September 2014

Great outreach event or other activity? Let the whole Region know! If you’re a local ASCE leader and your Section, Branch, Younger Member Group, or Student Chapter has staged any special events, engaged in outreach from grade-school kids to lawmakers, done charity work, fund raising or anything of the sort, let ASCEnews Weekly know and we may include it in next month’s Region report. You may already have written about it and posted pictures in your newsletter, website, or social media. Share the details and any photos at asce.org/localnews. Got questions? Write to submissions@asce.org. See the other Region reports for August If you live adjacent to a Section in a different Region, or are merely interested in the other Region reports for August, click on each to view them:   Region 1   Boston Society of Civil Engineers Section, Buffalo Section, Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers Section, Ithaca Section, Maine Section, Metropolitan Section, Mohawk-Hudson Section, New Hampshire Section, New Jersey Section, Puerto Rico Section, Rhode Island Section, Rochester Section, Syracuse Section, Vermont Section Region 2   Central Pennsylvania Section, Delaware Section, Lehigh Valley Section, Maryland Section, National Capital Section, Philadelphia Section, Pittsburgh Section Region 3   Akron-Canton Section, Central Illinois Section, Central Ohio Section, Cincinnati Section, Cleveland Section, Dayton Section, Duluth Section, Illinois Section, Michigan Section, Minnesota Section, North Dakota Section, Quad Cities Section, Toledo Section, Wisconsin Section Region 4   Arkansas Section, Indiana Section, Kentucky Section, North Carolina Section, South Carolina Section, Tennessee Section, Virginia Section, West Virginia Section Region 5   Alabama Section, Florida Section, Georgia Section, Louisiana Section, Mississippi Section   Region 6   New Mexico Section, Oklahoma Section, Texas Section Region 7   Colorado Section, Iowa Section, Kansas City Section, Kansas Section, Nebraska Section, South Dakota Section, St. Louis Section, Wyoming Section Region 8   Alaska Section, Arizona Section, Columbia Section, Hawaii Section, Inland Empire Section, Montana Section, Nevada Section, Oregon Section, Seattle Section, Southern Idaho Section, Tacoma-Olympia Section, Utah Section Region 9   Los Angeles Section, Sacramento Section, San Diego Section, San Francisco Section Region 10   All International Sections, Branches, and Groups Missed last month's Region 6 update? See the August edition of  News Around Region 6  Share this page via social media and email:

REGION 6 NEWS ASCE mourns passing of Region 6 Governor, NM Section leader Elvidio Diniz Region 6 Governor Elvidio Diniz, P.E., D.WRE, M.ASCE, an active leader in the New Mexico Section for more than 25 years, including president in 2008, has died at the age of 68. He engaged in large-scale water resources project planning in and around Albuquerque since the late 1970s, and taught at the University of New Mexico. Born in India and raised in Tanzania, Mr. Diniz came to the U.S. for his undergraduate civil engineering education at Catholic University in Washington, DC. His ASCE activism dates back to winning the National Capital Section’s Outstanding Student Award in 1968, and included service on several local and national technical and policy committees where he contributed his environmental and water resources expertise. ASCE extends its sympathies to the family, colleagues, and Section friends of Mr. Diniz. Read more about his achievements and ASCE contributions in ASCE News.

TEXAS SECTION Speaking for Section, President Beitel endorses ballot proposition for transportation funding A“In November, Texans will have a unique opportunity to improve highways across the Lone Star State. Proposition 1 is a proposed constitutional amendment that would add billions in reliable transportation funding – an estimated $1.4 billion in the first year alone – without new taxes, fees or debt,” writes Texas Section President Curtis Beitel in a commentary on Houston Business Journal. The proposition would divert half of oil and gas production tax collections from the state’s rainy day fund to the state highway fund. “The Texas Section of American Society of Civil Engineers applauds TxDOT’s innovative use of public-private partnerships and toll-managed lanes to provide additional highway capacity and relieve congestion – but those solutions do not help maintain our existing freeways. Texas is falling behind, with at least $5 billion in unmet transportation needs annually. While Proposition 1 may not be the whole solution, it is an important step forward.” Read Beitel’s commentary in full.  Section website>>

TEXAS SECTION Section plays ‘Geocaching Challenge’ with state landmarks Courtesy Texas Section As part of its centennial activities, this summer the Texas Section got in on “geocaching,” an elaborate form of scavenger hunt competition using GPS to locate secretly hidden treasures. The Section’s version naturally featured significant civil engineering projects around the state as “waymarks,” with boxes hidden somewhere on the project grounds to be discovered. As players located the sites and recorded their discoveries, they registered for a chance to win one of 100 collectable challenge coins. Learn more about the Section’s competition and the fun that is geocaching.  Section website>>

TEXAS SECTION San Antonio’s historic auditorium reborn The new Tobin Center for the Performing Arts weds a modern theater building to the 1926 facade of the city’s Municipal Auditorium. Check out the fusion in ASCE’s online edition of Civil Engineering magazine.