Practical Site Engineering: Science and Techniques
DISCLAIMER
Before purchasing, review the rules of your licensing or certifying entity. It is your responsibility to confirm this course meets your CE requirements. See the credit tab on the course page for details.
What’s Included: Full webinar recording, written course materials, expert instruction, a mandatory quiz, and a certificate upon completion.
Deliverability Timeline: All courses are generally available within 1-2 weeks after the live presentation.
CE Credits: AIA and/or LA/CES accreditation is available by request for courses recorded prior to March 11, 2026. All courses after that date include those accreditations by default, if applicable. With these accreditations, our courses qualify for credit in nearly all states for engineers, surveyors, architects, and landscape architects.
Learn more about the on-demand format in our FAQ or contact us at (715) 835-5900 or customerservice@halfmoonseminars.org
Agenda
Registration: 8:00 – 8:30 am
Morning Session: 8:30 – 11:45 am
Lunch (On your own): 11:45 am – 12:45 pm
Afternoon Session: 12:45 – 5:00 pm
State of the Construction Environment in the Piedmont
Introduction
Industry challenges
Trends in regulation
Designing for accountability
Accommodating Multiple Purposes of Site Engineering – Stormwater
Engineering for built elements
Slope stabilization
Stormwater management
Landscape aesthetics
Sustainability goals: minimizing disturbance and preserving natural features
Considering the Impact of Soils and Landforms
Understanding the role of soils and drainage ways
Soil characteristics, classification and engineering properties
Understanding the watershed
Considering site topography: high points, low points and plane surfaces
Principles of Erosion Control & Sedimentation Control
Erosion control vs sediment control
Understanding the erosion process
Case Study: Dry-Weather Embankment Failure on the Catawba River
A review of the failure of the Ridgewater basin embankment on August 21, 2017
Lessons learned
Challenges moving forward
Site Engineering for Stormwater Management and Erosion Control
Reviewing state and local regulations
Sediment traps and basins
Buffer zones
Slope stabilization
Establishing proper building material handling and storage
Establishing equipment/vehicle fueling and maintenance practices
Innovation in Erosion Control
The role of design professionals in the innovation process
Crisis and opportunity
Three brief case studies
Site Plans
Site plan contents
Soil investigation and considerations
Surface water and groundwater considerations
Excavation specifications and hauling
Construction grade staking
Erosion Control BMPs – Common Problems
Common BMPs and mistakes
Installation
Maintenance
Construction Site Stormwater Permit Management
Initiation, planning, execution and closure
Program governance
Quality control
Credits
Architects
7.0 HSW Contact Hours
7.0 AIA HSW Learning Units
Professional Engineers
7.0 PDHs
Landscape Architects
7.0 NC Continuing Ed. Hours
7.0 LA CES HSW PDHs
Floodplain Managers
7.0 ASFPM CECs
Contractors
Non-Credit Continuing Ed.
Continuing Education Credit Information
This seminar is open to the public and offers 7.0 HSW contact hours to architects and 7.0 PDHs to professional engineers in all states, excluding Florida architects. HalfMoon Education is an approved continuing education provider for North Carolina engineers.
This seminar is approved by the American Institute of Architects for 7.0 HSW Learning Units (Sponsor No. J885). Activities approved by the AIA qualify for North Carolina architects. Only full attendance can be reported to the AIA/CES.
HalfMoon Education is deemed an approved architect and landscape architect continuing education sponsor in New York. HalfMoon Education is an approved continuing education sponsor for engineers in Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey (Approval No. 24GP00000700), New York (NYSED Sponsor No. 35), North Carolina, and North Dakota.
The North Carolina Board of Landscape Architects has approved this event for 7.0 continuing education hours, and the Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System has approved it for 7.0 HSW PDHs.
The Association of State Floodplain Managers has approved this seminar for 7.0 CECs for certified floodplain managers.
This event offers a non-credit continuing education opportunity to construction contractors.
Attendance will be monitored, and attendance certificates will be available after the seminar for most individuals who complete the entire event. Attendance certificates not available at the seminar will be mailed to participants within fifteen business days.
Speakers
James Wilson
City of CharlotteErosion Control Administrator, City of CharlotteMr. Wilson graduated from NC State University in 1996 with a B.S. degree in Resource Management from the College of Forest Resources. After an early start as a consulting forester, in 1999 he transitioned to municipal government. Since then he has worked for Phase 1 and 2 municipal jurisdictions across the Piedmont in a host of water-quality and stormwater management-specific industries related to MS4 permit management. Mr. Wilson serves the City of Charlotte as a water quality administrator, overseeing the City’s delegated Erosion Control Authority and a team of reviewers and inspectors. He is a certified professional in erosion and sediment control (CPESC) and has over 15 years of full-time regulatory experience with construction site stormwater management. In 2003 he helped develop the Charlotte-Mecklenburg certified site inspector training series and has managed that effort for 15 years. Mr. Wilson frequently gives presentations around the state about construction site stormwater management, and the challenges faced by industries affected by the regulations governing design and performance. In his free time, he enjoys coaching his daughter’s soccer team, hunting for artifacts and fossils, boating, and planning his next trip to the beach.