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Nicholas A. Sutfin

Hydrologist and Surface Water Specialist for the Washington Water Science Center

I am interested in how flowing water and gravity shape the surface of the Earth and support healthy ecosystems. Projects that examine natural hazards and rivers and how those processes may shift under a changing climate and societal pressures are most appealing to me. My research focuses on feedbacks between water, sediment, and biota within river channels with an emphasis on how channel form influences hydrologic connectivity, sediment dynamics, carbon dynamics, and ecosystem habitat. I am particularly interested in research that can inform landscape response to climate, hydrogeomorphic impacts of wildfire, potential impacts of floods, and the sustainability of freshwater resources to balance societal and ecological needs


 

Professional Experience

  • 2021 to present - Hydrologist and Surface Water Specialist, USGS Washington Water Science Center, Tacoma, WA

  • 2018 to 2021 - Visiting Assistant Professor, Case Western Reserve University, Department of Earth, Environmental, & Planetary Sciences

  • 2016 to 2018 - Postdoctoral Research Associate, Los Alamos National Laboratory; Atmosphere, Climate, and Ecosystem Sciences Team; Earth and Environmental Sciences Division, EES-14.

  • Fall 2014 - Visiting Lecturer, Vietnam National University of Forestry (VNUF), Advanced Natural Resources Management Program

  • 2009 - NOAA Hollings Scholar Intern, United States Geological Survey & the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service, Geologic Hazards Team, Golden, CO. Early Warning System for Post-fire Flash Floods and Debris Flows

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D. Earth Sciences - Fluvial Geomorphology, Colorado State University, 2016

  • M.S. Geosciences - Geomorphology, Colorado State University, 2013

  • B.S. Geosciences - Hydrology, Boise State University, 2009

Affiliations and Memberships*

  • 2019 to present - Communications Coordinator & Division Officer, Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology Division, Geological Society of America.

  • 2012 to 2015 - Doctoral Fellow, National Science Foundation, Integrated Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) in the Integrated Water, Atmosphere, Ecosystem Education and Research

  • 2008 to 2009 - NOAA Hollings Scholar, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

  • American Geophysical Union (2011 – present)

  • Geological Society of America (2008 – present)

Science and Products

Geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams

The geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES) are extremely diverse, owing in large part to the substantial spatiotemporal variability of the associated hydrological regimes. We describe the geomorphological character and sediment transport processes along IRES within the context of four geomorphological zones—upland, piedmont, lowland, and floodout—to
Authors
Kristin Jaeger, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Stephen Tooth, Katerina Michaelides, Michael B. Singer
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Washington Water Science Center

Non-USGS Publications**

Sutfin, N.A., Wohl, E., Fegel, T., Day, N. and Lynch, L., 2021. Logjams and channel morphology influence sediment storage, transformation of organic matter, and carbon storage within mountain stream corridors. Water Resources Research, 57(5), p.e2020WR028046.
Wohl, Ellen, E., Katherine Lininger, Sara Rathburn, Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2019. How Geomorphic Context Governs the Influence of Wildfire on Floodplain Organic Carbon in Fire-Prone Environments of the Western United States. Invited submission to special issue of Earth Surface Process and Landforms 45 (1), 33-55.
Li, M., N. A. Sutfin, M. Christie, M. Neelam, and J. A. Bradley, 2020. Making a place for the next generation of geoscientists, Eos, 101, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020EO151355. Published on 06 November 2020.
Lynch, Laurel, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Timothy Fegel, Claudia Boot, Tim Covino, Matthew Wallenstein, 2019. Changing paths: River complexity and decreased hydrologic connectivity shift dissolved organic matter composition. Nature Communications 10 (459).
Malenda, Helen F., Nicholas A. Sutfin, Sophie Stauffer, Grace Guryan, Joel C. Rowland, Ken H.Williams, Kamini Singha, 2019. From Grain to Floodplain: Evaluating heterogeneity of floodplain hydrostatigraphy using sedimentology, geophysics, and remote sensing. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 44 (9), 1799-1815.
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Ellen E. Wohl, 2019. Elevational differences in hydrogeomorphic disturbance regime influence sediment residence times along mountain river corridors. Nature Communications 10 (1), p2221.
Livers, Bridget, Ellen Wohl, Karen Jackson, and Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2018. Historical land use as a driver of alternative states for stream form and function in forested mountain watersheds of the Southern Rocky Mountains. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 43 (3), 669–684. DOI: 10.1002/esp.4275.
Shaw, Jeremy R., David J. Cooper, Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2018. Applying a hydrogeomorphic channel classification to understand spatial patterns in riparian vegetation. Journal of Vegetation Science 29 (3). DOI: 10.1111/jvs.12629
Lininger, Katherine B., Ellen Wohl, Nicholas A. Sutfin, J. Rose, 2017. Floodplain downed wood volumes: a comparison across three biomes. Geomorphology 42, 1248-1261. doi: 10.1002/esp.4072.
Rathburn, Sara L., Georgie L. Bennett, Ellen E. Wohl, Christy Briles, Brandon McElroy, Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2017. The fate of sediment, wood, and organic carbon eroded during an extreme flood, Colorado Front Range, USA. Geology 45 (6), 499-502. G38935.1 doi: 10.1130/G38935.1
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Ellen E. Wohl, 2017. Substantial soil organic carbon retention along floodplains of mountain streams, 1325-1338. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface 122 (7), 1325-1338. DOI: 10.1002/2016JF004004
Wohl, Ellen, Robert O. Hall, Katherine B. Lininger, Nicholas A. Sutfin, David M. Walters, 2017. Carbon dynamics of river corridors and the effects of human alterations. Ecological Monographs 87 (3), 379-409. Doi: 10.1002/ecm.1261
Kampf, Stephanie K., Jermey R. Shaw, Joshua Faulconer, Nicholas A. Sutfin, David J. Cooper, 2016. Rain and channel flow supplements to subsurface water beneath hyper-arid ephemeral stream channels. Journal of Hydrology 536: 524-533.
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Ellen E. Wohl, Kate A. Dwire, 2016. Banking carbon: A review of organic carbon storage and physical factors influencing retention in floodplains and riparian ecosystems. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 41 (1), 38-60. DOI: 10.1002/esp.3857.
Kenworthy, Megan, Tammy M. Rittenour, Jennifer L. Pierce, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Warren D. Sharp, 2014. Luminescence dating without sand lenses: An application of OSL to coarse-grained alluvial fan deposits of the Lost River Range, Idaho,USA. Quaternary Geochronology 23, 9-25.
Martin, David M., Dylan Harrison-Atlas, Nicholas A. Sutfin and N. LeRoy Poff, 2014. A Social-Ecological Framework to Integrate Multiple Objectives for Environmental Flows Management. In: Melinda Laituri and Faith Sternlieb (eds), Water Data Systems: Infrastructure, Science, Practice and Policy. Journal of Contemporary Water Research and Education – University Council on Water Resources 153, 59-68.
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Jeremy Shaw, Ellen E. Wohl, David Cooper, 2014. A geomorphic classification of ephemeral channels in a mountainous, arid region, southwestern, Arizona, USA. Geomorphology 221, 164-175.
Wohl, Ellen, Kate Dwire, Nicholas Sutfin, Lina Polvi and Robert Bazan, 2012. Mechanisms of Carbon storage in mountainous headwater rivers. Nature Communications. 3: 1263. doi: 10.1038/ncomms2274

**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.

link
Osoyoos Lake Ice Jam

Osoyoos Ice Jam

The Issue: Ice jams can occur at the outlet of Osoyoos Lake on the border of Canada and the United States, resulting in a decrease or complete interruption in streamflow on the Okanogan River. These ice jams appear to be occurring at a greater frequency than they have in the past and interruptions in streamflow can hinder the passage of anadromous fish and impact downstream water rights and water...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

Osoyoos Ice Jam

The Issue: Ice jams can occur at the outlet of Osoyoos Lake on the border of Canada and the United States, resulting in a decrease or complete interruption in streamflow on the Okanogan River. These ice jams appear to be occurring at a greater frequency than they have in the past and interruptions in streamflow can hinder the passage of anadromous fish and impact downstream water rights and water...
Learn More
link
Bolt Creek DH84

Bolt Creek Wildfire Sediment Runoff and Water Quality

The Issue: Scientists and water-resource managers recognize the increasing impact of wildfires on water supply in the western U.S. The increasing frequency and severity of wildfires are linked to changes in snowpack, warmer temperatures, and drought. Sedimentation following wildfire can impact aquatic habitat, reservoir storage capacity, water quality, and thus public drinking water supplies...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

Bolt Creek Wildfire Sediment Runoff and Water Quality

The Issue: Scientists and water-resource managers recognize the increasing impact of wildfires on water supply in the western U.S. The increasing frequency and severity of wildfires are linked to changes in snowpack, warmer temperatures, and drought. Sedimentation following wildfire can impact aquatic habitat, reservoir storage capacity, water quality, and thus public drinking water supplies...
Learn More
link
A sample bag and jar sit on soil scattered with pieces of charcoal

Post-wildfire sedimentation and release of metals to Conconully Reservoir, Washington

The Issue: Wildfires can negatively impact reservoirs and water supply. On August 4th, 2021, a lightning strike started the Muckamuck fire in Okanagan County, Washington. The fire burned approximately 13,297 acres (~21 square miles) of forest and shrubland before it was contained. The burn engulfed a large portion of the area which drains into the Conconully Reservoir, a popular location for...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

Post-wildfire sedimentation and release of metals to Conconully Reservoir, Washington

The Issue: Wildfires can negatively impact reservoirs and water supply. On August 4th, 2021, a lightning strike started the Muckamuck fire in Okanagan County, Washington. The fire burned approximately 13,297 acres (~21 square miles) of forest and shrubland before it was contained. The burn engulfed a large portion of the area which drains into the Conconully Reservoir, a popular location for...
Learn More
link
Hydrogeologic Framework and Groundwater/Surface-Water Report Cover

South Fork Nooksack River Basin Groundwater and Surface-water Interactions and Processes

High water temperatures and low instream flows during the summer have been identified as some of the key limitations for the viability of South Fork Nooksack River salmon populations including summer and spring-run Chinook salmon. Restoration strategies including the placement of engineered log jams, the restoration of floodplains and wetlands, and instream flow negotiation have been developed by...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

South Fork Nooksack River Basin Groundwater and Surface-water Interactions and Processes

High water temperatures and low instream flows during the summer have been identified as some of the key limitations for the viability of South Fork Nooksack River salmon populations including summer and spring-run Chinook salmon. Restoration strategies including the placement of engineered log jams, the restoration of floodplains and wetlands, and instream flow negotiation have been developed by...
Learn More

Science and Products

Geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams

The geomorphology and sediment regimes of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES) are extremely diverse, owing in large part to the substantial spatiotemporal variability of the associated hydrological regimes. We describe the geomorphological character and sediment transport processes along IRES within the context of four geomorphological zones—upland, piedmont, lowland, and floodout—to
Authors
Kristin Jaeger, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Stephen Tooth, Katerina Michaelides, Michael B. Singer
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Washington Water Science Center

