 24 June 2005, a private cargo vessel M V Mani, belonging to the Ganges Water Transport Pvt. Ltd, while trying to pass under the bridge during high tide, had its funnel stuck underneath for three hours, causing substantial damage worth about ₹15 million to the stringer and longitudinal girder of the bridge. Some of the 40 cross-girders were also broken. Two of four trolley guides, bolted and welded with the girders, were extensively damaged. Nearly 350 metres of 700 metres of the track were twisted beyond repair. The damage was so severe that KoPT requested help from Rendall-Palmer & Tritton Limited, the original consultant on the bridge from UK. KoPT also contacted SAIL to provide 'matching steel' used during its construction in 1943, for the repairs. For the repair costing around ₹5 million (US$79,000), about 8 tonnes of steel was used. The repairs were completed in early 2006.
CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE
The bridge has been shown in numerous films, such as Bimal Roy's 1953 film Do Bigha Zamin, Ritwik Ghatak's Bari Theke Paliye in 1958, Satyajit Ray's Parash Pathar in the same year, Mrinal Sen's Neel Akasher Neechey in 1959, Shakti Samanta's Howrah Bridge (1958), that featured the famous song Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu and China Town (1962) and Amar Prem (1971), Amar Jeet's 1965 Teen Devian in 1965, Mrinal Sen's 1972 National Award winning Bengali film Calcutta 71 and Sen's Calcutta Trilogy its sequel in 1973, Padatik, Richard Attenborough's 1982 Academy Award winning film Gandhi, Goutam Ghose's 1984 Hindi film Paar, Raj Kapoor's Ram Teri Ganga Maili in 1985, Nicolas Klotz's The Bengali Night in 1988, Roland Joffé's English language film City of Joy in 1992, Florian Gallenberger's Bengali film Shadows of Time in 2004, Mani Ratnam's Bollywood film Yuva in 2004, Pradeep Sarkar's 2005 Bollywood film Parineeta, Subhrajit Mitra's 2008 Bengali film Mon Amour: Shesher Kobita Revisited, Mira Nair's 2006 film The Namesake, Blessy's 2008 Malayalam Film Calcutta News, Surya Sivakumar's 2009 Tamil film Aadhavan, Imtiaz Ali's 2009 Hindi film Love Aaj Kal, Abhik Mukhopadhyay's 2010 Bengali film Ekti Tarar Khonje, Sujoy Ghosh's 2012 Bollywood film Kahaani, Anurag Basu's 2012 Hindi film Barfi!, Riingo Banerjee's 2012 Bengali film Na Hannyate, Rana Basu's 2013 Bengali film Namte Namte, and Ali Abbas Zafar's 2014 Hindi film Gunday and the 2015 YRF release from director Dibakar Banerjee's Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!also features some scenes on this iconic bridge.
WIKIPEDIA
A collection of Late Neolithic Grooved Ware pottery that had been backfilled into a shallow pit, animal bone and worked flints were also recovered.
For more information about the site click here
Mevlüt hauling backfill, cleaning out the new excavation area in the 4040 at the beginning of the 2012 season.
Construction of the Kissimmee River Restoration Project MacArthur Ditch contract continued through July as barges loaded down with fill made their way to the backfill area.
New farmer Leonardo Aguila shows U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS) Soil Conservationist Axel Sanchez the progress he has made with the underground outlet pipeline project on his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, CA, on Nov. 11, 2018. Soon the soil they stand on will be backfilled over the black drainage pipe to protect and secure it in place.
Leonardo Aguila is extremely proud of his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, Calif. The mature orchard of avocado trees, on its sunny hillside near San Diego, caught the eye of this Navy veteran three years ago, and he knew he had to buy it. Some of the trees showed signs of stress due to lack of irrigation from the high cost of water and regular drought - it just needed some tender loving care. Aguila knew he was the one to provide it.
Born in the Philippines, Aguila immigrated to Guam, a United States territory, as a young man and promptly enlisted into the U.S. Navy. He served in the military for 17 years and dedicated another 17 years as a civilian employee for the Department of the Navy. Once retired, he saw the avocado orchard and longed to live the life he remembered as a child, growing up near orchards of mango, coconut, and banana farming in the Philippines.
But in the Philippines, the island received plenty of rainfall to nourish plants. In California, farms need efficient irrigation to help the trees stay healthy. And, due to the orchard being on a steep hillside with erosion concerns, something had to be done to prevent the hillside from being washed away when it rained.
