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recognised by the ISSMGE for its vitality by being selected for
the inaugural Award for the Outstanding Member Society.
From a personal perspective, it has been a privilege to serve
as the Vice-President of the ISSMGE for Australasia and to
represent such an active region on the Board of the ISSMGE. I
have enjoyed working with both the AGS and NZGS, which are
exemplary in their activities for their members as well as for the
profession and society as a whole. I am confident that both
Australasian ISSMGE Member Societies will continue to be
highly active and successful.
3
APPENDIX A - AUSTRALIAN GEOMECHANICS
SOCIETY (AGS)
This appendix contains a summary of the highlights of the
activities of the Australian Geomechanics Society (AGS).
Membership statistics
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
AGS
1,275
1,368
1,484
1,790
1,743
ISSMGE
800
873
873
963
1,033
Young Geotechnical Professional Activities
9th ANZ Young Geotechnical Professionals Conference, 11 to 14
July 2012, Melbourne (organised jointly by ANZ and NZGS)
Publications
Australian Geomechanics
- published 4 times per year (editor: Patrick
MacGregor). Special issues were:
Victorian Geotechnics – March 2010
Tasmanian and South Australian Geomechanics – September 2010
West Australian Geomechanics – December 2010
Landslide Risk Management – June 2011
Illawarra Geotechnics – March 2012
Sydney Geotechnics – September 2012
Queensland Geotechnics – March 2013
Western Australia Geotechnics – June 2013
Offshore Geotechnics – December 2013
Technical reports/ professional advice
Details of reports produced or planned. Dissemination of
information via web or other means (e.g. workshops):
Illustrative Sections Depicting Landslide Susceptibility of the
Illawarra Escarpment (2012) – on AGS web page.
Landslide Risk Management – “Risky Roadshow” seminars
delivered in 2011 around Australia.
Landslide Risk Management – Education Empowerment Website
delivered in 2011.
Landslide Risk Management - Australian GeoGuides – Education
Empowerment Website
Review of Australian Standard AS1726 Geotechnical Site
Investigations - AGS have applied to Standards Australia to
commence revision of this important standard. A draft has been
prepared by AGS and we await a response from Standards Australia
on the projects acceptance. The process is likely to take two years.
AGS have been lobbying the NSW government regarding the
licensing of ‘test bores’ in order to gain clarification for its
members on when a groundwater well needs to be licensed. The
issue is primarily about protection of groundwater resources and the
distinction been a groundwater extraction well and a geotechnical
standpipe for groundwater monitoring.
AGS are making a push to raise the awareness of AGS with similar
organisations in Australia such as: Australian Institute of
Geoscientists, AusIMM, Eastern Australia Ground Control Group,
Ground Control Group (WA).
AGS are commencing a project on documenting its history.
AGS are exploring the issues associated with formulating an AGS
education and training policy.
Conferences organised by AGS as the main organising organisation
(held since 2011)
ANZ 2012 – Ground Engineering in a Changing World, 15 to 18
July 2012, Melbourne
[the ISSMGE regional conference – this attracted 588 delegates]
9th ANZ Young Geotechnical Professionals Conference, 11 to 14
July 2012, Melbourne (organised jointly by ANZ and NZGS)
Seminars organised (held since 2011)
Landslide Risk Management Roadshow, March-June 2011, Various
locations in Australia
Various technical talks and seminars - about 6 to 10 talks a year in
each of the 7 chapter locations
Sydney Symposium – Recent Advances and Past Experiences, 13
November 2013 (in Conjunction with Engineers Australia
Structural College)
Brisbane Symposium – Geotechnical Challenges and Lessons
Learned, 3 October 2013
Engineering Geology of Western Australia, 9 November 2012,
Perth
Conferences co-sponsored (held since 2011)
International Conference on Ground Improvement and Ground
Control: Transport Infrastructure Development and Natural Hazards
Mitigation, 30 Oct to 2 November 2012, Wollongong [Co-sponsors:
University of Wollongong, ISSMGE (TC202, TC211, TC303), igs,
Geo-Institute]
International and other distinguished speakers (since 2011)
Name
Date of visit
Title of talk or
seminar
Comments
Professor
Tom
O’Rourke
Oct 2011
Geohazards and
Large
Geographically
Distributed Systems
2009
Rankine
Lecture
Dr Robert
Holtz
February 2012
Reinforced Soil
Technology: From
Experimental to the
Familiar
2010
Terzaghi
lecture
Dr Nick
O'Riordan
July 2012
Sustainable
Resilient Ground
Engineering
Professor
Brian
Simpson
October &
November 2012
Geotechnical design
with reference to
Eurocode EC7
Professor
Scott Sloan
2012
Geotechnical
Stability Analysis
51st
Rankine
Lecture
Professo
Malcolm
Bolton
September &
October 2013
Performance-based
design in
geotechnical
engineering
52nd
Rankine
Lecture
Professor
Paul Mayne
June 2013
Geocharacterization
in the Year 2013
and Beyond
Professor Ian
Johnson
November 2013 Geotechnical
Education
John Jaeger
lecture
Volume 6 - Page 267