Research interests

I am broadly interested in the effect of water and sediment on drainage basin function and aquatic species. My PhD thesis examined the stability of steep mountain streams through a series of scaled flume (artificial stream) experiments. My thesis was completed during the spring of 2009, and I am currently working towards getting the main results published.

I did not analyze all of the data collected as part of my thesis, and am interested in collaborating with students who want to examine the detailed temporal behavior of sediment transport on steep slopes or the structure of the water surface over rough beds. My experiments have resulted in an extensive data set that includes one-second samples of sediment transport fluxes and grain size that would be benefit anyone interested in the fractal properties of sediment transport. In addition, there are numerous three dimensional scans of the water surface over a stable, rough bed. Analyzing these scans in more detail could provide a better understanding on flow structures in steep streams.

Over the last few years I have also had the opportunity to analyze the cross-section data from eight study areas located along Carnation Creek. The Research Branch of the Ministry of Forests has collected the data and complete details regarding the project can be found at the Ministry of Forest's Carnation Creek web site. Slideshows illustrating the channel evolution can now be found at this link. I would recommend taking a look at the slideshows, as they really show how channel change can vary over time and place. Carnation Creek continues to be an active area of research that I am pursuing with students at UBC and the Research Branch. We are endeavoring to link changes in the geomorphology of the channel to changes in the fish population.