Blending engineering and preventative medicine, bioenvironmental engineers use specialized survey instruments and equipment to identify and evaluate potential hazards that may exist in the workplace, such as exposure to toxic chemicals or intense noise. They use these findings to develop plans and programs to prevent injuries and illnesses.

Key areas of focus are industrial hygiene, occupational health, radiological health, and environmental protection.

  • Surface water hydrology
  • Groundwater hydrology
  • Irrigation and drainage
  • Sediment transport
  • Chemical fate and transport
  • Waste management
  • Reclamation of disturbed lands
  • Site remediation

Environmental Remediation

The vision of environmental remediation is to restore soil, groundwater or surface water to its original condition. The purpose is to protect people and the environment against potential harmful effects from exposure to chemicals, radiation and harmful substances left by people or companies.

Different types of environmental remediation services include environmental cleanup, groundwater remediation, land remediation, and brownfield site preparation. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for governing waste management and instituted a program called Superfund to oversee the cleanup of industrial waste.

Groundwater remediation is one of the environmental remediation services required to prevent further contamination of the world’s underground water supply. The most common methods used are bioremediation, carbon adsorption, and air stripping. Bioremediation involves introducing organisms to the affected groundwater so they can eat the contaminants. Carbon adsorption works by filtering the groundwater through activated carbon which traps the contaminants. Air stripping works by pumping the groundwater through an aeration tank then sending the cleaned water back to the site.