Richard Warden, P.E., CPESC (Retired)

Richard Warden, P.E., CPESC (Retired), received his formal education was through The Ohio State University, graduating in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. His major fields of study were Geotechnical Engineering, Hydraulics, and Hydrology.

His work experience began with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources in the Division of Water, Dam Safety Section in the spring of 1979. His work included the inspection and evaluation of dams in the State of Ohio under the Federal Dam Inspection Program of 1977. State statutes also required periodic inspection and evaluation of dams based on various physical conditions, leading to his evaluations of such dams as Hoover Dam, Gregg’s Dam and O’Shaunessy Dam in the Columbus area. Both programs necessitated development of a state-wide inventory of dams. These activities, which also included review of proposed dams and construction inspections, lead to his work on approximately 1,000 dams in five years.

He acquired his Ohio Professional Engineer Registration in May of 1984. Wanting a broader range of design experiences, Mr. Warden began work at the ODNR, Office of Chief Engineer in July of 1984. He had the opportunity to work on State facilities such as boat ramps, fishing docks, dam repairs and upgrades, new utilities and utility replacement projects, roadway design and related drainage and irrigation projects.

In 1986 he took the position to head-up the In-House portion of the Abandoned Mined Lands (AML) Engineering Section, in ODNR’s Division of Reclamation (currently the Division of Mineral Resources Management). In 1997, he assumed the responsibilities as the engineer for the AML Emergency Program. By 2003, he had either design or direct supervisory control of over 1,000 different AML projects in the State of Ohio. Besides being involved with reclaiming hundreds of acres of coal and industrial mineral strip mined lands, these projects also involved abatement of landslides, burning gob, mine blow outs, acid mine drainage and treatment, and mine subsidence remediation. Investigation and informing the public was also a significant task, as not all concerns raised were mining related.

An integral part of most designs involved storm water related issues. As the senior engineer, he worked to educate staff on compliance issues related to the EPA’s NPDES Phase II requirements. Mr. Warden retired from full-time employment at ODNR in September of 2006 but was requested to return to help create a new bonding system in 2007. To date Mr. Warden has performed consulting efforts related to storm water compliance, grouting projects and research projects.