LAB REPORT: Improving the Resilience and Sustainability of Urban and Coastal Water Systems

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Qizhong (George) Guo, a leader in water resources engineering, is the director of the School of Engineering's Urban and Coastal Water Systems Laboratory. 

Since 2018 the lab, according to Guo, has integrated and expanded on earlier laboratory and research activities he developed at Rutgers—including the Fluid Mechanics Laboratory and the Hydroinformatics Laboratory—to develop a broader, interdisciplinary research program. 

Current and recent projects have been supported by federal, state, and local agencies, as well as philanthropic organizations. Through its long-standing collaborations with government agencies, consulting firms, and research institutions, the Urban and Coastal Water Systems Lab stays connected to real-world needs and workable solutions. 

"A defining feature of the lab is its emphasis on integration—linking physical experiments, field observations, modeling, and policy considerations to educate students and inform professional practice across urban, watershed, and coastal systems," says Guo.

Addressing Pressing Water Resources Engineering Challenges

While Guo notes that the lab addresses a full spectrum of challenges related to flooding, stormwater management, sediment transport, wave dynamics, and riverine, estuarine, and coastal processes, it also pays special attention to how natural systems interact with built environments. 

"A central focus is improving the resilience and sustainability of urban, riverine, and coastal water systems under increasing climate variability and extreme weather events," he says.

Responding to Climate Change

The local impact of climate change has manifested itself in more frequent and severe flooding events, degraded water quality, and an increased stress on stormwater, drainage, and aquatic ecosystems that weren't designed for current conditions, according to Guo.

For Guo, one of today's most pressing water resources engineering challenges is effectively managing and mitigating the increasing flood risk driven by these changes. "Successfully integrating nature-based solutions with conventional engineered systems is both essential and urgent," he insists. 

To that end, his lab—with the help of undergraduate and graduate students—is currently evaluating the performance of green infrastructure for stormwater management; assessing flood risk under changing climate conditions; and advancing the Green-Grey-Blue-Intelligent (GGBI) framework developed by Guo.

By recognizing green and grey infrastructures, and blue systems—estuaries, rivers, and coasts—and an intelligent layer connecting data, models, AI tools, and more, GGBI clarifies thinking about water and urban systems. "This initiative integrates green, gray, and blue infrastructure with data-driven analysis and AI to support more adaptive and resilient water management decisions," Guo reports.

He takes particular pride in his lab's work on integrated watershed and urban flood management, which has helped bridge the gap between theory, modeling, and real-world applications. "One example," he says, "is a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation-sponsored flood mitigation and ecological restoration project in Linden, New Jersey, which informed practical planning and design decisions while contributing to broader discussions on resilient and sustainable water infrastructure."

It Takes a Village

By participating in Rutgers' Engineering Academy summer programs for high school students, the lab is helping to inspire the next generation of engineers.

Yet even non-engineers can collectively make a meaningful difference when it comes to conserving water through "simple actions—such as fixing leaks, installing water-efficient fixtures, and replacing water-intensive lawns with rain gardens," Guo says.

And for homeowners hoping to proactively mitigate potential flood damage to their homes, his recommendations include elevating utilities, improving drainage around their foundations, installing flood vents or temporary barriers where needed, and reducing impervious surfaces through landscaping or rain gardens.

Guo points out that the benefits far outweigh the costs. "Many of these measures are relatively low-cost compared to post-flood repairs and recovery."