The Environmental Science and Engineering Division (ESE) is a degree-granting academic program at the Colorado School of Mines (CSM), a top-ranked public university located in Golden, Colorado at the base of the Rocky Mountains. CSM is a world-class institution with a focus on engineering and applied science related to earth, energy, materials and environment. The current enrollment of 4,200 students includes those seeking B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees.
The ESE Program is nationally ranked for its character and quality. The programs of study are interdisciplinary in scope and designed to prepare students to investigate and analyze environmental systems as well as evaluate and design natural and engineered solutions to protect, preserve, and benefit from the earth's resources.
ESE faculty and staff are diverse in their backgrounds and expertise, spanning civil and environmental engineering, environmental chemistry, soil science, hydrology, ecology, microbiology, toxicology, and environmental law. Students in ESE also have varied backgrounds in the physical and life sciences and most engineering disciplines; they come to ESE from across the U.S. and abroad. ESE prides itself in the diversity within the Program and the strong interactions encompassing both intellectual and social aspects of the university educational experience.
News
ESE 2008-2009 Seminar Schedule
Dr. Tissa Illangasekare, ESE Professor and AMAX Distinguished Chair, served on the organizing committee of the Gordon Research Conference - "Flow and Transport in Permeable Media" - held at Magdalen College , Oxford, UK, July 13 –18, 2008. he was also elected as the Vice-Chair of the 2010 Gordon conference to be held in the USA and Chair of the 2012 conference to be held in Europe. Dr. Illangasekare is also serving on the AGU Fall Hydrology Section Program Committee.
Dr. John McCray, ESE Professor and Director of the CSM Hydrologic Science and Engineering program, was recently elected to serve as Chair of the ASCE National Ground Water Quality Committee.
Dr. Linda Abriola, Dean of Engineering at Tufts University, will give a CESEP Distinguished lecture, "Characterization of DNAPL Source Zones: Why bother? What is needed? How do we get there?", on Thursday, November 13 at 3:00 p.m. in the CSM Ben Parker Student Center, Ballroom C.
Dr. John Spear, Assistant Professor of ESE, is traveling in China for two weeks to present two invited talks on "Hydrogen Metabolism in Geothermal Ecosystems" at an international workshop entitled, "Geomicrobiological Processes in Extreme Environments." The workshop is hosted by the China University of Goesciences in Beijing and is being sponsored by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the National Natural Science Foundation of China. The contingent of international researchers and specialists in geothermal ecosystems will also travel to Kunming, China to work with little known geothermal hot springs to sample microbiota, conduct chemical and geological characterization, and attempt to understand these microbial ecosystems which have historically had little access.
While on sabbatical during Fall 2008, Dr. Ron Cohen, Associate Professor of ESE, is traveling in South Africa, where he is a visiting professor in the Mining Engineering Department at University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. He is also a working as a member of the Specialist Task Team for management of the mining generated uranium pollution in the Wonderfonteinspruit catchment of the Northwest Province. Dr. Cohen was appointed to that team by the South African National Nuclear Regulators and Department of Water Affairs and Forestry.
Two new tenure line ESE Faculty, Drs Christopher Higgins and Jonathan Sharp will be joining the ESE faculty in January 2009 as assistant professors. For more information on their backgrounds and research interests please see ESE New Faculty 2009.pdf.
Calendar Year 2007 was an exemplary year of activity and accomplishment for ESE as reflected by the following highlights:
Research awards = $5.8M
Research expenditures = $3.1M
Journal papers in print = 40; in press = 13
Abstracts associated with presentations = 82
Full conference papers published = 50
Invited talks across the U.S. and abroad = 50
Editorships = 9
Courses delivered = 38
GAANN Program Fellowships
Environmental Science and Engineering Faculty at the Colorado School of Mines (CSM) have been awarded a three year grant from the Department of Education’s Graduate Assistantships in Areas of National Need (GAANN) Program. The grant will provide PhD fellowships in Environmentally Sustainable Nuclear Power (ESNP) beginning in the 2007/2008 academic year. Dr. Linda Figueroa is the program director and Drs. Honeyman and Ranville (of the CSM Chemistry and Geochemistry Dept.) are co-directors. Other program team members involved in the ESNP program are Drs. John McCray and John Spear.
Additional information on the GAANN PhD fellowships (pdf)