The Department of Hydrology and Water Resources is in the College of Engineering and Mines . Hydrology and water resources include the origin, distribution, and properties of the waters of the Earth, as well as the development and management of water resource systems for multiple purposes. The undergraduate major assumes substantial knowledge of mathematics. The department participates in the honors program.
Honors students complete an approved senior honors thesis in lieu of the senior capstone course.
Environmental Hydrology is the applied science that investigates and characterizes the environmental state of our water and related land and ecological resources. Hydrologists work with water resource problems related to pollution, its prevention and clean-up, and natural disasters, such as floods, droughts, and water management concerns, including water supply, the design of wells and reservoirs, recreation, and environmental impacts on water quality. Protecting the quality of water for all uses is a critical part of the mission of hydrologists. The hydrology curriculum is designed to give the student a basic knowledge of hydrology and allied subjects, including the basic environmental sciences, hydrologic modeling, and computer applications. Instruction is augmented at all levels with field trips in Arizona, a state with great diversity of topographic and geologic features and climate zones, making it a superb outdoor laboratory.