Civil Engineering Technology students win national surveying competition
Five students in the Civil Engineering Technology program traveled to the nation's capital to compete in a two-day surveying competition.
Who knows what evil lurks in the heart of local water? Instructor Steve Arant knows, and he's teaching his Environmental Engineering degree students how to find out.
Arant took his students to Baird Creek to collect and analyze samples from the stream bed. He says that giving them an up-close and personal look at microscopic aquatic "monsters" just before Halloween was a coincidence.
"This is a routine biological assay for the health of streams," he said. "The macroinvertebrates are grouped into four groups, based on how well they tolerate polluted water." He said macroinvertebrates "are a critical part of the food chain for higher organisms, such as fish and birds." The number of invertebrates indicates the health of the stream.
An environmental engineer will analyze and test water, wastewater, air, and solid waste to ensure environmental protection and compliance while maintaining community health and safety.
Arant said that Baird Creek was not chosen due to any concerns but because it provides a good place for students to work.
"It has a good variety of macroinvertebrates for the students to identify, and is also a very pretty site."
The skills they learn, though, are critical.
"We have a variety of activities, as part of the Environmental Engineering Technologies program, that prepare them to be field technicians for monitoring environmental quality. There’s no substitute for hands-on learning for developing these important skills."
Learn more about Environmental Engineering and other STEM fields.
Five students in the Civil Engineering Technology program traveled to the nation's capital to compete in a two-day surveying competition.
NWTC received the inaugural Workplace Diversity and Inclusion Award from the Green Bay SHRM for its commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive workforce.
The College has been recognized as a 2021 Tree Campus by The Arbor Day Foundation for creating practices to ensure proper land use and urban tree management.