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CALENDAR
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'Safe Handling of Hot Asphalt Binder' classWednesday, March 161 p.m. to 5 p.m.1572 Santa Ana Ave., Sacramento Contact: Ritha Nhorn (916) 791-5044 Click HERE to register *'Safe Handling of Hot Asphalt Binder' class
Thursday, March 17
8 a.m. to noon
1572 Santa Ana Ave., Sacramento
Contact: Ritha Nhorn (916) 791-5044
Click HERE to register
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San Diego Technical Committee Meeting
Wednesday, March 23
9:30 a.m. to noon
County of San Diego, 4th Floor Conference Room (B-472), 5510 Overland Ave., San Diego
Contact: Tony Grasso (909) 362-9192
Click HERE to RSVP.
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Southern California Contractors' Dinner
Tuesday, April 12, 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Dal Rae Restaurant, 9023 E. Washington Blvd., Pico Rivera
Contact: Tony Grasso (909) 362-9192
Click HERE to sign up.
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REGISTRATION OPEN!CalAPA Spring Conference & Equipment ExpoApril 20-21 Doubletree Hotel, 222 N. Vineyard Ave., Ontario Contact: Sophie You (916) 791-5044 Register HERE
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Asphalt is used on about 94 percent of paved roads in America. Why? Because it's smooth, quiet, safe, durable and 100 percent recyclable. Visit the Asphalt Pavement Alliance website learn more about why asphalt is the right choice now more than ever. |
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Are you an engineer, designer or technical professional who makes decisions on pavement type selection? The DriveAsphalt website has technical reports and other resources may be just what you're looking for. Click HERE for more information.
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| CalAPA | | |
California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA)
Mailing address:
P.O. Box 981300
West Sacramento, CA 95798
Main office:
1550 Harbor Blvd., Suite 211
West Sacramento, CA 95691
(916) 791-5044 (phone)
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Did you miss an issue of the California Asphalt Insider? No problem! Past editions of the newsletter are available at the CalAPA newsletter archive page.
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CalAPA produces a highly regarded magazine, California Asphalt, and an annual membership directory. To view current and past issues of the magazine, click HERE. For advertising sales information, click HERE or call Kerry Hoover with Construction Marketing Services at (909) 772-3121.
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Click HERE to visit our video page.
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This weekly bulletin contains the latest news and information of interest to the asphalt pavement industry in California. Please feel free to distribute this newsletter to others who may be interested in asphalt pavements. |
 | South Coast Air District drama likely to continue as state Senate leader vows to intercede to counter board action
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The Southern California Air Quality Management District board, with a new business-friendly majority, is sure to face more heat as liberals in the Legislature and the Brown administration vow to overturn what they say is a new environment-unfriendly direction.
At a dramatic meeting held Dec. 4 in Diamond Bar, attended by CalAPA, the SCAQMD governing board voted to sack Executive Director Barry Wallerstein, replacing him with an interim executive director, Michael O'Kelly, the current SCAQMD Director of Finance.
The move comes on the heels of the board pushing aside staff  recommendations for even more stringent regulations aimed at further reducing emissions at power plants, factories and other stationary facilities in favor of a compromise plan backed by industry representatives. The SCAQMD is the prime air quality regulator for Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
At the same time, CalAPA and other industry partners were concerned that a casualty of the turmoil could be the NOx RECLAIM program that many CalAPA members participate in. The RECLAIM program, which stands for "Regional Clean Air Incentives Market," is the world's first market-based program to reduce air pollution by providing businesses incentives to reduce pollution beyond what is called for by current regulations and guidelines. CalAPA Deputy Executive Director Tony Grasso testified in favor of the program, which was up for reconsideration, and the board ultimately voted to keep it in place.
The reconsideration was urged by the chairman of the state Senate Committee on Environmental Quality, Sen. Bob Wieckowski, D-Fremont, which represented an unusual power-play by the state legislator over a local regulatory body with elected representation.
