The Department of Water Resources and Harbor Engineering is mainly responsible for the teaching of subject area requisites of water conservancy and hydropower engineering, courses for the master's program in water conservancy engineering, a first-level discipline, and basic courses of related majors in the College as well as scientific research. Founded in 1958, the department of water conservancy engineering is one of the earliest undergraduate majors established by the College of Civil Engineering. In 1978, the department began to enroll master's degree candidates majoring in hydraulic structure engineering. In 1985, it was authorized to grant a master's degree. In 2007, the second-level discipline doctoral program in "water engineering safety and water disaster mitigation" was independently added under the first-level discipline doctoral program in civil engineering. In 2010, the department was listed as a key discipline in Fujian Province, and in 2011, it was authorized to grant the first-level master’s degree in water resources. Now, Fuzhou University is the only institution of higher learning in Fujian Province in training senior talents in water conservancy and hydropower which can grant undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees.

The Department has two undergraduate programs [water conservancy and hydropower architectural engineering, and water conservancy and hydropower engineering (offshore engineering direction)], one first-level master's program in water conservancy engineering (including three second-level master's programs: hydraulic structure engineering; hydrology and water conservancy; and port, coastal and offshore engineering), one master's program in water conservancy engineering and one doctoral program in water engineering safety and water disaster mitigation. The Department of Water Conservancy, Hydropower and Port Engineering employs 13 teachers, including 2 professors, 8 associate professors and 3 lecturers. Among these teachers, 8 have doctoral degrees, 5 have master's degrees, 2 are postdoctors and 2 are on-the-job doctoral candidates; 1 is a doctoral supervisor and 8 are master supervisors. The Department also employs 6 part-time professors and 4 part-time associate professors. The undergraduate program in water conservancy and hydropower engineering enrolls 140 students every year, including 80 undergraduates for water conservancy and hydropower engineering (offshore engineering), which is a cooperative program of Fujian and Taiwan Province. Now, the undergraduate program has about 380 enrolled students. By far, it has trained more than 2,000 qualified graduates, most of whom are active in the field of water conservancy and hydropower infrastructure construction in China and have made positive contributions to water conservancy and hydropower construction in China. Assoc. Prof. Su Yan serves as the dean of the Department, and Senior Engineer Jin Baoming as the deputy dean of the Department.

In terms of specialty construction, the Department of Water Resources and Harbor Engineering, through the construction of characteristic specialties, strives to build a talent training system for basic education that not only satisfies the needs of economic and social development in the Western Taiwan Straits Economic Zone, but also conforms to the laws of scientific development of water conservancy and hydropower. By integrating the scientific theory education and practical teaching content of water conservancy and hydropower discipline, and exploring a new multi-platform mode of the graduation project, the Department aims to make its graduates have strong engineering practical application ability and engineering scientific research ability, and become practical and urgent engineering talents. Meanwhile, it aims to become a training base for talents in water conservancy and hydropower engineering, hydrology and water conservancy engineering, and port and coastal engineering to play great exemplary and promotion roles. In terms of specialty knowledge education, water conservancy and hydropower engineering is always at the center. Considering the characteristics and engineering requirements of industries related to water conservancy engineering in Fujian, related basic platforms, such as hydrology, port engineering and offshore engineering, are added to provide supporting specialties. By doing this, the Development aims to construct a knowledge system and educational contents that not only satisfy the needs of social development, but also keep up with the rapid development of water conservancy and hydropower science and port engineering. Moreover, the program in water conservancy, hydropower and port engineering is designed to train senior engineering and technical personnel. In the process of training, in order to highlight students' practical ability, it also made great efforts in experiment and production practice while focusing on strengthening students' basic theoretical knowledge. To be specific, it has established a basic open laboratory integrating hydraulics, hydraulic model experiments, and port and coastal engineering, and increased the practical opportunities and time for students to participate in engineering construction, execution, design and management, which makes students strengthen the study of theoretical knowledge and involved in practical training, thus improving both theoretical knowledge and practical ability. This training concept and mode have been recognized by employers. Over the years, the initial employment rate of its graduates has been kept above 98%, with graduates highly recognized and praised by employers. It has several off-campus practice bases, including Gutianxi Cascade Hydropower Station, Shuikou Hydropower Station, Hongkou Hydropower Station, Pubugou Hydropower Station in Sichuan, and Sinohydro Bureau 16 Co., Ltd.

In scientific research, since the 1970s, Fuzhou University has carried out research in the field of hydraulic structure engineering, and been involved in the scientific research of national key projects of China, such as Gutianxi, Dongjiang, Shuikou, Ertan, and Mianhuatan projects as well as that of several provincial key projects. It has achieved a number of high-level research results, and awarded more than ten first, second or third prizes of provincial and ministerial sci-tech progress award. At present, the Department mainly makes research on hydraulic structure calculation theory, hydraulic structure simulation and intelligent monitoring, hydraulic and geotechnical engineering, hydraulics and river dynamics, port and offshore engineering, etc., playing an important role in the economic construction and social development of China and Fujian. So far, it has published nearly 300 papers in academic journals at home and abroad, undertaken 87 scientific research projects, and received scientific research funds exceeding CNY 9 million. Teachers in the Department of Water Conservancy and Hydropower Engineering have been enterprising in recent years. They have cooperated with Huadong Engineering Corporation Limited (HDEC), China Guodian Dadu River Hydropower Development Co., Ltd., Fujian Provincial Water Conservancy Department, etc., to carry out scientific research projects to actively explore the route of "cooperation between enterprises, universities, and research institutes", and completed more than 10 provincial and ministerial-level scientific research projects, of which 8 won the first, second or third prizes of provincial and ministerial sci-tech progress award.