Mark P Waldrop, Ph.D.
Mark's research expertise is in soil microbial ecology and biogeochemistry in response to global change phenomenon. He leads a team focused on studies of microbial, chemical, and biophysical controls on carbon cycling in permafrost, boreal, and wetland ecosystems of Alaska as well as forest and grassland ecosystems of the Western U.S.
Synergistic Activities
USGS Menlo Park Science Advisory Council Member
US Permafrost Association President
Affiliate/Graduate Faculty, University of Alaska Fairbanks & University of Guelph
Bonanza Creek LTER and Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX), Principal Investigator
International Soil Carbon Network (NSCN) member
Integrated Ecosystem Model data contributor, AK Climate Science Center
Permafrost Research Coordination Network contributor
Environmental Microbiome Project (EMP) member
North American Carbon Program (NACP), affiliated project lead
Professional Experience
2013- current Project Chief, Mechanisms of Soil Carbon Sequestration
2007- current Research Soil Scientist, USGS, Menlo Park, CA.
2005-2007 Mendenhall Research Fellow, USGS, Menlo Park, CA.
2002-2004 Postdoctoral Fellow, The University of Michigan
Education and Certifications
2002-University of California at Berkeley, Ph.D., Soil Science
1997-University of California at Berkeley, M.S., Soil Science
1995-New Mexico State Univ, B.S. Biology/Ecology, and B.S. Soil Science
Science and Products
Below are Mark's related science projects
Filter Total Items: 13
Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen release from boreal Holocene permafrost and seasonally frozen soils of Alaska Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen release from boreal Holocene permafrost and seasonally frozen soils of Alaska
Permafrost (perennially frozen) and active-layer (seasonally thawed) soils varying in soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) content and radiocarbon age were collected from three sites in interior Alaska to determine potential release of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total dissolved N (TDN), dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) upon thaw. Soil cores were...
Below are Mark's related publication
Filter Total Items: 64
A model of the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil carbon following coastal wetland loss applied to a Louisiana salt marsh in the Mississippi River Deltaic Plain A model of the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil carbon following coastal wetland loss applied to a Louisiana salt marsh in the Mississippi River Deltaic Plain
The potential for carbon sequestration in coastal wetlands is high due to protection of carbon (C) in flooded soils. However, excessive flooding can result in the conversion of the vegetated wetland to open water. This transition results in the loss of wetland habitat in addition to the potential loss of soil carbon. Thus, in areas experiencing rapid wetland submergence, such as the...
Authors
Donald Schoolmaster, Camille Stagg, Courtney Creamer, Claudia Laurenzano, Eric Ward, Mark Waldrop, Melissa M. Baustian, Tiong Aw, Sergio Merino, Rachel Villani, Laura Scott
Mechanisms for retention of low molecular weight organic carbon varies with soil depth at a coastal prairie ecosystem Mechanisms for retention of low molecular weight organic carbon varies with soil depth at a coastal prairie ecosystem
Though primary sources of carbon (C) to soil are plant inputs (e.g., rhizodeposits), the role of microorganisms as mediators of soil organic carbon (SOC) retention is increasingly recognized. Yet, insufficient knowledge of sub-soil processes complicates attempts to describe microbial-driven C cycling at depth as most studies of microbial-mineral-C interactions focus on surface horizons...
Authors
Jack McFarland, Corey Lawrence, Courtney Creamer, Marjorie S. Schulz, Christopher H. Conaway, Sara Peek, Mark Waldrop, Sabrina Sevilgen, Monica Haw
Active virus-host interactions at sub-freezing temperatures in Arctic peat soil Active virus-host interactions at sub-freezing temperatures in Arctic peat soil
Background Winter carbon loss in northern ecosystems is estimated to be greater than the average growing season carbon uptake and is primarily driven by microbial decomposers. Viruses modulate microbial carbon cycling via induced mortality and metabolic controls, but it is unknown whether viruses are active under winter conditions (anoxic and sub-freezing temperatures).Results We used...
Authors
Gareth Trubl, Jeffrey Kimbrel, Jose Liquet-Gonzalez, Erin Nuccio, Peter Weber, Jennifer Pett-Ridge, Janet Jansson, Mark Waldrop, Steve Blazewicz
Influence of permafrost type and site history on losses of permafrost carbon after thaw Influence of permafrost type and site history on losses of permafrost carbon after thaw
We quantified permafrost peat plateau and post-thaw carbon (C) stocks across a chronosequence in Interior Alaska to evaluate the amount of C lost with thaw. Macrofossil reconstructions revealed three stratigraphic layers of peat: (1) a base layer of fen/marsh peat, (2) peat from a forested peat plateau (with permafrost) and, (3) collapse-scar bog peat (at sites where permafrost thaw has...
Authors
Kristen Manies, Miriam Jones, Mark Waldrop, Mary-Catherine Leewis, Christopher Fuller, Robert Cornman, Kristen Hoefke
Emergent biogeochemical risks from Arctic permafrost degradation Emergent biogeochemical risks from Arctic permafrost degradation
The Arctic cryosphere is collapsing, posing overlapping environmental risks. In particular, thawing permafrost threatens to release biological, chemical and radioactive materials that have been sequestered for tens to hundreds of thousands of years. As these constituents re-enter the environment, they have the potential to disrupt ecosystem function, reduce the populations of unique...