Non-USGS Publications**

Sutfin, N.A., Wohl, E., Fegel, T., Day, N. and Lynch, L., 2021. Logjams and channel morphology influence sediment storage, transformation of organic matter, and carbon storage within mountain stream corridors. Water Resources Research, 57(5), p.e2020WR028046.
Wohl, Ellen, E., Katherine Lininger, Sara Rathburn, Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2019. How Geomorphic Context Governs the Influence of Wildfire on Floodplain Organic Carbon in Fire-Prone Environments of the Western United States. Invited submission to special issue of Earth Surface Process and Landforms 45 (1), 33-55.
Li, M., N. A. Sutfin, M. Christie, M. Neelam, and J. A. Bradley, 2020. Making a place for the next generation of geoscientists, Eos, 101, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020EO151355. Published on 06 November 2020.
Lynch, Laurel, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Timothy Fegel, Claudia Boot, Tim Covino, Matthew Wallenstein, 2019. Changing paths: River complexity and decreased hydrologic connectivity shift dissolved organic matter composition. Nature Communications 10 (459).
Malenda, Helen F., Nicholas A. Sutfin, Sophie Stauffer, Grace Guryan, Joel C. Rowland, Ken H.Williams, Kamini Singha, 2019. From Grain to Floodplain: Evaluating heterogeneity of floodplain hydrostatigraphy using sedimentology, geophysics, and remote sensing. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 44 (9), 1799-1815.
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Ellen E. Wohl, 2019. Elevational differences in hydrogeomorphic disturbance regime influence sediment residence times along mountain river corridors. Nature Communications 10 (1), p2221.
Livers, Bridget, Ellen Wohl, Karen Jackson, and Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2018. Historical land use as a driver of alternative states for stream form and function in forested mountain watersheds of the Southern Rocky Mountains. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 43 (3), 669–684. DOI: 10.1002/esp.4275.
Shaw, Jeremy R., David J. Cooper, Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2018. Applying a hydrogeomorphic channel classification to understand spatial patterns in riparian vegetation. Journal of Vegetation Science 29 (3). DOI: 10.1111/jvs.12629
Lininger, Katherine B., Ellen Wohl, Nicholas A. Sutfin, J. Rose, 2017. Floodplain downed wood volumes: a comparison across three biomes. Geomorphology 42, 1248-1261. doi: 10.1002/esp.4072.
Rathburn, Sara L., Georgie L. Bennett, Ellen E. Wohl, Christy Briles, Brandon McElroy, Nicholas A. Sutfin, 2017. The fate of sediment, wood, and organic carbon eroded during an extreme flood, Colorado Front Range, USA. Geology 45 (6), 499-502. G38935.1 doi: 10.1130/G38935.1
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Ellen E. Wohl, 2017. Substantial soil organic carbon retention along floodplains of mountain streams, 1325-1338. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface 122 (7), 1325-1338. DOI: 10.1002/2016JF004004
Wohl, Ellen, Robert O. Hall, Katherine B. Lininger, Nicholas A. Sutfin, David M. Walters, 2017. Carbon dynamics of river corridors and the effects of human alterations. Ecological Monographs 87 (3), 379-409. Doi: 10.1002/ecm.1261
Kampf, Stephanie K., Jermey R. Shaw, Joshua Faulconer, Nicholas A. Sutfin, David J. Cooper, 2016. Rain and channel flow supplements to subsurface water beneath hyper-arid ephemeral stream channels. Journal of Hydrology 536: 524-533.
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Ellen E. Wohl, Kate A. Dwire, 2016. Banking carbon: A review of organic carbon storage and physical factors influencing retention in floodplains and riparian ecosystems. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 41 (1), 38-60. DOI: 10.1002/esp.3857.
Kenworthy, Megan, Tammy M. Rittenour, Jennifer L. Pierce, Nicholas A. Sutfin, Warren D. Sharp, 2014. Luminescence dating without sand lenses: An application of OSL to coarse-grained alluvial fan deposits of the Lost River Range, Idaho,USA. Quaternary Geochronology 23, 9-25.
Martin, David M., Dylan Harrison-Atlas, Nicholas A. Sutfin and N. LeRoy Poff, 2014. A Social-Ecological Framework to Integrate Multiple Objectives for Environmental Flows Management. In: Melinda Laituri and Faith Sternlieb (eds), Water Data Systems: Infrastructure, Science, Practice and Policy. Journal of Contemporary Water Research and Education – University Council on Water Resources 153, 59-68.
Sutfin, Nicholas A., Jeremy Shaw, Ellen E. Wohl, David Cooper, 2014. A geomorphic classification of ephemeral channels in a mountainous, arid region, southwestern, Arizona, USA. Geomorphology 221, 164-175.
Wohl, Ellen, Kate Dwire, Nicholas Sutfin, Lina Polvi and Robert Bazan, 2012. Mechanisms of Carbon storage in mountainous headwater rivers. Nature Communications. 3: 1263. doi: 10.1038/ncomms2274

