Kelsey Pieper
Assistant Professor,
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Affiliated Faculty,
School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs
Contact
- k.pieper@northeastern.edu
- 400 SN
360 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115
Office
- 467 Snell Engineering Center
Research Focus
Applied environmental chemistry; corrosion; drinking water quality, treatment, and infrastructure; post-disaster drinking water recovery; public health engineering
Education
- PhD, Biological Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech, 2015
- MS, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, 2011
Research Overview
Applied environmental chemistry; corrosion; drinking water quality, treatment, and infrastructure; post-disaster drinking water recovery; public health engineering
Selected Research Projects
- Dynamical Coupling of Physical and Social Infrastructures: Evaluating the Impacts of Social Capital on Access to Safe Well Water
- – Principal Investigator, National Science Foundation
- Inequity in access to Safe Drinking Water after Natural Disasters in North Carolina
- – Principal Investigator, NASA
- Equity in Access to Well Water Recovery Resources after Hurricanes
- – Principal Investigator, NU TIER 1
- Untapping the Crowd: Consumer Detection and Control of Lead in Drinking Water
- – Co-Principal Investigator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Department Research Areas
Selected Publications
- Khaksar Fasaee, M.A., Berglund, E., Pieper, K.J., Ling, E., Benham, B., Edwards, M. (2021). Developing a Framework for Classifying Water Lead Levels at Private Drinking Water Systems: A Bayesian Belief Network Approach. Water Research, 189, 116641. 10.1016/j.watres.2020.116641
- Pieper, K.J., Jones, C.N., Rhoads, W.J., Rome, M., Gholson, D.M., Katner, A., Boellstorff, D.E., Beighley, R.E. (2021). Microbial Contamination of Drinking Water Supplied Private Wells after Hurricane Harvey. Environmental Science and Technology, 55(12), 8382–8392. 10.1021/acs.est.0c07869
- Wait, K. Katner, A., Gallagher, D., Edwards, M., Mize, W., Pow Jackson, C.L., Pieper, K.J. (2020). Disparities in Well Water Outreach and Assistance Offered by Local Health Departments: A North Carolina Case Study. Science of the Total Environment, 747, 141173. 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141173
- K.J. Pieper, W.J. Rhoads, L. Sauicer, A. Katner, J.R. Barrett, M. Edwards, Improving State-Level Emergency Well Disinfection Strategies in the United States, Science of the Total Environment, 720, 2020 137451
- K. Mapili, K.J. Pieper, D. Dai, A. Pruden, M.A. Edwards, M. Tang, W.J. Rhoads, Legionella pneumophila Occurrence in Drinking Water Supplied By Private Wells, Letters in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 70(4), 2020, 232-240
- K.J. Pieper, A. Katner, R. Kriss, M. Tang, M.A. Edwards Understanding Lead in Water and Avoidance Strategies: A United States Perspective for Informed Decision-Making, Journal of Water and Health, 17(4), 2019, 540-555
- K.J. Pieper, M. Tang, C.N. Jones, S. Weiss, A. Greene, H. Mohsin, J. Parks, M.A. Edwards, Impact of Road Salt on Drinking Water Quality and Infrastructure Corrosion in Private Wells, Environmental Science & Technology, 52(24), 2018, 14078–14087
- K.J. Pieper, M. Tang, M.A. Edwards, Flint Water Crisis caused by Interrupted Corrosion Control: Investigating “Ground Zero” Home, Environmental Science & Technology, 51(4), 2017, 2007–2014
Jun 10, 2025
PhD Spotlight: Kyla Drewry, PhD’25, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Kyla Drewry, PhD’25, civil and environmental engineering, researched access to safe drinking water supplied by private wells. She presented at various conferences, was published in Environmental Science and Technology, and is starting a full time position in fall 2025 as a water resources engineer.
May 14, 2025
CEE Hosts Annual Cochrane Fellows Luncheon
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering hosted its annual Cochrane Fellows Luncheon to honor founder Jack Cochrane and highlight the research of current PhD students in environmental engineering supported by the prestigious fellowship.
Apr 24, 2025
Dr. Kelsey Pieper: Well Water Quality
CEE Assistant Professor Kelsey Pieper was featured in the SciLine interview “Dr. Kelsey Pieper: Well Water Quality.”
Oct 07, 2024
NC Health Officials Issue Guidelines for Thousands of Potentially Flooded Private Wells
In response to the recent hurricane in North Carolina, CEE Assistant Professor Kelsey Pieper was featured in the following news outlets urging people to test their well water after the flooding: NC Newsline, Inside Climate News, British Water Filter, Common Dreams, Nation of Change, and Newsweek.
Jun 08, 2022
Climate-driven Flooding Poses Well Water Contamination Risks
“Areas that hadn’t been impacted are now. New areas are getting flooded,” said Kelsey Pieper, a Northeastern University professor of environmental engineering. “We know the environment is shifting and we’re […]
Dec 21, 2021
Remote Sensing Could Predict Well Water Quality After Floods
CEE Assistant Professor Kelsey Pieper was featured in the EOS article “Remote Sensing Could Predict Well Water Quality After Floods,” with her research to help better inform disaster recovery efforts.