What civil engineers are reading this week

• Author chronicles disturbing route that made ‘forever chemicals’ a societal menace

  Thoroughly researched and reported, They Poisoned the World: Life and Death in the Age of Forever Chemicals lays bare an 80-year-long story of corporate malfeasance abetted by regulatory failure.    

• Why can’t San Francisco plant more street trees?

  Advocates fight for greenery in their neighborhoods and ask the question: Why is the city ripping out more trees than it’s putting in?

• Major, previously unaccounted for source of greenhouse gas found

  Uncontrolled, untreated runoff from abandoned mines, particularly those left unregulated before Congress established federal standards in 1977, may release carbon dioxide from bedrock into the atmosphere.

• Happy birthday to us! Today is ASCE’s 173rd anniversary

  On Nov. 5, 1852, a dozen esteemed engineers met in New York City to launch what would become the American Society of Civil Engineers. Here’s what has made us – actually you, our members – special.

• Offshore turbines are reaching their breaking point

  Apparently, there can be too much of a good thing when it comes to renewable energy sources.

• Forging a legacy: Celebrating 5 acclaimed civil engineers who were ASCE members

  As the Society prepares for its 173rd birthday Wednesday, we look at five legendary members from across the years. All were trailblazers; one was a U.S. president.