âThe greatest challenge I have is during the summer,â said Aguila. âOn average, I paid $800 per month for irrigation water. Even if I do not use a drop, I still get charged a minimum of $200 per month. So, I need to conserve and use as little as needed.â
Looking for help, Aguila discovered the USDA Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), where he met Soil Conservationists Daniel Holtz and Axel Sanchez. Together, they came up with a conservation plan, and eventually applied for financial assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), to address gully erosion with an underground outlet pipeline, installed a new, efficient irrigation system, and began an irrigation water management (IWM) regimen.
Additionally, Aguila has diversified his crops with dragon fruit and cherimoyas, and propagates the plants himself, producing three varieties of dragon fruit: American Beauty (red flesh), Delight (white flesh), and Physical Graffiti (light purple flesh). In the future, he plans to begin selling these potted plants to help him cover operating costs, while the orchard matures and recovers from a prolonged drought.
Aguila remains committed to learning more and more about farming. Recently, he planted 100 more avocado trees and enjoyed his daily work of watering the potted dragon fruit, removing hungry snails, building more trellis, and various other projects. Additionally, he has been attempting to establish local Asian markets for commercial customers.
âThe best advice I can give to other farmers is to âget your hands dirty,ââ added Aguila. âDon't depend on one crop. Try to diversify as much as possible. And, conserve resources as much as possible as well.â
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the Departmentâs focal point for the nationâs farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs, and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs.
The agencies and services supporting FPAC are the Farm Service Agency (FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
The Natural Resources Conservation Service has a proud history of supporting Americaâs farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners for more than 80 years. USDA helps people make investments in their operations and local communities to keep working lands working, boost rural economies, increase the competitiveness of American agriculture, and improve the quality of our air, water, soil, and habitat.
From weather to pests, and from a lack of time to markets, each American farmer faces a unique set of challenges. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) helps agricultural producers confront those challenges â all while conserving natural resources like soil, water, and air.
This voluntary conservation program helps producers make conservation work for them. Together, NRCS and producers invest in solutions that conserve natural resources for the future while also improving agricultural operations.
Through EQIP, NRCS provides agricultural producers with financial resources and one-on-one help to plan and implement improvements, or what NRCS calls conservation practices. Using these practices can lead to cleaner water and air, healthier soil and better wildlife habitat, all while improving agricultural operations. Through EQIP, you can voluntarily implement conservation practices and NRCS co-invests in these practices with you.
USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.
Dakota Meyer, 23, takes a quick break from moving hundreds of pounds of concrete to be used to backfill around a pond in Greensburg, Ky., Aug. 2. Meyer says he is happy pouring concrete because it is similar to his previous job as an infantryman in the Marine Corps. Meyer will be receiving the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest award for valor, from President Barack Obama in Washington, Sept. 15, making him the first living Marine recipient since the Vietnam War. Meyer was assigned to Embedded Training Team 2-8 advising the Afghan National Army in the eastern provinces bordering Pakistan. He will be awarded for heroic actions in Ganjgal, Afghanistan, Sept. 8, 2009. Photo by Sgt. Jimmy D. Shea
Dakota Meyer, 23, moves hundreds of pounds of concrete that will be used to backfill around a pond in Greensburg, Ky., Aug. 2. Meyer says he is happy pouring concrete because it is similar to his previous job as an infantryman in the Marine Corps. Meyer will be receiving the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest award for valor, from President Barack Obama in Washington, Sept. 15, making him the first living Marine recipient since the Vietnam War. Meyer was assigned to Embedded Training Team 2-8 advising the Afghan National Army in the eastern provinces bordering Pakistan. He will be awarded for heroic actions in Ganjgal, Afghanistan, Sept. 8, 2009. Photo by Sgt. Jimmy D. Shea
New farmer Leonardo Aguila shows U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS) Soil Conservationist Axel Sanchez the progress he has made with the underground outlet pipeline project on his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, CA, on Nov. 11, 2018. Soon the soil they stand on will be backfilled over the black drainage pipe to protect and secure it in place.
Leonardo Aguila is extremely proud of his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, Calif. The mature orchard of avocado trees, on its sunny hillside near San Diego, caught the eye of this Navy veteran three years ago, and he knew he had to buy it. Some of the trees showed signs of stress due to lack of irrigation from the high cost of water and regular drought - it just needed some tender loving care. Aguila knew he was the one to provide it.
Born in the Philippines, Aguila immigrated to Guam, a United States territory, as a young man and promptly enlisted into the U.S. Navy. He served in the military for 17 years and dedicated another 17 years as a civilian employee for the Department of the Navy. Once retired, he saw the avocado orchard and longed to live the life he remembered as a child, growing up near orchards of mango, coconut, and banana farming in the Philippines.
