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Editorial Board


Editor in Chief

Sara McMillan, PhD, PE
Iowa State University
Stream and wetland restoration; Nutrient biogeochemistry; Green stormwater infrastructure; Human dimensions of restoration

Sara McMillan is Professor of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering at Iowa State University. She is also a Professional Engineer with expertise in ecological restoration and stormwater management. Sara’s research focuses on how humans impact water quality in rivers, lakes, and wetlands and how climate change will affect access to clean water, sustainable food production, and healthy ecosystems. She uses lab and field-based techniques along with modeling tools to develop solutions to environmental problems. Her current research focuses on restoring ecosystems to improve water quality including projects on green infrastructure, sustainable urban agriculture, and river restoration.


Associate Editors

Mauricio Arias, PhD, PE
University of South Florida
Environmental flows; Watershed and aquatic ecosystem restoration; Tropical and subtropical ecosystems

Dr. Mauricio Arias is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida (Tampa), where he is the Principal Investigator of the Watershed Sustainability Lab and teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in water resources. Areas of current research include environmental flow design, coastal restoration, and watershed-scale restoration, with regional emphasis in the tropics and subtropics. He returned to Florida in 2016 after completing a post-doctoral research fellowship in the Sustainability Science Program at Harvard University (2014-2016). He holds a Bachelor of Science and a Masters of Engineering in Environmental Engineering Sciences from the University of Florida, and a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Canterbury (New Zealand).

 

David Austin, PE, CSE, CLM, CED
Jacobs Engineering Group
Natural treatment systems; Lake and reservoir management; Mine reclamation planning; Estuarine hypoxic (dead) zones

As the Global Technology lead for Natural Treatment Systems (NTS) at Jacobs, David Austin’s responsibilities include NTS market development through innovation and ensuring that all Jacobs NTS projects have appropriate subject matter experts assigned. He has several areas of personal project focus: (1) Intensification of treatment wetlands for N and P management at small to large scales, (2) Lake and reservoir management focusing on hypolimnetic oxygenation, geochemical augmentation for P control, suppression of harmful algae blooms, and the use of AI tools to predict taste and odor compounds, (3) Mine reclamation planning mostly in the oil sands region of Alberta, and (4) Conceptualization and development of coastal marine dead zone remediation using deep injection of pure oxygen byproduct produced from green hydrogen projects. He has also worked on engineering conceptual design of algae production at industrial scales and seawater irrigation of halophytes for biofuel production. He has authored many peer-review and conference publications as well as 11 U.S. patents for wastewater treatment.

 

James Bays, MS, Professional Wetland Scientist
Jacobs Engineering Group (retired)
Natural treatment systems; Wetland habitat restoration; Lake and reservoir management

Jim Bays is an ecologist and senior subject matter expert in natural treatment systems at Jacobs Engineering. During his 45-year career in consulting, of which 37 were with Jacobs (previously CH2M HILL), Jim has specialized in impact assessment and restoration of palustrine and lacustrine habitats across the world. Throughout most of that period, Jim has provided technical guidance on the implementation of over 200 treatment wetland projects for municipal, industrial, mining and agricultural wastewaters, and storm water throughout North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and South America. His particular area of expertise has been with treatment wetlands designed as public parks, ecological reserves, or research centers. Now entering retirement, Jim is focused on his non-profit lake and wetland restoration startup, Stewards of Our Urban Lakes (SoUL), which is well-recognized for community-based volunteer lake restoration leadership in St. Petersburg, Florida.

 

Marc Beutel, PhD, PE
Past JEED Co-Editor in Chief, 2021 – 2024
University of California, Merced
Water quality engineering; Natural treatment systems; Lake and reservoir management

Dr. Marc Beutel is a professor of environmental engineering in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department and the Environmental Systems Graduate Group at the University of California, Merced. His research focuses on the sustainable control of dilute pollutants in managed aquatic ecosystems including nutrients, pesticides, pathogens and metals, with a focus on redox mediated transformations at the sediment-water interface. Focus areas include mercury cycling, reservoir oxygen addition to repress internal loading of nutrients and metals, enhanced nitrogen removal in constructed treatment wetlands, and assessment of tobacco- and cannabis-related environmental pollution. He has published over 60 journal articles focused on pollution in aquatic ecosystems. He has advised over 20 PhD and MS students who have had impactful careers in environmental protection in water utilities, regulatory agencies, the private and public sectors, and academia.

