|
Columbia Section September Meeting
Date: Tues., September 24, 2002 Time: 6:30 PM
Place: Sea Galley Restaurant, Rudkin Road, Yakima
Meal: Pay your own
Topic: Transportation Funding - What Happened... What's next?
Speaker: Todd Trepanier, PE, Assistant Regional Administrator for South Central Region
Program:
6:30 PM - 6:45 PM Social
6: 45 PM - 7:30 PM Dinner
7: 30 PM - 8:30 PM Program
RSVP: Mustafa Mohamedali (509)-577-1724 or Indra Ghosh (509)-371-3152 by September 23, 2002. Open to spouses and friends.
2002 Zone Citizen Engineer Award
ASCE Committee on Public Service (CPS) believes that formal recognition of efforts made by members of ASCE is very important. With this strong conviction, the CPS has embarked on implementing an awards program that will recognize outstanding public involvement efforts on an individual. CPS has defined public involvement as those volunteer efforts that better our world in areas such as local or national legislation, education at all levels, non-profit volunteer organizations, community activities, etc. If you think you have enough volunteer involvement in one or more of these areas, or if you know of any one who has made such contributions, please contact Bill Kinsel at 509-473-7206 [email protected] by October 2, 2002. The due date for submission to the ASCE headquarters is October 15, 2002.
Congratulations, Singh Sawhney.
Our New Fellow Singh Sawhney was elected Fellow of the Society in July.
|
A Message from the President-Elect
Dear Fellow Engineers:
With the September 11th anniversary behind us we are tasked to continue to protect the safety of the public. I was reminded the other day of the Engineers' Creed as adopted by the National Society of Petroleum Engineers in June 1954: As a Professional Engineer, I dedicate my professional knowledge and skill to the advancement and betterment of human welfare. In humility and with need for Divine Guidance, I pledge:
* To give the utmost of performance
* To participate in none but honest enterprise
* To live and work according to the laws of man and the highest standards of professional conduct
* To place service before profit, the honor and standing of the profession before personal advantage, and the public welfare above all other considerations.
I think we can all learn and grow from following this creed. We are tasked with a lofty and difficult goal: protect the public welfare. The events of September 11th called into question our ability to do that. Of course, there are some things we cannot design against. But, we can continue to design public facilities and infrastructure using the latest technology and professional resources available. Funding to support the construction of safe public facilities, including roadways, is a necessity in meeting the Engineers' Creed. How can we be tasked to design and build a safe roadway without adequate funding to do so? There is an upcoming statewide transportation Referendum on the ballot in Washington State in November. R-51 has significant ramifications for the future of transportation in Washington and for civil engineers as well. R-51 would increase the gas tax by 9 cents over a 2-year period. If you drive 12,000 miles a year and get 24 miles per gallon, R51's gas tax increase will cost you $45 per year (less than $4 a month). R-51 also includes a 1% surcharge on vehicle purchases, and a weight fee for trucks over 10,000 lbs (excluding pickups and rv's). The Columbia Section will be sponsoring a presentation on Wednesday, October 16, 2002 by Mark Kushner from the Benton-Franklin Council of Governments. Mr. Kushner will present information regarding R-51 and its impacts on local transportation. In our October Newsletter we will announce the details of this presentation. Please give serious thoughts on Referendum R-51. The vote is on November 5, 2002.
Thank you.
Ben Volk
|
