Thomas J. Grizzard, Jr., professor emeritus of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech and former director of the Occoquan Watershed Monitoring Laboratory, died on June 24, 2017. He was 70 years old.

For more than 40 years, he educated generations of water professionals and researchers in the region and worked to protect drinking water and keep water clean from the reservoirs and rivers to the bay. He was considered a pioneer in managing stormwater runoff to protect drinking water and local streams.

Grizzard was known to many as the “Protector of the Occoquan.” He led the Occoquan Watershed Monitoring Laboratory, a state-of-the-art water lab at the university, which monitored the Occoquan and Potomac Rivers to understand pollution in the rivers, develop clean water regulations, and improve water quality.

“Grizzard spent his life committed to making water in the region clean and safe to drink,” said COG Deputy Executive Director Stuart Freudberg, who knew Grizzard for more than 30 years from his regional work with water utilities, state agencies, and local jurisdictions. “He will be remembered for his many contributions to improving not only water quality, but also the quality of life in the metropolitan Washington region.”

More: Virginia Tech news release