Drew Eppehimer - Babbitt Dissertation Fellowship Awardee
Michael Bogan, Assistant Professor, School of Natural Resource and the Environment(link is external) wrote up Drew's research and award and included photos on this page and in the front cover of this website:
Drew Eppehimer, a PhD student in the Arid Lands Resource Sciences GIDP, was recently awarded a Babbitt Dissertation Fellowship (link is external)for his project "Restoration of Desert Rivers with Treated Wastewater". This prestigious fellowship is offered by the The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy,(link is external) a leading resource for key issues concerning the use, regulation, and taxation of land, and is administered through the Babbitt Center for Land and Water Policy, which works to advance water sustainability through land use planning, management, and decision-making. This year's call for proposals specifically focused on the Colorado River Basin, where the Babbit Center strives to orchestrate locally appropriate land use decisions that integrate land use and water planning. Drew's doctoral research addresses the use of treated wastewater, or 'recycled water', to re-create desert river ecosystems lost to groundwater pumping and land use change, such as the Santa Cruz River in Tucson. Specifically, Drew is studying the diversity and structure of aquatic macroinvertebrate communities, water quality and quantity issues, and the impacts of microplastic pollution on aquatic communities in wastewater-dominated streams.
Drew Eppehimer entered the Arid Lands Resource Sciences PhD program in the Fall 2016. He has 2 Master's degrees: one in is an MS Environmental Science from Taylor University in Upland, Indiana and the other an MS in Justice Studies from the Arizona State University. Drew's interestt in water and water issue is reflected on what he wrote in his personal statement when he applied to the program.
"My fascination with water and the organisms that live within it was extremely apparent from a young age. It was thi fascination that defined my various hobbies such as fishing, sailing, canyoneering, and SCUBA diving-‐ hobbies that have ultimately directed my life’s trajectory in an attempt to better understand and therefore better appreciate these aquatic systems. The resulting academic and professional experiences have spanned topics such as ecohydrology and water management policies in the Sonoran Desert to the population dynamics of pelagic prey fishes in the Great Lakes, and these experiences have continued to fuel my fascination and my desire for greater understanding of the life within and dependent on this liquid realm. It is this continued desire to learn and this passion for water that has drawn me to the University of Arizona’s Arid Lands Resource Sciences.
This return to academia is motivated by the appetite for continued learning that first drew me into the environmental sciences and specifically into the field of ecology. It should be noted that my professional employment with NOAA and currently with USGS has provided me tremendous opportunities to learn and grow as a scientist. However, academia fosters a unique environment in which collectively and individually we continually challenge and refine each other and ourselves, and this is the environment in which I want to immerse myself."