The Water and Wastewater Engineering Research Group (RALC) is one of the research groups at ITB with a vision to become an excellent and reliable research group in the field of water and wastewater engineering and, together with other research groups, support ITB to become a center of excellence in Asia. The RALC Research Group has been developed since 2006 as a combination of two Subject Matter Groups (KBK), namely the Water KBK and the Wastewater KBK.

The RALC Research Group plays an active role in societal development and transformation through innovative and quality education, research, and community service in water and wastewater engineering, while addressing local and global development challenges.

The RALC Research Group is supported by 4 Professors (1 Adjunct Professor), 2 Associate Professors, 5 Assistant Professors, and 4 Instructors. Members of the RALC Research Group are graduates of leading universities in the United States, Australia, the Netherlands, Japan, Germany, South Korea, France, and domestic universities. RALC staff are also actively involved in research projects—at both postgraduate and undergraduate levels (as supervisors) or as research partners—funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia, industry, domestic & international partner institutions, and internal ITB grants.

Group members have also established cooperation with industry through research projects and community service via consulting services. Most group members have been involved in national projects in water supply and sanitation, domestic & industrial wastewater management, as well as remediation of sludge and pollutant-contaminated soil. These activities enrich insights and provide both theoretical and practical knowledge for RALC group members. Several members are also active in forming research collaborations with foreign universities and institutions to enhance international reputation.

The group also contributes to professional development in environmental infrastructure engineering applications by hosting short courses in water and wastewater engineering as well as environmental biotechnology. Group members contribute to drafting national regulations in water supply, sanitation, and waste management by serving as expert boards for central and local governments. The group's research program covers various topics, such as clean water supply engineering (development of integrated clean water supply engineering within specific zones such as industrial zones with wastewater recycling, domestic or small-scale water treatment using ozone and membrane technology, and treatment of water containing humic acid), wastewater engineering (development of biological treatment for high-organic waste, bio-energy production, treatment of textile industrial waste and other specific industries, use of wetlands in domestic wastewater treatment), sewerage and drainage (prospects of using sewerage as bio-reactors in treating domestic wastewater), and environmental biotechnology (bioremediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated soil/sludge).

The RALC Research Group is divided into five sub-fields of expertise: Drinking Water Supply Engineering, Wastewater Treatment, Sewerage and Drainage Systems, Environmental Biotechnology, and Sludge Treatment.