UB Graduate Receives First Place In National Environmental Engineering Competition

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- University at Buffalo graduate Kevin Russell has been awarded the first place 1997 Montgomery-Watson Master's Thesis Award in a national competition for his master's thesis titled "The Use of Decision Analysis for Groundwater Remediation Design."

The competition was co-sponsored by the Association for Environmental Engineering Professors (AEEP) and the environmental consulting firm Montgomery-Watson.

The AEEP awards committee annually selects the best theses from environmental engineering master's- and doctoral-degree programs around the country based on originality, technical excellence, presentation and contribution to the field. The honor included a plaque of recognition and a cash award for both Russell and his faculty advisor, Alan Rabideau, assistant professor of civil engineering.

According to Rabideau, Russell's research greatly benefited from an ongoing relationship between the UB Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering and Motorola, which provided data and access to a local site successfully undergoing groundwater remediation.

Russell received his master's degree in civil engineering from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences in 1997 and his bachelor's degree summa cum laude from UB in 1994. In 1995, he also was the recipient of a prestigious graduate fellowship from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Russell, originally from Greece, N.Y., is now employed as an environmental engineer at HydroQual, Inc. in Syracuse. He resides in Camillus.