Doctoral program in Environmental Engineering

Background:This doctoral programme was first offered in the academic year 1986-1987. At the time, the name of the programme was Water Engineering. The programme, organised by the Department of Engineering Design of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, was offered under this name in the academic years 1986-1987 and 1987-1988. In the 1988-1989 academic year, the degree was renamed the doctoral programme in Environmental Engineering. From the 1989-1990 academic year, the programme was delivered mainly at the Institute of Applied Petrochemistry (IPA) and later at the Institute of Environmental Modelling and Technology (ITEMA), both institutes of the UPC. Since May 1999, the doctoral degree has been an interdepartmental programme. For organisational purposes, it is currently based at the Department of Engineering Design. This degree can be considered the first doctoral programme in environmental engineering offered in Spain.Based on a call issued in February 1995, the Directorate-General for Higher Education of the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science included the doctoral programme in Environmental Engineering on a list of high-quality doctoral degrees.Objectives:The aim of this programme is to enable doctoral students to acquire research skills in the field of environmental engineering, particularly in the following research areas: environmental modelling (atmospheric and water quality), waste management, environmental impact assessment, environmental management systems, noise, industrial wastewater, groundwater, remediation of contaminated soils, and treatment technologies.Competencies that must be acquired by students (based on the Dublin descriptors). Students must:• demonstrate systematic understanding of a field of study of the programme and mastery of the skills and methods of research associated with that field;• demonstrate the ability to conceive, design, implement and adapt a substantial process of research with scholarly integrity;• have made a contribution through original research that extends the frontier of knowledge by developing a substantial body of work, some of which merits national or international refereed publication;• be capable of critical analysis, evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas;• be able to communicate with their peers, the larger scholarly community and society in general about their areas of expertise;• be able to promote, in academic and professional contexts, technological, social or cultural advancement in a knowledge-based society.Rationale:In the contemporary world, the importance of environmental issues, both locally and at the global level, is beyond dispute. The importance of environmental issues was clearly recognised in three key Earth Summits: the UN Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm, Sweden in June 1972; the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in June 1992; and the World Summit on Sustainable Development (informally known as “Rio+10”) held in Johannesburg, South Africa in August–September 2002. The problem of climate change, for which there is conclusive scientific evidence, and the legal framework defined in the Kyoto Protocol also underscore the pressing need to tackle environmental issues. All of these factors clearly justify the need for a doctoral programme that provides students with advanced research training in these areas.