But in the Philippines, the island received plenty of rainfall to nourish plants. In California, farms need efficient irrigation to help the trees stay healthy. And, due to the orchard being on a steep hillside with erosion concerns, something had to be done to prevent the hillside from being washed away when it rained.
âThe greatest challenge I have is during the summer,â said Aguila. âOn average, I paid $800 per month for irrigation water. Even if I do not use a drop, I still get charged a minimum of $200 per month. So, I need to conserve and use as little as needed.â
Looking for help, Aguila discovered the USDA Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), where he met Soil Conservationists Daniel Holtz and Axel Sanchez. Together, they came up with a conservation plan, and eventually applied for financial assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), to address gully erosion with an underground outlet pipeline, installed a new, efficient irrigation system, and began an irrigation water management (IWM) regimen.
Additionally, Aguila has diversified his crops with dragon fruit and cherimoyas, and propagates the plants himself, producing three varieties of dragon fruit: American Beauty (red flesh), Delight (white flesh), and Physical Graffiti (light purple flesh). In the future, he plans to begin selling these potted plants to help him cover operating costs, while the orchard matures and recovers from a prolonged drought.
Aguila remains committed to learning more and more about farming. Recently, he planted 100 more avocado trees and enjoyed his daily work of watering the potted dragon fruit, removing hungry snails, building more trellis, and various other projects. Additionally, he has been attempting to establish local Asian markets for commercial customers.
âThe best advice I can give to other farmers is to âget your hands dirty,ââ added Aguila. âDon't depend on one crop. Try to diversify as much as possible. And, conserve resources as much as possible as well.â
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the Departmentâs focal point for the nationâs farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs, and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs.
The agencies and services supporting FPAC are the Farm Service Agency (FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
The Natural Resources Conservation Service has a proud history of supporting Americaâs farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners for more than 80 years. USDA helps people make investments in their operations and local communities to keep working lands working, boost rural economies, increase the competitiveness of American agriculture, and improve the quality of our air, water, soil, and habitat.
From weather to pests, and from a lack of time to markets, each American farmer faces a unique set of challenges. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) helps agricultural producers confront those challenges â all while conserving natural resources like soil, water, and air.
This voluntary conservation program helps producers make conservation work for them. Together, NRCS and producers invest in solutions that conserve natural resources for the future while also improving agricultural operations.
Through EQIP, NRCS provides agricultural producers with financial resources and one-on-one help to plan and implement improvements, or what NRCS calls conservation practices. Using these practices can lead to cleaner water and air, healthier soil and better wildlife habitat, all while improving agricultural operations. Through EQIP, you can voluntarily implement conservation practices and NRCS co-invests in these practices with you.
USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.
Taken in approximately August 1977 and used in lecture by JR James at the Department of Town and Regional Planning at The University of Sheffield.
New farmer Leonardo Aguila shows U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS) Soil Conservationist Axel Sanchez the progress he has made with the underground outlet pipeline project on his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, CA, on Nov. 11, 2018. Soon the soil they stand on will be backfilled over the black drainage pipe to protect and secure it in place.
Leonardo Aguila is extremely proud of his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, Calif. The mature orchard of avocado trees, on its sunny hillside near San Diego, caught the eye of this Navy veteran three years ago, and he knew he had to buy it. Some of the trees showed signs of stress due to lack of irrigation from the high cost of water and regular drought - it just needed some tender loving care. Aguila knew he was the one to provide it.
Born in the Philippines, Aguila immigrated to Guam, a United States territory, as a young man and promptly enlisted into the U.S. Navy. He served in the military for 17 years and dedicated another 17 years as a civilian employee for the Department of the Navy. Once retired, he saw the avocado orchard and longed to live the life he remembered as a child, growing up near orchards of mango, coconut, and banana farming in the Philippines.
But in the Philippines, the island received plenty of rainfall to nourish plants. In California, farms need efficient irrigation to help the trees stay healthy. And, due to the orchard being on a steep hillside with erosion concerns, something had to be done to prevent the hillside from being washed away when it rained.
âThe greatest challenge I have is during the summer,â said Aguila. âOn average, I paid $800 per month for irrigation water. Even if I do not use a drop, I still get charged a minimum of $200 per month. So, I need to conserve and use as little as needed.â
Looking for help, Aguila discovered the USDA Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), where he met Soil Conservationists Daniel Holtz and Axel Sanchez. Together, they came up with a conservation plan, and eventually applied for financial assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), to address gully erosion with an underground outlet pipeline, installed a new, efficient irrigation system, and began an irrigation water management (IWM) regimen.
