Missouri to Hold Public Meeting on Economic Stimulus for Weatherization Program

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources' (MoDNR) Energy Center will hold a public hearing on the statewide Low-Income Weatherization Assistance Program application for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The public hearing will be held April 24 in Jefferson City. MoDNR will hold the public hearing from 10:00 until 11:30 a.m., or until all comments are noted for public record, on Friday, April 24, 2009, at the Lewis and Clark State Office Building in the Nightingale Creek Conference Room, 1101 Riverside Drive, Jefferson City, MO.

During the hearing, the public is invited to comment concerning Missouri's state plan for the new three-year grant application under ARRA. The program funds are provided by DOE and are administered by the Energy Center.

Oral and written comments may be presented at the public hearing. After the hearing, MoDNR will finalize the application and submit it to DOE for approval. The ARRA plan for weatherization is separate from the regular annual program plan, which will be discussed in an April 15 hearing.

The Low-Income Weatherization Program application for the ARRA funding is available online for review at: http://www.dnr.mo.gov/energy/weatherization/wx.htm. Please address written comments on the plan to Marcy Oerly, Department of Natural Resources, Energy Center, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176. Written comments must be postmarked no later than April 24, 2009.

People with disabilities requiring special services or accommodations to attend the meeting can make arrangements by calling the Department's Energy Center at 800-361-4827 or 573-751-2254.

You can read the full MoDNR news release here.

Federal Nominees for Infrastructure and Environment Posts Announced

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

James J. Markowsky, Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy--Markowsky is currently a consultant in the energy and electric power generation area, a member of the National Research Council's Committee on America's Energy Future and a Member and the Chair of the National Academy of Engineering's Section 6 - Electric Power/Energy Systems Committee. Previously, Markowsky was the President of Research and Development Solution, LLC, from 2004 - 2005 where he was involved in providing technical support services, including R&D technology planning and analysis; R&D project planning and analysis; and R&D operations and process engineering, design and analysis to DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratories. Before that he was executive vice president of power generation, at American Electric Power Service Corporation(AEP), where his responsibilities included providing overall administrative, operational, and technical direction for the AEP System's 21,000MWe coal and 800 MWe hydro power generating facilities. Markowsky's career with AEP extended from 1971 - 2000, and his other positions included; executive vice president of engineering and construction, senior vice president and chief engineer, vice president - mechanical engineering, assistant vice president - mechanical engineering, AEP Sloan Fellow, and section manager.

Markowsky received several awards including the Washington Coal Club's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002 and has 26 publications in the area of power generation and fossil energy. He earned degrees from: Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MS in Industrial Management -1981; Cornell University - Ph.D. in 1971 and MS in 1970, both in Mechanical Engineering; and Pratt Institute - Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering -1967.

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Polly Trottenberg, Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy--Trottenberg serves as Executive Director of Building America's Future, a national bipartisan coalition that supports U.S. infrastructure investment and a more accountable, sustainable and performance-driven national transportation policy. Building America's Future is chaired by Governor Edward G. Rendell, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and has a membership of elected officials from across the U.S. Prior to joining Building America's Future, Trottenberg served in the U.S. Senate for 12 years, most recently as Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director for Senator Barbara Boxer, and worked extensively on transportation policy.

She also served as Legislative Director for Senator Charles Schumer and as Legislative Assistant for Transportation, Public Works and Environment for the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan. Trottenberg previously worked at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Massachusetts Port Authority on aviation and transportation finance issues, and on the Joint Commerce and Labor Committee of the Massachusetts State Senate. She received her Master's in Public Policy from Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government and her BA in American History from Columbia University, Barnard College.

Read the original news release here.

Missouri Announces Plans for Disaster Relief Supplement to CDBG

The Missouri Department of Economic Development (DED) today announced that the state’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Action Plan is now available for supplemental CDBG funding for disaster recovery due to weather-related events that occurred in May and June 2008.

This funding, authorized under the Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2008, can assist local governments with disaster recovery efforts in federally declared disaster areas. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has allocated $11,032,438 to Missouri. The CDBG program will administer these funds. By statute, the funds are only available for eligible projects in those federally declared counties.

