Dr. Michael C. Kavanaugh
Mike Kavanaugh is a Senior Principal Environmental Engineer based in California with more than 35 years of consulting experience focused on the areas of water quality, water treatment, and groundwater remediation. He has served a highly diverse group of private and public sector clients directly, through industry associations, and through attorneys.
More than 20 years ago, Mike's professional practice started in the areas of municipal and industrial wastewater treatment, water quality management, and water reuse and drinking water treatment. He expanded his practice to include contaminated groundwater studies, particularly CERCLA-driven remedial investigations/feasibility studies (RI/FS), groundwater remediation, waste minimization and pollution prevention studies, pioneering technology development, as well as third-party peer review and strategic consulting on environmental management and compliance issues. He has also provided technology evaluations including patent reviews of environmental technologies.
As a testifying expert and a fact witness on engineering and hydrogeologic issues related to hazardous waste sites as well as on other issues related to his areas of expertise, Mike has been tapped more than 60 times by attorneys, arbitrators, judges, and government agencies to serve. He also has participated on several mediation and arbitration panels as a neutral technical expert as well as serving as an individual facilitator, mediator, arbitrator, court appointed expert, or "blue ribbon" expert panelist working on project-specific and policy-level issues.
To advance the state of the practice, Mike has contributed to over 80 technical publications and more than 150 presentations to audiences that included congressional and state committees. Currently, he is an instructor for the Princeton Groundwater Course and a consulting professor in the Stanford University Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Environmental Law Institute and as the chair of the National Research Council's Committee on Future Options for the Nation's Subsurface Remediation Efforts.