Erosion control industry pioneer passes away

One of the most beloved members of the International Erosion Control Association (IECA), Alfred Tsuguo Nitta, CPESC, founder of Nitta Erosion Control, passed away on May 31, 2010 on the family ranch in Loomis, Calif., where he was born on March 19, 1923. Nitta was 87 years old.

Nitta joined IECA in 1977 and was awarded the Environmental Achievement Award for his innovative retrofit designs and, at 85 years of age, was named Contractor of the Year at EC08 in Orlando, Fla. For more on this award, please click here: https://www.ieca.org/resources/Documents/PR021308nitta.pdf

Nitta also served on the Board of Directors of the Western Chapter IECA for many years. His last annual conference was EC09 in Reno, Nev. where he volunteered as a greeter at the IECA membership booth, where he shared his warmth, stories, laughter and life with everyone.

“Al [Nitta] was one of the first members I met when I started working for IECA 15 years ago,” said Meg Tully, CAE, IECA’s association development director. “It was a highlight to see him every year at our annual conference, where he never ceased to amaze me with his stories, his warmth, his love of life, and his genuine nature. He was one of a kind, and I feel blessed to have called Al a friend.”

IECA says it is proud to have called Nitta a member and that he will be dearly missed by all.

Click here for the Member Spotlight article that ran in the December 2008 edition of Erosion Control Journal about Nitta: http:/www.ieca.org/Al Nitta For Web.pdf.