Authors
Kimberly Miner, Rachel Mackelprang, Juliana D’Andrilli, Arwyn Edwards, Michael Malaska, Mark Waldrop, Charles Miller
The biophysical role of water and ice within permafrost nearing collapse: Insights from novel geophysical observations The biophysical role of water and ice within permafrost nearing collapse: Insights from novel geophysical observations
The impact of permafrost thaw on hydrologic, thermal, and biotic processes remains uncertain, in part due to limitations in subsurface measurement capabilities. To better understand subsurface processes in thermokarst environments, we collocated geophysical and biogeochemical instruments along a thaw gradient between forested permafrost and collapse-scar bogs at the Alaska Peatland...
Authors
Stephanie James, Burke Minsley, Jack McFarland, Eugenie Euskirchen, Colin Edgar, Mark Waldrop
Science and Products
Below are Mark's related science projects
Filter Total Items: 13
Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen release from boreal Holocene permafrost and seasonally frozen soils of Alaska Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen release from boreal Holocene permafrost and seasonally frozen soils of Alaska
Permafrost (perennially frozen) and active-layer (seasonally thawed) soils varying in soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) content and radiocarbon age were collected from three sites in interior Alaska to determine potential release of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total dissolved N (TDN), dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) upon thaw. Soil cores were...
Below are Mark's related publication
Filter Total Items: 64
A model of the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil carbon following coastal wetland loss applied to a Louisiana salt marsh in the Mississippi River Deltaic Plain A model of the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil carbon following coastal wetland loss applied to a Louisiana salt marsh in the Mississippi River Deltaic Plain
The potential for carbon sequestration in coastal wetlands is high due to protection of carbon (C) in flooded soils. However, excessive flooding can result in the conversion of the vegetated wetland to open water. This transition results in the loss of wetland habitat in addition to the potential loss of soil carbon. Thus, in areas experiencing rapid wetland submergence, such as the...
Authors
Donald Schoolmaster, Camille Stagg, Courtney Creamer, Claudia Laurenzano, Eric Ward, Mark Waldrop, Melissa M. Baustian, Tiong Aw, Sergio Merino, Rachel Villani, Laura Scott
Mechanisms for retention of low molecular weight organic carbon varies with soil depth at a coastal prairie ecosystem Mechanisms for retention of low molecular weight organic carbon varies with soil depth at a coastal prairie ecosystem
Though primary sources of carbon (C) to soil are plant inputs (e.g., rhizodeposits), the role of microorganisms as mediators of soil organic carbon (SOC) retention is increasingly recognized. Yet, insufficient knowledge of sub-soil processes complicates attempts to describe microbial-driven C cycling at depth as most studies of microbial-mineral-C interactions focus on surface horizons...
Authors
Jack McFarland, Corey Lawrence, Courtney Creamer, Marjorie S. Schulz, Christopher H. Conaway, Sara Peek, Mark Waldrop, Sabrina Sevilgen, Monica Haw
Active virus-host interactions at sub-freezing temperatures in Arctic peat soil Active virus-host interactions at sub-freezing temperatures in Arctic peat soil
Background Winter carbon loss in northern ecosystems is estimated to be greater than the average growing season carbon uptake and is primarily driven by microbial decomposers. Viruses modulate microbial carbon cycling via induced mortality and metabolic controls, but it is unknown whether viruses are active under winter conditions (anoxic and sub-freezing temperatures).Results We used...
Authors
Gareth Trubl, Jeffrey Kimbrel, Jose Liquet-Gonzalez, Erin Nuccio, Peter Weber, Jennifer Pett-Ridge, Janet Jansson, Mark Waldrop, Steve Blazewicz
Influence of permafrost type and site history on losses of permafrost carbon after thaw Influence of permafrost type and site history on losses of permafrost carbon after thaw
We quantified permafrost peat plateau and post-thaw carbon (C) stocks across a chronosequence in Interior Alaska to evaluate the amount of C lost with thaw. Macrofossil reconstructions revealed three stratigraphic layers of peat: (1) a base layer of fen/marsh peat, (2) peat from a forested peat plateau (with permafrost) and, (3) collapse-scar bog peat (at sites where permafrost thaw has...
Authors
Kristen Manies, Miriam Jones, Mark Waldrop, Mary-Catherine Leewis, Christopher Fuller, Robert Cornman, Kristen Hoefke
Emergent biogeochemical risks from Arctic permafrost degradation Emergent biogeochemical risks from Arctic permafrost degradation
The Arctic cryosphere is collapsing, posing overlapping environmental risks. In particular, thawing permafrost threatens to release biological, chemical and radioactive materials that have been sequestered for tens to hundreds of thousands of years. As these constituents re-enter the environment, they have the potential to disrupt ecosystem function, reduce the populations of unique...
Authors
Kimberly Miner, Rachel Mackelprang, Juliana D’Andrilli, Arwyn Edwards, Michael Malaska, Mark Waldrop, Charles Miller
The biophysical role of water and ice within permafrost nearing collapse: Insights from novel geophysical observations The biophysical role of water and ice within permafrost nearing collapse: Insights from novel geophysical observations
The impact of permafrost thaw on hydrologic, thermal, and biotic processes remains uncertain, in part due to limitations in subsurface measurement capabilities. To better understand subsurface processes in thermokarst environments, we collocated geophysical and biogeochemical instruments along a thaw gradient between forested permafrost and collapse-scar bogs at the Alaska Peatland...
Authors
Stephanie James, Burke Minsley, Jack McFarland, Eugenie Euskirchen, Colin Edgar, Mark Waldrop