Hydrodynamics, Sediment Transport and Light Extinction Off Cape Bolinao, Philippines

Paul C. Rivera was born in Isabela, Philippines on 29 November 1966. He finished his basic secondary education in a catholic school run by the La Salette priests in Cabatuan, Isabela. In 1988, he obtained his Bachelor of Science (Physics) degree in the same province and a year later, he moved to Manila to pursue graduate education. With a fellowship granted by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAG AS A), he finished his Master of Science (Meteorology) degree at the University of the Philippines, Quezon City in 1990 specializing in the numerical modelling of storm surges. While doing graduate courses in the Department of Meteorology and Oceanography, he worked as a University Research Associate from 1989 to 1991. In 1992, he was granted a fellowship to pursue a higher education under the auspices of the Wageningen Agricultural University (WAU) and the International Institute for Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering (IHE) in the Netherlands. In the same year, he obtained his Master of Science (Environmental Science and Technology) degree from both institutions. There, he studied the rudiments of water quality management with emphasis on field observational and modelling studies of sediment resuspension, sedimentation and light attenuation in a freshwater lake in the Netherlands. In 1993 and under the sponsorship of the Cooperation in Environmental Ecotechnology with Developing Countries (CEEDC) Project initiated by IHE and WAU, he started his PhD research studies on the hydrodynamics, sediment transport and light extinction of the marine environment in Cape Bolinao, Philippines.