When the global tunnelling community gathers shortly in Copenhagen, a key focus for the presentations, training and discussions at the World Tunnelling Congress will be on exploring practical ways to pursue sustainability. The WTC conference and exhibition will take place in the Bella Congress Centre, in the south of the capital.
The host is the Danish Society for Tunnels and Underground Works (Dansk Forening for Tunnel- og Undergrundsarbejder – DFTU), together with the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association (ITA), will deliver the pre-congress training course, a substantial portion of which is focused on practical sustainability.
Sustainability is rising in importance as a challenge for the global tunnelling industry. Malaysia, which hosted WTC 2020 online, due to covid pandemic lockdowns, took forward this area of growing information need. This WTC’s year’s drive on sustainability aims to take the effort forward significantly while discussing many wider, detailed aspects and experiences of tunnelling projects, technology, geology, health & safety, and operations and maintenance.
In this preview of WTC 2022, T&T brings together a number of contributions to look at sustainability and the tunnelling industry: Prof Arnold Dix, an ITA vice-president and a nominee this cycle to be president of ITA, discusses possible paths ahead for the international tunnelling industry to pursue delivering practical sustainability – including ways to rapidly develop a dedicated measuring tool on carbon measurement for the industry, plus, vitally, an option to establish a ‘non-dispute’ based contract that is fit for the times.
Dr Alun Thomas, of All2plan Consulting and vice-animateur of ITA’s Working Group 12 (Sprayed Concrete), urges action, in his review of what can be acted upon immediately, especially with the difference that can be made in design and by supportive clients. He will play a key role in the pre-congress training course session focused on sustainability.
Antonia Cornaro and Han Admiraal, co-chairs of the ITA Committee on Underground Space (ITACUS), discuss the need to take a long view in decision-making around practical sustainability as well as the merits – economic and more – of planning for project with multi-use strategies. They will also be presenting at the pre-congress training course session.
Recently, the Norwegian Tunnelling Society (Norsk Forening for Fjellsprengningsteknikk, NFF) published a report focused on sustainability and which is introduced in this WTC preview.
WTC awaits.
