Experts

Jonathan Quebbeman

Director, Water Resources

Education

PhD, Civil Engineering, Colorado State University
ME, Water Resources Engineering, Colorado State University
BS, Civil Engineering, University of Iowa

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Jonathan Quebbeman, PhD, is the Director of Water Resources at RTI. He is an expert in processing large climate data sets, capacity development program design and implementation, capacity needs assessments, climate and hydromet data monitoring system evaluation, and flood frequency estimation with statistical or simulation-based methods. Dr. Quebbeman analyses region flood frequency with non-stationarity, lumped and distributed hydrologic models with event or continuous simulations, and designs and deploys flood forecasting systems. He leverages his expertise in impact-based analyses linked to economic system modeling and portfolio-level analyses of hydrologic risks.

Dr. Quebbeman is a certified professional hydrologist and licensed professional engineer (Maine). Currently, he works on the World Bank funded Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) in India – the world’s largest dam rehabilitation program. There, Dr. Quebbeman helps with capacity development of state and central-Ministry staff, the design and rollout of a new portfolio screening level tool to assess 6,000 dams across India, and support for economic and financial analyses, evaluating the direct and indirect benefits of reduced risks from improved dam safety investment and design.

Dr. Quebbeman also works on the Extended Hydrologic Prediction (EHP) project for the Central government of India. It is aimed at a sub-seasonal volumetric forecasting system to support water resources planning and management and improved water allocation. This project includes teleconnections to global climatic indicators for conditioning longer-term seasonal forecasts with process and statistical-based hydrologic modeling.

Additionally, Dr. Quebbeman is supporting the Washington State Department of Transportation Flood Frequency Analysis, where he develops low-flow season statistics using a regional regression approach to support construction season fish-passage system design. He also supports the Greers Ferry Hydrologic Hazard Analysis with the Unites States Army Corps of Engineers Risk Management Center.

Dr. Quebbeman joined RTI in 2017. He previously served as a water treatment plant operator for the University of Iowa Water Treatment Plant, worked as a civil design engineer at Land Use Consultants, and as a hydropower water resources manager at Kleinschmidt Associates. Dr. Quebbeman also currently serves on the Board of Directors for the American Institute of Hydrology, where he currently holds certification as a professional hydrologist.

Get To Know Jonathan Quebbeman

Dr. Quebbeman shared advice from an impactful mentor, what sparked his passion for engineering and water resources, and experiences from his first job.

My advisor in my PhD program, Dr. Jorge Ramirez, really changed my perspective around assessment of our natural systems and engineering. He moved my perspective from a passive analysis to an active engagement and understanding, not taking equations or results for granted but understanding systems at the root level. He didn't provide formulas; he derived them from first principles; he sought answers to phenomena with pure curiosity rather than acceptance; and he understood the importance of precision, especially in writing. He unfortunately has passed on, but his impact and lasting mark across the industry remains.

I grew up in Wisconsin and spent most of my childhood outdoors, either paddling with my father, or crawling through the streams and ponds in our neighborhood. It's always been about the water, from precipitation to runoff, to our infrastructure and energy systems; I've been fascinated. Civil engineering and water resources, in my mind, was a way to engage with our natural environment, get outside, and keep getting dirty.

My first real job (after a stint caddying at a local golf club) was at the University of Iowa Water Treatment plant. I started in maintenance doing cleaning, welding, and flushing hydrants, but then moved into operations. Here, I learned about water chemistry and distribution systems, and eventually into a supervisory role. I really appreciated the connections of bringing raw water from the river and into our distribution systems but also the infrastructure and mechanical systems needed to support this process. My best memory was when I accidentally overflowed the storage tower in town during freezing November weather, disrupting traffic (which ironically, wasn't the last time in my career I'd overflow a tower...)

Outside the Office

Dr. Quebbeman is a boat fanatic. He built his first kayak in college when he had extra time working third shift at the water treatment plant. He then built a wooden surfing kayak, acquired his father’s strip kayak, and four more boats along the way. He also added a small 22ft sailboat to the growing armada. Fortunately, Dr. Quebbeman lives in Maine and is surrounded by natural beauty and ocean. He tries to get outside as much as possible – he’s even telecommuted from the water a few times this summer!