Major General Hans Van Winkle, Director of Civil Works, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, was the featured speaker at a May 25, 2001, symposium co-sponsored by the Environmental and Energy Program, GW School of Engineering and Applied Science, and the American Society of Engineering Management. General Van Winkle discussed “Environmental Programs of the Corps of Engineers: What We Can Expect in the Future.”
Major General Hans A. Van Winkle, Director of Civil Works, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, discusses environmental programs at GW symposium. |
In his presentation, General Van Winkle described a number of large environmental projects that the Corps currently has underway, such as the $8 billion Everglades Restoration Project and the Kissimmee River project in Florida that involves putting the Kissimmee River back to its original configuration.
Dr. Jonathan P. Deason, lead professor of the GW Environmental and Energy Management Program, coordinated the symposium. |
General Van Winkle also discussed a wide range of Corps environmental programs, such as the Clean Water Act Section 404 wetlands regulatory program, integrated watershed management, and a variety of ecosystem restoration and environmental sustainability initiatives of the Corps.
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Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the program involved an assessment of future Corps undertakings, such as a very large potential effort to restore and protect massive wetland areas in the State of Louisiana. General Van Winkle referred to this proposed project as the “Louisiana Everglades” project, one that may surpass the massive Everglades restoration program in scope and magnitude.
American Society of Engineering Management National Capital Section President Saralyn Bunch, a GW E&EM doctoral candidate, opened the program. |
Also participating in the symposium, along with a number of GW students and faculty members, were several key figures in U.S. environmental policy.
Among the dignitaries participating in the symposium were (L-R): Dr. Herb Quinn, former Assistant Administrator, USEPA; Ellen Livingston-Behan, Senior Policy Advisor to the Secretary of Energy for Environmental Affairs; Carolyn Huntoon, Assistant Secretary of Energy for Environmental Management; Timothy Fields, Senior Vice President, Marasco-Newton Environmental Services and former Assistant Administrator, USEPA; LTG (ret.) Vald Heiberg, former Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and Dr. Robert Wolff, Vice President, CH2M Hill. |
Faculty and students of the GW Environmental and Energy Management Program organized the event, which was held at the George Washington University Faculty Club.
GW Environmental and Energy Management doctoral student Eric Chukwu presents General Van Winkle with a plaque. |