Douglas A Burns
Doug is a Research Hydrologist currently working as the Coordinator of the Delaware River Basin Next Generation Water Observing System (NGWOS).
Doug holds an M.S. in Environmental Sciences from the Univ. of Virginia, and a Ph.D. in Water Resources Management from the State Univ. of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry. His disciplinary background is primarily in biogeochemistry and hydrology with a focus on understanding the processes that control the cycling of chemical elements through watersheds and ecosystems. An emphasis on the cycling of atmopsheric pollutants and their environmental effects is noteworthy. He has worked as a Research Hydrologist in the New York Water Science Center since 1987 on studies that include the effects of acid rain on ecosystems, the cycling of nitrogen in watersheds, and environmental mercury cycling. His investigations have also included the environmental effects of landscape disturbance such as suburban land use, climate change, and forest harvesting. A recent interest is studying the effects of ongoing and future climate change on streamflow, with an emphasis on high flows. He works collaboratively, often with several investigators from the USGS, and other agencies and universities. Study approaches applied include monitoring of water and soil chemistry, quantifying the rates of key cycling processes, experimental manipulations of landscapes, use of natural and applied isotope tracers, and statistical and process-level models. He is also active in professional societies, has organized conferences at regional, national, and international levels, and has served in leadership roles in many organizations and agencies. Other activities include chairing a proposal evaluation panel for a federal agency, working at the science-policy interface by serving as Director of the National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program, and serving on an EPA Clean Air Act Advisory Panel, as well as serving on program evaluation and advisory panels for several agencies and science organizations.
more about Douglas A Burns
Science and Products
An Assessment of Forest Health and Soil Nutrient Status to Determine the Effects of Logging Practices on Water Quality in New York City's West-of-Hudson Watersheds
An Integrated Assessment of the Recovery of Surface Waters from Reduced Levels of Acid Precipitation in the Catskill and Adirondack Regions, New York
The Effects of Watershed and Stream Liming on Mercury Dynamics at Honnedaga Lake
Potential Recovery of Water Chemistry and Stream Biota from Reduced Levels of Acid Deposition at a Sensitive Watershed in the Catskill Mountains, New York
Transport of dissolved organic matter by river networks from mountains to the sea: a re-examination of the role of flow across temporal and spatial scales
The impact of lime additions on mercury dynamics in stream chemistry and macroinvertebrates: A comparison of watershed and direct stream addition management strategies
Mercury in fish from streams and rivers in New York State: Spatial patterns, temporal changes, and environmental drivers
The response of stream ecosystems in the Adirondack region of New York to historical and future changes in atmospheric deposition of sulfur and nitrogen
Chronic and episodic acidification of streams along the Appalachian Trail corridor, eastern United States
A synthesis of ecosystem management strategies for forests in the face of chronic N deposition
Historical changes in New York State streamflow: Attribution of temporal shifts and spatial patterns from 1961 to 2016
Monitoring the Riverine Pulse: Applying high-frequency nitrate data to advance integrative understanding of biogeochemical and hydrological processes
Unprocessed atmospheric nitrate in waters of the Northern Forest Region in the USA and Canada
Probabilistic relationships between acid-base chemistry and fish assemblages in streams of the western Adirondack Mountains, New York, USA
Temporal variability in nitrate – discharge relationships in large rivers as revealed by high frequency data
Systematic variation in evapotranspiration trends and drivers across the Northeastern United States
River network saturation concept: factors influencing the balance of biogeochemical supply and demand of river networks
Non-USGS Publications**
66. Burns, D.A., Lawrence, G.B., and Murdoch, P.S., 1998, Catskill streams still susceptible to acid rain, Northeastern Geology and Environmental Sciences, 20: 294-298.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
An Assessment of Forest Health and Soil Nutrient Status to Determine the Effects of Logging Practices on Water Quality in New York City's West-of-Hudson Watersheds
An Integrated Assessment of the Recovery of Surface Waters from Reduced Levels of Acid Precipitation in the Catskill and Adirondack Regions, New York
The Effects of Watershed and Stream Liming on Mercury Dynamics at Honnedaga Lake
Potential Recovery of Water Chemistry and Stream Biota from Reduced Levels of Acid Deposition at a Sensitive Watershed in the Catskill Mountains, New York
Transport of dissolved organic matter by river networks from mountains to the sea: a re-examination of the role of flow across temporal and spatial scales
The impact of lime additions on mercury dynamics in stream chemistry and macroinvertebrates: A comparison of watershed and direct stream addition management strategies
Mercury in fish from streams and rivers in New York State: Spatial patterns, temporal changes, and environmental drivers
The response of stream ecosystems in the Adirondack region of New York to historical and future changes in atmospheric deposition of sulfur and nitrogen
Chronic and episodic acidification of streams along the Appalachian Trail corridor, eastern United States
A synthesis of ecosystem management strategies for forests in the face of chronic N deposition
Historical changes in New York State streamflow: Attribution of temporal shifts and spatial patterns from 1961 to 2016
Monitoring the Riverine Pulse: Applying high-frequency nitrate data to advance integrative understanding of biogeochemical and hydrological processes
Unprocessed atmospheric nitrate in waters of the Northern Forest Region in the USA and Canada
Probabilistic relationships between acid-base chemistry and fish assemblages in streams of the western Adirondack Mountains, New York, USA
Temporal variability in nitrate – discharge relationships in large rivers as revealed by high frequency data
Systematic variation in evapotranspiration trends and drivers across the Northeastern United States
River network saturation concept: factors influencing the balance of biogeochemical supply and demand of river networks
Non-USGS Publications**
66. Burns, D.A., Lawrence, G.B., and Murdoch, P.S., 1998, Catskill streams still susceptible to acid rain, Northeastern Geology and Environmental Sciences, 20: 294-298.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.