Dr. Sridhar (Sri) Vedachalam joins the NEMWI staff as Director of the Safe Drinking Water Research and Policy Program and the Toward Sustainable Water Information Program, effective August 28, leading NEMWI’s scientific research and policy education on water quality and its new safe drinking water program. His responsibilities include completing a State of the Region Report funded by the US Geological Survey that examines water monitoring in the region, a new study of drinking water treatment costs on the Mississippi River, and ongoing research relating to safe drinking water.
In announcing the appointment, NEMWI President and CEO Dr. Michael J. Goff noted “Dr. Vedachalam brings stellar scientific and policy credentials to his new role at NEMWI, and his experience and energy will prove to be invaluable as we endeavor to expand our water quality research and develop our new safe drinking water program. All of us at NEMWI are looking forward to working with Sri in the years ahead.”
Dr. Vedachalam holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science from The Ohio State University (2011), a Master of Science in Agricultural, Environmental, and Developmental Economics (2010), and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering (2007).
During 2017 Dr. Vedachalam served as an Environmental Legislative Fellow in Congressman Matthew Cartwright’s House office. Previously he was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health from 2015 to 2016 and a Post-Doctoral Associate at the New York State Water Resources Institute at Cornell University from 2011 to 2015.
He is author and co-author of numerous articles in scientific journals. His expertise in environmental science, water quality, drinking water, wastewater management, and water infrastructure, and his academic training in science, engineering, and economics, Dr. Goff noted, “will be huge assets as the Institute continues to develop its water quality and safe drinking water program.”
His work on the Mohawk and Hudson River watersheds in New York addressed not just regional, but nationally relevant issues, such as affordability, aging infrastructure, extreme weather impacts, financing, and non-point source pollution. He has worked closely with community groups, and local and state agencies, and values these partnerships in dealing with the complex challenges facing the water sector.
NEMWI currently has grant-funded research on water quality and safe drinking water from the Mott Foundation, the Walton Family Foundation, the US Geological Survey, and the Great Lakes Protection Fund.
Dr. Sri Vedachalam can be contacted at 202-464-4005 or at svedachalam@nemw.org.