Geological Society of America

T300 Urban Geochemistry

Wednesday, 28 September 2016
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
Room 404

THE URBAN EVOLUTION OF GEOCHEMICAL CYCLES

Paper number: T300-1
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 1:30 PM – 1:50 PM

Authors

Sujay S. Kaushal Presenting Author
University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Tamara Newcomer Johnson
Washington DC, DC
Shuiwang Duan
University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Thomas R. Doody
University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Shahan Haq
University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Rose Smith
University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT
Paul M. Mayer
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Ada, OK
Kenneth T. Belt
Northern Research Station, Baltimore, MD
William H. McDowell
University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH
Wilfred M. Wollheim
University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH

Abstract

Urban geochemical cycles have exerted a major influence on the elemental composition of the Earth's surface. Furthermore, urban geochemical cycles have evolved over centuries as Earth's population grows, infrastructure ages, and societies alter them. This presentation will illustrate how elemental cycles of carbon, nitrogen, and salts evolve across successive generations of urban ecosystems via shifts in urban selective pressures, urban adaptations, and human-accelerated weathering in built environments. Specifically, we will explore long-term trends in carbon, nitrogen, and dissolved salts in urban environments over the previous century. Then, we will investigate the importance of underlying mechanisms and drivers using a combination of geochemical source tracking, laboratory experiments, and high-frequency sensor measurements. Finally, we will discuss a framework to promote integration of different geochemical approaches and methods for new hypothesis generation and collaborations in urban geochemistry.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 48, No. 7

doi: 10.1130/abs/2016AM-283650

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