The Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences is happy to celebrate its 60th anniversary at Clemson University. On September 18, 2026, faculty, students, alumni, staff, friends and industrial partners who have shaped this extraordinary program celebrated the 60th Anniversary at the SCEEES Family Weekend Social. We had a fabulous event with more than 175 attendees celebrating with us. Part of the Anniversary Celebration included a tour of L.G. Rich Laboratory (Rich Lab) and Clemson Engineering Technologies Laboratory (CETL).
The story of Environmental Engineering at Clemson University began with visionary leadership. In the early 1960s, Dr. Gene Rich, who served as the Dean of the College of Engineering at Clemson University from 1961 to 1972, recognized that Clemson needed distinctive, interdisciplinary graduate programs to advance its research mission and compete nationally. One of the programs created from that vision was Environmental Systems Engineering, now known as the Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences.
Initially, the program was housed within the Department of Civil Engineering. However, as the program grew, Clemson leaders understood that environmental challenges demanded collaboration across traditional academic boundaries beyond Civil Engineering. In 1968, Environmental Systems Engineering separated from Civil Engineering and became a department of its own.
That decision was both distinctive and strategic, giving the EEES department national visibility back then and continuing to do so today. At a time when very few universities had independent Environmental Engineering programs, Clemson’s separation created a stronger identity and made the program more attractive to graduate students and faculty from engineering, science, and other disciplines. It established the foundation for the national and international reputation that the Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences (EEES) enjoys today.
Over the past six decades, EEES has led important advances in water and wastewater treatment, environmental systems, groundwater remediation, biosystems, and environmental science. Through its undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs, Clemson University has prepared generations of professionals to address some of society’s most urgent challenges.
Today, the need for environmental engineers and scientists has never been greater. As we honor this remarkable legacy, we also look toward the future—with continued innovation, collaboration, and service.
Congratulations to our faculty, students, alumni, and industrial partners on 60 years of excellence. Thank you for all you have done, and all you will continue to do, for Clemson and for the world.
