UC Davis experts: Soil science

UC Davis faculty members from a variety of disciplines are available to discuss issues related to soil science. If you need information on a topic not listed, please contact Sylvia Wright, News Service, (530) 752-7704, swright@ucdavis.edu.

Soil biogeochemistry

Assistant professor William Horwath is an expert in soil biogeochemistry. He studies the roles of soil organic matter in global climate change and in storing carbon; soil fertility and sustainability of managed and natural ecosystems; carbon and nitrogen cycling processes; soil organic matter dynamics; and microbe-plant interactions. Contact: William Horwath, Land, Air and Water Resources, (530) 754-6029, wrhorwath@ucdavis.edu.

Soil management and conservation

Michael Singer, a UC Davis professor of soil science, studies how soil responds to the forces of wind, water and humans. Worldwide, wind and water erosion are two of the most serious consequences of poor soil management. Soil compaction is a third. One current Singer project seeks to understand the processes and consequences of soil compaction in forests. Another project investigates the rates and mechanisms of iron transformations in soils. Singer also has studied the reasons why some soils are more susceptible to wind and water erosion than others and how best to control soil erosion. Contact: Michael Singer, Land, Air and Water Resources, (530) 752-7499, mjsinger@ucdavis.edu.

Soils on the landscape

Randy Southard is a UC Davis professor of soils. His research group studies the processes of soil formation, how those processes cause soil properties to vary across the landscape, and how soil properties affect soil management. Southard currently studies the influence of soil properties and management on agricultural dust production in the Central Valley; fixation of potassium by soil minerals; soil carbon-mineralogy interactions in forested ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada; and mineral alteration processes in California, Hawaii and Iceland. Contact: Randy Southard, Land, Air and Water Resources, (530) 752-7041, rjsouthard@ucdavis.edu.

Containment transport in soils

Dennis Rolston, a UC Davis professor of soil science, is an expert in the transport and transformation of water, gases, nutrients and contaminants in soil and the unsaturated zone below the land surface. His research and teaching deals with the physics and mathematical simulation modeling of transport and transformation (biodegradation) processes in soils. He is particularly interested in the transport physics of gases that are emitted from subsurface disposal or leakage of volatile organic compounds, and the production and movement of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide from soil to the atmosphere. Rolston has joint research projects with scientists in Denmark and Japan. He also is director of the John Muir Institute of the Environment at UC Davis. Contact: Dennis Rolston, Land, Air and Water Resources, (530) 752-2113, derolston@ucdavis.edu.

Environmental chemistry and rhizosphere chemistry

Robert Zasoski, a UC Davis professor of soil science, studies how soil reacts with and retains pollutants. Zasoski is especially interested in how heavy metals react in soils. In addition he is interested in how nutrients react in very close proximity to the root (rhizosphere). One current project is investigating how fungi and roots interact to transfer nutrients between plants. Another project investigated the remediation of acid mine drainage by precipitating iron from the wastewater as a means to adsorb and retain arsenic. Zasoski has also studied how fertilization with nitrogen can cause soil acidification, and methods to ameliorate soil acidity in permanent crops. Contact: Robert Zasoski, Land, Air and Water Resources, (530) 752-2210, rjzasoski@ucdavis.edu.

Media contacts:

Sylvia Wright, News Service, (530) 752-7704, swright@ucdavis.edu

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Last updated January 22, 2004