RESEARCH INTERESTS
Exploring the hydrogeomorphic template of catchment ecosystems as it relates to stream solute generation, fate, and transport via innovative characterization techniques and modeling using deterministic physical hydrologic modeling which quantify hydrologic influences on catchment nutrient cycling and biogeochemical reactions.
______________________________________________
CURRENT (PhD) RESEARCH
Key objectives of my dissertation research are to successfully collect and utilize independent (i.e., geophysical, hydraulic, and biophysical) characterizations of dominant stream types to: 1. develop integrated methods for overcoming current limitations in groundwater-surface water research and, 2. develop a groundwater-surface water exchange model for water and nitrogen to elucidate hyporheic controls on watershed nitrogen yields. Subsequently, the methods and resulting model can be used to address crucial questions, such as: 1. What are the dominant physical and biophysical controls of the hyporheic zone on nitrogen dynamics?, 2. What stream types function as nitrogen sources versus sinks?, 3. Which stream types are most effective at regulating downstream nitrogen export?, and 4. How can we incorporate the self-purification mechanisms of the hyporheic zone in river restoration and management efforts?
****Exciting Preliminary Study****
My developing graduate committee consists of:
Roy Haggerty, PhD (Primary Advisor)
Steve Wondzell, PhD
Stanley Gregory, PhD
Vrushali Bokil, PhD
Robert Harris, PhD
Collaborators:
Nigel Crook, PhD (CUASHI_HMF, Stanford Univ.)
David Robinson, PhD (CUASHI_HMF, Stanford Univ.)
Rosemary Knight, PhD (CUASHI_HMF, Stanford Univ.)
______________________________________________
COMPLETED RESEARCH
My masters thesis work at Utah State University was a component of the Arctic Hyporheic Project. The major objective of this project was to investigate the responses of arctic tundra stream hyporheic zone hydrology and biogeochemical cycling to predicted climate change.
My thesis research focused on two predictions pertaining to the hyporheic dynamics of these streams:
1. Stream geomorphology controls the seasonal evolution of sub-stream thaw. More specifically, bed form and material control the location and extent of the sub-channel thaw zone.
2. As sub-stream thaw area increases during the summer season, the physical size of the hyporheic zone and its influence on stream hydraulics increases.
I utilized field tracer experiments and characterizations of stream morphology to explore my predictions through modeling. The modeling approach was two-fold. First, I used a one-dimensional transport model to characterize the reach average hydraulic conditions, including storage dynamics associated with hyporheic processes, to compare study reaches across the thaw season. Second, I generated a two-dimensional groundwater-surface water model to simulate flow conditions within and below the channel throughout the thaw season. For more details, refer to my MS defense presentation.
My graduate committee consisted of:
Michael N. Gooseff, PhD (Primary Advisor)
Michelle A. Baker, PhD
John (Jack) C. Schmidt, PhD
Collaborators:
W. Breck Bowden, PhD (University of Vermont)
Troy Brosten (Boise State University)
James McNamara, PhD (Boise State Uninversity)
John Bradford, PhD (Boise State University)
