15 About the Author

Dr. Leslie Smith is an independent consultant and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He was a professor in that department from 1981 until his retirement in 2016; between 1997 and 2016 he held the Cominco Chair in Minerals and the Environment. His field of specialization is groundwater flow and contaminant transport, and includes an emphasis on hydrologic aspects of mine waste management (tailings and waste rock) and surface water – groundwater interactions. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the American Geophysical Union. He currently serves on a number of Independent Geotechnical and Tailings Review Boards, for companies both in Canada and internationally.