Senior Geologist Jerry Wylie will present at national conference

I’ll present in San Francisco, but my heart will be in Nicaragua.

By Jerry Wylie, P.G. (Posted Sept. 14, 2018):

SynTerra Principal Jerry Wylie and six Clemson University engineering students were thrilled to hit the jackpot — water. But there’s still lots of work to do, and strife in Nicaragua has stalled their return.

I’d love to write a storybook ending. It would tell of abundant clean water and ensuing prosperity. It would describe how a remote village in Nicaragua is thriving, not struggling amid countrywide unrest. It would highlight a return visit by selfless Clemson University students, not the limitations of assisting from afar.

But it is what it is, so on November 9, I’ll tell the real story — one of success, hope, and trepidation — to a wider audience. I’ll be a presenter at the Engineers Without Borders (EWB) national conference in San Francisco.

Early this year, I wrote about the Clemson EWB chapter’s December 2017 trek to El Serrano, a remote village in southeastern Nicaragua. I marveled at the dedication of several students who missed out on holiday activities to put sweat equity into a greater cause. I recounted the exhilaration of drilling a well (248 feet deep) that produces bountiful, clean water. With essential follow-up, several thousand villagers would finally have sustenance we take for granted. Since then, political unrest has paralyzed the country and stalled progress in El Serrano.

Maybe publicity will help. It will be my mission and my honor to represent both SynTerra and Clemson University at the EWB‒USA Conference set for November 8‒10. My abstract was selected, so I will present “Bedrock Fracture Trace Analysis for Optimal Well Location: Nicaragua Case Study.” I look forward to sharing some of the technical details about our successful well selection and installation work. I will describe how we used map analysis, GIS techniques and technologies, good old-fashioned field reconnaissance, and a little bit of good fortune (which never hurts in the world of hydrogeology) to select a promising well drilling site. EWB water supply projects are often multidisciplinary efforts, and my presentation will be designed to enlighten primarily undergraduate engineering students about a simple, fast, effective approach to improving the odds of drilling a successful water supply well in fractured rock aquifers.

The excitement about presenting is tempered by the plight of our friends in Nicaragua. They are having a rough time of things. Since April, citizens have engaged in countrywide protests, and there have been violent clashes with government paramilitary forces. Nicaragua, one of the poorest countries in Central America, made economic strides in the past decade. Tourism (volcanoes, beaches, ecotourism) was on the upswing, but political unrest has damaged the country’s economy and severely impacted the number of visitors to the country. EWB (and Clemson University) will not permit student chapters to travel to Nicaragua because of traveler safety concerns associated with the unrest.

For now, our chapter will work remotely with our friends in El Serrano on incremental progress (e.g., an electrical supply and a temporary storage tank) as we try to engineer solutions that incorporate the new supply of clean water. It is difficult to work remotely, but we will do all we can until our next trip to Nicaragua, hopefully in 2019.

Kathy Webb, P.G.

Senior Market Leader | Principal

Kathy, a founder of SynTerra (previously The Fletcher Group) in 1992, has completed remedial investigations and regulatory compliance projects associated with Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) facilities, state and federal Superfund sites, solid waste landfills, brownfield redevelopment, utility coal combustion residual (CCR) management units, and regulated industrial facilities. She has supported litigation as an expert witness related to chlorinated solvents, metals, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Kathy is known for her practical assessment strategy with the perspective of the client’s business objectives. She routinely evaluates groundwater corrective action systems for effectiveness and progress toward achieving compliance objectives. She has also co-authored a trade journal paper with case studies of low-impact remedial strategies. Kathy is a licensed Professional Geologist in North and South Carolina.

Mark Taylor, P.G.

Principal

Mark has worked more than 40 years in natural-resource based industries. His expertise includes mine geology and mine engineering, hydrogeologic and geotechnical investigations, solid and hazardous waste management, and regulatory negotiations. He has published peer-reviewed papers about coal geology, ore geochemistry, mineralogy, and solid waste management. He is a leading expert in mining and environmental permitting for litigation support.

Mark is licensed as a Professional Geologist in South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Washington. He serves on the boards of the Upstate Red Cross and Upstate Forever. He served on the South Carolina Board of Registration for Geologists for six years. Mark holds a Master’s degree in Geological Sciences from The University of Michigan and a Bachelor’s degree in Geological Science from Harvard University.

Andrea Kehn, P.E.

Vice President of Engineering | Principal

Andrea, leader of our Civil & Environmental Engineering Business Unit, has 28 years of experience in chemical manufacturing and environmental consulting. She leads and supervises staff professionals on multidisciplinary projects for a variety of industrial clients. Andrea’s vast experience and expertise includes: air quality construction and operating permitting; air quality modeling; air permit record-keeping and reporting; Oil Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasures (SPCC) and Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP); NPDES Permitting; water quality modeling; process safety management; risk management compliance and auditing; and RCRA compliance.

Andrea is registered as a Professional Engineer in South Carolina. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Michigan Technological University.

Ruth Albright, P.E.

Vice President | Principal

Ruth has led projects for major industrial facilities throughout the Southeast and beyond. She built her knowledge of environmental regulations and their application to manufacturing operations while working for the second largest chemical manufacturing company in the United States. At SynTerra, she has expanded both her knowledge and reputation working for chemical manufacturing operations of all sizes. She has also worked extensively with other manufacturing operations, including pulp and paper, industrial equipment, pharmaceuticals, food, and automotive parts and assembly. Her experience includes air and wastewater permit compliance, solid and hazardous waste management, solid waste construction permitting, hazardous materials transportation, wastewater treatment systems, air pollution control equipment operations and maintenance, and ambient air monitoring systems.

Ruth is a professional engineer registered in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Michigan, Arkansas, and Kentucky. She is an active member of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce Environmental Technical Committee and serves as the chair of the water subcommittee. She has previously served as the program and committee chair for the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce Environmental Affairs committee. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Clemson University.