 

David Blersch, PhD
Auburn University
Ecological wastewater treatment; Aquatic systems engineering; Aquaponics food production; Ecological systems analysis

Dr. David Blersch is an Associate Professor of Ecological Engineering in the Biosystems Engineering Department at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. His research focuses on the management, recovery, and reutilization of nutrients from aquatic sources such as surface waters, stormwater, and waste waters of various sources. Specific applications have included engineering improvements in benthic algae cultivation systems for nutrient recovery, including understanding primary ecological forcings on algae colonization and establishment on surfaces; conversion of multiple biomass wastes to valorized bioproducts through bioconversion; and systems connections and analysis of sustainable food production using aquaponics approaches. He has published over 35 journal articles on various aspects of ecological engineering approaches for pollution management in aquatic systems; has advised over 15 PhD and MS students in ecological and biosystems engineering; and has served on advisory and activity committees for the American Ecological Engineering Society and the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.

 

Jon Calabria, PhD, ASLA
University of Georgia
Natural infrastructure; Coastal resilience; Ecological restoration; Landscape performance

Professor Jon Calabria, ASLA educates students at The University of Georgia’s College of Environment & Design to conserve and restore enduring landscapes that improve environmental quality within the human context. Dr. Calabria’s research includes landscape performance and the amelioration of land use impacts on freshwater and coastal systems.

 

Stewart Diemont, PhD
State University of New York, Environmental Science and Forestry
Ecological restoration; Traditional ecological knowledge; Agroecology; Urban ecosystems

Stewart Diemont is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Biology and part of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, and the Restoration Science Center at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. His research focuses on ecological design for reciprocal human-nature relationships. He has worked for two decades with Indigenous communities in both North and South America to better understand and contribute to sustainable ecological engineering. His published research includes analysis of soil chemistry and biota, plant community, agroforestry harvest, agroecosystem management, bird community, and Emergy. Current research is considering how local and wild food systems can be part of urban ecological restoration and resilient neighborhoods.

 

Alex Horne, PhD, CED
University of California, Berkeley 
Lake and reservoir management; Natural treatment systems; Nitrogen fixation

Professor Emeritus Alex Horne’s research emphasizes quantification of environmental and ecological problems to define engineered solutions. Some of the problems tackled have been the in situ measurement of toxic and biostimulatory effects of highly-treated wastewaters in estuaries, rivers, wetlands, lakes, reservoirs, and oceans. Effects of heavy metals, oil spills, chlorinated wastewaters, and selenium have been studied recently. Emphasis has been on indigenous organism communities rather than individual organisms from laboratory cultures. The effects of water volume, timing of water withdrawals, and water quality on reservoir problems including taste and odor and eutrophication are of current interest. Special attention has been given to teaching students high precision but “low tech” methodology, which allows many more samples to be analyzed. In turn this permits statistically significant detection of small environmental effects. Current work on water quality in reservoirs and the design of new reservoirs emphasizes problems in semi-arid regions such as Southern and Central California.

 

Anand Jayakaran, PhD, PE
Washington State University
Green stormwater infrastructure; Water quality engineering; Natural treatment systems; Watershed hydrology

Ani Jayakaran is a Professor with Washington State University Extension. He works on disseminating strategies to manage water resources using Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) and improving current engineering designs using ecological engineering principles. His program aims to improve the science, education, and regulatory framework that governs GSI system design and installation in Washington State. He hopes to positively influence stormwater management decisions to serve under-resourced communities and their ecosystems. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Civil Engineering, a doctoral degree in Agricultural & Biological Engineering, and is a professionally licensed civil engineer in Washington and South Carolina.

