UC Davis engineering professor emeritus George Tchobanoglous, an international authority on wastewater treatment, management and reuse, is the 2003 winner of the Athalie Richardson Irvine Clarke Prize for excellence in water research.

The Clarke Prize is given annually by the National Water Research Institute to recognize outstanding research scientists who have implemented better water-science research and technology. The prize includes a gold medallion and $50,000.

"Through his research, publications, public service and international activities, Dr. Tchobanoglous has made significant contributions to the practice of environmental engineering," said institute executive director Ronald Linsky.

George Tchobanoglous, professor emeritus of civil and environmental engineering, is fondly known to colleagues and students as George T. He has taught courses on water treatment, wastewater treatment and solid waste management at UC Davis since 1970. He continues to write textbooks, consult and lecture internationally.

"Professor Tchobanoglous embodies the qualities that make our College of Engineering at UC Davis a truly outstanding organization: excellence in research, passion for teaching and a commitment to make the world around us a better one. We are fortunate to have Professor Tchobanoglous as a distinguished member of our faculty and I look forward to continued contributions from him," said the dean of the UC Davis College of Engineering, Enrique Lavernia.

Tchobanoglous is widely recognized for advancing the use of new technologies in four key areas: the construction of wetlands for wastewater treatment; the application of alternative filtration technologies; ultraviolet (UV) disinfection for wastewater reuse applications; and decentralized wastewater management.

His early work on the use of wetlands for wastewater treatment culminated in the first national conference on the subject in 1979. Based on his filtration research, a variety of new filtration technologies have been approved for use in California in restrictive reclamation applications.

His successful studies on ultraviolet radiation have brought about the widespread acceptance of UV disinfection in water reuse applications. As chair of the National Water Research Institute's UV committee, Tchobanoglous helped draft the first UV guidelines for water reuse.

Recognized as an expert on decentralized wastewater management systems, he has been asked to be a keynote speaker at more than 15 conferences in the past three years.

The 2003 Clarke Prize will be presented to Tchobanoglous on Thursday, July 17, at an award ceremony and lecture to be held in Orange County, Calif.

The National Water Research Institute was founded by a group of Southern California water agencies in partnership with the Joan Irvine Smith and Athalie R. Clarke Foundation. Its mission is to promote the protection, maintenance and restoration of water supplies and to protect the freshwater and marine environments through the development of cooperative research work.

In 2001, another UC Davis engineering professor was recognized for his contributions to water protection and reuse. Takashi Asano, the world's foremost expert on safe and beneficial uses of recycled water, was the recipient of the prestigious $150,000 Stockholm Water Prize, considered by water scientists to be on a par with the Nobel Prizes in other disciplines.

The University of California is one of the world's foremost research and teaching institutions, and UC Davis is the University of California's flagship campus for environmental studies. UC Davis is a global leader in environmental studies relating to air and water pollution; water and land use; agricultural practices; endangered species management; invasive plants and animals; climate change; resource economics; information technology; and human society and culture. One in six of UC Davis' 1,500 faculty members specializes in an environment-related subject.