Executive Industrial Research Chair

The Department of Civil Engineering, in collaboration with the Centre for Environmental Engineering Research and Education, in the Schulich School of Engineering at the University of Calgary is seeking a world-class researcher to spearhead research programmes and to teach courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels in advanced wastewater treatment.  

The successful applicant will be responsible for leading the research for the Advancing Canadian Wastewater Assets (ACWA) facility located at the new Pine Creek wastewater treatment facility of the City of Calgary.  ACWA is supported by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the City of Calgary, the University of Calgary and the Province of Alberta and, when complete, will be a $32M research facility designed to test wastewater treatment methods at full scale and to examine downstream environmental and ecological effects of the effluent. The research facility has as its overall objectives:

1. building of wastewater research capacity in Alberta and Canada,
2. building strong research partnerships with government, industry, and national and international researchers,
3. addressing emerging and growing public health and environmental concerns through the development and demonstration of appropriate technologies, and
4. accelerating the realization of benefits of research efforts through large scale controlled research demonstrations.

These overall objectives will allow the evaluation and advancement of new technologies which can ultimately be utilized by industry. In addition, the Chair holder’s research will support the City of Calgary’s effort to provide high quality effluent from its municipal and stormwater discharges, as well as industrial wastewater treatment.

It is expected that the Chair will be active in wastewater research in a variety of areas including some of the following:

• Biological nutrient reduction;
• Membrane applications in wastewater treatment;
• Advanced oxidation processes;
• Microorganism reduction;
• Special contaminants reduction (i.e., endocrine disrupting compounds, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, personal care products and fire retardants);
• Process and system modeling;
• Sensor development and control;
• Wastewater effluent reuse;
• Other related areas of interest will be considered.

The position will be funded through a successful application to the NSERC Executive Industrial Research Chair Program, with matching financial support from the University of Calgary, the City of Calgary and industry under the Urban Alliance agreement. The appointment will be for a five-year term, non-renewable.  

Position Requirements

The successful applicant will have extensive experience related to advanced wastewater treatment and an exceptional track record in conducting and managing R&D in the field. He/she will have the capability to provide a clear vision and outstanding leadership to build a broad range of partnerships and launch a major research initiative that would allow the university to move forward into new areas of collaborative, industrially relevant research. The successful applicant must have a M.Sc. or a Ph.D. in a relevant field and must be eligible for registration as a Professional Engineer (PEng) in Alberta. Abilities to communicate effectively and to manage student projects are required.    

Applications must include a curriculum vitae, statement of research interests, statement of teaching interests, examples of recent work, as well as the names, addresses, phone number and e-mail address of three referees.  

The application deadline is May 15, 2011.  

Applications for the chair should be sent to:

Dr. Ron Wong, Head, Department of Civil Engineering
University of Calgary
2500 University Drive NW
Calgary, AB
T2N 1N4

Fax: (403) 282-7026

Email:  civjobs@ucalgary.ca

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.  The University of Calgary respects, appreciates, and encourages diversity.