Congratulations to our recent PhD
candidate, Stephen Via! He successfully
defended his dissertation proposal titled "From seed to sky: the impacts
of explosive compounds on vegetation across scales". Stephen also gave an
outstanding presentation to his committee members. Job well done!
A bit about his research:
The presence of explosive compounds
can act as a physiological filter controlling species’ establishment and
success in contaminated areas. Explosive compounds in soils have negative
effects on vegetation physiological processes, affecting health and survival.
The precise impacts of these contaminants vary based on many factors, such as
life stage and morphological/physiological tolerances, which are species
specific. Many studies have demonstrated species- and individual-level impacts
of explosive compounds; however, there is little research investigating
multiple explosive simultaneously (such as Composition B). This limits our
understanding of impacts in the field and our ability to scale up to community
and ecosystem level effects. Thus, a cross-scale approach is needed to reduce
speculation.
Stephen's project objectives are to:
(1) investigate the impacts of explosive compounds on seed germination and
plant establishment, (2) investigate the physiological and morphological
impacts of explosive compounds on plant species, (3) quantify the impacts of
explosive compounds on plant community structure, and (4) detect the presence
of explosive compounds via remote sensing of vegetation.
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