The Department of Environmental Sciences (DES) has established a nationally recognized research program in the areas of environmental toxicology, environmental planning and management and environmental analytical chemistry including instrument development. DES faculty have returned over $2 million in overhead revenues from their research activities to the university in the last ten years. In addition to various public services and numerous industry-funded projects, DES faculty have research support from the following sponsors:
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Hazardous Materials Spill Response Program (HazMat)
Mineral Management Service (MMS)
Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)
U.S. Department of Defense
U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ)
Proctor and Gamble
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
U.S. Forest Service
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Louisiana Board of Regents
Foundations/Nonprofit Organizations
National Science Foundation
Private Industry
There are various environmental research areas that are being pursued by faculty and reaearchers in the department. Some of them are outlined below along with a list of researchers.
Environmental Analytical Chemistry
Research in this area includes:
- response and chemical assessment team (RCAT) through NOAA
- chemical hazard assessments and the toxicology impact of heavy metals on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems,
- processes which govern the fate, movement, and disposition of specific organic substance in the environment,
- developing data management and synthesis techniques that will aid in assessing hazards from contamination of from toxic chemical spills and regulated and unregulated discharges.
- methods development of various analytical techniques applied to solving environmental problems
Environmental Toxicology Remediation
Environmental toxicology involves the study of the effect of toxic compounds in the environment. Research in this area includes microbial degradation of toxic waste and industrial microbiology.
Researchers:
Dr. Ralph Portier
Dr. Caroline Metosh-Dickey
Environmental Toxicology and Human Health Issues
Environmental Issues which include:
- application of toxicity/mutagenicity tests and assays,
- xenobiotic metabolism, enzymatic methods of pollution monitoring and the etiology of pollutant related syndromes in humans,
- related health-effects toxicology and biochemical toxicology.
Researchers:
Dr. Vincent Wilson
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
The Department of Environmental Sciences has made a strong commitment to spatial analysis in environmental problem solving with faculty to teach, perform research, and develop new programs in this field. The Institute requires all graduates to take at least one course in GIS or spatial data analysis. The Spatial and Temporal Analysis and Resource Systems Lab (STARS) is being developed to provide state-of-the-art facilities for research, teaching, and cooperation with the private and public sectors. Spatial analysis activities include:
- application of spatial statistics in natural resources analyses,
- pollution monitoring,
- emergency management and disaster planning,
- urban energy use patterns,
- habitat mapping.
Researchers:
Dr. John Pine
Environmental Planning and Management
DES provides systematic program evaluation to determine effectiveness of specific environmental protection strategies:
- environmentally-based performance indicators,
- time-series statistical analysis.
Environmentally based evaluation information important for various planning purposes includes:
- external budget requests,
- internal allocation of resources,
- development/adjustment of agency regulations.
In addition, DES faculty address resource sustainability issues.
Researchers:
Dr. Allen Pulsipher
Dr. Margaret Reams
Dr. Paul Templet
Instrument Development
The Instrument Development Group (IDG) is dedicated to the development of small, lightweight, cost-efficient, and fast instrumentation and methodologies for on-site chemical analysis that are frugal with consumable supplies, easy to operate, and require minimal sample preparation. The IDG is also developing ways to minimize time and effort expended in the handling of samples--reducing the use of solvents and solvent releases, the number of samples handled on-site, and material waste.
Researchers:
Dr. Ed Overton
Dr. Roberto Wong
Environmental Law and Legislation
Researchers:
Michael W. Wascom, J.D.
