The Centre for Environmental Studies (CES), Anna University, has made significant contribution in Environmental Education, Research and extension activities for the past 50 years. The State-of-the art laboratories are used to conduct in-house research programmes leading to Ph.D. Degree in Environmental Science and Engineering.

With well qualified faculty and state-of-the art laboratory facilities as its main strengths, the CES is producing 60 well trained environmental engineers and scientists. In addition, need based specialized training programmes organized for in service engineers in Government Departments and industries. Every year a minimum of 2 such programmes are organized. One of the training programmes “Short Term Course in Public Health Engineering” sponsored by CPHEEO, Ministry of Urban Development, GoI, is conducted since 1955. Through this programme alone, more than 1500 public health engineers of various state Governments have been trained.

The Centre is involved in fundamental and applied research work. Assessment of chemical and biological characteristics of water bodies, treatment and reuse of wastewaters, degradation of toxic wastes such as phenol, removal of toxic pollutants by aquatic plants, biomass productivity, management of solid wastes as well as landfill management and treatment of high TDS industrial wastewaters are some of the areas of investigation at the Centre. Other thrust areas include, microbial degradation of toxic pollutants, environmental impact assessment of developmental projects in the region, membrane processes for industrial wastewater treatment and byproduct recovery, cost effective design of water distribution systems, remote sensing applications in environmental studies and ground water contamination and solute transport modeling.

Various National/International agencies like DST, MoEF, Ministry of Urban Development, UNDP, University Grants Commission, Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Central Pollution Control Board and Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board fund sponsored research activities. The CES has been able to attract national and international attention with generous funding for infrastructure development, research and extension activities.

Patents taken :
No:          National/International
1                National

Patent filed for A Process for the Biological Treatment of an Industrial Effluent (2006).
by Dr.N.Vasudevan, Assistant Professor