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Geosyntec Staff Speak at Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering and Soil Dynamics Conference
06/03/10

OAKLAND, Ca.—Neven Matasovic, PhD, PE, GE, and Jennifer Donahue, PhD, PE, delivered presentations at the Fifth International Conference on Recent Advances in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering and Soil Dynamics in San Diego, Ca., on May 26 - 29, 2010.

Neven presented an invited paper entitled “Recent Advances in Seismic Design of Geosynthetically-Lined Waste Containment Facilities.” This paper presents the state-of-the-practice on seismic design of landfills, heap leach pads, and tailings impoundments. Neven further presented recent findings from a National Science Foundation-sponsored research, which Geosyntec is pursuing along with Arizona State University and the University of California at San Diego. Preliminary findings indicate that the currently used seismic stability criteria may be overly conservative.

Neven, who is based in Geosyntec’s Huntington Beach, Ca., office, has more than 20 years of experience in geotechnical, landfill, and earthquake engineering. He received his PhD in geotechnical engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles. He also received his MS in geotechnical engineering and BS in civil engineering from the University of Zagreb, Croatia.

In Jennifer’s presentation, entitled “September 2009 American Samoa Tsunami,” she reported the results of a post-event reconnaissance after last year’s tsunami in American Samoa. Jennifer led a Geo-engineering Extreme Events Reconnaissance (GEER) team that examined the earthquake event and the tsunami effects on the coastal environment. The team also made observations on structural engineering and lifeline aspects. Jennifer’s report covered: the geologic and tectonic setting; geo-hazards and damage patterns found on the islands; LIDAR equipment and its use in mapping the tsunami effects; effects of public education related to the tsunami; and the ensuing response and current efforts for rebuilding and reconstruction.

Jennifer, who is based in Geosyntec’s Oakland, Ca., office, has 10 years of experience in geotechnical engineering as well as project management within the public and private sectors. She received her PhD and MS in civil engineering from the University of California, Berkeley and her BS in ocean engineering from Texas A&M University.

For more information about these presentations, contact Neven Matasovic at mailto:nmatasovic@geosyntec.com or 714.465.1244 and Jennifer Donahue at jdonahue@geosyntec.com or 510.285.2737.