Presentation
Maria Helena Alegre
Head of Department
The Department of Hydraulics and Environment (DHA) carries out R&D&I activities across the entire water cycle, focusing on five strategic pillars: management, protection, and rehabilitation of coastal systems; water resources and sustainable development; water and the city; and risk and safety in ports and maritime structures. It supports decision-making in the design and implementation of public policies and promotes advanced training and knowledge dissemination in its fields of activity, linking science and engineering to problem-solving.DHA also has high-performance numerical computing capabilities and unique experimental facilities in Portugal for the physical modelling of ports, dams, and other maritime and hydraulic structures.
The department currently has a team of nearly one hundred members, about half of whom hold a PhD, making it one of the largest research units in the country covering the full water cycle. It brings together expertise in Civil, Chemical, Environmental, and Geographical Engineering, as well as in Oceanography, Geology, Biochemistry, and Information Technologies.
Several research infrastructures relevant to LNEC’s activities are part of the Department: UHM | Metrological Hydraulics Unit, UQTA | Water Quality and Treatment Unit, UEHM | Experimental Unit for Maritime Hydraulics, UMEHIF | River and Hydraulic structures Physical Model Laboratory, and AQUIRIVER |Experimental Research Facilities in Fluvial Hydraulics and Hydrogeology, and EESC | Experimental Station for Cohesive Sediments
DHA’s mission is to address the challenges of society in the field of surface waters (urban, riverine, estuarine, and coastal waters), groundwater, and infrastructures (urban, riverine, and port infrastructures) and their interactions through the development and application of advanced knowledge, methodologies, and tools.
It aims to contribute to a better society and address current challenges such as population growth, increasing urbanization, and pressure on estuarine and coastal areas, scarcity of natural resources, pressure on ecosystems, growth in maritime and river transport, risk perception and management, and the impact of climate change on aquatic environments.
The results of its activities are shared with society, and knowledge transfer is promoted through studies, publications, lectures, and specialized training actions. The main areas of activity of the DHA include:
Coastal and Port Engineering
Urban water
Water Resources and Hydraulic Works
Information Technologies Applied to Water and the Environment