Graduate Academic Subdiscipline

Water Resources Planning and Management
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Overview

The Water Resources Planning and Management academic subdiscipline is unique in providing a linkage of the technologies available in the existing water-related disciplines in civil engineering, including hydrology, hydraulics, groundwater, and environmental engineering, with interdisciplinary studies in economics, water law, natural science, mathematics, statistics, computer science, and decision science, for the purpose of providing graduate training and conducting interdisciplinary research in water resources planning and management.

The decision-making focus of the Water Resources Planning and Management subdiscipline places emphasis on application of advanced computer technology, decision support systems, geographic information systems, mathematical programming, and artificial intelligence to water resources and environmental systems. These tools are applied to complex multiple objective problems involving analysis of multi-facility, multi-purpose systems requiring coordinated planning, management, and operations for water supply, hydropower, flood control, irrigation, wastewater management, water quality control, ecological enhancement, and conjunctive use of groundwater and surface water.

Faculty

Mazdak Arabi
Mazdak Arabi
Professor
Timothy Gates
Timothy Gates
Professor
Neil Grigg
Neil Grigg
Professor
Jeffrey Niemann
Jeffrey Niemann
Professor

Courses

Water Resources Planning and Management is interdisciplinary and relies on a mixture of courses in civil engineering infrastructure, systems analysis and optimization, water resources engineering, geographic engineering systems, and the social sciences. The student is required to develop an appropriate plan of study with the academic advisor. In consultation with the advisor, the student selects appropriate area(s) of emphasis which will normally include courses in systems analysis and water resources planning and management, as well as an appropriate selection of technical or policy-oriented courses offered by other departments or programs.

Students select their courses in consultation with their advisor to match their specific needs and interests. The Master of Science program involves selecting courses emphasizing preparation for practice. The Doctor of Philosophy emphasizes research skills and an advanced understanding of systems analysis and planning/management topics.

  • ENGR 510 Engineering Optimization: Method/Application (3 credits)
  • CIVE 544 Water Resources Planning and Management (3 credits)
  • CIVE 578 Infrastructure and Utility Management (3 credits)
  • CIVE 699H Thesis in Water Resource Planning and Management (3-6 credits)

Select at least three technical elective courses (9 credits)

Select remaining courses from technical and functional electives (6 credits)

See all Master of Science requirements

  • ENGR 510 Engineering Optimization: Method/Application (3 credits)
  • CIVE 544 Water Resources Planning and Management (3 credits)
  • CIVE 578 Infrastructure and Utility Management (3 credits)

Professional Paper Independent Study (2 credits)

Select at least three technical elective courses (9 credits)

Select remaining courses from technical and functional electives (12 credits)

See all Master of Science requirements

  • CIVE 578 Infrastructure and Utility Management (3 credits)

  • CIVE 799HV Dissertation in Water Resource Planning and Management (12 credits)

Select at least three technical elective courses (9 credits)

Select remaining courses from technical and functional (18 credits)

See all Doctor of Philosophy requirements

  • CIVE 502 Fluid Mechanics
  • CIVE 514 Hydraulic Structures/Systems
  • CIVE 516 Water Control and Measurement
  • CIVE 524 Modeling Watershed Hydrology
  • CIVE 531 Groundwater Hydrology
  • CIVE 538 Aqueous Chemistry
  • CIVE 540 Advanced Biological Wastewater Processing
  • CIVE 542 Water Quality Modeling
  • CIVE 550 Numerical Methods in Science and Engineering
  • CIVE 571 Pipeline Engineering and Hydraulics
  • CIVE 573 Urban Stormwater Management
  • CIVE 575 Sustainable Water and Waste Management
  • CIVE 612 Open Channel Flow
  • CIVE 613 Stream Rehabilitation Design
  • CIVE 622 Risk Analysis of Water/Environmental Systems
  • CIVE 638 Groundwater Quality and Contaminant Transport
  • CIVE 716 Erosion and Sedimentation
  • CIVE 717 River Mechanics

Suggested electives, not a comprehensive list

  • CIVE 512 Irrigation Design and Management
  • CIVE 516 Water Control and Management
  • CIVE 519 Irrigation Water Management
  • CIVE 521 Hydrometry
  • CIVE 525 Water Engineering: International Development
  • CIVE 533 Biomolecular Tools for Engineers
  • CIVE 541 Physical Chemical Water Treatment Processes
  • CIVE 549 Drainage and Wetland Engineering
  • CIVE 573 Urban Stormwater Management
  • CIVE 574 Civil Engineering Project Management
  • CIVE 576 Engineering Applications of GIS and GPS
  • ECE 520 Optimization Methods-Control and Communication
  • ECE 611 Nonlinear Control Systems
  • ECE 652 Estimation and Filtering Theory
  • ENGR 501 Foundations of Systems Engineering
  • ENGR 530 Overview of Systems Engineering Processes
  • ENGR 531 Engineering Risk Analysis
  • MECH 417 Control Systems
  • CS 440 Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
  • CS 540 Artificial Intelligence
  • CS 545 Machine Learning
  • AREC 342 Water Law, Policy, and Institutions
  • AREC 540 Economics of Natural Resources
  • AREC 541 Environmental Economics
  • AREC 542 Applied Advanced Water Resource Economics
  • AREC 615 Optimization Methods for Applied Economics
  • WR 416 Land Use Hydrology
  • MATH 520 Nonlinear Programming
  • MATH 525 Optimal Control
  • NR 323 Remote Sensing and Image Interpretation
  • NR 503 Remote Sensing and Image Analysis
  • NR 505 Concepts in GIS

Suggested electives, not a comprehensive list

Review course descriptions

Graduate studies in Water Resources Planning and Management typically consider issues like the following:

  • Water resources planning and systems analysis
  • Decision support systems
  • Advanced computer technology for water management
  • Geographical information systems in water resources
  • Simulation and optimization modeling technologies
  • Multi-criteria decision analysis in reservoir system design and operation
  • Integration of water quantity and water quality management
  • Water infrastructure planning and management
  • Conjunctive management of groundwater and surface water resources
  • Advanced applications of artificial intelligence in water management
  • Automation and real-time control of water systems
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Graduate Admission and Program Details

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Advising and Graduate Student Resources

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