Environmental Engineering Education & Research

Bowden with a research poster at a conference in Europe.

PhD student studying how urban wildfires impact the water supply

Mackenzie Bowden is shining a light on water hazards following wildfires.

“When people think about fire, water isn’t the first thing they consider, but there are all these synthetic compounds that get introduced to the water supply in runoff," she said.

Researchers pose for a photo near Lake Fryxell in Antarctica.

'Hiding in plain sight': Studying life in Antarctic desert

Few plants and animals can survive in Antarctica’s McMurdo Dry Valleys, a frigid desert that is free of ice.Ìý

But researchers from ÐÔÊӽ紫ý have made trips to the area for more than 30 years to study the unique streams and organisms that inhabit the area in the summer months.

Smoke is coming out of the chimneys in an industrial area.

Curbing climate change would also reduce harmful air pollutants, saving millions of lives

Reducing their greenhouse gas emissions would also have the added benefit of saving over two million lives globally that might be lost because of harmful air pollutants by 2050, according to preliminary data in new ÐÔÊӽ紫ý research led by an environmental engineering PhD student.

Collecting water samples in the field

Students study metal contamination in Colorado waterways

A team at the University of Colorado Boulder is studying heavy metal pollution in a watershed near Aspen.Ìý

They have a dual goal: contributing to efforts to clean up the area, and studying the potential of recovering some of those metals from other similarly polluted streams.

A team member holds two water quality sensors used to test for water contamination.

Mortenson Center innovations delivering clean water to more than 16 million worldwide

The Mortenson Center in Global Engineering & Resilience at the University of Colorado Boulder is building a new model for global water access, one that is grounded in a deep understanding of why so many past efforts have fallen short.Ìý

Rather than focusing on infrastructure alone, the Center treats clean water as a...

Engineering for good. Engineering for life.

Environmental engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder will give you the knowledge and technical training to address the big problems facing our world.Ìý

Our graduates live the ideal of engineering as a service to society. As a student, you will be at the forefront of education and research in climate, water and air quality, sustainability, and pollution reduction.

You won’t just be learning about issues, you’ll be solving them.

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ÐÔÊӽ紫ý environmental engineering is outside the traditional silos that separate engineering disciplines. Our unique program brings together faculty and research from civil, architectural, mechanical, chemical engineering, and even aerospace to give you the education you need.

As a student, you’ll have access to hands-on classes and laboratories as well as research opportunities in a top 10 ranked program by U.S. News and World Report.

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