Editing Civil engineer (section)

{{Short description|Engineering of infrastructure}}
{{Infobox occupation
| image = TVA engineers monitoring Tellico Dam model.jpg
| imagesize = 300px
| caption = [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] civil engineers monitoring water flow on a scale model of [[Tellico Dam]]
| official_names = Civil engineer
| type = [[Profession]]
| activity_sector = Design and management of [[structure]]s, [[transportation system]]s, [[infrastructure]]
| competencies = Technical knowledge, management skills, mathematical analysis
| formation = 
| employment_field =
| related_occupation = 
}}

A '''civil engineer''' is a person who practices [[civil engineering]] – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating [[infrastructure]] while protecting the public and [[environmental health]], as well as improving existing infrastructure that may have been neglected.

Civil engineering is one of the oldest engineering disciplines because it deals with constructed environment<ref>{{cite web|title = What is Civil Engineering?|url = http://civil.columbia.edu/what-civil-engineering|publisher = Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics: Columbia University|access-date = 17 December 2015|archive-date = 24 December 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151224015237/http://civil.columbia.edu/what-civil-engineering|url-status = dead}}</ref> including planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of building structures, and facilities, such as roads, railroads, airports, bridges, harbors, channels, dams, irrigation projects, pipelines, power plants, and water and sewage systems.<ref name="BLS 2014">{{cite web |url=http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes172051.htm |title=Civil Engineers |date=May 2014 |website=BLS.gov |publisher=U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |access-date=2015-12-19 |archive-date=2018-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615124436/https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes172051.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

The term "civil [[engineer]]" was established by [[John Smeaton]] in 1750 to contrast engineers working on civil projects with the [[military engineer]]s,<ref>Mark Denny (2007). "Ingenium: Five Machines That Changed the World". p. 34. Johns Hopkins University Press.</ref><ref>{{cite book|title = The Civilized Engineer|last = Florman|first = Samuel|publisher = St. Martin's Griffin|year = 1987|isbn = 978-0-312-02559-5|location = New York|page=51}}</ref> who worked on [[armaments]] and defenses. Over time, various [[Civil engineering#Sub-disciplines|sub-disciplines]] of civil engineering have become recognized<ref>{{cite web|title = Sub-disciplines of Civil Engineering {{!}} Faculty of Engineering|url = http://engineering.iu.edu.sa/index.php/sub-disciplines-of-civil-engineering/|publisher = Islamic University of Madinah: Faculty of Engineering|access-date = 17 December 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181012042359/http://engineering.iu.edu.sa/index.php/sub-disciplines-of-civil-engineering/|archive-date = 12 October 2018|url-status = dead}}</ref> and much of military engineering has been absorbed by civil engineering.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Singh|first=Amarjit|date=January 2007|title=Civil Engineering: Anachronism and Black Sheep|journal=Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice|volume=133|pages=18–30|doi=10.1061/(ASCE)1052-3928(2007)133:1(18)}}</ref>  Other engineering practices became recognized as independent engineering disciplines, including [[chemical engineering]], [[mechanical engineering]], and [[electrical engineering]].

In some places, a civil engineer may perform [[land surveying]]; in others, surveying is limited to [[construction surveying]], unless an additional qualification is obtained.