The Environmental Research & Education Foundation (EREF) is pleased to award the inaugural Evergreen Surety Bond Scholarship, funded by Evergreen National Indemnity Company (Evergreen), to Gomathy Radhakrishna Iyer, a doctoral student at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Founded specifically to serve the needs of the waste industry and contractors who need payment and performance bonds, Evergreen National Indemnity Company has become an industry leader in surety bonds. Evergreen was one of the first firms to tackle the requirements of Subtitle D and is frequently called upon to give recommendations to regulators and rating agencies on surety issues.
“Ever since the United States Congress passed requirements to raise the standards of landfill design in 1993 in the waste industry, our focus has been on how we can help organizations in the industry improve. EREF’s Scholarship Program ensures that the next generation of the waste industry will have the knowledge and expertise needed to be successful,” said Daniel J. Clark of Evergreen National Indemnity Company.
Gomathy’s project, entitled “Development of Landfill Biocovers from Yardwaste to Oxidize Methane Escaping Landfill,” primarily focuses on developing landfill biocovers to oxidize surface methane emissions and developing a model based on California Landfill Methane Inventory Model (CALMIM) for methane oxidation potential. Based on material study (yard waste+biosolids and flyash), biocovers will be designed for methane oxidation for batch tests. Optimization for permeability and moisture content of biocovers will be conducted using column studies, followed by development of a model for methane oxidation potential employing CALMIM, and further field analyses on actual landfill.
Born and raised in India, Gomathy obtained her Baccalaureate in Civil Engineering from Mar Baselios College of Engineering & Technology, University of Kerala, and Master of Technology (M. Tech) from Anna University, India. Her Master’s research focused on Solute transport modeling of heavy metal ions of an urban aquifer. Later on, Gomathy continued her research interests at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) as Research as project associate. During this period at IIT-M, she researched on efficiency of treatment units at wastewater treatment plants of South India and septage management through composting.
She moved to the USA to pursue her doctorate in Civil and Environmental Engineering at The University of Texas at Arlington in the fall of 2016. Gomathy’s interest is focused on solid waste management, and she looks forward to implementing her knowledge to solve solid waste management problems in India.
EREF scholarships recognize graduate students pursuing excellence in solid waste management research and education. Recipients are chosen based on credentials and potential contributions to the solid waste industry and its scientific community. Students must meet the following criteria to receive an EREF scholarship:
- Will be this year or are now a full-time master’s or doctoral student, and
- Have a clearly demonstrated interest in solid waste management research. EREF defines solid waste management to pertain to municipal solid waste, construction & demolition waste, industrial waste (e.g. coal ash), WTE ash, etc. Note: this definition does not include agricultural wastes or wastewater treatment plant sludge.
Applications for 2017 EREF scholarships are due May 3.
For more information on the EREF scholarship program, visit www.erefdn.org.