The history of the faculty started in post-war Wrocław when, in December 1945, the Department of Reclamation and Agricultural Engineering was created at the Faculty of Agriculture with the Section of Horticulture within the University and Polytechnic the only higher education institution in Wrocław. The Department was created by Professor Stanisław Bac (Senior), an outstanding scholar of the Lvov Polytechnic, who initiated the speciality of agricultural reclamation in the year 1949. At first, the speciality had 12 graduates. The Section of Agricultural Reclamation was created in the year 1950 with 50 students enrolled. An independent Faculty of Agricultural Reclamation was created in 1950 at first as an organisational unit of the University and Polytechnic and, from 17th November 1951, within a new Higher School of Agriculture. Prof. Stanisław Bac was the first dean and Roman Hlibowicki, head of the Department of Surveying, was the vice-dean.
The following units were within the faculty in the year 1951: Department of Agricultural and Forest Reclamation (from 23rd November 1951 Department of Reclamation and Agricultural Engineering) headed by Prof. Dr. hab. Stanisław Bac, Department of Water Building headed by Dr. hab. Jan Wierzbicki, Department of Mathematics headed by Dr. Rudolf Hohenberg, Department of Surveying (from 1954 Department of Geodesy) headed by Dr. Roman Hlibowicki, Department of Meteorology and Climatology headed by Dr. hab. Adam Schmuck, Department of Soil Science and Building (from 1954) headed by Karol Tworowski.
The number of departments increased to 14 within the first ten years (1950 − 1960). In the year 1957, Department of Construction Mechanics and Building Constructions (head Bołeslaw Broś), Department of Rural Building (head Dr. Czesław Wajdzik), Department of Plant Ecology (head Prof. Dr. hab. Eugeniusz Ralski) were created. Department of Peat Science (Prof. Dr. hab. Marian Niklewski), Department of Higher Geodesy and Photogrammetry (both headed by Dr. Roman Hlibowicki), Department of Agricultural Use of Reclaimed Areas (Dr. hab. Józef Dzieżyc) and Department of Agricultural Geodesy (Dr. hab. Marek Urban) were created in 1960.
At the beginning, the faculty facilities were scarce (1 lecture hall, 2 laboratories, 6 staff rooms). It improved significantly in the years 1952 − 1955 when the Faculty obtained the building at ul. Marii Skłodowskiej-Curie 42, modernised with help of the staff and students. The name of the Faculty of Agricultural Reclamation changed into the Faculty of Water Reclamation in the year 1954. Following dynamic scientific and organisational development of the faculty, on the initiative of Dr. Roman Hlibowicki, a new field of study was created in 1960 Agricultural Geodesy.
In 1960, the Faculty obtained new rooms in the building of the Main Post Office at ul. Krasińskiego 1, where the Department of Rural Building and 4 teaching rooms found their place. Another improvement took place in the years 1969 − 1971, when the Faculty obtained rooms in the new buildings at pl. Grunwaldzki 24 and ul. Grunwaldzka 53.
In the year 1970 the structure of the Faculty was changed and the following units were created:
Institute of Water and Civil Building − Director: Prof. Dr. hab. Julian Wołoszyn,
Institute of Geodesy and Mathematical Applications Director: Prof. Dr. Roman Hlibowicki,
Institute of Agricultural and Forest Reclamation Director: Prof. Dr. hab. Stanisław Marcilonek,
Institute of Planning and Development of Rural Areas Director: Prof. Dr. hab. Marek Urban,
Institute of Agricultural Bases of Reclamation Director: Prof. Dr. hab. Józef Dzieżyc,
Institute of Agricultural Building (created in 1972) Director: Dr. hab. Czesław Wajdzik.
The organisational structure of the Faculty changed with time as a result of its development, growing number of academic staff and increased offer for the students. Departments were the basic scientific and educational units in the years 1950 − 1970, in the years 1971 − 1981 these were institutes and, since 1985, there are both institutes and departments. Since at least 1985, the teaching programmes and scientific activity have been more and more concerned with the influence of human activity on natural environment, especially on soil, surface and underground water. Environmental protection and pro-ecological activity have been given more attention. As degradation of environment often resulted from its transformation, it was decided that the knowledge of pro-ecological management of natural resources and environmental protection should be given priority in modern teaching activity of the faculty. Curricula were modernised in the years 1991−1992 and, on 1st April 1991, the name of the faculty was changed into the Faculty of Reclamation and Environmental Engineering. Another change of the name took place on 1st December 2000 the Faculty was renamed the Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Geodesy. Following modernisation of curricula and change of the profile of research, the names of some units were also changed: in the year 1993, the Institute of Water and Civil Building was renamed the Institute of Environmental Engineering, the Institute of Agricultural and Forest Reclamation was renamed the Institute of Reclamation and Environmental Development, the Institute of Planning and Development of Rural Areas became a Department; in the year 1995, the Department of Agricultural Bases of Reclamation was renamed the Department of Agricultural Bases of Environmental Development. Other changes were introduced in the year 2000, when the studies of Landscape Architecture were offered. The Institute of Agricultural Building was renamed the Institute of Building Engineering and Landscape Architecture and the Institute of Reclamation and the Institute of Reclamation and Environmental Development was renamed the Institute of Environmental Protection and Development.
In the year 2006, the structure of the Faculty was adjusted to offer studies at five fields of study: Environmental Engineering, Geodesy and Cartography, Building Engineering, Landscape Architecture, Land Management. The Department of Geodesy and Photogrammetry was transformed into the Institute of Geodesy and Geoinformatics and, thanks to the development of staff resources and research, the Institute of Building Engineering and Landscape Architecture was divided into an independent Institute of Landscape Architecture and the Department of Building Engineering and Infrastructure. As a result of academic staff development, the Faculty Council and Senate of the university, on 1st January 2008, the Department of Planning and Development of Rural Areas was renamed the Department of Spatial Economy.
Together with the changes in the structure of the Faculty, the research programmes at the units were changed as well. Strategic research directions for the years 2004 − 2010 were set as follows:
