Research - Natural Resources
The NRE Academic staff have conducted research worldwide in diverse yet interrelated topics such as hydrology, water resources, erosion control, integrated catchment management, irrigation, flood prediction, restoration of mine sites, wetlands, ecological wastewater treatment and others. They also supervise a variety of postgraduate research students.
Thomas A. Cochrane
- Hydrologic modelling
- Sediment transport and soil erosion
- Integrated catchment management (water quantity, sediments, nutrients, and ecosystem responses)
- Remote sensing and GIS applications in natural resources engineering
Postgraduate research supervision
Peter
Brown: PhD (Associate)
Shameer Samad: ME (Primary)
Aisling D. O'Sullivan
- Construction of pilot scale (on-site) engineered treatment wetlands for the mining industry
- Utilisation of waste products in fuelling ecological treatment technologies
- Stormwater monitoring, water quality assessments; eco-hydrology
- Restoration/Remediation Technologies for disturbed lands
Postgraduate research supervision
Mauricio
Taulis: PhD (Associate)
Craig
McCauley: PhD (Primary)
Funded Sponsorship
Research projects undertaken by our students typically need funding in some capacity – to help pay for equipment, analyses and living allowances for postgraduates. The Department provides limited contestable funding to assist with our research projects so it is vital to have continued support from industry and government research grants to sustain our research work and outputs. We are grateful to other significant sources of funding which help facilitate our research work:
- Meridan Energy Ltd provided logistics and 50% funding for a Bright Futures Scholarship (matched by the Tertiary Education Commission) for an ME study on flood wave travel time in the Upper Tekapo River
- FRST through Lincoln Ventures Ltd provides logistics and 50% funding for a PhD study on optimal control of irrigation schemes with certain constraints
- CANZ (Coal Association of New Zealand) provides us, in association with CRL (Coal Research Limited), with funds for work on engineered wetlands.
- SENZ (Solid Energy) are a host match for a TIF (Technology for Industry Fellowship) awarded for a PhD project on engineered wetlands for treating mine wastewater using ecological processes. This work commenced in January 2006 and has additional mentoring support from PDP and CRL.
- CCC (Christchurch City Council) and ECan (Environmental Canterbury) provide ongoing financial and logistical support for our work on stormwater monitoring on the University of Canterbury campus.
- Facilities Management (Univerity of Canterbury) assist with our equipment and space needs on campus.
Sponsoring a 3rd Pro final year project
All 3rd Pro students in the Natural Resources Engineering Programme will tackle an exciting challenge: team final year NRE projects. Yes, they are part of the NRE requirements, but they are more than that. These projects are a wonderful opportunity for students to demonstrate their abilities in the detailed application and integration of engineering and related skills to a particular topic in Natural Resources Engineering. Students select a project from a list made available or they come up with their own project idea. Most students, excited about their projects, spend over 200 hours working on them. As a further incentive, a prize for the best undergraduate research project with a core theme of sustainability is on offer for engineering projects within the University of Canterbury. Engineers for Social Responsibility, a non-profit, non-political independent organisation concerned with socially and environmentally responsible engineering sponsor the prize.
If you have an NRE-related problem and wish to sponsor a project, please contact us. Experience show us that enthusiasm abounds from students working in these projects. Sponsors are not required to pay wages, but do contribute to equipment, transport, or other expenses needed to conduct the project (and some projects don’t even need much financial support!). By sponsoring a project you will enhance the NRE student experience and prepare your future employees for the challenges of sustainable engineering lying ahead. There is an expectation the sponsoring company will provide regular mentoring to the student team throughout the project. It is therefore preferable to have local support available.