By Beth Kirkevold, HR Generalist

I went to Arizona last winter. I had one thing on my list to see and it was not the Grand Canyon. It was the Hoover Dam, and I was not disappointed. When I try to describe the Hoover Dam, awesome doesn’t quite cut it. I would describe it as mind-boggling.

The main reason I wanted to see the dam is that I work in the civil engineering industry. When I entered this industry almost 20 years ago, I had little knowledge about what engineers do. I am more of a numbers person myself. Today I understand what kind of impact a civil engineer has on our lives and environment. That is why I wanted to see the Hoover Dam. Every day engineers, just like the ones at CGA, designed it!

Civil engineers are involved in much of what defines civilization. They are creating the design and construction for the roads we drive on, the subdivisions we live in, the bridges we cross, the dams which provide energy and/or recreation, levees to keep us safe from flooding; the list goes on and on. I think most of us give little thought about how such things get constructed.

Did you turn on your faucet today? Civil engineers are also responsible for designing and constructing our water and sewer systems. For example, New York City has one of the world’s most impressive water supply systems, receiving billions of gallons of high-quality water from the Catskills over 100 miles away. Engineers design sewer systems to process waste and storm systems to divert rainwater. They do all of this while ensuring these systems are environmentally safe.

I am truly grateful for the civil engineering industry and the contributions it has made where I live. Engineers are a dedicated group of men and women who work to ensure I can get where I want to go, live where I want to live, and they have also given me the ability to be able to flush my toilet!