John Andrews

Distinguished Pioneer

Professional background

John F. Andrews (1930-2011) was Professor of Environmental Science and Engineering. He received his PhD in 1964 in Environmental Engineering from the University of California Berkeley. John taught at the University of Arkansas, Clemson University in South Carolina, University of Houston in Texas, and Rice University, Houston. He was a guest lecturer in Japan, China, England, and Canada.

John served as the U.S. editor of Water Research. Already in the 1970s he was one of the true driving forces to increase the collaboration between WEF and IAWPR (the predecessor of IWA).

Major contributions to IWA

Together with an international group led by Professor Wilhelm von der Emde he initiated the Vienna IAWPR Workshop series on “Design and Operation of Large Wastewater Treatment Plants” in 1971, leading to the vital specialist group on the same theme.

John was a leading force to establish the IAWPR specialist conferences on Instrumentation, Control and Automation (ICA), the first one held in 1973 in London. John, together with Heinrich O. Buhr and Thomas M. Keinath (later the IWA President), organized a workshop at the Clemson University, S.C., in September 1974, addressing Research Needs for Automation of Wastewater Treatment Systems. The workshop was sponsored by the USEPA but appeared to be a landmark in the early ICA development for wastewater treatment systems. John continued tirelessly making ICA recognized in the water profession for the next two decades. He was pioneering dynamics and control in wastewater treatment and presented one of the early dynamic models of the activated sludge system. He recognized the potential of control of these dynamic systems and pushed hard within IWA to see more instrumentation, control, and computer applications in wastewater treatment.

Author:  Gustaf Olsson, Sweden