Editor’s Note

The Journal of Cold Regions Engineering is administered by the ASCE Technical Council on Cold Regions Engineering (TCCRE). Established in 1979 to “identify, assess, and report on effects of cold region environments upon engineering design, construction and operations,” TCCRE is a small organizational unit within ASCE, but its members are quite active. TCCRE is a unique group, because instead of limiting itself to a single, traditional branch of civil engineering, it covers all disciplines as they relate to cold regions (areas affected by frost or temperatures less than 0°C). The technical structure of TCCRE exemplifies this diversity with committees on Environmental and Public Health Engineering, Frozen Ground, Hydrology and Hydraulics, Structures and Foundations, and Transportation and Infrastructure.

In addition to the Journal, TCCRE conducts technology transfer through the publication of a series of monographs and by organizing and supporting technical conferences on cold regions topics. The near future will be a very busy time for TCCRE, with several upcoming conferences. The first of these is the 10th International Conference on Permafrost, which will take place on June 25–29, 2012, in Salekhard, Russia, located on the Arctic Circle and the east bank of the Ob River. TCCRE has been supporting the International Conference on Permafrost series since its establishment through conference promotion, session generation and sponsorship, paper reviews, and by serving on the organizing committees; most recently with the Ninth International Conference on Permafrost held in Fairbanks, Alaska, in 2008. Although the deadline for paper titles has now passed, full papers can be submitted until September 15, 2011, and shorter extended abstracts for oral or poster presentations will be accepted up until February 15, 2012. For information on the conference, please visit http://www.ticop2012.org.

The 15th International Conference on Cold Regions Engineering (ICCRE 2012) will be held in Quebec City, Canada, on August 19–22, 2012. The conference will be held at the Loews Le Concorde Hotel located in the historic downtown area of Quebec City, truly one of the most beautiful cities in Canada. This conference continues the series of previous International Cold Regions Engineering Conferences held in Duluth, Minnesota (2009), and Orono, Maine (2006). It is sponsored by the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering and ASCE. The call for papers is currently open, with an abstract deadline of September 30, 2011. Information on abstract submission, registration, and tours can be found at http://www.csce.ca/2012/iccre.

Next on the conference agenda is the Arctic Technology Conference (ATC 2012) to be held in Houston on December 3–5, 2012. This is the second ATC, and ASCE is one of the sponsoring organizations. This highly focused, international conference will address cutting-edge technologies and innovative practices needed for resource exploration and production in the Arctic. TCCRE and the Coasts, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute (COPRI) will organize sessions on onshore facilities and pipelines. Although an official call for papers had not been released when this article was written, the conference website provides information on registration, organization, exhibitions, and opportunities for sponsorship at http://www.arctictechnologyconference.org/.

The last conference to mark on your calendar is the 10th International Symposium on Cold Regions Development (ISCORD 2013), which will be held in May 2013 in Anchorage, Alaska. Although just in the planning stages now, this conference will follow the successful Ninth ISCORD held in Yakutsk, Russia, in June 2010. The conference covers all aspects of civil engineering pertaining to development, infrastructure, and quality of life in cold regions. TCCRE hosted the Fifth ISCORD in Anchorage in 1997, and ISCORD 2013 will include several other ASCE Technical Activities Committee (TAC) Councils and Divisions as cosponsors. Further information will soon be available on the ASCE website (www.asce.org).