News Stories for 2010
Dr. Montgomery is invited to speak at the 2010 AHS Symposium
The annual Arizona Hydrological Society (AHS) Symposium will be held in Tucson this year, from September 1–4, at the Westin - La Paloma. M&A is sponsoring the event. In addition, Dr. Errol Montgomery, founder of M&A, will be the lunchtime speaker on Thursday, September 2. Dr. Montgomery's talk is entitled “Other Drylands — Atacama Desert of South America.” He will discuss the hydrogeology of the Atacama Desert, sharing his insights from nearly 30 years of experience conducting investigations in this unique region. His presentation will describe how factors such as location, altitude, precipitation, recharge patterns, salinity, and regulatory issues affect groundwater development — and how conditions in the Atacama compare to those here in Arizona. The theme of this year’s symposium is “Dryland Hydrology: Global Challenges, Local Solutions.” As usual, it will feature workshops, field trips, and 2 days of technical presentations. Be sure to stop by the M&A booth. To learn more, visit the symposium website.
We’re hiring — positions now open for Environmental Database Specialist and Senior Hydrogeologists
M&A currently has positions open in each of its three offices: Tucson — Environmental Database Specialist, Scottsdale — Senior Hydrogeologist, and Santiago de Chile — Senior Hydrogeologist. To learn more about these positions, visit our Careers page. M&A was a 2002 finalist for the Wells Fargo Copper Cactus Award for the “Best Place to Work” category for companies of our size. This award honors firms that encourage growth, education, and development for their employees. (Updated August 16)
M&A authors present paper at Water in Mining 2010 Conference in Santiago, Chile
June 21 —WIM is one of the western hemisphere's premier conferences on water-management issues facing the mining industry. This year’s conference, held from June 9–11, featured a slate of 50 speakers in two concurrent sessions. The presenters included highly qualified experts, academics, and consultants who are not only engaged in best practices but who also apply new technologies in the mining field. We presented a paper entitled “Hydrogeologic Conceptual Model for the Collahuasi Mine Area, Chile,” which was coauthored by various staff from M&A’s Tucson and Santiago offices: Mark J. Thomasson / Staffan W. Schorr (M&A, USA) and Lyle A. Davis / Michael J. Rosko ( M & A, Chile). Authors also included Orlando J. Acosta (Cía Minera Doña Inés de Collahuasi, Chile). For more information, click here.
Immediate opening for a Senior Hydrogeologist in M&A’s Chile office
June 15 — We are currently seeking a hydrogeologist to join our team in Chile. Qualifications for this position include at least 10 years of experience, as well as experience managing field personnel and large-scale drilling / tesing programs. Learn more...
M&A to present at Arizona Water Rights and Transfers Conference
May 1 — On July 15, Leslie Katz, Juliet McKenna, and Taylor Shipman will speak at a seminar in Tucson on Arizona water rights and transfers. Their session, “Scientific Basis for Water Valuations: Recent Examples Integrating Hydrogeology and Economics,” will address the importance of hydrogeology in assessing project economics and risk by discussing several real-world examples. Other speakers include Greg Houtz (Arizona Department of Water Resources) and Sharon Megdal (University of Arizona). Discounts and complimentary registration may be available through M&A. Contact a speaker to learn more.
M&A sponsors annual conference of the AZ Water Association
April 29 — Once again, M&A is sponsoring AZ Water’s Annual Conference & Exposition. Formerly known as the Arizona Water Pollution Control Association (AWPCA), AZ Water is the premier organization for water and wastewater professionals in Arizona. This year’s conference will be held at the Renaissance Hotel in Glendale from May 5–7. The opening session, to be co-presented by AZ Water and the Central Arizona Project, will address the future of Arizona’s water supply, expanding on the conference theme, “Stewardship of Arizona’s Water Future.” Tim Leo, Greg Wallace, and Andrew MacHugh will be staffing M&A’s all-new booth in the Exhibition Hall on May 5 and 6. They will be showcasing our modeling and HydroGeoMetrics capabilities for municipal water supply development and operations. Stop by to say hello and learn more about our newly expanded service areas... and don’t forget to pick up some swag! Mention this news piece and we’ll give you one of our stainless steel water bottles.
M&A sponsors Arizona Water Writing Internship
April 29 — For the third year, M&A will sponsor the Summer Writing Internship at the Arizona Water Resources Research Center on the campus of the University of Arizona. Under the guidance of Director Sharon Megdal, the intern will contribute to research on the topic of desalination, including its present and future role in Arizona. His or her work will be featured in a special issue of the Arroyo, an annual WRRC publication that focuses on a critical Arizona water issue for a readership that includes water professionals, researchers, government officials, and stakeholders interested in water issues. The internship is awarded to an undergraduate or graduate student from the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, or Northern Arizona University. The March 2010 issue of Arroyo features research on the energy-water nexus in Arizona by last year’s intern. It is available on the WRRC website.
The internship was awarded to Tim Glass. To learn more, click here.