The plan is available for public review on the Division of Business and Community Services website (http://www.missouridevelopment.org/). Public comments will be accepted until December 24.

DED will sponsor a public meeting to discuss this supplemental appropriation from 9 am to noon on December 18 in Room 492 of the Harry S. Truman Building, Jefferson City.

For more information, contact Andy Papen, compliance manager in the Division of Business and Community Services, at 573-751-3600.

Funding Infrastructure

Crowdfunding

The American Institute of Architects released Crowdfunding Architecture, a report that explored the potential of raising private funds from many people investing, loaning, or donating small sums. Crowdfunding is a growing trend in other areas, especially in the arts and product development.

Of course, public civil infrastructure requires a lot of money. The investors who might be able to put substantial sums into a project will expect a return. This is an issue for other forms of private investment in public infrastructure, often there is no revenue generated by the infrastructure to pay back investors.

What do you think? Does crowdfunding have the potential to be a serious source of funding for public infrastructure?

Related posts and articles

Crowdfunding can be a building tool (Koroluc, K., Daily Commercial News, Feb. 19, 2013)

Roads by the Mile

IW has previously written about declining fuel tax revenues. An alternative to fuel taxes is a tax or fee based on miles driven. Oregon is planning to implement a program based on VMT (vehicle miles traveled).

Related posts and articles

Taxed by the Mile Instead of Taxed at the Pump (Twomey, M., NBC News, Nov. 22, 2013)

Bill Watch - 112th Congress

Amended July 28, 2013

H.R. 1—Full Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011
Continuing Resolution Moves to Senate
House Passes Appropriations Bill

H.R. 7 - American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012

Congress Debates Infrastructure, Jobs Bills

H.R. 8 – American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012

Infrastructure in the Fiscal Cliff Deal

H.R. 267 – Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2013

Infrastructure & Environment Roundup: Hydropower Bill Reported Out of Committee

H.R. 328 - Safety, Efficiency, and Accountability in Transportation Projects Through Public Inspection Act of 2011
Bill Would Require Public Employee Inspection of Federally-Funded Transportation Projects

H.R. 389 - End the Stimulus Advertisement Act
Still Trying to Axe the Plaques

H.R. 505 – The Balancing Act

In Congress: Balancing Act

H.R. 711 – Highway Trust Fund Reform Act of 2013

Around America: Bills Pile Up While Bills Pile Up

H.R. 765 – Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Act of 2013

Around America: Bills Pile Up While Bills Pile Up

H.R. 855 – Grand Canyon Watersheds Protection Act of 2011
Environment & Infrastructure Bills Introduced in Congress

H.R. 892 – Stop Asian Carp Act
Environment & Infrastructure Bills Introduced in Congress

H.R. 910 - Energy Tax Prevention Act of 2011
In Congress

H.R. 935 – Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2013 

News Brief: Bill Would Limit Water Discharge Permitting of Pesticides

H.R. 945 - Streamlining America’s Various Energy Needs Act
Energy Bills Introduced

H.R. 947
Bill Would Authorized Reimbursement to States for International Water Projects

H.R. 952 - Energy Critical Elements Renewal Act of 2011
Energy Bills Introduced

H.R. 1079 - Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2011
In Congress

H.R. 1123 - TIFIA Expansion Act of 2011
In Congress

H.R. 1189 – Clean Water Affordability Act of 2011
Bill Would Make Water Project Financing More Affordable

H.R. 1705 - Transparency in Regulatory Analysis of Impacts on the Nation Act of 2011
Activity in Congress

H.R 1872 - Employment Protection Act 2011
Activity in Congress
In Congress

H.R. 2018 - Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act of 2011
Activity in Congress

H.R. 2055 – Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012
Bill Quickies

H.R. 2594 - European Union Emissions Trading Scheme Prohibition Act of 2011T&I Committee Marks Up, Approves Bills

H.R. 2738 - Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Act of 2011
Water News

H.R. 2845 - Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act of 2011
T&I Committee Marks Up, Approves Bills

H.R. 2887 - Surface and Air Transportation Programs Extension Act of 2011
Congress Passes Bill to Extend Transportation Programs
House Passes Transportation Bill

