Mr. Don Hayley, P.Eng. is the Director of Arctic Resource Projects for EBA’s Arctic Practice. His 40-year consulting career has been focussed on arctic engineering, primarily related to northern resource development. He has contributed to numerous feasibility and design studies for projects such as transportation facilities over permafrost terrain, arctic pipelines, northern mining developments, and exploratory oil and gas drilling and production structures. Don has developed innovative approaches to the design of structures for permafrost conditions. He is particularly familiar with construction practices and environmental standards in arctic regions worldwide.
Don graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from Carleton University and obtained an M.Sc. from the University of Alberta. He has worked with EBA Engineering Consultants in Edmonton throughout his 40-year career.
Don has an international reputation in the field of cold regions engineering, including numerous projects in Russia, Norway, Tibet and of course Canada and the U.S. With its cold climate, Canada has been a leading proponent in developing technology for environmentally sensitive engineering in cold and permafrost terrain. Don has been one of Canada’s leading engineers in this work, and in acquiring major contracts for international projects. His work includes arctic pipelines, roads, northern mines, deep drilling and the design and construction of exploratory structures sited offshore for oil and gas explorations.
Don has developed innovative approaches to the design of structures for the arctic offshore including permafrost conditions. He is particularly experienced with northern terrain and its behaviour in the arctic and sub-arctic regions around the world. Such challenges are unique to northern projects, and include not only technical problems, but also regulatory processes on factors that impact the socio-economic life of northern people.
Throughout his career, Don has lectured regularly and has an extensive list of publications based on engineering projects in the northern environment. This includes pipelines, oilfield developments in Russia on land and offshore, and structures and dams constructed in permafrost terrain.
Don has always been one of Canada’s proponents for northern development, both as past Chairman of the Canadian National Committee for the International Permafrost Association, and a prime consultant on Polar Gas and oil pipelines in Canada’s north.
Don’s engineering achievements have included foundations for structures, dams (some with frozen cores), pipelines, offshore structures for oil and gas exploration, and roads and mines in Canada, Russia, Norway, and China. To complicate matters, all of these structures are either on permanent or melting permafrost. He is now recognized internationally for his pioneering work in snow, ice and permafrost engineering in the circumpolar regions of North America. Within EBA he has built and now leads the largest group of engineers and scientists dedicated to Arctic engineering in consulting practice in North America. He must certainly feel satisfaction in that he was a major participant in many of the oil and gas development proposed for the north. A few of his pioneering projects include the following:
- Site investigations for the early proposed; Polar Gas, Canadian Arctic Gas and Foothills Pipelines;
- The first thermo stabilized foundation at the School in the Yukon which is now a prevalent design type;
- A thermosyophon stabilization system for arresting thaw settlement; and
- The first frozen core in Canada at the Polaris Mine on Little Cornwallis.
Don founded the Cold Regions Division of the CGS and was its first Director. He was a member and Chairman of the Canadian National Committee of the International Permafrost Association, and Chairman He has also shared his experiences through numerous presentations and authoritive papers. Through his collaboration with others it has also become apparent that he is held in high regard by the people who live and work in the north, not only for his engineering which he carried out with imagination and skill, but also his high respect for the people of the north.
This page was last updated on: 9/17/2008 9:28:00 AM
