In Memoriam: Walter K. Johnson 

Born Aug. 28, 1923, Johnson proudly served in World War II before returning to the University of Minnesota to graduate in 1948 with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and begin his long and distinguished career centered on improving water quality. In 1963, he earned his Ph.D. and conducted some of the early research in the United States on nitrogen removal by nitrification and denitrification.

Johnson served as a faculty member of the University's Department of Civil Engineering for more than nineteen years, where he mentored and advised many undergraduate and graduate students. In 1975 he opted for new challenges in public service by becoming the Director of Water Quality Control at the Metropolitan Waste Control Commission, where he remained employed until his retirement in 1989.

Johnson held many leadership positions and was a life member of numerous local and national professional organizations and received many honors for his professional contributions.

February 5, 2010