Tufts Blogs

Nate Pacheco is a rising senior and an environmental engineer. This summer, he is doing research at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority in the Environmental Quality Department. At Tufts, he has been involved with FOCUS Pre-Orientation as a leader and coordinator, Shir Appeal Acapella group, and Torn Ticket Theater Company.

Hi Nate! What are you up to this summer?

I'm working as the waste water treatment intern for the MWRA, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority. We're based in Charlestown. One of the great things about this job is I get to travel. Once a week I go to sites, like the Deer Island Water Treatment Plant (pictured above), different office buildings, pump stations, etc. It's great getting out of the office sometimes.

What does the Mass Water Resources Authority do? What is your role?

The MWRA essentially provides drinking water to 40 communities and waste water treatment to 60 communities. This summer, my biggest project is doing research into nutrient removal techniques from waste water. The purpose of this research is that the MWRA's biggest concern is that the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) will likely soon impose limits on nitrogen levels on the liquid waste of the Deer Island Water Treatment Plant. This essentially means that the treated (and very clean!!!) wastewater that is discharged into the Mass Bay must have nitrogen concentrations within the EPA's limit.

To meet these requirements, the MWRA would need to construct new facilities at Deer Island, but they would need enough time to do research and enough space/time to build the facilities. That’s where I come in. I have been researching different treatment procedures, implementation strategies, design criteria, and space requirements. My work is a combination of lit research, design work with CAD/Excel, and number analyses. Based on my results, we'll do some small-scale testing.

How did you get this internship?

In a lot of the environmental engineering classes, there is mention of the MWRA research, because they operate one of the largest waste water treatment plants in the US. They are often used as an example, and when you hear about Deer Island in so many classes, you're inspired to look into it. I reached out to one of my professors, who is also my advisor, to ask him if he had a contact. I emailed one of his grad students from years ago, and got the job!

Awesome! Is it pretty common for people to get contacts through professors?

Yeah, a lot of my friends who are pursuing summer opportunities in the Boston area got them through professors. For example, my friend Jesse got his environmental consulting internship through a professor. I can't speak to the whole School of Engineering, but all the professors in the environmental engineering department are really involved besides teaching, which has been helpful.

Lastly, Nate, why did you choose Tufts?

I'm from MA originally, from a town called Weymouth, and I knew I wanted to stay in the tri-state area. I knew I wanted to do engineering but in a smaller school with a campus-y feel that’s still near the city. Tufts fit perfectly. I toured Tufts on a rainy day and even in the rain, I thought it was absolutely beautiful. Seeing the facilities and the way the students interacted in social settings, I realized everyone seemed to really like it here.

I guess it's got to mean something when you love a tour on an ugly rainy day.

Yup, it was pretty much Tufts or bust for me!

Next up, we have the final part of Engineers in the Summer. We will be interviewing an incoming freshman and BEST scholar to hear about their summer experience.