01-10-02

By Stephen Swanson, 541-737-0789
SOURCE: Lance Haubrick, 541-757-2395

CORVALLIS - When Oregon State University graduate student Lance Haubrick was a teenager, he was interested in chemistry, physics and engineering, but he wasn't certain where those interests would lead him.

While casting about for a career path, Haubrick, a 1996 Corvallis High School graduate, discovered environmental engineering - a field that many say is poised for rapid global expansion.

Lance Haubrick Click on image to go to downloadable photo

"I've always liked those subjects, and I was looking for a way to combine chemistry, physics and engineering, and environmental engineering is what I discovered," Haubrick said.

After researching the field, Haubrick became enthused about getting involved and working on projects that address both practical and environmental concerns. "So, I started the environmental engineering program at Oregon State University because OSU has a very good program."

After earning a bachelor's degree in environmental engineering in June 2000, Haubrick first went to work for the Indian Health Services.

"This was a good experience to apply myself and to gain a variety of skills," he said, but added that he soon decided to go back to school. He is now on-track to graduate from OSU with his master's degree in environmental engineering in March.

Haubrick is working with Peter Nelson, an OSU associate professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering on a Salem project investigating levels of pharmaceutical products in water.

"This is an emerging area that we are just starting to look into," Nelson said. "Our work is currently unfunded, so we are at the level of preliminary investigation. Many investigators have reported finding trace levels of pharmaceutical compounds in rivers, groundwater, and wastewater effluents. This indicates possible low level, long-term exposure to compounds that is unintended.

"We would like to see whether one commonly used low technology water treatment process - slow sand filtration - is effective in removal of representative pharmaceutical compounds, such as antibiotics," Nelson added. "It is too early to tell whether specific treatment measures will be required to protect our drinking waters on a routine basis."

Haubrick said he believes that the availability of safe, good quality drinking water will become "a big concern in the future, especially since the water demand keeps growing."

After graduation, Haubrick already has a job waiting for him with Gaiacomm Corp., a wireless telecommunication company now in the development stage of fourth generation global wireless technology. The position may take him all over the world.

"As an environmental engineer, my job is to assess the impacts of this new technology, which uses different frequencies not currently used by the communication industry. In addition, my job is to insure the company meets environmental regulations, minimizes the impacts onsite and obtains the necessary permits." Environmental engineering offers many choices and job opportunities, Nelson said.

"Environmental engineering prepares students for a wide variety of career opportunities," he said. "Our students work for large manufacturing companies like Hewlett Packard and Intel, government agencies like the EPA and Oregon's Department of Environmental Quality, and private consulting firms that design treatment processes and hazardous waste clean-up facilities such as CH2M-Hill. A few students choose to go into the Peace Corps or non-governmental environmental organizations."

The U.S. Department of Labor notes in their 2001 survey that the base starting salary for new engineering graduates in 2000 was $43,331, but the number of degrees granted in engineering may not increase as rapidly as job opportunities. Many of those opportunities will occur overseas where the annual growth rate for environmental engineering is predicted at about 10 percent.

Of the 330 universities and colleges offering accredited undergraduate degrees in engineering, 34 offer programs in environmental engineering or related fields, the Department of Labor report said.

"Our environmental engineering program at OSU, as an example, provides both a strong undergraduate engineering degree and an excellent graduate program for master's and doctoral students," Nelson said. "The two go hand-in-hand. Our undergraduate coursework benefits tremendously from the knowledge faculty gain through their research."

Haubrick also feels strongly about working to improve science education in public schools. He believes that everyone should have a lifelong involvement in education, and spends a portion of his time in OSU's K-12 Graduate Teaching Fellowship Program, which is sending 14 OSU graduate students into school districts throughout the state where the OSU scholars become adopted scientists.

Haubrick is working at Portland's Harvey Scott Elementary School where he teaches and demonstrates scientific principles to the children. "This is an opportunity for them to experience science from real scientists who have in-depth knowledge and understanding in a particular field. It also allows me to experience being a teacher and allows me to give back to the community.

"The children are our future and at the same time this builds a bridge between OSU and the Oregon public schools."

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