The Institute of Environmental Engineering is part of the biggest Education and Research Institution in western Austria, that is the University Innsbruck. It belongs to the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture. The Institute employs currently a total staff of 15 persons including 5 PhD students. It is organised in 2 sections, one covering urban water management, and the other waste- and resource management.
Central to the department is the investigation of environmental problems both in research and teaching, with special emphasis on regional (alpine) aspects. The aim is to develop technical and sustainable solutions in order to minimise the impact of society on the environment.

Teaching
IUT covers the environmental engineering education in the curricula of both civil engineers and architects at the University Innsbruck:

• For architects we provide a basic introduction to environmental engineering with emphasis on the specific problems occurring during planning.
• With respect to the civil engineering curricula the aim is to provide environmental engineering education at an international level. Central to the educational activities is the description of the phenomena’s occurring with methods and models derived from engineering and natural science. Teaching is – as much as possible - related to ongoing research to ensure high standards of instruction.

Research
Civilisation depends on the use and exploitation of natural resources, like water, oil, minerals and their exploitation. The way we act, influences biochemical cycles and may lead to pollution of the environment. Regional problems areas in that respect are e.g. the increased land use, water exploitation and pollution, waste management, air and noise pollution from traffic and the distortion of sensitive alpine ecosystems that is partially attributed to the heavy tourism. Research conducted at the Institute is focuses on these mentioned interactions of the built and natural environments as well as on the preservation of the natural environment.