Edward J. Bouwer

EDWARD J. BOUWER, the Abel Wolman Professor of Environmental Engineering, joined the Hopkins faculty in 1985 and has been chairman of the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering since 2007. His research interests encompass factors that influence biotransformation of contaminants, bioremediation for control of contaminated soils and groundwaters, biofilm kinetics, biological processes design in wastewater, industrial, and drinking water treatment, and transport and fate of micro-organisms in porous media. Dr. Bouwer is director of the newly formed Johns Hopkins Center for Contaminant Transport, Fate, and Remediation, established to study the effects of contamination in Maryland’s urban environments and make these findings known and understood by public officials, groups, and the media. His research provides guidance on defining and managing environmental risks and how to interpret human and ecological health risk data. Dr. Bouwer is the recent co-author of a book titled, The Illusion of Certainty: Health Benefits and Risks, which explains the principles of calculating basic epidemiologic risk estimates and offers a way of delivering health information by an easy-to-understand graphic. The book puts the complexities of risk analysis in terms general readers can identify with, empowering them to make well-informed decisions.