College of Engineering

Water resources engineering focuses on the use and management of land and water resources to meet the needs of society and water-dependent ecosystems. Students gain knowledge of the hydrologic and hydraulic behaviour and connections between our surface and groundwater flow systems. They gain knowledge of the sources and movement of contaminants. This knowledge is applied to design systems to convey water and strategies to protect the quantity and quality of freshwater resources. Water resources engineering encompasses: water security, flood and drought warning and mitigation; urban stormwater management; prevention and control of erosion; irrigation and drainage for agricultural lands; impacts of climate change, protection and remediation of groundwater systems; and restoration of lakes, rivers and wetlands. The diverse challenges impact urban, rural and Indigenous communities in Canada and around the world. The supply and recovery of water for municipal, industrial and agricultural purposes is considered in the context of resource conservation and aquatic ecosystem protection. Water resources engineering addresses societal water needs for sustainable production of food and energy for an increasing global population in a world with a changing climate.

Major Requirements (Honours)

This is a major within the degree: Bachelor of Engineering.

Credit Summary (23.00 Total Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Core Courses		19.00
Technical Electives		2.00
Complementary Studies Electives 1		2.00
Total Credits		23

¹

Consult BENG degree overview page for a full list of courses eligible for Complementary Studies Electives.

All students are admitted into the Co-op stream. Students who withdraw from the Co-op stream must speak with their Academic Advisor about completing the other program requirements. At least one summer academic semester will be required for students who complete the non-Co-op stream.

Core Courses

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
BIOL*1090	Introduction to Molecular and Cellular Biology	0.50
CHEM*1040	General Chemistry I	0.50
CHEM*1050	General Chemistry II	0.50
CIS*1500	Introduction to Programming	0.50
ENGG*1100	Engineering and Design I	0.75
ENGG*1210	Engineering Mechanics I	0.50
ENGG*1500	Engineering Analysis	0.50
ENGG*2230	Fluid Mechanics	0.50
ENGG*2400	Engineering Systems Analysis	0.50
ENGG*2560	Environmental Engineering Systems	0.50
ENGG*2800	Civil Engineering Sustainability and Design	0.75
ENGG*2820	Material Science for Civil Engineers	0.50
ENGG*3100	Engineering and Design III	0.75
ENGG*3220	Groundwater Engineering	0.50
ENGG*3240	Engineering Economics	0.50
ENGG*3260	Thermodynamics	0.50
ENGG*3430	Heat and Mass Transfer	0.50
ENGG*3590	Water Quality	0.50
ENGG*3650	Hydrology and Hydraulics	0.50
ENGG*3670	Soil Mechanics and Site Characterization	0.50
ENGG*3880	Field Methods in Civil, Environmental and Water Resources Engineering	0.25
ENGG*4000	Proposal for Engineering Design IV	0.00
ENGG*4150	Water Resources Engineering Design IV	1.00
ENGG*4250	River Hydraulic Design for Sustainability and Resiliency	0.50
ENGG*4360	Conservation and Restoration in Rural Watersheds	0.50
ENGG*4950	Remote Sensing and Spatial Data Analysis	0.50
ENGG*4960	Water Infrastructure Design for Cities	0.50
ENGG*4970	Green Infrastructure Design for Stormwater Management	0.50
GEOG*2000	Geomorphology	0.50
MATH*1200	Calculus I	0.50
MATH*1210	Calculus II	0.50
MATH*2130	Numerical Methods	0.50
MATH*2270	Applied Differential Equations	0.50
PHYS*1010	Introductory Electricity and Magnetism	0.50
PHYS*1130	Physics with Applications	0.50
STAT*2120	Probability and Statistics for Engineers	0.50
ENGG*2540	Water and Climate Justice	0.5
or HIST*1250	Science and Technology in a Global Context

Technical Electives

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
WRE-1: Water Resource Engineering Electives
Select 1.00 credits from the following:
ENGG*3410	Systems and Control Theory	0.50
ENGG*3450	Electronic Devices	0.50
ENGG*4070	Life Cycle Assessment for Sustainable Design	0.50
ENGG*4240	Site Remediation	0.50
ENGG*4340	Solid and Hazardous Waste Management	0.50
ENGG*4510	Assessment and Management of Risk	0.50
ENGG*4760	Biological Wastewater Treatment Design	0.50
ENGG*4770	Physical and Chemical Water and Wastewater Treatment Design	0.50
WRE-2: Environmental and Water Resource Engineering Electives
Select 1.00 credits from the following:
BIOL*1020	Introduction to Biology	0.50
BIOL*1070	Discovering Biodiversity	0.50
BIOL*2060	Ecology	0.50
BIOL*3450	Introduction to Aquatic Environments	0.50
CHEM*3360	Environmental Chemistry and Toxicology	0.50
GEOG*1300	Introduction to the Biophysical Environment	0.50
GEOG*2420	The Earth From Space	0.50
GEOG*2480	Mapping and GIS	0.50
GEOG*3000	Fluvial Processes	0.50
GEOG*3420	Remote Sensing of the Environment	0.50
GEOG*4150	Catchment Processes	0.50
GEOG*4210	Environmental Governance	0.50
MICR*2420	Introduction to Microbiology and Immunity	0.50

Co-op Requirements (Honours)

This is a major within the degree: Bachelor of Engineering.

The Co-op program in Water Resources Engineering is a five year program, including five work terms. Students must follow the academic work schedule as outlined below (also found on the Co-operative Education website: https://www.recruitguelph.ca/cecs/). 

