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Joe Hughes
Professor and Chair
School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology |
Joseph B. Hughes is Professor and Chair of the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Prior to his employment at Georgia Tech, he held the rank of Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Department Chair at Rice University in Houston Texas. Current additional appointments include Associate Director for Research of the EPA’s South and Southwest Region Hazardous Substances Research Center, Chair of the Science Advisory Board of the EPA’s West Coast Hazardous Substances Research Center, member of the U.S. EPA standing science advisory committee on Environmental Engineering and holds an adjunct faculty appointment at Nankai University in Tianjin, China were he is co-directing graduate students and conducting lectures.
Dr. Hughes received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees from the University of Iowa in Civil and Environmental Engineering and a B.A. from Cornell College in Chemistry.
Summary of Research Contributions and Impact
Dr. Hughes’s research has focused on the treatment and remediation of hazardous wastes. He is a recognized leader in this field and has pioneered at least two areas of research that have significantly influenced engineering practice. The first area is the application of bioremediation to highly contaminated media (soils, non-aqueous phases materials, pure explosives, etc.) and under conditions that were previously considered toxic for living organisms. The second area was the demonstration of plant-driven metabolism of contaminants for “phytoremediation” systems. His work demonstrated that the biodegradation processes are controlled by the plant cells and not by the root associated bacteria changed the application, design, and regulatory acceptance of these applications.
Innovation in Education
Dr. Hughes is an award-winning teacher and has demonstrated a commitment to education in a variety of levels. In recent years, his passion in teaching has expanded to address the needs of Civil Engineering students to work in nations with developing economies or where civil infrastructure is inadequate or non-existent. He has sponsored and provided direct oversight to student projects in Mali and in Angola (both of which focused on issues of infrastructure, water, and quality of life improvements).
Awards and Recognition
In 2007, he was elected to the American Academy of Environmental Engineering as a Diplomate by eminence in the field and was awarded the Jack Edward McKee Metal from the Water Environment Federation for achievement in groundwater protection, restoration, and sustainable use. Along with doctoral student John Fortner, he was awarded the CH2MHill Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award from the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors. Finally, he was invited to Yale University as the John McClanahan Henske Distinguished Lecturer to discuss his work in environmental nanotechnology. He is the recipient of the ASCE 2005 Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize given to members for notable achievements in civil engineering research.
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