GGP Seminar: "Disturbed Landscapes and Water Quality Patterns in the United States: Implications for Management and Policy"

Dr. Lorrayne Miralha is an assistant professor, Watershed Modeling and Data Analytics, Department of Food, Agriculture and Biological Engineering (FABE), and a core faculty member in the Translational Data Analytics Institute (TDAI) at Ohio State University. She harnesses the power of geospatial technologies and machine learning to reveal the spatial patterns of environmental degradation and trends in water quality in both forest and agricultural settings for the recommendation of policies and management strategies.  

In her presenation, she will talk about how excalating impacts of human activites has set us on an unsustainable environmental path. Notably, what agricultural practices have intensified in regions of drought, flood and wildfire. As a consequence, she has observed significant degradation of our water resources. The compounding effects of these environmental changes on water quality and how they influence our drinking water resources remain understudied. Addressing this issue requires the adoption of novel technologies and regulatory approaches.

Her research harnesses the power of watershed modeling and big data analytics to improve our hydrological understanding in forest headwaters and agricultural landscapes under disturbance. Specifically, it sheds light on water quality patterns surrounding animal farms in the United States and introduces fresh perspectives on the interaction between agriculture and wildfire activity in the western U.S. Hence, her research underscores the pressing need for comprehensive policy and management measures to safeguard our water resouces and maintain environmental sustainability amidst the challenges posed by anthropogenic activites and a changing climate.

Miralha has always been concerned about the hydrology of lanscapes under constant intervention. She is passionate about finding technological and policy solutions for the sustainability of water resources. Miralha was trained as a forest engineer in a duo degree between Brazil and Oregon State University. She has a MS in Geography from the University of Kentucky and acquired her PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Arizona State University. She is an early career representative on the leadership council of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), a former doctoral fellow at the American Assoc. of University Women (AAUW) and a former summer fellow in NOAA-CIGLR at the University of Michigan.

Free