Academic and Co-op Work Term Schedule

Co-op Information

Year	Fall	Winter	Summer
1	Academic Semester 1	Academic Semester 2	Off
2	Academic Semester 3 COOP*1100	Academic Semester 4	COOP*1000 Work Term I
3	COOP*2000 Work Term II	Academic Semester 5	Academic Semester 6
4	COOP*3000 Work Term III	COOP*4000 Work Term IV	COOP*5000 Work Term V
5	Academic Semester 7	Academic Semester 8	N/A

Please refer to the Co-operative Education program policy with respect to work term performance grading, work term report grading and program completion requirements.

For additional program information students should consult with their Co-op Co-ordinator and Co-op Faculty Advisor, listed on the Co-operative Education web site.

Credit Summary

(25.50 Total Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Core Courses		19.00
WRE-1 Water Resources Engineering Electives		1.00
WRE-2 Environmental and Water Resources Electives		1.00
Complementary Studies Electives		2.00
Co-op Work Terms		2.50
Total Credits		25.5

Recommended Program Sequence

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Semester 1 - Fall
CHEM*1040	General Chemistry I	0.50
ENGG*1100	Engineering and Design I	0.75
ENGG*1500	Engineering Analysis	0.50
MATH*1200	Calculus I	0.50
PHYS*1130	Physics with Applications	0.50
Semester 2 - Winter
CHEM*1050	General Chemistry II	0.50
CIS*1500	Introduction to Programming	0.50
ENGG*1210	Engineering Mechanics I	0.50
MATH*1210	Calculus II	0.50
PHYS*1010	Introductory Electricity and Magnetism	0.50
Summer Semester
No academic semester or work term
Semester 3 - Fall
COOP*1100	Introduction to Co-operative Education	0.00
ENGG*2230	Fluid Mechanics	0.50
ENGG*2800	Civil Engineering Sustainability and Design	0.75
ENGG*2820	Material Science for Civil Engineers	0.50
GEOG*2000	Geomorphology	0.50
MATH*2270	Applied Differential Equations	0.50
STAT*2120	Probability and Statistics for Engineers	0.50
Semester 4 - Winter
BIOL*1090	Introduction to Molecular and Cellular Biology	0.50
ENGG*2400	Engineering Systems Analysis	0.50
ENGG*2560	Environmental Engineering Systems	0.50
ENGG*3670	Soil Mechanics and Site Characterization	0.50
ENGG*2540	Water and Climate Justice	0.50
or HIST*1250	Science and Technology in a Global Context
0.50 restricted electives		0.50
Summer Semester
COOP*1000	Co-op Work Term I	0.50
Fall Semester
COOP*2000	Co-op Work Term II	0.50
Semester 5 - Winter
ENGG*3220	Groundwater Engineering	0.50
ENGG*3260	Thermodynamics	0.50
ENGG*3590	Water Quality	0.50
ENGG*3650	Hydrology and Hydraulics	0.50
MATH*2130	Numerical Methods	0.50
0.50 restricted electives		0.50
Semester 6 - Summer
ENGG*3100	Engineering and Design III	0.75
ENGG*3240	Engineering Economics	0.50
ENGG*3430	Heat and Mass Transfer	0.50
ENGG*3880	Field Methods in Civil, Environmental and Water Resources Engineering	0.25
ENGG*4960	Water Infrastructure Design for Cities	0.50
0.50 restricted electives		0.50
Fall Semester
COOP*3000	Co-op Work Term III	0.50
Winter Semester
COOP*4000	Co-op Work Term IV	0.50
Summer Semester
COOP*5000	Co-op Work Term V	0.50
Semester 7 - Fall
ENGG*4000	Proposal for Engineering Design IV	0.00
ENGG*4360	Conservation and Restoration in Rural Watersheds	0.50
ENGG*4950	Remote Sensing and Spatial Data Analysis	0.50
1.50 restricted electives		1.50
Semester 8 - Winter
ENGG*4150	Water Resources Engineering Design IV	1.00
ENGG*4250	River Hydraulic Design for Sustainability and Resiliency	0.50
ENGG*4970	Green Infrastructure Design for Stormwater Management	0.50
1.00 restricted electives		1.00

Restricted Electives

(see Program Guide for more information)

The Engineering Program requires Water Resources Engineering students to complete the following combination of elective credits, totaling a minimum of 4.00 credits, to complete their program. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
2.00 credits from Complementary Studies Electives:
Consult the Program Guide for a full list of courses eligible for Complementary Studies Electives.
1.00 credits from WRE-1: Water Resource Engineering Electives
ENGG*3410	Systems and Control Theory	0.50
ENGG*3450	Electronic Devices	0.50
ENGG*4070	Life Cycle Assessment for Sustainable Design	0.50
ENGG*4240	Site Remediation	0.50
ENGG*4340	Solid and Hazardous Waste Management	0.50
ENGG*4510	Assessment and Management of Risk	0.50
ENGG*4760	Biological Wastewater Treatment Design	0.50
ENGG*4770	Physical and Chemical Water and Wastewater Treatment Design	0.50
1.00 credits from WRE-2: Environmental and Water Resource Engineering Electives
BIOL*1020	Introduction to Biology	0.50
BIOL*1070	Discovering Biodiversity	0.50
BIOL*2060	Ecology	0.50
BIOL*3450	Introduction to Aquatic Environments	0.50
CHEM*3360	Environmental Chemistry and Toxicology	0.50
GEOG*1300	Introduction to the Biophysical Environment	0.50
GEOG*2420	The Earth From Space	0.50
GEOG*2480	Mapping and GIS	0.50
GEOG*3000	Fluvial Processes	0.50
GEOG*3420	Remote Sensing of the Environment	0.50
GEOG*4150	Catchment Processes	0.50
GEOG*4210	Environmental Governance	0.50
MICR*2420	Introduction to Microbiology and Immunity	0.50