Our Earth's critical zone is the heterogeneous, near surface environment in which complex interactions involving rock, soil, water, air, and living organisms regulate the natural habitat and determine the availability of life-sustaining resources.
A healthy critical zone supports ecosystems that produce the food we eat, natural pollution control, and natural resources upon which our economy depends. Our faculty are experts in: biogeochemistry and pedology geomicrobiology subsurface hydrology and soil physics
Faculty
Joan Curry
Interim Department Head
Professor
Cardon Academy of Teaching Excellence Fellow
Alicja Babst-Kostecka
Associate Professor
Director, Center for Environmentally Sustainable Mining
Jon Chorover
Interim Associate Vice President (ALVSCE)
Interim Associate Dean for Research (CALES)
Professor
Arizona Lab for Emerging Contaminants (ALEC)
Katerina Dontsova
Associate Professor
Associate Research Professor, Biosphere 2
Julie Neilson
Full Research Professor
Director, Maier Lab
Director, Center for Environmentally Sustainable Mining
Ian L. Pepper
Regents Professor
Director, Water & Energy Sustainable Technology (WEST) Center
Ken Smith
Global Professor
Microcampus Director, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University in Yangling, China
