Effects of Land-Use Change on Soil Properties – Implications for Future Urban Development

With 80% of the world’s population expected to live in cities by 2050, understanding how urban soils have changed from their native origins is crucial for urban planning and development. Specifically, soil hydrology is important because hydrologic parameters affect hazards such as flooding, contaminant transport, and structural integrity. Understanding changes in soil hydrology can help guide municipalities on ideal placement for new development projects, including green infrastructure. This project involves going to field sites across Buffalo that have undergone changes in land-use (i.e., former industrial facilities and vacant lots), taking soil samples, and comparing these samples to equivalent soils found at sites that have been stable (no land-use change). Analysis will include geophysical surveys, infiltration testing, structural analysis, and stormwater monitoring. The overall outcome is to determine how soil hydrology has been altered by land-use changes, which may guide urban planners on ideal project locations, and their long-term environmental impact. 

By the end of this project, the student will be able to: find articles from peer-reviewed journals and synthesize information; conduct soil sampling and basic soil logging; set up and run geophysical surveys; keep a field notebook with detailed notes and sketches; understand field and lab safety procedures; properly prepare for field work; use the scientific method to develop and test a hypothesis using field and lab methods; analyze data and synthesize into a serious of figures, results, and conclusions; write and submit an abstract to a national conference; create and present a poster at a national conference. 

• Dr. Gina Pope
• Center for Geologic Hazards 
  

Geology, Soil, Urban soil, Hydrology