A recap of the 2026 IECA Annual Conference & Expo
The International Erosion Control Association's national conference brought hundreds of industry professionals to Fort Worth this March. Here's a look at what was covered and why we keep coming back.
Every spring, some of the sharpest minds in erosion control, stormwater management, and sediment control gather under one roof for the International Erosion Control Association's Annual Conference & Expo. This year, that roof was in Fort Worth, Texas, and the four-day event delivered exactly what the industry has come to expect: rigorous technical education, real-world case studies, and the kind of peer-to-peer connection that just can't be replicated online.
Staying current isn't optional in this field as regulations evolve, products improve, and climate conditions change the way we think about site design. The IECA Annual Conference is one of the most efficient ways for professionals in erosion and sediment control to stay ahead of all of it.
Sessions That Caught Our Attention
The concurrent session tracks ran deep across Monday and Tuesday, with topics spanning regulatory compliance, emerging technology, field installation practices, and ecological restoration. Below are some of the sessions on the agenda that stood out to us:
Vegetated Slope Stabilization
On the erosion and sediment control side, the schedule included sessions on vegetated slope stabilization using turf reinforcement mats (Jeff King, CPESC – American Excelsior), sediment pond BMP management (James W. Spotts – IECA), and erosion control strategies for streambank and shoreline environments (Alan D. Black, PE, CPESC, CPSWQ – HNTB Corporation).
There was also a two-hour collaborative workshop on bridging gaps between the various parties involved in E&SC decisions, led by Erin Rivers, PhD, of NC State alongside a panel of engineers, inspectors, contractors, and a state DOT representative.
Polymer Chemistry and Water Treatment
Seva Iwinski Bray of Applied Polymer Systems appeared on the agenda twice, covering both project-scale polymer applications and a fundamentals review of flocculants used in erosion control and water treatment.
Construction General Permit Variability
On the regulatory side, Amesha L. Morris, MS, CPESC, of Acorn EnviroComply presented on Construction General Permit variability across states (a session titled "CGP Chaos: Why Every State Plays by Different Rules and What to Do About It") along with additional sessions on MS4 competency frameworks and mentorship in the profession.
Shoreline Restoration
Shoreline restoration had a strong showing on Tuesday, with Matt Skinner, CPESC, of Profile Products presenting case studies on reinforced vegetative shoreline solutions across the central and southern U.S.
Looking Ahead: Forest Conservation & AI Tools
Lastly, the schedule also included sessions we'd flag as signals of where the industry is heading: Wei Zhang of the Institute of Soil Genomics for Healthy Community Forests presented on the relationship between soil microbiome, vegetation establishment, and soil erosion, and Ty Garmon, LEED AP, of Digital Stormwater presented on using AI tools for stormwater work.
Why We Encourage Our Customers to Attend
When engineers, contractors, and inspectors understand the why behind product selection, they’re better prepared to make decisions in the field and on the plan set.
The IECA Annual Conference is one of the best places to build that knowledge. Sessions are approved for professional development hours (PDH) and continuing education credits (CEUs), making attendance a tangible investment in licensure and certification maintenance. But beyond the credentials, the conference offers something harder to quantify: direct access to researchers, practitioners, and regulators who are all wrestling with the same problems.
For Mid-Atlantic professionals specifically, the IECA Mid-Atlantic Chapter Meeting is a great opportunity to connect with regional peers and hear how Virginia, Maryland, and surrounding states are approaching shared challenges.
Next Steps
The erosion and sediment control industry moves faster than many people outside of it realize.
Standards shift, new products enter the market, regulatory expectations tighten, and field conditions driven by weather and development patterns keep changing.
The value of staying current isn't simply in banking up continuing education credits, but in becoming an informed professional who can solve problems on-site instead of waiting for answers.
If you're a contractor, engineer, inspector, or agency professional working in erosion and sediment control, we'd encourage you to look at IECA membership and the annual conference as a serious professional development investment. We're happy to talk through what products or practices came up at this year's event and how they might apply to your work.
If you’d like to talk through your current project needs, reach out to us here.
