Happy fall, everyone!
The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the ASRS recently decided to add another level of communication to our members to increase membership engagement and awareness of our activities. We hope these news items keep you better informed of what goes on behind the scenes at ASRS (basically, the 11 months of the year that are not highlighted by the conference).
Conferences
We are extremely happy with the outcome of the Duluth 2022 conference. Final attendance was over 200, which was very good, considering the uncertainty of travel and gathering restrictions due to COVID. Thank you to all who attended. We heard many positive comments about the conference across a range of topics, including the breadth of reclamation work, student engagement, the commitment of the attendees to the profession, and the general camaraderie of the attendees. Applause for Mehgan Blair and her team!
Please mark your calendars for the 2023 conference, scheduled June 4-7 at the Boise Centre (Boise, Idaho), Idaho. Details will follow as we get updates from the planning committee. If you are local or regional to the area and want to join the committee, please contact Dustin Wasley at DWasley@haleyaldrich.com. Please start thinking about your abstract if you are considering presenting at the conference. Dustin is also lining up sponsors, so if you are interested in being a sponsor, please contact him.
Membership
For those members that renewed their membership last year in October, it is now membership renewal time. Look for a reminder in your inbox or renew online at asrs.us. Rates are staying the same as last year.
Outreach
As part of our goal to reach out to more facets of disturbances that require reclamation and increase our membership base, we have been engaging and supporting members that are attending other conferences, and are willing to staff a booth, to bring awareness of ASRS and our wealth of technical expertise to a wider range of potential members.
Nick Shepherd, University of Oklahoma, attended the Tribal Lands Environment Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in mid-August to promote ASRS.
We were also at the Idaho Mining Conference in Boise in October and will be at the Petroleum Association of Wyoming conference in Casper, Wyoming, in November.
If you are planning on being at the Wyoming conference, please stop by the booth to say hello!
Publications
We are always looking for articles for our publications.
Reclamation Sciences publishes peer-reviewed articles, including research articles, technical notes, short communications, review articles, and cultural communications.
Articles can be submitted to both publications at any time during the year, but Reclamation Matters does have a hard deadline for the spring and fall editions. The spring deadline will be in early February.
If you have a topic you are interested in getting published, please check out the details of our publications to determine which one will suit your needs at asrs.us or contact the editors.
Reclamation Matters Editor Michael Curran mike@abnovaecology.com
Reclamation Sciences Editor Natalie Kruse reclamationsciences@asrs.us
NEC News
We had the summer off from board meetings and had our first NEC meeting on September 27. As you may be aware, our long-term Executive Director, Dr. Robert Darmody, stepped down from his position on September 30. We wish Bob well and are very grateful for all his hard work with ASRS over the past nine and a half years. Most of our internal management will now be turned over to a nonprofit management organization named FASS. We are currently navigating through the change, so we apologize if there are any glitches with membership renewals, website access, or just getting a response for the next month.
If you have any social media news about ASRS that you would like posted, please contact Allen Wellborn at allen.wellborn@navenergy.com.
Elections
Candidates for two NEC positions (two-year terms; June 2023-June 2025), one President (three-year term; June 2023-June 2024 as incoming President, June 2024-June 2025 as President, and June 2025-June 2026 as Past President), and a Technical Division Representative (two-year, June 2023-June 2025) are being sought. If you are interested or want more information, please contact Tim Danehy at timdanehy@biomost.com.
Awards
It is never too early to start thinking of worthy reclamationists to nominate for prestigious reclamation awards. If your candidate wins, you will be awarded a free conference registration. See details at https://www.asrs.us/society-awards/.
With our changing seasons comes the time to start thinking about your nominations for the 2023 ASRS major awards. There are many people and projects that are worthy of international recognition, so think about who or what project you think needs to be acknowledged for their accomplishments. The ASRS offers the Plass, Researcher, Reclamationist, Early Career, and Pioneer awards for individuals and the Distinction in Reclamation award for projects. The awards criteria and nomination process can be found on the ASRS website under the awards tab. A formal call for nominations will be sent out in early November, so start thinking about your 2023 nomination. If you have any questions, please contact Paul Griswold at pgriswold@peabobdyenergy.com.
New News
We hope this newsletter gives our membership a better understanding of what goes on behind the scenes at ASRS. If you are interested in getting involved or have information that should be included in the next email, please contact us at president@asrs.us.
Best Regards
Michele Coleman
President, ASRS