ASCE has honored Mark Musial, P.E., M.ASCE, with the 2024 CAN-AM Civil Engineering Amity Award for his 41 years of experience working on geotechnical/permafrost projects in Alaska and Canada.
Musial is a professional engineer who works on geotechnical and permafrost engineering issues related to infrastructure and facilities, primarily in Alaska and the Canadian North. Projects have included route and site selection, soil and rock slope stability and design of ground support, and geotechnical engineering, design, and construction support for liner projects (e.g., roads, HDD, utilities), industrial facilities (process plants, bulk fuel storage, hangers), docks, bridges, and towers for electric transmission and wind turbines. He has worked with many different foundation types, both passively cooled foundation piles and flat loop thermosyphon systems in permafrost areas.
He has special expertise in areas of warm and discontinuous permafrost, which is especially subject to the effects of a warming climate and disturbance during construction. In areas underlain by cold permafrost, he has worked to develop remedial options to improve trafficability and reduce thermal impacts of the embankment on roads and trenches in the arctic.
Musial frequently provides technical review on cold regions engineering projects as a subject matter expert (SME) for clients in the infrastructure, government, power, oil & gas, and mining sectors. He has a good understanding of soil, rock, and permafrost impact project designs, as well as the implications of changing climate on design criteria. He is the past-chairman of the ASCE Cold Regions Engineering Division (CRED) as well as past-chair of the Structures and Foundation Committee of CRED.
The Can-Am Civil Engineering Amity Award is given to a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers or of the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers for either a specific instance that has had a continuing benefit in understanding and goodwill, or a career of exemplary professional activity that has contributed to the amity of the United States and Canada.