H.R. 2924 – 414 Plan Act of 2011
Bill Would Suspend Requirements for Highway Projects

H.R. 3259 - National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2011
National Infrastructure Bank Bill

H.R. 3638 – Act for the 99%
Bill Quickies

H.R. 3680 - Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2011
Bill Quickies

H.R. 3864 - American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Financing Act of 2012

Congress Debates Infrastructure, Jobs Bills

H.R. 4348 – Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21^st Century Act (MAP-21)

A Look Back, 112 Congress Passed Transportation Bills

S. 335 – Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2013

Around America: Bills Pile Up While Bills Pile Up

S. 402 – National Infrastructure Development Bank Act of 2011
A Real National Infrastructure Bank Proposal

S. 471 – Stop Asian Carp Act
Environment & Infrastructure Bills Introduced in Congress

S. 630 - Marine and Hydrokinetic Energy Promotion Act of 2011
Activity in Congress

S. 652 – Building and Upgrading Infrastructure for Long-Term Development
The BUILD Act
In Congress

S. 1108 - 10 Million Solar Roofs Act
Bill Quickies

S. 1115 - Green Infrastructure and Clean Water Act of 2010
Activity in Congress

S. 1142 - Geothermal Exploration and Technology Act of 2011
Bill Quickies

S. 1292 - Employment Protection Act 2011
Activity in Congress
In Congress

S. 1343 - Energy and Water Integration Act of 2011
Congress Keeps Rolling

S. 1510 - Clean Energy Financing Act of 2011
Bill Would Create Clean Energy Deployment Agency

S. 1525 – An original bill to extend Federal-aid highway programsPresident Calls for Transportation Funding to Stimulate Jobs Growth

S. 1549 – American Jobs Act of 2011
American Jobs Act

S. 1550 – National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2011
National Infrastructure Bank Bill

S. 1720 – Jobs Through Growth Act
American Jobs Act

S. 1775 - Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act of 2011
Energy Bill Has Unusual Name, Other Energy Proposals

S. 1786 – Long-Term Surface Transportation Enhancement Act of 2011
Congress Passes Bill to Extend Transportation Programs

