ARCADIS Geraghty & Miller Receives Engineering Excellence Awards in Kentucky and Tennessee

Business Wire, March 7, 2000

Business Editors

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 7, 2000

ARCADIS Geraghty & Miller, an environmental and engineering services consulting firm, was recognized for engineering excellence by the Kentucky Engineers Council (KEC) and the Consulting Engineers of Tennessee (CET) as part of the 2000 Engineering Excellence Awards competition.

The firm's Chattanooga, Tennessee, operations was honored with a Grand Award by the KEC within the water resources category. The CET granted an Honor Award for best environmental project. Both awards acknowledge ARCADIS' design and construction of the Louisville, Kentucky, collector well and the related riverbank infiltration pilot study.

Projects considered for engineering excellence awards are evaluated based on an original application of new or existing techniques, contribution of technical value to the engineering profession, incorporation of social and economic considerations, complexity, and fulfillment of the client's needs. The Louisville collector well project received high marks in all categories.

ARCADIS, known for its water resource expertise, assisted the Louisville Water Company in determining if riverbank infiltration (RBI) would efficiently and economically meet the strict drinking water standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). As a result of this project, citizens of Louisville receive high-quality drinking water at a very low cost.

Utilizing RBI, water from the Ohio River is filtered through the sand and gravel aquifer in the river basin, removing contamination naturally. Special pipes under the Ohio River, in lengths up to 240 feet, collect 20 million gallons of water daily. These screened, lateral pipes are among the longest in the world. The filtered water is then pumped to the treatment plant using a pump house located on the scenic banks of the Ohio River. The brick pump house was designed in an architectural style typical of Louisville in the early 1900s.

When the naturally filtered water reaches the treatment plant, it already meets or exceeds many Safe Drinking Water standards. As a result, the need for chemicals is reduced, treatment time is minimized, and operating costs are significantly decreased. Collector wells for RBI can be constructed for approximately half the cost of installing additional treatment facilities and provide better water with fewer chemicals.

ARCADIS Geraghty & Miller is an environmental and engineering services consulting firm, specializing in full-service capabilities within the environment, infrastructure, and buildings sectors. The firm is the U.S.-based operations arm of ARCADIS NV (Nasdaq:ARCAF), a multi-national engineering company specializing in consulting and implementation services for environment, infrastructure, and construction engineering.