The 26th Annual David S. Snipes/Clemson Hydrogeology Symposium was held on April 12, 2018 at the Madren Conference Center. This is the largest gathering of professionals focused on hydrogeology in the Southeast U.S. This year’s attendance broke all previous records with over 450 participants, 31 exhibitors, and 14 sponsors. Participants came from both government and industry with representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, SC Department of Natural Resources, and the US Geological Survey. There were 65 oral presentations on topics such as chlorinated compound remediation, bioremediation, coastal plain hydrogeology, geo-mechanics, geophysics, characterization, vapor intrusion, geologic mapping, petrology, and the challenges of detecting and cleaning up aquifers contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds (such as Teflon).
Several of the department’s undergraduate and graduate students in geology, hydrogeology, and environmental engineering and science presented at the event. Clemson students who gave oral presentations were: Yoel Gebrai, T.J. Daniel, Isaac Hayes, Christian Pullano, Thomas Spain, Maria Christina Silva Lemes, Angel Ramos-Garcia, Morgan Ivey, Riley Blais, Britton Hundley, Abdullah Al Mamun, Reid Williams, Morgan Thomas, Ryan Badum, Sawyer Hipp, and Henry Reed.
In addition to the day of presentations, field trips were held on April 11, April 13, and May 3. The title of this year’s field trip was “Geology of the Tugaloo Terrane and Engineering Geology of the Cedar Cliff Development, Southwestern North Carolina.” The field trip leaders were Malcolm Schaeffer and Sarah Townsend. During the trip, participants examined rock outcrops along roads and visited a hydroelectric facility where changes in the emergency spillway have necessitated complex engineering geology investigations.
