Water and Environment
The Water and Environment application studies range in scale from complete national and regional systems, such as flood catchments, and hydro-power, water, electricity and transport networks, through individual artefacts, such as nuclear facilities, dams, long-span bridges and buildings, to low-cost water quality monitoring devices.
Research areas include:
Flood Risk Management: The group plays leading coordination and technical roles in the Flood Risk Management Research Consortium (FRMRC) Water and Health : Effective management of the earth’s water systems and their interaction with society is pivotal to sustainable development. The University has expertise in hydrological modelling, in addition to the design and maintenance of water infrastructure such as dams and coastal defence systems. Water is also a key component of our international development work, through projects such as Aquatest, where the University of Bristol received a US $13 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the development of a cheap, easy to use, water quality test device. This is reinforced at an undergraduate level by Engineers Without Borders, one of the largest and most successful student groups within the University, who are addressing water and sanitation challenges in the developing world through research programmes and overseas development projects.Water is a key component of our international development work.
Biodiversity : Many human activities (in including almost all Engineering activities) have an effect on biodiversity and yet we know that the preservation of biodiversity is essential for the stability of the ecosystems that support human life. Major elements of this concern relate to the effects of destruction and alteration of natural habitats and also the effects of global warming.
Hydraulic Modelling: The BRUNO (BRistol UNiversal Octagonal armour unit) is a new type of armour unit that its inventors believe could result in large financial savings if it was adopted for use in the construction of all breakwaters, bastions, groynes and other coastal defences.
Contacts
- Professor Thorsten Wagener
Head of Group
Thorsten.Wagener@bristol.ac.uk