Pitt students published their research with the US Army Corps of Engineers

Emily Elliott, a professor in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Geology and Environmental Science, led a cohort of students to publish research conducted alongside the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The paper on river system management was published in the June issue of Biogeochemistry.

Elliott and her students collaborated with U.S. Army Corps engineers to monitor the downriver impacts from an artificial spring flood in the Allegheny River, created with a large water release from Kinzua Dam at the river’s in Warren County, Pennsylvania. Such spring pulse events aim to improve the quality and quantity of water in the river. This study provides new insights into the effects of large-scale flow experiments in regulated rivers. 

The students conducted research as part of Elliott’s Watershed Biogeochemistry course in spring 2023. All class participants, both graduate and undergraduate students, played key roles in project planning, field data collection, laboratory analyses and initial reporting.