Additionally, Aguila has diversified his crops with dragon fruit and cherimoyas, and propagates the plants himself, producing three varieties of dragon fruit: American Beauty (red flesh), Delight (white flesh), and Physical Graffiti (light purple flesh). In the future, he plans to begin selling these potted plants to help him cover operating costs, while the orchard matures and recovers from a prolonged drought.
Aguila remains committed to learning more and more about farming. Recently, he planted 100 more avocado trees and enjoyed his daily work of watering the potted dragon fruit, removing hungry snails, building more trellis, and various other projects. Additionally, he has been attempting to establish local Asian markets for commercial customers.
âThe best advice I can give to other farmers is to âget your hands dirty,ââ added Aguila. âDon't depend on one crop. Try to diversify as much as possible. And, conserve resources as much as possible as well.â
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the Departmentâs focal point for the nationâs farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs, and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs.
The agencies and services supporting FPAC are the Farm Service Agency (FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
The Natural Resources Conservation Service has a proud history of supporting Americaâs farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners for more than 80 years. USDA helps people make investments in their operations and local communities to keep working lands working, boost rural economies, increase the competitiveness of American agriculture, and improve the quality of our air, water, soil, and habitat.
From weather to pests, and from a lack of time to markets, each American farmer faces a unique set of challenges. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) helps agricultural producers confront those challenges â all while conserving natural resources like soil, water, and air.
This voluntary conservation program helps producers make conservation work for them. Together, NRCS and producers invest in solutions that conserve natural resources for the future while also improving agricultural operations.
Through EQIP, NRCS provides agricultural producers with financial resources and one-on-one help to plan and implement improvements, or what NRCS calls conservation practices. Using these practices can lead to cleaner water and air, healthier soil and better wildlife habitat, all while improving agricultural operations. Through EQIP, you can voluntarily implement conservation practices and NRCS co-invests in these practices with you.
USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.
New farmer Leonardo Aguila shows U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS) Soil Conservationist Axel Sanchez the progress he has made with the underground outlet pipeline project on his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, CA, on Nov. 11, 2018. Soon the soil they stand on will be backfilled over the black drainage pipe to protect and secure it in place.
Leonardo Aguila is extremely proud of his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, Calif. The mature orchard of avocado trees, on its sunny hillside near San Diego, caught the eye of this Navy veteran three years ago, and he knew he had to buy it. Some of the trees showed signs of stress due to lack of irrigation from the high cost of water and regular drought - it just needed some tender loving care. Aguila knew he was the one to provide it.
Born in the Philippines, Aguila immigrated to Guam, a United States territory, as a young man and promptly enlisted into the U.S. Navy. He served in the military for 17 years and dedicated another 17 years as a civilian employee for the Department of the Navy. Once retired, he saw the avocado orchard and longed to live the life he remembered as a child, growing up near orchards of mango, coconut, and banana farming in the Philippines.
But in the Philippines, the island received plenty of rainfall to nourish plants. In California, farms need efficient irrigation to help the trees stay healthy. And, due to the orchard being on a steep hillside with erosion concerns, something had to be done to prevent the hillside from being washed away when it rained.
âThe greatest challenge I have is during the summer,â said Aguila. âOn average, I paid $800 per month for irrigation water. Even if I do not use a drop, I still get charged a minimum of $200 per month. So, I need to conserve and use as little as needed.â
Looking for help, Aguila discovered the USDA Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), where he met Soil Conservationists Daniel Holtz and Axel Sanchez. Together, they came up with a conservation plan, and eventually applied for financial assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), to address gully erosion with an underground outlet pipeline, installed a new, efficient irrigation system, and began an irrigation water management (IWM) regimen.
Additionally, Aguila has diversified his crops with dragon fruit and cherimoyas, and propagates the plants himself, producing three varieties of dragon fruit: American Beauty (red flesh), Delight (white flesh), and Physical Graffiti (light purple flesh). In the future, he plans to begin selling these potted plants to help him cover operating costs, while the orchard matures and recovers from a prolonged drought.
Aguila remains committed to learning more and more about farming. Recently, he planted 100 more avocado trees and enjoyed his daily work of watering the potted dragon fruit, removing hungry snails, building more trellis, and various other projects. Additionally, he has been attempting to establish local Asian markets for commercial customers.
âThe best advice I can give to other farmers is to âget your hands dirty,ââ added Aguila. âDon't depend on one crop. Try to diversify as much as possible. And, conserve resources as much as possible as well.â
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the Departmentâs focal point for the nationâs farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs, and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs.