**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.

link
Osoyoos Lake Ice Jam

Osoyoos Ice Jam

The Issue: Ice jams can occur at the outlet of Osoyoos Lake on the border of Canada and the United States, resulting in a decrease or complete interruption in streamflow on the Okanogan River. These ice jams appear to be occurring at a greater frequency than they have in the past and interruptions in streamflow can hinder the passage of anadromous fish and impact downstream water rights and water...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

Osoyoos Ice Jam

The Issue: Ice jams can occur at the outlet of Osoyoos Lake on the border of Canada and the United States, resulting in a decrease or complete interruption in streamflow on the Okanogan River. These ice jams appear to be occurring at a greater frequency than they have in the past and interruptions in streamflow can hinder the passage of anadromous fish and impact downstream water rights and water...
Learn More
link
Bolt Creek DH84

Bolt Creek Wildfire Sediment Runoff and Water Quality

The Issue: Scientists and water-resource managers recognize the increasing impact of wildfires on water supply in the western U.S. The increasing frequency and severity of wildfires are linked to changes in snowpack, warmer temperatures, and drought. Sedimentation following wildfire can impact aquatic habitat, reservoir storage capacity, water quality, and thus public drinking water supplies...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

Bolt Creek Wildfire Sediment Runoff and Water Quality

The Issue: Scientists and water-resource managers recognize the increasing impact of wildfires on water supply in the western U.S. The increasing frequency and severity of wildfires are linked to changes in snowpack, warmer temperatures, and drought. Sedimentation following wildfire can impact aquatic habitat, reservoir storage capacity, water quality, and thus public drinking water supplies...
Learn More
link
A sample bag and jar sit on soil scattered with pieces of charcoal

Post-wildfire sedimentation and release of metals to Conconully Reservoir, Washington

The Issue: Wildfires can negatively impact reservoirs and water supply. On August 4th, 2021, a lightning strike started the Muckamuck fire in Okanagan County, Washington. The fire burned approximately 13,297 acres (~21 square miles) of forest and shrubland before it was contained. The burn engulfed a large portion of the area which drains into the Conconully Reservoir, a popular location for...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

Post-wildfire sedimentation and release of metals to Conconully Reservoir, Washington

The Issue: Wildfires can negatively impact reservoirs and water supply. On August 4th, 2021, a lightning strike started the Muckamuck fire in Okanagan County, Washington. The fire burned approximately 13,297 acres (~21 square miles) of forest and shrubland before it was contained. The burn engulfed a large portion of the area which drains into the Conconully Reservoir, a popular location for...
Learn More
link
Hydrogeologic Framework and Groundwater/Surface-Water Report Cover

South Fork Nooksack River Basin Groundwater and Surface-water Interactions and Processes

High water temperatures and low instream flows during the summer have been identified as some of the key limitations for the viability of South Fork Nooksack River salmon populations including summer and spring-run Chinook salmon. Restoration strategies including the placement of engineered log jams, the restoration of floodplains and wetlands, and instream flow negotiation have been developed by...
By
Washington Water Science Center
link

South Fork Nooksack River Basin Groundwater and Surface-water Interactions and Processes

High water temperatures and low instream flows during the summer have been identified as some of the key limitations for the viability of South Fork Nooksack River salmon populations including summer and spring-run Chinook salmon. Restoration strategies including the placement of engineered log jams, the restoration of floodplains and wetlands, and instream flow negotiation have been developed by...
Learn More

*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government