Contaminated soil, polluted harbours, toxic sediment — these are all-too-common problems for a society that’s struggling to clean up the environment while searching for eco-friendly energy supplies.
Thankfully, environmental engineers like Catherine Mulligan are on the job.
Mulligan, professor in the Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science, is a pioneer of green remediation technologies as well an internationally recognized expert in the decontamination of water, soil and sediments.
Now, she is the first Concordian to become president of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE) — and the third woman in that role.
A 4-year commitment
“I’m delighted and honoured to represent Concordia at the national level,” says Mulligan, a Concordia University Research Chair in Geoenvironmental Sustainability.
Previously, she was senior vice president and president elect, respectively. After her year as president, she will be the past president for 12 months.
“It’s a four-year commitment, in total,” she notes. “That allows you to make an impact.”
Mulligan wears the honour humbly, as she did when she became a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering earlier this year. In 2018, she also received the coveted John B. Stirling Medal for career achievement from the Engineering Institute of Canada.
“When I started studying to be a chemical engineer, people were using biological surfactants to bind with oil to remove it from tanks and fields. But I was the first to use biological surfactants to remove metal contaminants from soil,” says Mulligan, the author of Sustainable Engineering.
“It was exciting to be at the forefront of that field.”
Mourad Debbabi, interim dean of the Gina Cody School, is thrilled to hear of Mulligan’s appointment to president of the CSCE.
“It’s a fitting role for a researcher of her stature and continued dedication to innovation,” says Debbabi, holder of the NSERC/Hydro-Québec/Thales Senior Industrial Research Chair in Smart Grid Security.
“Decontamination — soil washing to remove metal — put her on the map in the field of geoenvironmental engineering. Then Dr. Mulligan gained more than 25 years of research experience in government, industrial and academic environments. I can’t think of a more dynamic, deserving candidate. Her appointment raises Concordia’s profile as an institution that supports innovation.”
Rolling up her sleeves
As the founding director of the Concordia Institute for Water, Energy and Sustainable Systems (CIWESS), Mulligan continues to research new systems, technologies and solutions for water, energy and resource conservation.