S. 1795 – A bill related to Missouri River management
Missouri River Priorities Contested

S. 3388 – Sewage Overflow Community Right-to-Know Act

Sewer Overflow Bill Introduced

S. 3626 – Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2012

In Congress

Bill Watch—111th Congress

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Revised 8/7/2012

GUIDE TO WATER CONSERVATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

Chapter 1: Background

 Section 1: Uses of Water

  1.1. Categories of Water Use

   1.1.1. Public Water Supply

   1.1.2. Self-Supplied Domestic

   1.1.3. Irrigation

   1.1.4. Livestock

   1.1.5. Aquaculture

   1.1.6. Industrial

   1.1.7. Mining

   1.1.8. Thermoelectric Generation

  1.2. Trends in Water Use

   1.2.1. Virtual Water

   1.2.2. Environmental Uses of Water

 Section 2: Consequences of Waste

   2.1. Flow

   2.2. Dams and Reservoirs

   2.3. Irrigation

    2.3.1. Agriculture

    2.3.2. Landscape

  2.4. On-Site Wastewater Disposal

  2.5. Salinity Intrusion

  2.6. Habitat Loss

 Section 3: Benefits of Conservation

Chapter 2: Conservation Practices

 Section 4: Residential Conservation Practices

  4.1. Plumbing

   4.1.1. Fixtures

  4.2. Retrofit

  4.3. Behavior

 Section 5: Industrial and Commercial Conservation Practices

  5.1. Cooling

  5.2. Rinsing and Cleaning

  5.3. Behavior

 Section 6: Conservation Practices in Irrigation

  6.1. Agriculture

  6.2. Landscape

   6.2.1. Irrigation Controllers

   6.2.2. Irrigation Scheduling

   6.2.3. Horticultural Practices and Xeriscaping

 Section 7: Conservation Practices in Water Systems

  7.1. Technical and Operational Conservation Practices

   7.1.1. Metering

   7.1.2. Leak Detection and Repair

   7.1.3. Rehabilitation

   7.1.4. Well Capping

   7.1.5. Reduce Water Pressure

   7.1.6. Automated Sensors and Telemetry

   7.1.7. Loss-Prevention Program

  7.2. Management and Policy Conservation Practices

   7.2.1. Water Audits

    7.2.1.1. Residential Water Audits

    7.2.1.2. Commercial Water Audits

    7.2.1.3. Landscape Water Audits

   7.2.2. Retrofit Programs

    7.2.2.1. Tankless Water Heaters

   7.2.3. Building and Plumbing Codes

   7.2.4. Water Use Restrictions

   7.2.5. Zoning

   7.2.6. Public Education

   7.2.7. Analysis of Nonaccount Water

 Section 8: Reuse

  8.1. Industrial Reuse

  8.2. Reuse for Irrigation

  8.3. Reuse in Water Systems

   8.3.1. Indirect Potable Reuse

  8.4. Other Reuse

Chapter 3: Economics and Finance of Water Conservation

 Section 9: Economic Considerations

  9.1. Cost Effectiveness

  9.2. Cost-Benefit Analysis

   9.2.1. Methods

    9.2.1.1. Forecasting Demand

    9.2.1.2. Accounting for Externalities

 Section 10: Financial Considerations

  10.1. Revenues

   10.1.1. Water Rates

    10.1.1.1. Implementation of Rates

  10.2. Financial Assistance

   10.2.1. State Revolving Funds

    10.2.1.1. Drinking Water State Revolving Fund

    10.2.1.2. Clean Water State Revolving Fund

   10.2.2. Rural Utility Service

    10.2.2.1. Water Efficiency Program

Chapter 4: Program Development and Implementation

 Section 11: Planning and Development

 Section 12: Implementation

  12.1. Outreach

  12.2. Financial Incentives

Chapter 5: Other Issues

 Section 13: Total Water Management

 Section 14: Social Issues

 Section 15: Drought Management and Climate Issues

 Section 16: Legal Issues

 Section 17: Political Issues

Appendices

 Appendix 1: List of Abbreviations

 Appendix 2: Water Conservation Organizations

Biblography

Jefferson City, MO, Part of Greening America’s Capitals Program

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has selected Jefferson City, MO, (home of Infrastructure Watch) for green design assistance that includes cleaning up and recycling vacant lands, providing greater housing and transportation choices, reducing energy costs and improving waterways. Through its new Greening America’s Capitals program, EPA will fund private sector experts to provide sustainable design assistance to Jefferson City, Boston, MA; Hartford, CT; Charleston, WV.; and Little Rock, AR.

Greening Americas Capitals is a new project of the Partnership for Sustainable Communities, an agreement between EPA, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to coordinate federal housing, transportation, and environmental investments; protect public health and the environment; promote equitable development; and help address the challenges of climate change. HUD and DOT were involved in the review and selection process and will provide technical expertise on relevant portions of each project.

Jefferson City and the four other state capitals were selected from a total of 38 cities that responded to a solicitation of interest. EPA will now organize teams of urban planners and landscape architects to provide direct, customized technical assistance as requested by Jefferson City officials. Greening America’s Capitals provides direct technical assistance to communities by working with private sector experts and leveraging partnerships, such as with HUD and DOT, to consider implementation options.

Jefferson City’s primary area of focus is bounded on the west by U.S. Highways 63/54, on the north by the Missouri River, on the south by U.S. Highways 50/63, and by the Capitol Building on the east. Wears Creek and vacant properties within the area provide the greatest opportunity for reconnecting nearby residents in the Southside neighborhood to the riverfront. Wears Creek can serve as an important connection to planned bike and pedestrian greenways.

EPA‘s support of the Jefferson City project is also undertaken to advance EPA’s Urban Waters focus, which seeks to support communities in their efforts to access, improve, and benefit from their urban waters and surrounding lands. EPA’s Urban Waters efforts place particular emphasis on engaging underserved neighborhoods and on providing equitable access to urban waters through well-planned community revitalization leading to improved urban water quality. EPA’s assistance to Jefferson City will integrate the goals of both the agency’s urban waters and livability efforts.

