Reasons for the change included the fact that 40% of the faculty have a focus and professional registration in the field of Environmental Engineering, the department offers an M.S. and Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering and approximately 50% of the graduate and undergraduate students consider Environmental Engineering as their focus. Also, the name "Civil and Environmental Engineering" is used by several schools in the surrounding area (including: RPI, Clarkson, Tufts, MIT and others) and there was some concern that the current name at WPI did not reflect the environmental focus here.
Although the intention of the change is to "in no way interfere with or preclude other environmental endeavors across the Institute," there was some concern from some members of the faculty. It was recognized that many of the departments on campus have a serious focus on the environment and to give the term "Environmental Engineering" to just one might give prospective students the wrong idea.
To give the veneer of completeness to just one program, which is admittedly incomplete (it was recognized that although the current CE program thoroughly handles water and waste treatments, air pollution for example, is handled in the CM department), might send away as many students as it attracts.
But the name change does accurately reflect the current state of the department and it was noted that the program at WPI is as good as or better than those of any other school. As much as one and a half years could be spent on environmental engineering, excluding an IQP and MQP, which obviously could also have an environmental focus.
There was some concern that there should be truth in WPI's advertising and that if a complete environmental focus was not handled in one department, perhaps no single department should add that to their title. But because continued efforts to work together on a complete environmental program across the Institute was called for, the change was approved.
Professor O'Shaughnessy of the CE department stated: "the Civil Engineering Department's future is in Environmental Engineering." Indeed, it looks as if not only in the distant future, but today Civil and Environmental Engineering are tied together and are looking forwards.