M&A adds hydrogeologist to its water resources team
April 29 — M&A welcomes hydrogeologist Brittney Bates, who recently joined our water resources team in Tucson. Ms. Bates brings us skills in hydrologic modeling, hydrochemistry, instrumental analysis of water samples, and GIS engineering applications. In May 2010, she will complete her M.S. in Hydrology from the University of Arizona, where she worked with Dr. Jennifer McIntosh and Dr. Thomas Maddock investigating hydrogeochemical controls on microbial methane production in coal beds. Her thesis entailed conducting sampling campaigns for coal-bed methane wells with gas companies in the Powder River and Illinois basins of Wyoming. She has a B.S. in Geology and a B.A. in Chemistry from Brigham Young University.
Montgomery Prizes awarded for best student papers
March 29 — M&A is proud to announce two winners of the 2010 Montgomery Prize: Erika Gallo, a graduate student in hydrology, and Christine Gans, a doctoral candidate in seismology. We award the $2,000 cash prize to graduate students at the University of Arizona who present their papers two symposia — El Dia de Agua (Department of Hydrology and Water Resources) and GeoDaze (Department of Geosciences — based on the recommendation of a panel of faculty members and professionals. In addition to the cash prize, both winners are invited to make presentations to staff in our Tucson office. Erika Gallo’s paper was entitled “Controls on Monsoonal Storm Runoff Magnitude and Quality of Urban Catchments in the Tucson Basin” by Erika Gallo, P.D. Brooks, and K.A. Lohse. Christine Gans presented her research on “Imaging the Flat Slab Beneath the Sierras Pampeanas, Argentina, Using Receiver Functions: Evidence for Overthickened and Broken Subducted Oceanic Crust” by C.R. Gans, S.L. Beck, G. Zandt, H. Gilbert, H. and P. Alvarado. The NAU Montgomery Prize will be awarded and reported on soon.
Celebrating a quarter century of service
March 29 — Last year, 2009, represented our 25th anniversary of providing hydrogeologic and water resources consulting services to clients in the U.S. and several other countries across the globe. To celebrate the occasion, M&A updated its logo and branding, hosted an open house for its clients and teaming partners, and launched a new website. The company began with a handful of colleagues who shared Dr. Errol “Monte” Montgomery’s commitment to focusing on objectivity, quality, and sound scientific principals. We have since grown to three offices and a permanent staff of over 70 professionals and support personnel. Learn more about our roots and subsequent growth.
Upcoming events for M&A staff
March 29 —
EXPOMIN 2010. M&A is pleased to be an exhibitor at the EXPOMIN 2010, Latin America’s premiere mining exhibition, on April 12–16. The 11th annual edition of this event will take place at the Espacio Riesco Center in Santiago, Chile, and 1,200 participating companies and 60,000 professional attendees are anticipated. Exhibition areas include:
- Equipment, machinery, tools
- Mining engineering, erection, and construction services
- Drilling and exploration
- Services for mining processes
- Industrial electric power
- Industrial safety, safety equipment, and clothing
- Laboratory services
- Engineering and hydrogeologic consultants
Contact Mike Rosko in our Santiago office to learn more.
Arizona Water Association Conference & Exhibition. M&A is pleased to be an exhibitor at Arizona Water Association’s 83rd Annual Conference & Exhibition on May 5–6. The event will be held at the Renaissance Hotel & Spa in Glendale, Arizona. The theme of this year’s conference is “Stewardship of Arizona’s Water Future.” The keynote speaker will be David Modeer, General Manager of Central Arizona Water Conservation District. Noted panelists include Marie Pearthree, Central Arizona Project Assistant General Manager in Business Planning; Steven Dean, Water Quality and Operations Administrator for Tucson Water; Mike Hightower, a distinguished staff member at Sandia National Laboratories Energy Security Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Bob Lotts, Arizona Public Service Water Resources Manager. To learn more, contact Greg Wallace from our Phoenix office.
Lorman Water Rights Sales and Transfers Seminar. Three M&A professionals — Leslie Katz, Juliet McKenna, and Taylor Shipman — will present at this seminar in Tucson on July 15. Their presentation, “The Scientific Basis for Water Valuations: Recent Examples Integrating Hydrogeology and Economics,” will cover the importance of hydrogeology for assessing project economics and risk using several examples:
- Assessing economics of brackish groundwater development
- Factoring water value into price for solar land lease
- Evaluating risk and cost in developing an industrial water supply
To learn more, contact Leslie Katz in our Tucson office.
M&A expertise supports the permitting of one of Arizona’s largest “wet-cooled” concentrating solar power plants
March 15 — M&A’s Mike Rosko and Janis Blainer-Fleming will present a paper at the upcoming 2009 Applications of Computers and Operations Research (APCOM) in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, from October 6–9. The 34th APCOM is a major forum for mining professionals, researchers, and suppliers worldwide. Organized by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum, APCOM 2009 will focus on knowledge management systems, operations research, automation, robotics, virtual reality, and modeling for different areas of the mining process. In addition to supporting the conference as a bronze sponsor, M&A is providing a student host sponsorship. Rosko and Blainer-Fleming will present a paper entitled “Improvements in Use of Satellite Images for Monitoring Changes in Hydro-Environmental Conditions.”
Acronyms & Abbreviations
