Weir removals, river modelling and the A66: one year as a junior catchment scientist

From hands on river restoration to strategic infrastructure schemes, Olivia shares what her first year in catchment science has really been like.

A team that does a bit of everything

Olivia’s team is multi-disciplinary by design- geomorphologists, hydrologists, ecologists, engineers and catchment scientists all working together to develop sustainable solutions for river management and restoration. The projects range from large-scale infrastructure to small, focused technical studies.

At the bigger end, Olivia works on the A66 upgrade, ensuring the scheme complies with Water Framework Directive and Biodiversity Net Gain requirements. She’s also part of the team on the Ennerdale Water weir removal- a project to remove obsolete infrastructure, reinstate the natural environment and create a self-sustaining ecosystem around the lake.

At the smaller end, she runs River Studio, an in-house tool that models river condition to inform decision-making, for sites across the Lake District.

What the day-to-day actually looks like

Olivia’s work moves between several different things at any given time. At the moment, she’s working on weir removal projects at different scales and in different environments, designing a fish pass to reinstate fish passage on a weir, and running an optioneering study to improve fish passage on another site. Alongside the technical work, she’s involved in project management and coordination.

Other parts of the job are more desk-based: GIS work, spatial data analysis using FME, report writing, planning client meetings and attending site visits. It’s a mix that changes week to week.

Variety from the start

One year in, Olivia has already worked across a range of projects and technical disciplines. She’s also started to develop skills she didn’t expect to pick up so quickly- project management, coordination and client-facing work.

“I have been able to get involved in a range of projects. As well as technical progression, I’ve also been able to progress into some project management and coordination involvement, which I’ve found very rewarding.”

The team behind the work

When asked what stands out about working here, Olivia comes back to the team.

“There is a huge team which you might think would be intimidating, but actually it means there are so many areas of expertise to draw on. Anyone is willing to help, and people make an effort to make everyone feel welcome whether you work together or not.”

It’s a theme that echoes what more senior colleagues in the Water practice describe- the feeling of being part of a smaller team with access to a much bigger pool of knowledge. For someone a year into their career, that access matters: it’s the difference between figuring things out alone and learning from people who’ve been doing this for decades.

Explore water careers at AtkinsRéalis

If you’re early in your career and interested in catchment science, river restoration, geomorphology, ecology or water engineering- take a look at our current water roles or join our talent network to hear about opportunities as they come up.