The agencies and services supporting FPAC are the Farm Service Agency (FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
The Natural Resources Conservation Service has a proud history of supporting Americaâs farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners for more than 80 years. USDA helps people make investments in their operations and local communities to keep working lands working, boost rural economies, increase the competitiveness of American agriculture, and improve the quality of our air, water, soil, and habitat.
From weather to pests, and from a lack of time to markets, each American farmer faces a unique set of challenges. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) helps agricultural producers confront those challenges â all while conserving natural resources like soil, water, and air.
This voluntary conservation program helps producers make conservation work for them. Together, NRCS and producers invest in solutions that conserve natural resources for the future while also improving agricultural operations.
Through EQIP, NRCS provides agricultural producers with financial resources and one-on-one help to plan and implement improvements, or what NRCS calls conservation practices. Using these practices can lead to cleaner water and air, healthier soil and better wildlife habitat, all while improving agricultural operations. Through EQIP, you can voluntarily implement conservation practices and NRCS co-invests in these practices with you.
USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.
In 1239 Thibaut IV de Champagne (= "Theobald I of Navarre"), Count of Champagne, had led the "Barons' Crusade" to the Holy Land. When he returned home, he carried a piece of the "True Cross" with him.
This piece was kept in this church, that got built on swampy grounds. Destroyed by fire in the 14th century, the church got rebuilt again. During teh French Revolution, the nave was used as a gunpowder factury, while the choir wa converted into a "Temple of Reason".
The church was built with wooden foundations. Due to the unstable ground many backfillings were necessery. After the draining of the marsh the old foundations started to disintegrate and the church sank again, so it is under constant monitoring and restoration.
The piece of the Holy Cross was not the only souvenir Thibaut IV de Champagne brought home. It is said, that he introduced the "Damask rose" to Provins. Cultivation of roses is still important, and rose honey and rose candies are offered in the shops.
The Postcard
A postally unused postcard bearing no publisher's name. The card has an undivided back.
The Howrah Bridge
The Howrah Bridge is a balanced cantilever bridge over the Hooghly River in West Bengal. Commissioned in 1943, the bridge was originally named the New Howrah Bridge, because it replaced a pontoon bridge at the same location linking the cities of Howrah and Kolkata (Calcutta).
On the 14th. June 1965, it was renamed Rabindra Setu after the great Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore, who was the first Indian and Asian Nobel laureate. However it is still popularly known as the Howrah Bridge.
The bridge is one of four on the Hooghly River, and is a famous symbol of Kolkata and West Bengal. It carries a daily traffic of approximately 100,000 vehicles and more than 150,000 pedestrians, easily making it the busiest cantilever bridge in the world.
The third-longest cantilever bridge at the time of its construction, the Howrah Bridge is currently the sixth-longest bridge of its type in the world.
History of the Howrah Bridge
In view of the increasing traffic across the Hooghly river, a committee was appointed in 1855–56 to review alternatives for constructing a bridge across it. The plan was shelved in 1859–60.
In 1862, the Government of Bengal asked George Turnbull, chief engineer of the East Indian Railway Company to study the feasibility of bridging the Hooghly River. He had recently established the company's rail terminus in Howrah.
He reported on the 19th. March, with large-scale drawings and concluded that:
-- The foundations for a bridge at Calcutta would be at a considerable depth and cost because of the depth of the mud there.
-- The impediment to shipping would be considerable.
-- A good place for the bridge was at Pulta Ghat, about a dozen miles north of Calcutta, where a bed of stiff clay existed at no great depth under the river bed.
-- A suspended-girder bridge of five spans of 401 feet (122 m) and two spans 200 feet (61 m) would be ideal.
In 1868 it was decided that a bridge should be constructed, and a newly appointed trust vested to manage it. The Calcutta Port Trust was founded in 1870, and the the Howrah Bridge Act was passed in 1871, empowering the lieutenant-governor to have the bridge constructed with Government capital.
A contract was signed with Sir Bradford Leslie to construct a pontoon bridge. This was the bridge that gave its name to the Ghat.
Different parts of the bridge were constructed in England and shipped to Calcutta, where they were assembled. The assembling period was fraught with problems. The bridge was considerably damaged by the great cyclone of the 20th. March 1874.
A steamer named Egeria broke from her moorings and collided head-on with the bridge, sinking three pontoons and damaging nearly 200 feet of the bridge.
The bridge was completed in 1874, and opened to traffic on the 17th. October of that year. The bridge was then 1528 ft long and 62 ft wide, with 7-foot wide pavements on either side.
Initially the bridge was periodically unfastened to allow steamers and other marine vehicles to pass through. Before 1906, the bridge used to be undone for the passage of vessels during daytime only.
