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BSE Welcomes Dr. Luc Claessens
Dr. Luc Claessens joined our department in May 2008 as a Research Scientist with particular focus on watershed assessment. He will be managing the research components of the "Opequon Creek" and "Adaptive Fencing" projects.
Dr. Claessens received a BS in Tropical Agriculture from Larenstein University in the Netherlands, a BS in Agricultural Engineering and MS in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University, and a PhD in Geography from UC Santa Barbara and San Diego State University. Prior to coming to the US he worked for several years in Latin America in soil and water conservation (Honduras) and flood control (Ecuador). He has worked at NASA Goddard Space and Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD, on land-atmosphere interactions, and at the Ecosystems Center in Woods Hole, MA, investigating the effect of urbanization and climate change on the hydrology and biogeochemistry of a coastal watershed in Massachusetts. For his PhD, he investigated the role of small streams in controlling nitrogen export from suburban watersheds in Baltimore, MD. Prior to coming to Virginia Tech he was an instructor in Geography at the University of Connecticut. Dr. Claessens' research is broadly focused on the interactions between hydrology and ecosystem processes, in particular the effect of changes in land-use and climate on watershed hydrology and biogeochemistry and their effects on downstream ecosystems. His research typically integrates field studies with hydro-ecological modeling and geographic information systems.
Dr. Claessens is joined by his wife Dr. Joanna York, who is an estuarine ecologist, and their 2-year old daughter Julietta.
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200 Seitz Hall (0303) Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061.