- Phone:
- (812) 856-4820
- Email:
- adamward@indiana.edu
- Website:
- https://wardlab.weebly.com/
- Room Number:
- MSB-II 430
- Areas of Interest:
- Environmental science ,
- Hydrology ,
- Watershed management ,
- Civil engineering ,
- Water quality
Education
- Ph.D., Penn State University, 2011
- M.S., Michigan Technological University, 2006
- B.S., Michigan Technological University, 2005
Courses
- Introduction to Environmental Science
- Water Quality Modeling
- Fluid Mechanics
Biography
Environmental scientist Dr. Adam Ward joined O'Neill in 2014 following three years with the University of Iowa in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science. He specializes in quantifying the transport of water, energy, and pollutants through hydrological landscapes, and the ecological implications of these fluxes.
Ward's research focuses on hydrological connections between streams, their landscapes, and their aquifers as a control on biogeochemical processes and ecosystem function, particularly the transport and fate of compounds in the environment. Specific interests include transport of nutrients in agricultural landscapes, contaminants of emerging concern in streams and wetlands, and carbon export from catchments.
Ward's Watershed Hydrology & Engineering group uses a combination of field-based experiments, environmental observation, and numerical modeling to quantify couplings between physical, biological, and chemical systems. These skills are applied in interdisciplinary teams to predict water quantity, water quality, and ecosystem responses to changes in key drivers including land use change, land management activities, and climate change.
Ward is also interested in innovative teaching methods, having prototyped several service-learning activities and innovative teaching methods in his existing courses.
Ward's research focuses on hydrological connections between streams, their landscapes, and their aquifers as a control on biogeochemical processes and ecosystem function, particularly the transport and fate of compounds in the environment. Specific interests include transport of nutrients in agricultural landscapes, contaminants of emerging concern in streams and wetlands, and carbon export from catchments.
Ward's Watershed Hydrology & Engineering group uses a combination of field-based experiments, environmental observation, and numerical modeling to quantify couplings between physical, biological, and chemical systems. These skills are applied in interdisciplinary teams to predict water quantity, water quality, and ecosystem responses to changes in key drivers including land use change, land management activities, and climate change.
Ward is also interested in innovative teaching methods, having prototyped several service-learning activities and innovative teaching methods in his existing courses.
Highlights
- National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2017)
- Trustee's Teaching Award (2016)
- Distinguished Mentor Award, Iowa Center for Research by Undergraduates, University of Iowa (2013)
- Professional Certificate in Watershed Management
- Editor's Choice Award and Editor's Highlight, Water Resources Research (2012)
In the News
- "‘Weather whiplash’ triggered by changing climate will degrade Midwest’s drinking water, researcher says" - University of Kansas News, March 29, 2017 (picked up by multiple media outlets)
- "Study: Environmental exposure to hormones used in animal agriculture greater than expected," - IU Bloomington Newsroom, May 8, 2015
- "Climate Variability Will be Studied," - The Herald-Tribune, October 14, 2014
- "IU Researches to Study Water Quality, Supply" - Indiana Daily Student, September 25, 2014
Selected Works
- "Identifiability of transient storage model parameters along a mountain stream," (with C. Kelleher, T. Wagener, B. McGlynn, N.M.Gooseff, R. A. Payn), Water Resources Research, 49 (9): 5290-5306 (2013)
- "Variation in surface water - groundwater interactions along a headwater mountain stream: Comparisons between transient storage and water balance analyses," (with K. E. Bencala, M.N. Gooseff, C. A. Kelleher, B. L. McGlynn, R. A. Payn, T. Wagener, and S. M. Wondzell), Water Resources Research, 49(6): 3359-‐3374 (2013)
- "Riparian hydraulic gradient and stream water exchange dynamics in steep headwater valleys," (with M. Fitzgerald, M. N. Gooseff, K. Singha, T. J. Voltz, and T. Wagener), Journal of Geophysical Research – Earth Science, 118(2): 953-969 (2013)
- "How does subsurface characterization affect prediction of hyporheic exchange?" (with M. N. Gooseff and K. Singha), Ground Water, 51 (1): 14-28 (2013)
- "Hydrologic and geomorphic controls on hyporheic exchange during baseflow recession in a headwater mountain stream," (with A. Binley, M. Fitzgerald, M.N. Gooseff, K. Singha, and T. J. Voltz), Water Resources Research, 48(4) (2012). [Water Resources Research Editor’s Choice Award, Editor’s Highlight, and Research Spotlight in Eos]
- "How can subsurface modifications to hydraulic conductivity be designed as stream restoration structures? Analysis of Vaux's conceptual models to enhance hyporheic exchange," (with M. N. Gooseff and P. A. Johnson), Water Resources Research, 47(8) (2011)
- "Imaging hyporheic zone solute transport using electrical resistivity," (with M. N. Gooseff and K. Singha), Hydrological Processes, 24 (7): 948-953 (2010)
- "Characterizing hyporheic transport processes - Interpretation of electrical geophysical data in coupled stream - hyporheic zone systems during solute tracer studies," (with M. N. Gooseff and K. Singha), Advances in Water Resources: Groundwater -Surface Water Interactions Special Issue, 33: 1320‐1330 (2010)
Videos
- Nutrient Runoff in Indiana Causes Environmental Problems Far South - WTIU, June 2, 2017
- Agricultural Chemicals May Be More Harmful Than Expected - IU News Room, May 8, 2015