Professional Background:

Dr. Rao Surampalli, an Engineer Director, has been working in the United States Environmental Protection Agency for 20 years. He received his Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Iowa State University in 1985 and M.S in Environmental Engineering from Oklahoma State University in 1978. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in the branches of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and also an Adjunct Professor of Environmental Engineering in four well-known universities in United States including University of Nebraska at Lincoln, University of Missouri at Columbia, University of Missouri at Rolla, and Iowa State University. Since 1984, Dr. Surampalli has published/presented over 300 papers in refereed journals or at national and international conferences. He is also the author of five books and twenty-two book chapters. Dr. Surampalli is the Editor-in-chief of the American Society of Civil Engineers "Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management Journal" and Editor of the Water Environment Federation's Water Environment Research Journal. He also serves on the editorial boards of three other refereed journals. In 2001, he was awarded the "Founders Gold Medal" and also was named as the "National Federal Engineer of the Year" by the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE). In 2005, he was elected as Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), a prestigious honor in America. He is also a Diplomate of the American Academy of Environmental Engineering and Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Oklahoma State and Iowa State Universities have honored him with "Distinguished Engineering Alumni" awards in 2001 and 2002, respectively. His environmental specialization and area of interest mainly involve hazardous and solid waste management, bioremediation, groundwater pollution control and treatment, clean technologies, design of water and wastewater treatment systems, biological waste treatment processes, and sludge treatment and disposal.