Professor Snyder awarded Clarke Prize for outstanding contributions to water

Professor Shane A. Snyder from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) was recently awarded the coveted Clarke Prize for his valuable contributions in water science and technology,

Prof Snyder is Executive Director of the university’s Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute (NEWRI) which is globally renown for taking technological strides in developing cutting-edge, energy efficient water treatment technologies to solve many of the most difficult challenges facing the wastewater sector. Prof Snyder has also headed up a variety of highly effective social initiatives that have helped to provide communities in Asia with clean water and reliable water recycling systems.

In 2020, NEWRI also developed new methods to monitor and detect RNA fragments of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the sewage system. This enabled extremely cost-effective monitoring of the extent of COVID-19 infections in the local populations without the need for extensive human interaction.

NWRI Executive Director Kevin Hardy, stated: “Dr. Shane Snyder personifies the qualities that the Athalie Richardson Irvine Clarke Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Water Science and Technology was designed to recognise”.

Prof Snyder has briefed US Congress on several occasions concerning water quality issues such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and endocrine disruptors. He has been an important participant in numerous US EPA panels and was also part of the National Academy of Science’s National Research Council expert panel for the development of Water Reuse: Potential for Expanding the Nation's Water Supply Through Reuse of Municipal Wastewater (2012). Moreover, Pro Snyder was also one of the authors of the WHO’s Potable Reuse: Guidance for Producing Safe Drinking-Water (2017).

At NEWRI, Prof Snyder heads up an extensive team of faculty, staff, research fellows, and students to push the boundaries of water and environmental research. NEWRI also endeavours to facilitate safe water and sanitation in South and Southeast Asian communities, via its community development programme that oversees the Lien Foundation-NTU Environment Endeavour, enabled by an endowment given by the Lien Foundation and the Singapore government.