Partners on this project include: Governor Jay “Boondoggle Bridge” Nixon, State Senator Carl Vogel, Jefferson City Mayor John Landwehr, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Missouri Department of Transportation, Missouri State Office of Administration Jefferson City Council, Jefferson City Housing Authority & Land Clearance Authority, Jefferson City Environmental Quality Commission, Jefferson City Planning & Zoning Commission, Jefferson City Parks & Recreation Department (tangentially, they have an adult kickball league), Historic Jefferson City, Old Town Revitalization Company, Downtown Association, Convention & Visitors Bureau, and the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce.

Book Review: The Essential Engineer by Henry Petroski

Petroski, Henry. The Essential Engineer: Why Science Alone Will Not Solve Our Global Problems. New York: Vintage, 2010.

Policy makers seem to love science. I can see why. Science provides a sense of specificity, certainty and consensus. It contrasts with the vagueness, variability and competition that policy makers usually have to deal with. That is more like the world engineering.

This interrelation of policy-making, science and engineering, especially the latter two, is the subject of Henry Petroski’s book, The Essential Engineer. In particular, Petroski emphasizes the important, and often overlooked, role of engineering is solving pressing problems.

I doesn’t help that people conflate science and engineering, especially by thinking of engineering as branch or application of science. Petroski is clear about the differences. Science is about increasing knowledge. Engineering is about invention. Sometimes scientists do engineering, especially when they create a devise or process to help them in their work of discovery. Sometimes engineers do science, especially when their engage in research and experimentation to gain a better understanding or problems that are not well understood.

The movement of knowledge from science to engineering practice is well understood. Petroski describes how this became ingrained in American research and development policy. Engineering often precedes science and engineers often must invent solutions in areas that are not well understood by science. Galileo’s improvements to the telescope made possible his advancements in astronomy. The science of thermodynamics grew almost entirely out of the desire to understand steam engines, which engineers had been building and improving in the absence of scientific understanding.

This misunderstanding exacerbated by our culture and education. Policy elites and scientist generally have no education in engineering. As an undergraduate studying engineering, I took science classes with students majoring in the sciences. I took classes in political science, economics and other social science and business-oriented classes with students majoring in those fields. I would have been greatly surprised to find in one of my engineering classes a student who wasn’t majoring in engineering.*

Petroski does not try to bring down science. He’s a civil engineering professor at a sizeable university, so he has probably spent quite a bit of time doing science. He does distinguish how science is helpful, mainly as a warning. Science can help us identify and define problems and assess the risks involve. When we begin to devise solutions to those problems, especially when there is no definitive solution and judgment is needed to way the pros and cons of multiple possible answers, we are moving into engineering.



The Essential Engineer is not a technical book. It for anyone who may have an interest in the role of technology in addressing our problems, especially larger societal problems. Petroski draws illustrations from current events and history (he is a professor of history as well as engineering). The book is enlivened with a storytelling feel.

* There were exceptions. I took a course in food processing that was dual-listed in agricultural engineering and food science. It was a required course for both disciplines. Electrical engineering students almost automatically minored in math, and some clever and ambitious students double-majored in those subjects. With a little better planning, I could have swung a minor in agricultural economics, and I almost wish I had. When I got into wastewater engineering, I wished I had taken more microbiology. My pursuit of additional education lead to a graduate degree in public administration. Government agencies have been employers or clients most of my career. It is common for engineers to get a masters degree in business, especially as they become managers.

Henry Petroski also wrote Paperboy.

If you’re interested in this book, you may also be interested in
The Ancient Engineers by L. Sprague de Camp
The Big Necessity by Rose George
Newton and the Counterfeiter by Thomas Levenson

This review appears courtesy of Keenan’s Book Reviews, where you can find reviews of other books on engineering and science.

Growing Infrastructure and Environmental Jobs

We occasionally are asked about working in the infrastructure and environment field. We enjoy it and encourage you to look into it if you are interested. Here are some related occupations where the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) anticipates greater than average growth in the next several years. (All the data that follows is summarized from BLS information).

