Water management increasingly important

Clean water and flood prevention are top priorities for communities today. Photo / Alan Gibson

If you're good at maths and would like a job that gets you out of the office, a career as a river engineer might be for you.

River engineers are in high demand as the need for water management becomes increasingly important in New Zealand and around the world.

"Rivers are alive. We can go in there and manage them so it works for everybody," says Dr Stephen Coleman, associate professor at the University of Auckland's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Clean water and flood prevention are top priorities for communities today. Regional councils rely on river engineers as consultants for key policy-making decisions. The engineers are consulted on everything to do with the management of rivers, including the environmental impact, the ecological effects and clean water demands.

From 30 to 50 graduates will be needed each year to fill roles in this growing sector. Coleman has 30 students registered this year and says more are needed for what he sees as a good, long-term career.

"It takes skills that they have in maths and science and applies them to the world around them. It's a nice mapping of skill sets on to things they can do that make a difference," Coleman says.

But engineering graduates are not just focused on managing how humans impact on and use rivers.

"What we teach the students in the river engineering course is how water flows and how river dynamics change, so that they can apply it to manage flora and fauna for habitat. What's becoming more important is managing habitat for wildlife rather than ourselves."

Engineers use weirs, dams, intakes and stop banks to influence the flow of rivers and make sure they can sustain fish and plant life. They are often consulted on how land near rivers is used. River management is becoming so critical to the way we live that the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand, IPENZ, recently launched its Rivers Group to share technical knowledge among interested parties. Everyone from anglers to kayakers showed up at the first meeting in August.

Coleman is working to help his students understand the processes involved in rivers so they can consult on planning future communities around them.

"You don't build a house just downstream of a bend because the bend will be moving and it will take out the house."

One example of river engineering at work is with the flood-prone Hutt River. Its flood plains are designed as golf courses, parks or rugby grounds so they can take the flooding and return to their intended uses within five days.

As the population increases, people will continue to gravitate toward rivers, Coleman says.

"Rivers attract communities for all kinds of things _ navigation, water supply, waste disposal _ everything. We've got to know the river dynamics so that we don't put ourselves in trouble."

Since rivers don't let much stand in their way, these engineers need to get it right the first time before structures are built in the wrong place. They study how a river behaves, the flooding potential, erodibility of the banks and the energy of the water flow.

River engineers need a strong maths and science ability but also deal with policy matters which require some management skills.

Most engineers are employed directly or indirectly by councils. Governing authorities can have river engineers on staff, but some engineers work as independent contractors and have their own businesses. Private companies can also employ them.

"All the consultants throughout New Zealand would have a river engineer somewhere accessible that can answer questions."

River engineers go through the standard training for a civil and environmental engineer but with a focused course selection geared for them. Graduates come out with a standard bachelor of engineering degree after four years and can work as a trainee. The training may be specialised but it still has a wide variety of uses.

"The skill sets you use, in terms of water behaviour, you can apply to any kind of analysis of urban flows. They would learn enough in their civil and environmental degree in order to change to geotechnical or even road traffic."

River engineering graduates can expect to make $45,000 to $60,000 in their first year out of school, with senior engineers making more than $100,000. "It's a job where you are out in the environment. You are able to work with nature and use your skills and get paid to do it," Coleman says.

New Zealand is a bit of a novelty when it comes to rivers. Compared with other countries, there is a relatively short distance from source to sea. This geology means the rivers are more dynamic than most and carry a lot of sand and gravel which has to be managed.

"We have geothermal activity which pumps out into the rivers and all of that needs to be managed. Our rivers have a lot of things going on which makes them challenging yet interesting to work on."

The country's clean green image also means river engineers from New Zealand are in hot demand in Asia and the Middle East as the demand for clean water increases.

"We have an increasing recognition of the need to manage rivers so they are healthy. Water is one of our basic needs."

Coleman is travelling to China to do some work with their river management. A team of river engineers is working on ways to prevent erosion from impacting on China's downstream river quality.

"They have the headwaters for three main rivers that run out through China. And, like New Zealand, they are keen on keeping that environment pristine."

Coleman says river engineering is a great way for someone to really make a difference in their world. Experts say the current global conflicts are about oil, but future wars will be fought over water.

"Rivers are dynamic. River engineering gives you a chance to understand and apply that understanding to something that is almost alive. You can work with it and make it work well for people and the environment. That's why I think it's interesting."

Contact David Maida at www.DavidMaida.com