Mary Nichols, chair of the powerful California Air Resources Board, felt the need to weigh in on the drama March 4, posting on Twitter: "AQMD dismissal of Dr. Wallerstein has precedent: he got the job in a similar coup. What's scary is the rollbacks+rhetoric that went with it."
In the latest twist, state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, said last week that he will introduce a measure to add three new seats to the SCAQMD board, which presumably would be filled by more liberal board members, in an effort to tip the balance of power away from business interests.
In a statement issued shortly after the SCAQMD board action, De Leon said the recent board action was "shameful" and "is only the latest in a disturbing trend of dirty energy interests dismantling clean air rules that the public overwhelmingly supports."
"I'm extremely disappointed in the direction this board has taken under its new Republican majority," he added. "This hostile takeover, led by Supervisor Michael Antonovich, has subverted the will of the people and undone decades of hard work that has unquestionably benefited all of the region's residents."
The events in recent weeks represent a bruising and very public battle between business interests, rebelling over years of burdensome regulations, and environmentalists relentlessly pushing a green agenda wrapped in miles of red tape.
CalAPA will continue to follow the fast-moving events in Southern California and in the Legislature and will report developments as events warrant. To read last week's story on this topic, click HERE.
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| San Diego technical committee meeting to feature discussion of pavement smoothness
| This month's CalAPA San Diego Technical Committee meeting will highlight new pavement smoothness specifications and technology. All CalAPA members and agency representatives are welcome to attend.
The meeting will take place on Wednesday, March 23 from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the County of San Diego building, fourth floor conference room (B-472), 5510 Overland Ave. in San Diego. Click HERE for details and to RSVP.
The featured speaker will be Don Matthews, P.E., technical
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| | Inertial Profiler equipment operated by CalAPA member SSI. |
manager for CalAPA member firm Pavement Recycling Systems Inc. He is co-chair for both the Recycling Subcommittee for the Pavement Preservation Task Group and the newly formed Smoothness Subtask Group, which are both under the umbrella of the the Caltrans-industry Rock Products Committee. The smoothness subcommittee meets for the first time March 16 in Sacramento.
He'll talk about the new Caltrans pavement smoothness specifications, technology, software, best practices and more. The meeting will also include other agency reports, a state funding update and other matters of interest to agencies and the road-building industry.
For more information, contact Tony Grasso of CalAPA at (909) 362-9192. |
| Peter Vacura, former head of Caltrans Office of Asphalt Pavements, to retire
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Peter Vacura, the former head of the Caltrans Office of Asphalt Pavements and the department's longtime point person for pavement smoothness initiatives, announced he will be retiring from the department at the end of March.
Vacura was instrumental in helping implement a long-life asphalt pavement projects on Interstate 80 and Interstate 5 in the North State, the latter of which won national recognition and a Caltrans "Excellence in Transportation" award. Read more about the project HERE.
A familiar face to the asphalt pavement industry, Vacura has been
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| | Peter Vacura listens in Sept. 28 during the HMA Pavement Smoothness Forum in Sacramento. |
on a special assignment in the division of design since 2014, when Sri Balasubramanian was named his replacement.
While in the Office of Asphalt Pavements, which is part of the Division of Maintenance, Vacura helped implement the pavement test sections in Sacramento for calibrating inertial profilers. Previously, companies had to travel to Texas to get the pavement smoothness measuring equipment equipment calibrated. Industry representatives noted that Vacura always maintained a calm and affable demeanor even during sometimes contentious meetings with industry. An avid golfer, some speculated that Vacura's patience stemmed from his time on the links and keeping cool while hunting down errant tee shots.
He previously was the Chief of the Office of Pavement of Rehabilitation, which was responsible for field testing and design of rehabilitation projects across the state.
Vacura participated in many meetings with industry via the
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| | | Peter Vacura (center) makes a point to CalAPA member Skip Brown (left) during a conference in 2008. | |
Caltrans-industry Rock Products Committee regarding implementation of various pavement smoothness specification and technology changes, which have created conflicts on some contracts as they have come into widespread use on Caltrans projects. The department recently announced it will launch a special pavement smoothness subcommittee that will meet for the first time March 16 at 9 a.m. in at the Caltrans Transportation Laboratory, 5900 Folsom Blvd. in Sacramento.