Environmental Scientists and Hydrologists
(Education: Bachelors degree, masters typical
Median salary: $51,080 per year)

Environmental Engineers
(Education: Bachelors degree
Median Salary: $47,384 per year)

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers
(Education: Varies
Median Salary: about $16 per hour)

Human Resources, Training, and Labor Relations Managers and Specialists
(Education: Varies
Median Salary: $66,530 per year)

Landscape Architects
(Education: Bachelors degree, masters typical
Median Salary: $53,120 per year)

Cost Estimators(Education: Bachelors degree typical
Median Salary: $49,940 per year)

Public Relations Specialist
(Education: Bachelors degree plus internship
Median Salary: $43,830 per year)

Construction and Building Inspectors(Education: Varies
Median Salary: $43,670 per year)

Appraisers and Assessors of Real Estate(Education: Licensure typical
Median Salary: $43,390 per year)

Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers(Education: Technical school or apprenticeship
Median Salary: about $17 per hour)

Grounds Maintenance Workers

(Median Salary: about $10 per hour)

Missouri Water Finance Plan Available for Comment

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources announced that its Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) Intended Use Plan (IUP) is available. The IUP describes how the department intends to use state and federal funds in the CWSRF to make loans for wastewater system improvements and other purposes. You can find a copy of the IUP and information on commenting here.

In addition, the Missouri Clean Water Commission will hold a public meeting on the plan on March 2, 2011, at 9 AM a the Lewis and Clark State Office Building, 1101 Riverside Drive, Jefferson City. In order to present comments at the meeting, inform the commission secretary in writing at Missouri Clean Water Commission, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176, before 5 PM, February 18, 2011. Other written comments may be submitted to the same address before 5 PM, March 9, 2011.

Energy & Water Update

ENERGY

Illinois Approves Power Line Rejected in Missouri

We previously posted that the Missouri Public Service Commission rejected a power line project called the Grain Belt Express, which would connect wind energy generation in Kansas to users in Indiana. The Illinois Commerce Commission has approved the project, making Missouri the only holdout.  Clean Line Energy, the company behind the project, plans to continue to seek approval either by reapplying to the state or seeking an overriding federal approval.

Texas Utility Offer Free Nighttime Electricity

TXU energy has offered customers free energy at night. This unusual offer is an attempt to shift use from daytime, when wholesale energy costs are high, to night, when prices drop.

Texas may be better able to adopt a program like this. It has more wind resources than other parts of the country, accounting for 10 percent of generation, and wind blows more at night. In addition, the Texas grid operates largely independently from the other grids in the country, so it cannot easily sell and deliver excess generation to the larger wholesale market.

You can find out more about this free electricity program here.

WATER

Cardboard Sewers Collapse in Canada

In the building boom after World War II, many Canadian sewer service lines were built of a tar-impregnated cardboard. These pipes have been failing with increasing frequency. Some Canadian cities are facing replacement costs of hundreds of millions of dollars.

It appears that these pipes stood up well until dishwasher became common and the hot water began to soften them. This is an interesting illustration of how we are putting new demands on our infrastructure that could hardly have been imagined decades ago when it was originally built.

You can read more about this issue here.

Book Reviews: Dreams of Iron and Steel by Deborah Cadbury & The Lighthouse Stevensons by Bella Bathurst

In Dreams of Iron and Steel (New York: HarperCollins, 2004), Deborah Cadbury tells the stories of seven great works that cover over a century of engineering history. Originally published in Great Britain as Seven Wonders of the Industrial World, the book was a companion to a BBC television series. The projects covered vary widely from a sewer built under a metropolis to a bridge that towered above the skyline of its day.

The oldest of these (still standing like all but one of the other projects) is the Bell Rock lighthouse. The Bell Rock sank many ships that sought shelter from North Sea storms in Scotland’s Firth of Forth. Robert Stevenson, grandfather of author Robert Louis Stevenson, designed and oversaw the construction of a tower on it. The rock was a formidable construction site. It sat eleven miles from land. High tide covered it with as much as 16 feet of water. Low tide exposed an area only 250 by 130 feet. Yet Stevenson and his men built a 100-foot, stone tower on it. They did it 200 years ago.

