Research Associate - Water Resources Engineering

University of Alberta; Edmonton; On-site; CAD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Alberta in Edmonton’s North Campus invites applications for a Research Associate position focused on optimization algorithms for river basin planning and management.

The successful candidate will work with an Alberta irrigation district to optimize daily reservoir operations, including storage and releases, using WEB.BM and related tools, to meet irrigation demands while respecting water licenses and constraints.

Job description

This position has an end date of December 31, 2028.

Location - This role is in-person. Work primarily takes place at North Campus, Edmonton.

Applications are invited for a Research Associate position in the application of optimization algorithms for river basin planning and management. The selected research associate will work with a prominent irrigation district in Alberta to optimize daily reservoir operations (storage and releases) to meet irrigation demands, using a river basin management model called WEB.BM. WEB.BM is an optimization model that simulates river diversions, reservoir storage, and reservoir releases, subject to water licences and WCO/IFN constraints, to meet downstream water demands throughout the open water season. The ultimate goal of the project is to link WEB.BM and other software components with a SCADA data monitoring system to obtain full control and optimization of water balance throughout the district’s canal system, which involves both travel time and attenuation processes, in addition to optimal balancing of storage.