Pal Benedek

Distinguished Departed Pioneer

Professional background

Pal Benedek (1924-2016) graduated in 1947 as a Civil Engineer from what is now known as the Budapest University of Technology and Economics and obtained his university doctorate in 1970.  From 1964 until his retirement in 1984, he headed the Water Quality Protection Department and the Water Quality Protection Institute VITUKI. During his career at VITUKI, he created the foundations of water and wastewater treatment in Hungary. 

In the mid-1960s, the rapid eutrophication of Lake Balaton posed a huge research challenge for the Department.  Under the leadership of Dr. Benedek, a number of experimental wastewater treatment technologies and plants were developed in collaboration with prominent biologists and chemical engineers which proved highly successful in addressing the challenges of Lake Balaton and elsewhere.  In the 1970’s, VITUKI became a national research center and under Dr Benedek’s leadership was central to the establishment of water quality regulation in Hungary.   

Upon his retirement from VITUKI in 1984, he served as President of VTK Innosystem, the company he founded in 1989. 

Major contributions to IWA

Dr. Benedek was one of the 16 founders of IAWPR in 1965 pictured in the Founder photograph.  Like a number of the other founders, including an important subset from Eastern Europe (Madera from Czechoslovakia and Benedek from Hungary), Dr. Benedek was a pioneer within and through IAWPR collaboration in trying to both define the nature and scope of severe post-war pollution as well as develop early municipal and industrial treatment processes.  He extended this international collaboration through close cooperation with WHO, including support for water and sanitation systems in developing countries. 

It is noteworthy that both Dr. Benedek and Professor Madera were succeeded in both their leadership of their national institutes and within IAWPRC/IAWQ by Dr Laszlo Somlyody and Dr. Petr Grau respectively, who later served as IWA/IAWQ Presidents (Somlyody in 2004-2006 and Grau in 1990-1994). 

Authors: Imre Takacs, Paul D Reiter

Major Sources: Dr Benedek Wiki Site