Arch Campbell Award
This Award was established in memory of Arch Campbell to recognise his very significant contribution to soil conservation and river control and management in New Zealand.
Who was Arch Campbell
Arch Campbell served the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Council and the subsequent National Water and Soil Conservation Organisation, which at the time was at the forefront of technical and policy developments. A major symposium on water, which he helped to organise in 1964, led to many recommendations to government and the formation of an Engineering and Scientific Committee on Water of NZIE and the Royal Society of NZ. He co-chaired this committee for many years, organising six-yearly Water Conferences.
Arch was also the chairman of the NZ Institution of Engineers Technical Group on Water and organised lively symposia on relevant topics within the annual NZIE conferences. Many engineers and water scientists now retired or in the latter stages of their careers will remember his wise mentoring and counsel.
More about the award
The Award was initiated at the 1994 Water Conference. The award at the time was for best presented paper or written report (for public release) on any matter related to hydrology, river or stream hydraulics, or river control methods in New Zealand. The recipient of the Award received a framed certificate and cash prize. In 2009 a joint initiative between IPENZ (now Engineering NZ) and Water New Zealand (formerly the NZ Water and Wastes Association) resulted in the establishment of a joint Rivers Group. At the suggestion of David Best, a life member of NZWWA, and with the agreement of Arch Campbell’s family, the award was entrusted to the Rivers Group.
How to nominate
If you would like to nominate someone to be the recipient of this award, please complete this form.
Past recipients
| Year | Recipient(s) | Details |
| 2021 | Hugh MacMurray (Barnett & MacMurray Ltd) | For his outstanding contribution to hydraulic and morphological modelling of New Zealand Rivers. |
| 2019 | Ian Heslop (Environment Canterbury) | For his significant contribution over his 40 year career to the advancement of best practice and knowledge in the field of river engineering and the understanding and communication of residual risk within the communities with whom he has worked. |
| 2018 | Grant Webby (Damwatch Engineering Ltd) | For notable contribution over his 37 year career to the advancement of knowledge and practice in the fields of hydraulic and river engineering. |
| 2017 | Sharyn Westlake (Greater Wellington Regional Council) | For notable contribution over the past 20 years to the advancement of knowledge and practice in the fields of floodplain management and river engineering |
| 2016 | David Leong (Tonkin & Taylor) | For his advancement of knowledge and practice in the field of applied and engineering hydrology, including his innovative work on a risk-cost approach to optimising multireservoir operation for Auckland’s water supply catchments. |
| 2015 | Peter Blackwood (Horizons Regional Council) | For his notable contribution and leadership in hydrology, river engineering and management over a number of years including work with the Wellington, Bay of Plenty and Horizons Regional Councils. |
| 2014 | Brin Williman (Marlborough District Council) | For his notable contribution and leadership in hydrology, river engineering and management over a number of years including nearly 30 years for the Marlborough District Council. |
| 2013 | Alastair Barnett (Hydra Software) | For his notable contribution over a number of years including his outstanding contribution to computational hydraulic methods. |
| 2012 | Murray Hicks (NIWA) | For his significant contribution over a number of years to understanding of sediment transport and geomorphology. |
| 2011 | Graeme Smart (NIWA) | For his notable contribution over a number of years including co-authoring Smart, G M and McKerchar, A I (2010). “More Flood Disasters in New Zealand”. Journal of Hydrology (NZ), Vol. 49, No. 2, December 2010. |
| 2002 | Tim Davies (Lincoln University) | For his significant contribution to understanding of river mechanics, debris flows and mitigation of associated natural hazards. |
| 2001 | Rick Jackson | For a career spanning some 30 years in the research of hydrological processes, especially in forest and wetland ecosystems. |
| 2000 | Alastair McKerchar (NIWA) | For his role at the forefront of this country’s regional flood estimation techniques for the previous 20 years and for being an accomplished author with publications including Flood Frequency in NZ in 1989 and Regional Flood Estimation in NZ in 1982. |
| 1999 | Paul Mosley | Editorial role in production of “Waters of New Zealand” and “Floods and Droughts,: The New Zealand Experience” |
| 1997 | Graham Doull (Manawatu Wanganui Regional Council) John Bright (Lincoln Envrionmental) | Flood hazard in Palmerston North City”, Hydroinformatics 1996 Conference in Zurich, Switzerland. |
| 1996 | Prof. David Maidment (Centre for Research in Water Resources, University of Texas) | The recipient’s contribution to the modelling of large catchments. |
| 1994 | B Knowles (Royds Consulting) G&E Williams Ltd | The Waitara River Scheme Review Report. |