Sean Avery is a Chartered Civil Engineer specialised in engineering hydrology and hydraulic structures. He is a Chartered Water and Environmental Manager, and a Chartered Environmentalist. He has four decades of professional consultancy experience on infrastructure development projects overseas, at both technical and senior management levels.

For many years, he headed the water, wastewater, irrigation and drainage division of one of East Africa’s largest civil engineering consultancies with projects throughout the African continent. He formed their Environmental Unit, a pioneer for Kenya. His project work areas have included Borneo, throughout Africa, the Indian Ocean Islands, and the Middle East.

Since 2009, Sean has focussed on the drylands of the Horn of Africa, mainly in northern Kenya, and notably the Omo / Turkana Basin, in particular assessing the impact of major hydropower and irrigation development projects on the world’s largest desert lake.

He is a Member of Water Resource Associates, a network of experts in water resources, hydrology, hydrogeology, water quality, GIS, hydro-ecology, and climate change.

Research

• East African hydrology
• Rift Valley soda lakes
• Land use and sediment runoff
• Major dams and downstream hydrology
• Rainfall and spring discharges
• Water quality

Sean is investigating the Impacts of major Omo River developments, associated hydrological change, and consequent physical and ecological change on Lake Turkana, Kenya. He is also interested in developing remote sensing tools for monitoring ecological changes.