 

Roderick Lammers, PhD
Central Michigan University
Urban stormwater management; Stream and wetland restoration

Rod Lammers is an Assistant Professor in Environmental Engineering at Central Michigan University.  Rod is interested in improving management of our water resources, especially in urban areas. Broadly, his research focuses on urban stormwater management and stream and wetland restoration, and how these natural and built infrastructure can manage flooding, improve water quality, and enhance ecological health.

 

Andrea Ludwig, PhD
University of Tennessee
Green stormwater infrastructure; Urban waters; Water quality; Created stormwater treatment wetlands

Andrea Ludwig is a Professor of Ecological Engineering in the Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science at the University of Tennessee. She holds a PhD in Biological Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech, an MS in Environmental Engineering, and a BS in Biological and Agricultural Engineering from the University of Arkansas. She serves as the Stormwater Management Specialist for the University of Tennessee Extension, and in that role, conducts applied research and outreach education in the areas of green stormwater infrastructure and watershed management projects. She has published on topics from water quality and ecological responses to best management practices to ameliorate impacts from urban and agricultural systems through constructed wetlands. She directs statewide programs to further the understanding and adoption of nature-based solutions to urban water quality challenges. She has been a member of the American Ecological Engineering Society since 2004 and has provided leadership as society President, annual conference host, and a variety of committee responsibilities. This service to the field of Ecological Engineering has provided her the opportunity to engage with peers across the globe.

 

Marty D. Matlock, PhD, PE, BCEE
F.AEES, F.ASCE, M.BANR
University of Arkansas – Fayetteville

Dr. Marty Matlock is a Professor in the Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department at the University of Arkansas – Fayetteville. He was elected to the Board of Agriculture and Natural Sciences of the National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine in 2022 and served as Senior Advisor to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack at USDA from 2021–2022. Prior to that Dr. Matlock was Executive Director of the University of Arkansas Resiliency Center. He received his Ph.D. in Biosystems Engineering from Oklahoma State University, is a registered professional engineer, a Board-Certified Environmental Engineer, and a Certified Ecosystem Designer. Dr. Matlock is the recipient of the 2018 CAST-Borlaug Agriculture Communications Award, the American Ecological Engineering Society 2022 Odom Award for Ecosystem Design, and more than 30 national and international design awards. Dr. Matlock has been elected Fellow of the American Ecological Engineering Society and the American Society of Civil Engineering. He served as Chairman of the Cherokee Nation Environmental Protection Commission for 16 years and as sustainability science advisor for three environmental conservation organizations and more than a dozen food and agricultural product companies.

 

Eric Roy, PhD, PE
University of Vermont
Nutrient cycling and management; Circular bioeconomy

Dr. Eric Roy is an Associate Professor at the University of Vermont with appointments in the Rubenstein School of Environment & Natural Resources and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He is also a Fellow in the Gund Institute for Environment. An ecological engineer and biogeochemist by training, Eric and his lab group primarily study nutrient cycling and management, aiming to: (1) clarify important processes that underpin ecosystem function, (2) identify opportunities for beneficial intervention, and (3) design systems that help achieve nutrient management objectives. This work – which often includes interdisciplinary collaboration – spans water quality, waste management, food systems, and circular bioeconomy efforts.


Production Support

Aimee Diehl
University of Vermont
Production Editor, JEED
Editorial Director – Journals, University of Vermont Press

A professional writer-editor, project manager, and creative consultant, Aimee Diehl leads the UVM Press journals division as its inaugural editorial director, a position that allows her to advocate for equitable, accessible publishing while collaborating with diverse scholars throughout North America. Aimee has more than 20 years of organizational and higher education strategic communications experience, most recently at Middlebury College. She holds an M.A. in communications from Marquette University and a B.A. in journalism and gender studies from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater.


Publisher

American Ecological Engineering Society in partnership with
University of Vermont Press
a division of University of Vermont Libraries
Howe Library
538 Main Street
Burlington, VT 05405 USA
(802) 656-2020
press@uvm.edu