International Water Resource Engineering

For the millions of Palestinians importing their food, Mac McKee and his colleagues are making a real difference. Mac McKee ran water-planning tasks looking at water conservation, new water sources, and the reuse of waste water in Palestine for three years. There he was able to find ways to gain access to vital water. For many, water may be taken for granted, but between Palestine and Israel, water is a hot topic that is one of seven issues trying to be resolved. Dr. McKee and over 100 expiates working in the area over three years took the water issue completely off the table. Now, “they aren’t going to fight about water.”

This is a unique situation in international program work. Dr. McKee works with water systems, however, when out in the field he is one player in a large team consisting of engineers and scientists from many fields. In places like American Samoa, Iraq, and the Philippines, these groups from diverse academic backgrounds are collaborating, aiding politics by solving problems completely and leaving no need for diplomatic negotiations. When asked about working on these teams, Dr. McKee smiles, “It’s great fun…super”.

Dr. McKee has worked around the world on projects dealing with water systems. While in India, he consulted with the Indian government studying four river basins and issued recommendations on policy issues for the government to consider. Often times his work entails training mid-level water management on skills that will allow them to improve their country’s water systems. What he and his family gained from the two years spent in India, he explains, was invaluable.

That seems to be the way Dr. McKee views international research: “One thing that I think is neat is the work that I've been lucky enough to do has taken me all over the world, exposed to cultures, ideas, and ways of thinking that you couldn't get anywhere else.”

Dr. Mckee is the Director of The Utah Water Research Laboratory.