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UploadHear the impressive story of how Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport has become one of the country's model green airports. DFW, the third busiest airport in the world in terms of aircraft movements and the seventh busiest in terms of passenger traffic, covers more than 29.2 square miles and supports more than 300,000 jobs. In 2008, DFW launched an airport-wide Sustainability Policy and Program, as part of the airport's strategic plan. The key elements of the Sustainability Initiative to date include: environmental management, energy efficiency and renewable energy, waste minimization and recycling, wildlife management, safety management, emergency response, asset development, and a clean vehicle fleet program. In this eleventh segment of The Infrastructure Show podcast series, Host Professor Joseph Schofer of Northwestern University's Infrastructure Technology Institute and Tom Herman of Vocalo.org 89.5 FM talk with Jim Crites, DFW Executive Vice President of Operations, about these notable green achievements. (23 min.) For more information, see the web-site: www.theinfrastructureshow.com.
In 2006, following the damage done by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Congress authorized the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin a number of projects designed to reduce the risk to the New Orleans metropolitan area from a 100-year storm. One of the largest projects in this plan is the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal Lake Borgne Surge Reduction Project -- or IHNC Surge Barrier for short. The largest surge barrier of its kind in the world, it stretches about 2 miles across the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the Mississippi River Outlet, protecting some of the most vulnerable areas in the region. In this 12th segment of The Infrastructure Show podcast series, Host Professor Joseph Schofer of Northwestern University's Infrastructure Technology Institute and Tom Herman of Vocalo.org 89.5 FM talk with Rick Kendrick, Chief of Program Execution for the USCOE Hurricane Protection Office in New Orleans, which oversees the IHNC Surge Barrier. (26 min.) For more information, see the web-site: www.theinfrastructureshow.com
The topic of this podcast is America's power infrastructure -- the power plants and transmission lines that make up the electric grid. Seventy years ago, in 1940, only 10% of energy in this country was used to produce electricity. Growing population and rapidly changing technologies have pushed this percentage to 40%, and the percentage is rising. While the country has been steadily adding electrical generation capacity, a key problem is that the transmission network in many areas of the country is outdated and can't handle the peak demand for electricity. In this 13th segment of The Infrastructure Show podcast series, Host Professor Joseph Schofer of Northwestern University's Infrastructure Technology Institute and Tom Herman of Vocalo.org 89.5 FM talk with Mark McGranaghan, Director-Distribution Research, for the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). (25 min.) For more information, see the web-site: www.theinfrastructureshow.com.
The pedal-driven, human-powered vehicle we know as the bicycle was invented in the 19th century. In many parts of the world today, bicycles are the main means of transport, and throughout the world they are important for use as recreational vehicles. Bicycles provide an economical, energy-efficient, low-emissions means of transporting people and cargo. For almost a century, however, the automobile has dominated non-motorized travel in developed countries. The bicycle has been regaining popularity in developed countries because of its appeal as a soft, energy-efficient mode of travel, and because of the exercise value it brings. Yet integrating bicycle traffic with automobile traffic involves a complex mix of city planning and road planning and design. European countries have been making significant advances in bicycle transportation over several decades, and now the U.S. is starting to catch up, with progress of its own. In this 14th segment of The Infrastructure Show podcast series, Host Professor Joseph Schofer of Northwestern University's Infrastructure Technology Institute and Tom Herman of Vocalo.org 89.5 FM talk with Gabe Rousseau, Manager of the Federal Highway Administration's Bicycle and Pedestrian Program. (28 min.) For more information, see the web-site: www.theinfrastructureshow.com.