He was on hand last Sept. 28 for a packed HMA Pavement Smoothness Forum in Sacramento, co-sponsored by CalAPA, where issues with the new Caltrans smoothness specifications were discussed in detail. A story about the forum can be found HERE.
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| A few seats left for asphalt binder safety classes March 16 and 17 in Sacramento
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A few seats are left for a new CalAPA class, "Safe Handling of Hot Asphalt Binders," which will be held Wednesday afternoon, March 16 in Sacramento. The half-day class will be repeated in the morning of March 17 at the same location. The class is being taught by internationally known safety expert Barry Gundersen from New Zealand,
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| | Barry Gundersen |
who presented on the topic at the Fall Asphalt Pavement Conference in Sacramento to rave reviews. Gundersen, assisted by Safety Technician Margaret Holdsworth, will educate attendees about the flammability and potentially explosive properties of binders, best practices when working around hot binders, and essential first-aid considerations for workers who come in contact with hot binders. The class will include memorable "live" demonstrations to reinforce the learning. All participants will receive a workbook, wallet card developed by
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| | Margaret Holdsworth |
the Asphalt Institute, and certificate of completion. The classes are being hosted by CalAPA member Twining at their lab, 1572 Santa Ana Ave. in Sacramento. Seating is limited so early registration is strongly recommended. For more information about the March 16 class and to sign up, click HERE. For information on the March 17 class and to sign-up, click HERE. |
| Registration open for Spring Asphalt Pavement Conference & Equipment Expo April 20-21 in Ontario
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Registration is now open for the CalAPA Spring Asphalt Pavement Conference & Equipment Expo, which will be held April 20-21 at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario. Click HERE for details and to register.
The must-attend event will be attended by hundreds of industry and agency representatives and feature an impressive lineup of speakers, who will delve into technical aspects of asphalt pavements and important policy matters, such as funding for roads.
The governor's transportation secretary, Brian Kelly, will be the
keynote speaker and will provide the latest information on the Brown Administration's proposals to provide for a long-term, sustainable funding plan for transportation.
Other topics that will be featured at the conference include pavement smoothness, recent changes to Caltrans asphalt specifications, "Intelligent Compaction," critical factors that impact pavement texture, pavement preservation strategies and more. A detailed agenda of the program can be found HERE.
The two-day conference will feature dozens of booths from exhibitors, and an outdoor equipment area where manufacturers and distributors will have the latest equipment on display. Display space is limited and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Click HERE for exhibitor and sponsor information, or contact Sophie You of CalAPA at (916) 791-5044 for details.
The conference begins at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, April 20, and wraps up at noon on Thursday, April 21 at the Doubletree, 222 N. Vineyard Ave. in Ontario. Also back this year is a popular networking reception the evening of April 20, which is free for all attendees.
For a list of exhibitors from last year's Spring Conference, click HERE. Photos from last year's Spring Conference are posted on our Facebook page HERE.
Outdoor equipment displays at last year's Spring Conference.
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| Tech Term of the Week
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Each week we highlight a word, acronym or other reference commonly used in the asphalt pavement industry in California.
GYRATORY COMPACTOR: A piece of equipment that compacts specimens of Hot Mix Asphalt as part of the Superpave™ mix design procedure. The primary operating parameters for the SGC include the pressure applied to the specimen during compaction; the speed of gyration/rotation; the number of gyrations applied to the specimen; and the angle of gyration.
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| Quote of the Week
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"Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please."
Mark Twain
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We hope you enjoy CalAPA's Asphalt Insider. We are committed to providing you with the most up-to-date information on technical issues, regulation, news and events in California that may impact the asphalt pavement industry. Click HERE to contact us with any comments or suggestions.
Sincerely,
Russell W. SnyderExecutive Director California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA) |
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