Claire Knopf, 2010

Thesis:

A permeability study on salmonid spawning riffles in the Little River drainage and Canon Creek in Northern Humboldt County, California.

I have always been fascinated by rivers. The algae, invertebrates, rocks, fish and shear power of water has always been of great interest to me. I feel very fortunate to be able to both work and play in and around the rivers of the North Coast. My thesis entitled A permeability study on salmonid spawning riffles in the Little River Drainage and Ca¤on Creek in northern Humboldt County, California was an opportunity for me to study the unseen portion of the streambed, the hyporheic zone. My research was conducted to determine if local salmonid redd location is dependent upon the permeability of the streambed. Permeability measurements were taken using a battery operated pump to draw water through a perforated standpipe driven into the streambed. Study results showed that permeability was not significant in predicting redd location. In addition, results showed that permeability measurements varied in orders of magnitude within as little as 30 cm. The results of this study support the need for further investigation of spawning gravel assessment methods which can account for extreme spatial variation while minimizing disturbance to the streambed. My major advisor was Dr. Ken Fulgham

Alica Jones, 2016

Thesis:

Seeing the forest for the redwood trees: understanding the social impacts of a protected area on a local community ? a northern California case study.

I grew up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, where the love of forestry was instilled in me at a very young age. I earned a B.S. in Forestry and Natural Resources from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in 2011, with an emphasis in Forest and Environmental Practices. I worked for the U.S. Forest Service for two seasons doing timber sale layout on the Tongass National Forest in south east Alaska. I then moved to the beautiful North Coast to work for Green Diamond Resource Company as an inventory technician and then later as a forestry technician. Much of my work experience is in timber harvest layout and inventory, so one of my primary goals is to be a Registered Professional Forester after I earn my M.S. in Forestry. My research interests are in the field of forestry outreach and communication. Working with the Bureau of Land Management and the Redwood Parks Association, my project seeks to find ways to connect the town of Fortuna to the Headwaters Forest Reserve through outreach activities. Through interviews and surveys, my data will help the RPA engage residents across the redwood region with their local federal lands. I am very interested in how people are connected to their local forests, and what purpose forests serve for communities.

Brian Huggett, 2012

Thesis:

Modeling six years of stream discharge using the distributed hydrology soil vegetation model (DHSVM) in a coastal, timber harvest catchment, Humboldt County, California.

I'm originally from Michigan and received my B.S. in Environmental Science from Lake Superior State University in 1996. Soon thereafter, I took a seasonal job in Yosemite National Park and made the Sierra my home for the next 13 years. I originally worked for the concessions company, but transitioned to the National Park Service to do hydrology tech work for the U.S.G.S., Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the California Cooperative Snow Surveys. This work focused on water quality, water quantity and climate change. The exposure to those hydroclimate luminaries and their projects was the motivation to return school and pursue an M.S. For my thesis work, I'm using the University of Washington's Distributed Hydrology Soil Vegetation Model (DHSVM) to simulate watershed processes on a small, timber-harvest basin in the Freshwater area. I'm using a 6-year stream and sediment discharge record as well as other in-basin observations like rain gages, temperature / humidity sensors, and sediment source inventories to calibrate and validate the model. I'm expecting to graduate by the end of 2011. I'm currently working for California State Parks collecting and assimilating data for a major floodplain restoration project on Bull Creek in Humboldt Redwoods State Park.

Brian Huggett graduated in 2012 and currently teaches GIS at Humboldt as a lecturer and runs a GIS consulting business.

Nick Harrison, 2012

Thesis:

Understanding the effects of soil exposure in fuels treatments that balance fuel reduction and erosion control in the Tahoe basin.

My thesis investigates the balance of erosion control with contemporary wildland fire objectives in the Lake Tahoe Basin. I am developing an understanding of the amount of organic matter that, following fuel reduction treatments, is required to be left on the forest floor in order to prevent significant erosion. To do this I conducted an experiment that simulated snowmelt runoff within eight sites where fuels were treated with mechanical mastication and eight sites where fuels were treated with prescribed fire. I am currently analyzing the data from the past two summers of field work and looking forward to publishing the results of our study in the near future.

