Research Bio

David Sedlak is a Vice Chair for Graduate Studies and Professor of Environmental Engineering at UC Berkeley. Sedlak’s research focuses on the fate of chemical contaminants, with the long-term goal of developing cost-effective, safe, and sustainable systems to manage water resources. He is particularly interested in the development of local sources of water. Sedlak’s research has addressed water reuse--the practice of using municipal wastewater effluent to sustain aquatic ecosystems and augment drinking water supplies--as well as the treatment and use of urban runoff to contaminated groundwater from contaminated industrial sites as water supplies. Sedlak also received the Fulbright Specialist Award for New Zealand in 2019 and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2016, one of the highest honors given to an engineer, among other notable achievements.

In addition to his laboratory and field research, Sedlak is interested in developing new approaches for managing the urban water cycle. He pursues these efforts through research coordinated through the National Science Foundation's Engineering Research Center for Reinventing the Nation's Urban Water Infrastructure (ReNUWIt), the Berkeley Water Center, and the National Alliance for Water Innovation. Sedlak is also the author of "Water 4.0", a book that examines the ways we can gain insight into current water issues by analyzing the history of urban water systems.

See Sedlak's full list of Publications, Awards, Students, and Teaching information.

Research Expertise and Interest

fate and transport of and transformation of chemicals in the aquatic environment, water reuse and water recycling, urban water infrastructure, engineered treatment wetlands