Since June of that year it started opening at night for all vessels except ocean steamers, which were required to pass through during daytime. From the 19th. August 1879, the bridge was illuminated by electric lamp-posts, powered by the dynamo at the Mullick Ghat Pumping Station.
Plans for a New Bridge
As the bridge could not handle the rapidly increasing load, the Port Commissioners started planning in 1905 for a new improved bridge.
In 1906 the Port Commission appointed a committee headed by R.S. Highet, chief engineer, East Indian Railway and W.B. MacCabe, chief engineer, Calcutta Corporation. They submitted a report stating that:
-- Bullock carts formed eight-thirteenths of the vehicular traffic across the existing bridge.
--The roadway on the existing bridge is 48 feet wide. The roadway on the new bridge would be wide enough to take at least two lines of vehicular traffic and one line of trams in each direction and two roadways each 30 feet wide, giving a total width of 60 feet of roadway which would be quite sufficient.
-- The traffic across the existing floating bridge between Calcutta & Howrah is very heavy and it is obvious if the new bridge is to be on the same site as the existing bridge, then unless a temporary bridge is provided, there will be serious interruptions to the traffic while existing bridge is being moved to one side to allow the new bridge to be erected on the same site as the present bridge.
The committee eventually decided on a floating bridge. It extended tenders to 23 firms for its design and construction. Prize money of £3,000 was declared for the firm whose design would be accepted.
The initial construction of the bridge was stalled due to the Great War, although the bridge was partially renewed in 1917 and 1927.
In 1921 a committee of engineers named the 'Mukherjee Committee' was formed, headed by R. N. Mukherjee, Sir Clement Hindley, and J. McGlashan, Chief Engineer. They referred the matter to Sir Basil Mott, who proposed a single span arch bridge.
In 1922, the New Howrah Bridge Commission was set up, to which the Mukherjee Committee submitted its report. In 1926 the New Howrah Bridge Act was passed. Messrs. Rendel, Palmer and Tritton were asked to consider the construction of a suspension bridge of a particular design prepared by their chief draftsman Mr. Walton.
On basis of the report, a global tender was issued. The lowest bid came from a German company, but due to increasing political tensions between Germany and Great Britain in 1935, it was not given the contract.
The Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Co. was awarded the construction contract that year, and construction of the bridge started the following year.
Construction of the New Bridge
The bridge does not have nuts and bolts, but was formed by riveting the whole structure. It consumed 26,500 tons of steel, out of which 23,000 tons of high-tensile alloy steel, known as Tiscrom, were supplied by Tata Steel.
The main tower was constructed with single monolith caissons of dimensions 55.31 m × 24.8 m with 21 shafts, each 6.25 metres square. Work could not be started because of the Great War.
Then in 1926 a commission under the chairmanship of Sir R. N. Mukherjee recommended a suspension bridge of a particular type to be built across the River Hooghly. The bridge was designed by Mr. Walton of M/s Rendel, Palmer & Triton.
However World War II (1939–1945) intervened. All the steel that was to come from England was diverted for war effort in Europe. Out of the 26,000 tons of steel, that was required for the bridge, only 3000 tons was supplied from England.
In spite of the Japanese threat, the then (British) government of India pressed on with the construction. Tata Steel were asked to supply the remaining 23,000 tons of high tension steel. The Tatas developed the quality of steel required for the bridge and called it Tiscom. The entire 23,000 tons was supplied in time.
The fabrication and erection work was awarded to a local engineering firm of Howrah: the Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Co. The two anchorage caissons were each 16.4 m by 8.2 m, with two wells 4.9 m square. The caissons were so designed that the working chambers within the shafts could be temporarily enclosed by steel diaphragms to allow work under compressed air if required.
The caisson at the Kolkata side was set at 31.41 m and that at Howrah side at 26.53 m below ground level.
One night, during the process of excavating the muck to enable the caisson to move, the ground below it yielded, and the entire mass plunged two feet, shaking the ground. The impact of this was so intense that the seismograph at Kidderpore registered it as an earthquake, and a Hindu temple on the shore was destroyed, although it was subsequently rebuilt.
While muck was being cleared, numerous objects were brought up, including anchors, grappling irons, cannons, cannonballs, brass vessels, and coins dating back to the East India Company. The job of sinking the caissons was carried out round-the-clock at a rate of a foot or more per day. The caissons were sunk through soft river deposits to a stiff yellow clay 26.5 m below ground level.
The accuracy of sinking the huge caissons was exceptionally precise, within 50–75 mm of the true position. After penetrating 2.1 m into clay, all shafts were plugged with concrete after individual dewatering, with some 5 m of backfilling in adjacent shafts.
