Professor who keeps public safe from hazardous chemicals takes leadership role
March 4, 2015
Freedman named chair of the Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences
CLEMSON, SC – A Clemson University professor whose work with microbes helps keep the public safe from hazardous chemicals was introduced today as the new chairman of the Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences.
Dr. David Freedman will oversee a department of more than 20 faculty members whose
work ranges from monitoring PCB contamination in Lake Hartwell to developing nuclear waste storage methods that could be used worldwide.
Researchers are also developing biofuels from renewable sources, such as algae and woodchips.
“I’m humbled,” Freedman said. “The department has an incredibly strong history. The national and international recognition give me pause. I’m honored by the confidence of my colleagues and the dean.
“I look forward to addressing the challenges that face the nation and world, especially with respect to sustainability.”
Enrollment in the department grew 23 percent in five years and stood at 298 as of last year. The department has eight full professors, five associate professors, seven assistant professors, three lecturers and one dean’s distinguished professor.
Freedman arrived at Clemson in 1996. He began serving as interim department chair in January 2014, and the appointment takes the interim out of his title.
Congratulations came from across the university, including from Dr. Robert Jones, executive vice president for academic affairs and provost.
“David was chosen after a national search,” Jones said. “He has shown his passion and that he is eminently qualified to lead the department. We are fortunate to have him.”
Freedman’s area of expertise is in bioremediation, especially the use of microbes to treat chlorinated solvents.
Those solvents were once thought to be harmless but are now suspected or known carcinogens. More than 300,000 sites around the country need to be cleaned up, he said.
Among the highlights of his career was participating in a National Research Council review of the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant. The plant is a state-of-the-art facility built to safely destroy the chemical weapons stockpile in storage at the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot near Pueblo, Colorado.
Dr. Anand Gramopadhye, dean of the College of Engineering and Science, said that Freedman brings with him a wealth of talent as a researcher, scholar and administrator.
“Dr. Freedman is passionate about the department,” Gramopadhye said. “He has outlined a vision that will only strengthen the future of an already top notch department.
“I would like to thank Dr. Brian Powell, chair of the search committee, and other members of the committee for their tireless work during the national search process.”
Freedman said he plans to put a renewed interest on alumni relations and finding new ways to form partnerships.
“Many hundreds of our alumni are in top consulting firms and national laboratories across the country,” he said. “I see a lot of opportunities for synergies that would benefit those inside and outside the department.”
Freedman said the department is unique in that it brings three disciplines under one roof—geological sciences; environmental engineering; and biosystems engineering.
“Many universities have separate departments with some overlap,” Freedman said. “Our structure encourages collaboration among students and faculty members, which makes us more effective in tackling some of society’s grand challenges.”
Among the honors Freedman has received is the Outstanding Publication Award for 2008 from the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors. The award was for a landmark paper he co-authored with his former advisor, Dr. James M. Gossett of Cornell University.
The paper was “Biological Reductive Dechlorination of Tetrachloroethylene and Trichloroethylene to Ethylene under Methanogenic Conditions”, which appeared in Applied and Environmental Microbiology.
Freedman received his Bachelor of Science in science and environmental change at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He received his master’s degree in environmental engineering from the University of Cincinnati and his doctorate in environmental engineering from Cornell University.