By the middle of the nineteenth century, several wonders were built almost at once. The Great Eastern, built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, was twice the size of any other ship. Though a commercial failure, it set the standard for the next generation of ships.

Brunel launched his ship into a dirty and diseased Thames. Joseph Bazalgette sought to make the river safer for London residents. He built sewers under an ancient city that had grown to 2.5 million people and sprawled over 80 square miles.

In the American West, rival firms raced across the continent to build a railroad that would unite a nation recovering from civil war. In New York, John and Washington Roebling tackled the broad East River with their Brooklyn Bridge. They risked their lives and reputations on the longest span of the day and a material untested in bridges—steel.

The twentieth century inaugurated bigger feats. First proposed in 1879 by Vicomte Ferdinand de Lesseps of France, builder of the Suez Canal, the Panama Canal defeated most of those tried to build it. Even the United States poked at the mountains in futility until John Stevens, a railroad engineer, upgraded the infrastructure and equipment. When Stevens left the canal, a frustrated Theodore Roosevelt put military officers in charge. Lieutenant Colonel George Goethels, an engineer with extensive lock and dam experience, saw the canal through to its completion shortly before World War I.

The final project, America’s “damn big dam”, was build during the Depression. Hoover Dam was huge and constructed under difficult conditions. But construction engineer Frank “Hurry up” Crowe pushed and planned to get it done early and under budget.

Cadbury treats each project separately. However, they are linked by common elements.
Tragedy and setbacks touched each one. Thousands of men, usually poor laborers and sometimes children, were killed or injured to make these huge structures. They were beset by lack of financing, reluctance to try new methods and materials, bankrupt contractors, political opposition, corruption, greed, prejudice, and other human imperfections.
At their best, these engineers and their wonders are linked by the same qualities that appear in the best of engineering today. They had a vision to make people safer, healthier, richer, and freer. They created solutions to immense problems.

Robert Stevenson’s triumph at Bell Rock won the confidence of the Northern Lighthouse Board. It also launched an association between the Stevenson family and Scottish lighthouses that lasted four generations. During their tenures in the office of engineer for the board, Stevenson and his sons dominated the design, construction, and operation of the lights. Bella Bathurst tells their story in The Lighthouse Stevensons (New York: HarperCollins, 1999).

This book has its own kind of variety: technical, professional, and personal. It covers the construction and technology of several lighthouses, the masterpieces of Robert and his three sons. They not only built towers, but also improved their design and the design of the lamps, reflectors, optics, and mechanical systems that operated in them. One even studied the waves that assaulted their works.

It shows that engineering is more than simply design and construction. The Stevensons were also managers, fundraisers, businessmen, public servants, purchasing agents, manufacturers, contractors, and more. Their work included a broad section of what engineers do.
The book is also a biography of these four men that reveals the dynamics of the family. Robert insisted his sons join the family profession and business. Only one, David, seemed to take to it naturally. Only David’s sons filled the next generation of lighthouse Stevensons. Alan and Tom were more inclined to work in literature and the arts. Alan proved himself to be a capable engineer by building a 138-foot light at Skerryvore that could withstand the elements and exhibit a simple beauty. He became so disabled by disease, Bathurst suggests it was muscular sclerosis, that he gave up his work with the lighthouses. He managed to work irregularly as a writer. His works include and encyclopedia article on lighthouses and a translation of Greek poems. Tom shared Alan’s artistic leaning, but not his intensity and focus. He and David eventually divided the engineering work for the Northern Lights.

Not everyone is cut out to be an engineer, of course. As Robert Louis Stevenson said about his internship in the profession, “He is a wise youth, to be sure, who can balance one part of genuine life against two parts of drudgery between four walls and for the sake of one, manfully accept the other.” But some managed to catch what Marion Allen, a laborer on the Hoover Dam, called constructitis. “Sometimes one thinks he is cured,” said Allen, “only to have a relapse when he goes by fresh concrete or catches the smell of fresh sawdust from new lumber. Anyone with this affliction has to start construction of some kind, even of only to dig a hole and fill it up again.”

This review previously appeared at Infra Consulting LC.