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
Target loads of atmospheric sulfur and nitrogen deposition for protection of acid sensitive aquatic resources in the Adirondack Mountains, New York
TOPMODEL simulations of streamflow and depth to water table in Fishing Brook Watershed, New York, 2007-09
Setting limits: Using air pollution thresholds to protect and restore US ecosystems
Spatial patterns of mercury in macroinvertebrates and fishes from streams of contrasting forested landscapes in the eastern United States
Spatial and seasonal variability of dissolved methylmercury in two stream basins in the Eastern United States
Effects of acid deposition on ecosystems: Advances in the state of the science
Setting limits: Using air pollution thresholds to protect and restore U.S. ecosystems
Environmental settings of streams sampled for mercury in New York and South Carolina, 2005-09
Hydrological mobilization of mercury and dissolved organic carbon in a snow-dominated, forested watershed: Conceptualization and modeling
Hydrological mobilizaton of mercury and disolved organic carbon in a snow-dominated, forested watershed: Conceptualization and modeling
The relation of harvesting intensity to changes in soil, soil water, and stream chemistry in a northern hardwood forest, Catskill Mountains, USA
National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program Report to Congress: An integrated assessment
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
Target loads of atmospheric sulfur and nitrogen deposition for protection of acid sensitive aquatic resources in the Adirondack Mountains, New York
TOPMODEL simulations of streamflow and depth to water table in Fishing Brook Watershed, New York, 2007-09
Setting limits: Using air pollution thresholds to protect and restore US ecosystems
Spatial patterns of mercury in macroinvertebrates and fishes from streams of contrasting forested landscapes in the eastern United States
Spatial and seasonal variability of dissolved methylmercury in two stream basins in the Eastern United States
Effects of acid deposition on ecosystems: Advances in the state of the science
Setting limits: Using air pollution thresholds to protect and restore U.S. ecosystems
Environmental settings of streams sampled for mercury in New York and South Carolina, 2005-09
Hydrological mobilization of mercury and dissolved organic carbon in a snow-dominated, forested watershed: Conceptualization and modeling
Hydrological mobilizaton of mercury and disolved organic carbon in a snow-dominated, forested watershed: Conceptualization and modeling
The relation of harvesting intensity to changes in soil, soil water, and stream chemistry in a northern hardwood forest, Catskill Mountains, USA
National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program Report to Congress: An integrated assessment
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.