The main piers on the Howrah side were sunk by open wheel dredging, while those on the Kolkata side required compressed air to counter running sand. The air pressure maintained was about 40 lbs per square inch (2.8 bar), which required about 500 workers to be employed.
Whenever excessively soft soil was encountered, the shafts symmetrical to the caisson axes were left unexcavated to allow strict control. In very stiff clays, a large number of the internal wells were completely undercut, allowing the whole weight of the caisson to be carried by the outside skin friction and the bearing under the external wall. The work on the foundation was completed in November 1938.
By the end of 1940, the erection of the cantilevered arms was commenced and was completed in mid-summer of 1941. The two halves of the suspended span, each 282 feet (86 m) long and weighing 2,000 tons, were built in December 1941.
The bridge was erected by commencing at the two anchor spans and advancing towards the center, with the use of creeper cranes moving along the upper chord. 16 hydraulic jacks, each of which had an 800-ton capacity, were pressed into service to join the two halves of the suspended span.
The entire project cost £2,463,887. The project was a pioneer in bridge construction, particularly in India, but the government did not have a formal opening of the bridge due to fears of attacks by Japanese planes fighting the Allied Powers. Japan had attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor on the 7th. December 1941. The first vehicle to use the bridge was a solitary tram.
The bridge is a suspension-type balanced cantilever bridge, with a central span 1,500 feet (460 m) between centers of main towers and a suspended span of 564 feet (172 m). The main towers are 280 feet (85 m) high above the monoliths and 76 feet (23 m) apart at the top.
The anchor arms are 325 feet (99 m) each, while the cantilever arms are 468 feet (143 m) each. The bridge deck hangs from panel points in the lower chord of the main trusses with 39 pairs of hangers. The roadways beyond the towers are supported from ground, leaving the anchor arms free from deck load.
The deck system includes cross girders suspended between the pairs of hangers.
The longitudinal expansion and lateral sway movement of the deck are taken care of by expansion and articulation joints. There are two main expansion joints, one at each interface between the suspended span and the cantilever arms and there are others at the towers and at the interface of the steel and concrete structures at both approaches.
The bridge deck has longitudinal ruling gradient of 1 in 40 from either end, joined by a vertical curve of radius 4,000 feet (1,200 m).
Bridge traffic
In 1946, a census of the daily traffic was taken, which counted 27,400 vehicles, 121,100 pedestrians and 2,997 cattle. The bulk of the vehicular traffic comes from buses and cars. Prior to 1993, the bridge also carried trams.
However, the bridge still continues to carry much more than the expected load. A 2007 report revealed that nearly 90,000 vehicles were plying on the bridge daily (15,000 of which were goods-carrying), though its load-bearing capacity is only 60,000. The road is flanked by footpaths 15 feet (4.6 m) wide, which are thronged with pedestrians.
Maintenance of the Bridge
The bridge has been subject to damage from vehicles due to rash driving, and corrosion due to atmospheric conditions and biological wastes. In October 2008, 6 high-tech surveillance cameras were placed to monitor the entire structure from a control room. This was in response to substantial damage caused to the bridge by collisions with vehicles, so that compensation could be claimed from the miscreants.
Corrosion has been caused by bird droppings and human spitting. An investigation in 2003 revealed that as a result of prolonged chemical reaction caused by continuous collection of bird excreta, several joints and parts of the bridge were damaged. As an immediate measure, the Kolkata Port Trust engaged contractors to regularly clean the bird droppings, at an annual expense of US$6,300.
In 2004, KoPT spent US$81,000 to paint the 2.2 million square metres of the bridge, requiring a total of 26,500 litres of paint.
The bridge is also considerably damaged by pedestrians spitting out acidic, lime-mixed stimulants (gutka and paan). An inspection by Port Trust officials in 2011 revealed that spitting had reduced the thickness of the steel hoods protecting the pillars from six to less than three millimeters since 2007.
The hangers need those hoods at the base to prevent water seeping into the junction of the cross-girders and hangers, and damage to the hoods can jeopardize the safety of the bridge. KoPT announced that it will spend US$25,000 on covering the base of the steel pillars with fibreglass casing to prevent spit from corroding them.
On the 24th. June 2005, a private cargo vessel M V Mani, while trying to pass under the bridge during high tide, had its funnel stuck underneath for three hours, causing substantial damage to the bridge. The damage was so severe that KoPT requested help from Rendall-Palmer & Tritton Limited, the original consultant on the bridge from the UK.
