Professor Simon Pollard
Professor of Environmental Risk Management, Head of Department; Environmental Science and Technology
Location: Building 61, Cranfield campus
E: s.pollard@cranfield.ac.uk
T: +44 (0)1234 754101
Environmental Science and Technology
Current activities
Simon is Head of the Department of Environmental Science and Technology at Cranfield having been appointed in 2002 to a new Chair in waste technology. He leads 140 staff delivering £18m per annum of world-class research, teaching and consultancy in the applied aspects of soil, water, waste and energy science; in decision science; and automotive technology. Our training and research is applied, of major importance to the low carbon and green growth agendas and is preparing newly qualified environmental professionals for key roles in industry, Government and the NGO sectors alongside academic research.
Trained in chemistry (Imperial), environmental engineering (Imperial) and risk management (University of Alberta), Simon’s research interests are in environmental risk governance, waste processing and preventative risk management within the water sector. Simon was awarded his DSc (environmental risk and resource management) in 2009. Since 1990, he has authored over 450 communications, including 120 journal papers in the applied aspects of environmental pollution control. His research has been funded among others, by EPSRC, NERC, ESRC, BBSRC, Defra and the Environment Agency. Internationally, he has been funded by the Australian CRC CARE programme and the American Water Research Foundation; by the latter to lead work on risk governance for chief risk officers in the utility sectors, improving organisational capabilities in corporate risk governance. Between 2008 and 2012, Simon was the Director of the Risk Centre, established at Cranfield following a national competition to support of Defra’s work on strategic environmental risk appraisal. The Centre’s included the development of improved tools for strategic risk analysis in policy settings and revising the Government’s guidelines on environmental risk management (link opens a pdf).
Simon has undertaken substantial committee work over the last 25 years for the environmental professions, has been an Editor for the multidisciplinary journal Science of the Total Environment since 2002, and he holds a visiting chair at the University of South Australia. Additional career contributions include policy-level risk support for the Environment Agency and across Government during the BSE and foot and mouth crises. At Cranfield, Simon has been a Head of Department since 2004, has served as elected member of Council, as Dean of Faculty (2009-2012) and contributes to a number of University committees.
Clients
- American Water Research Foundation
- Australian CRC-CARE
- Calgary Water
- EPSRC, NERC, ESRC
- Department for Business Innovation and Skills
- Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
- Environment Agency of England and Wales
- EPAL (Lisbon’s Water Utility)
- International Water Association
- Local Government Association (via LARCI)
- Scotland and Northern Ireland Forum for Environmental Research
- Shell Global Solutions
- Waste and Resources Action Programme (UK)
- Yorkshire Water
Background
Infrastructure UK (HM Treasury) Expert panel on engineering interdependencies 2010-; EPSRC Process, environment and sustainability strategy board member 2008-; Beringer Review of IAH Pirbright BBSRC 2008; Editor Comm. Waste Res. Manage., 2007-09; Visiting Prof. University of South Australia 2006-; Cranfield University Council 2006-9; Hon. Degree sub-committee 2009-; Senate 2002-; Professorial appointment panels at Trinity, Flinders, Adelaide, Brighton, Imperial, Aberdeen; CRC-CARE Research Advisory Committee (Aus) 2005-10; Editor, Sci. Tot. Environ. 2002-; Chair CIWEM Exam Board 2005-2007; Member, UK Interdepartmental liaison group on risk assessment 1998-2002; Steering Committee NERC Environmental diagnostics panel 1997-2002; Executive Committee Hazards Forum 2001-04; EPSRC peer review college 2000-; Consultant to Defra, E.ON and Calgary Water, Environment Agency; External examiner (MSc) at Imperial, Open, Brunel and UWIC Universities.
Simon has chaired two international workshops for risk managers in Canada, and has developed risk communication guidelines for Australia on contaminated land. Additional contributions include the development of policy-level risk tools for the EA and Defra; shared oversight of the Drigg post-closure safety case review; revisions to waste and contaminated land regulation at SEPA and the EA; and risk support to Government during the BSE and foot and mouth crises.
Simon was a member of the ministerial Interdepartmental Liaison Group on Risk Assessment (1998-2002) and was appointed as the risk expert during Sir John Beringer’s review of IAH Pirbright (2007-8).
