Cleaning up our wastewater one project at a time!
21 February 2022
Kirsten Norquay, a graduate of UC Civil and Natural Resources Engineering, talks about her role as a Principal Process Engineer at Stantec.
Chatham Islands project
Kirsten started her engineering degree because I always enjoyed science and maths at school and was interested in water and the environment/ protecting NZ’s natural resources. I’m now a principal process engineer at Stantec, specialising in water, wastewater and solid waste management. I’ve worked on a range of projects that have made a material difference to communities in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific.
Current projects:
- Oversee water and wastewater systems for Chatham Islands (7 years). Work with Council, Councillors and contractor to keep their communities and environment safe. It’s a great place in the world with unique challenges: remote island in pacific (800km east of NZ mainland), small community (about 600 people), several schemes, limited funding, & finite water resource. [photos]
- Wastewater technical advisor for wastewater plants in Nelson (6 years). Sees me working with plant operators to trouble-shoot day-to-day issues, analysing data and running full-scale trials to improve plant performance and minimise adverse environmental effects. [photos]
- Optioneering and design for various clients. Currently investigating short term options for wastewater sludge. Sees me working collaboratively with Council, plant operators and landfill operators to run full-scale trials. We’ve re-commissioned a lime dosing plant to treat sludge, run an ash-removal trial to separate ash, and trialled landfill disposal options for limed sludge and ash. All at full-scale, so can become business-as-usual operations.
Kirsten Norquay
BSc(Hons), BE(Hons), CPEng, CMEngNZ
Principal Process Engineer
Direct: +64-3474-3097
Or for futher information on studying Environmental Engineering contact Mark Milke Mark.milke@canterbury.ac.nz
Media contact:
- Email: media@canterbury.ac.nz Ph: (03) 369 3631 or 027 503 0168
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