KoPT also insisted on the use of steel matching that used during the bridge's construction in 1943. For the repair, which cost around US$63,000, about 8 tonnes of steel was used. The repairs were completed in early 2006.
As designed, spring snowmelt carried by the Columbia River backfills into the historic floodplain at Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge in southwest Washington, June 20, 2022. USFWS video: Toshio Suzuki
After years of restoration work, Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge reopened in May of 2022 and is doing exactly what it was designed to do: Allow spring snowmelt from the Columbia River to fill the historic flood plain.
The massive, 960-acre project included levee deconstruction, fish relocations, the raising of a highway, and the planting of more than 500,000 trees and shrubs at the refuge east of Vancouver, Washington.
The two-year project, referred to as the largest habitat restoration project ever on the lower Columbia River, is already creating new space for wildlife.
- How to visit: www.fws.gov/refuge/steigerwald-lake
New farmer Leonardo Aguila shows U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS) Soil Conservationist Axel Sanchez the progress he has made with the underground outlet pipeline project on his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, CA, on Nov. 11, 2018. Soon the soil they stand on will be backfilled over the black drainage pipe to protect and secure it in place.
Leonardo Aguila is extremely proud of his 6.3-acre farm in Fallbrook, Calif. The mature orchard of avocado trees, on its sunny hillside near San Diego, caught the eye of this Navy veteran three years ago, and he knew he had to buy it. Some of the trees showed signs of stress due to lack of irrigation from the high cost of water and regular drought - it just needed some tender loving care. Aguila knew he was the one to provide it.
Born in the Philippines, Aguila immigrated to Guam, a United States territory, as a young man and promptly enlisted into the U.S. Navy. He served in the military for 17 years and dedicated another 17 years as a civilian employee for the Department of the Navy. Once retired, he saw the avocado orchard and longed to live the life he remembered as a child, growing up near orchards of mango, coconut, and banana farming in the Philippines.
But in the Philippines, the island received plenty of rainfall to nourish plants. In California, farms need efficient irrigation to help the trees stay healthy. And, due to the orchard being on a steep hillside with erosion concerns, something had to be done to prevent the hillside from being washed away when it rained.
âThe greatest challenge I have is during the summer,â said Aguila. âOn average, I paid $800 per month for irrigation water. Even if I do not use a drop, I still get charged a minimum of $200 per month. So, I need to conserve and use as little as needed.â
Looking for help, Aguila discovered the USDA Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS), where he met Soil Conservationists Daniel Holtz and Axel Sanchez. Together, they came up with a conservation plan, and eventually applied for financial assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), to address gully erosion with an underground outlet pipeline, installed a new, efficient irrigation system, and began an irrigation water management (IWM) regimen.
Additionally, Aguila has diversified his crops with dragon fruit and cherimoyas, and propagates the plants himself, producing three varieties of dragon fruit: American Beauty (red flesh), Delight (white flesh), and Physical Graffiti (light purple flesh). In the future, he plans to begin selling these potted plants to help him cover operating costs, while the orchard matures and recovers from a prolonged drought.
Aguila remains committed to learning more and more about farming. Recently, he planted 100 more avocado trees and enjoyed his daily work of watering the potted dragon fruit, removing hungry snails, building more trellis, and various other projects. Additionally, he has been attempting to establish local Asian markets for commercial customers.
âThe best advice I can give to other farmers is to âget your hands dirty,ââ added Aguila. âDon't depend on one crop. Try to diversify as much as possible. And, conserve resources as much as possible as well.â
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the Departmentâs focal point for the nationâs farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs, and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs.
The agencies and services supporting FPAC are the Farm Service Agency (FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
The Natural Resources Conservation Service has a proud history of supporting Americaâs farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners for more than 80 years. USDA helps people make investments in their operations and local communities to keep working lands working, boost rural economies, increase the competitiveness of American agriculture, and improve the quality of our air, water, soil, and habitat.
From weather to pests, and from a lack of time to markets, each American farmer faces a unique set of challenges. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) helps agricultural producers confront those challenges â all while conserving natural resources like soil, water, and air.
This voluntary conservation program helps producers make conservation work for them. Together, NRCS and producers invest in solutions that conserve natural resources for the future while also improving agricultural operations.
Through EQIP, NRCS provides agricultural producers with financial resources and one-on-one help to plan and implement improvements, or what NRCS calls conservation practices. Using these practices can lead to cleaner water and air, healthier soil and better wildlife habitat, all while improving agricultural operations. Through EQIP, you can voluntarily implement conservation practices and NRCS co-invests in these practices with you.
USDA Photo By Lance Cheung.