Water
Resources Engineering
Water
Resources Engineering covers a broad spectrum, but is primarily
concerned with the study of selected topics in applied hydrology,
hydraulics, applied limnology, water resources systems analysis,
water resources, environmental impact assessment, hydraulic
structures, irrigation and drainage.
Hydrology studies
characteristics and occurrence of natural waters. An important
aspect is the fate of the material which water carries with
it. Hydrological information and knowledge is at the heart
of all water resources management and protection. Hydraulics
deals mostly with natural waters: discharges and currents
in rivers, manmade channels, lakes, coastal and seas. Water
resources engineering interfaces with other branches of science
like mathematics, chemistry, (geo)physics, sociology, and
forestry to name a few.
All life on earth
is dependent on the global cycle of water. However, many times
there is either too much or too little water; there is no
water where it is needed or the rain comes too early or too
late; or the quality of the water is bad. Sustainable water
resources management and planning aims in solving these problems
in such a manner that no options are taken away from the future
generations.
Water resources
engineering is an important branch of civil engineering. Problems
which currently are considered serious which only occur in
some parts of the world, like overpopulation, the effects
of climate change, urbanization, and industrialization will
become more global. All these together will make the quest
for abundant and clean freshwater a critical one in the future.
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