Nick Harrison graduated in 2012 and is currently a Lead Watershed Technician at Green Diamond Resource Company.

Sara Hanna, 2012

Thesis:

Long-term, post-fire dynamics of a sagebrush steppe community in northeastern California.

My research interest are wide ranging but are generally focused in ecology. I am currently working with Dr. Ken Fulgham on project analyzing the long-term, post-fire vegetation dynamics of a sagebrush steppe community. My thesis is the synthesis of nearly thirty years of vegetation monitoring conducted on the Modoc National Forest in Northeastern California. In addition to traditional field based ecological work, I am also interested in interdisciplinary research approaches using remote sensing and GIS techniques. I have worked in the environmental consulting field for the last several years doing everything from water quality monitoring to preparing regulatory permits and disclosures. I received my Bachelors of Science in Environmental Systems: Ecology, Behavior and Evolution from UC San Diego in 2005. Sara Hanna graduated in 2012 and currently teaches Introduction to Remote Sensing at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Zawisza Grabinski-Parker, 2015

Thesis:

Reburn severity interactions over 30 years in the Klamath Mountains ecoregion, California, USA

Radeslow Glebocki, 2015

Thesis:

Fuel loading and moisture dynamics in thinned coast redwood ? Douglas-fir forests in Headwaters Forest Reserve, California

Eamon Engber, 2010

Thesis:

Fuelbed heterogeneity, flammability, and restoration of historically fire frequent oak woodlands with fire.

I grew up in northern California and have worked in various natural resource fields over the past decade, from stream restoration to fire management. My research and land management interests revolve around fire ecology, from fire?s role in shaping forest, woodland, and grassland structure to the ecological significance of leaf litter flammability. I received an M.S. in forestry in 2010 from Humboldt and currently work for the Wildland Fire Laboratory here at Humboldt doing fire ecology and fuels management research. I have also worked as a forestry technician for Redwood National Park implementing fuels management and prescribed fire projects. I hold a B.S. in Natural Resources (conservation and resource studies) from UC Berkeley (2004).

Matt Cocking, 2011

Thesis:

The Role of Native Conifer Encroachment and the Return of Fire to California Black Oak Ecosystems in Northern California.

Born and raised in southern Humboldt County, I have always felt a close connection to this region's natural and wild areas. My interests stretch across the wide array of ecosystems that exist on the North Coast and interior coast ranges of northern California. I am fascinated by the diverse history of natural and cultural resource management at different times in this region and how the mix of differing management beliefs and practices have helped shape the ecosystems across the North Coast that we see today. Of particular interest to me is the controversy in many circles of management regarding the role and use of fire in many regions in California. This interest brought me to the Cal Poly Humboldt Fire Lab where the effects of fire are examined in laboratory and field settings in Northwest California and other areas of the world. Since coming to the Cal Poly Humboldt Fire Lab I have focused my research efforts on understanding the effects of contemporary fire exclusion practices on fire-dependent California black oak ecosystems in northern California. My research investigates competition between encroaching, native conifers and declining, shade-intolerant California black oak, fire effects in conifer-encroached oak stands, and the potential for restoration and maintenance of retreating deciduous oak ecosystems in the region. To learn more about research conducted by the Cal Poly Humboldt Fire Lab visit: http://www.humboldt.edu/firelab

Chance Callahan, 2019

Thesis:

Effects of thinning and prescribed burning on tree resistance to extreme drought in a Sierra Nevada mixed-conifer forest, California USA

I'm a Californian that enjoys exploring our natural world and attempting to understand the ecological functions that take place within it. When I am not working in the Forest Measurements & Ecology Lab I try to spend as much time as possible running around our local mountains and forests. I graduated from Cal Poly Humboldt in spring 2017 with a B.S. degree in Forestry (Hydrology). During that time, I gained experience in the field by working with the U.S. Forest Service as a field technician during the summers and realized I wanted to know more about forests in the Sierra Nevada mountains. My research is focused on Sierra Nevada mixed-conifer forests responses to forest thinning and burning treatments. Particularly, using tree-rings to understand how forest management strategies affect trees resistance to drought stress