Erik Smith
Alumni Board Member
Senior Engineering Associate, Lower Colorado River Authority (Texas)
Biography
Erik is a hydrologist with over 20 years of experience in water resources science and modeling. In his current role as Senior Engineering Associate at the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) (Texas), Erik supports the LCRA Water Quality Protection team by applying both established and newly developed water-quality models to inform decision-making and safeguard water resources. Before joining LCRA in June 2025, Erik served as senior hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for close to 20 years, where he led multi-year research projects, managed multi-disciplinary technical teams, and delivered complex hydrologic modeling projects.
Erik grew up in Davenport, Iowa, and proudly earned his BA in Geology at the University of Iowa. After a brief career stint in Chicago, Erik earned an MS in Geoscience from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Later while working at the USGS, Erik earned a PhD in Water Resources Science from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.
He holds memberships in the American Geophysical Union and the North American Lake Management Society. He currently lives in Austin, Texas, with his spouse Jessica, where they both volunteer in their spare time as Texas Master Naturalists.
