|
 |
Research Interests
My research is focused on
rivers. I am currently working in three areas.
River System Science
The primary research area of my group is river
system science, that is, the interaction of physical and
biological processes in rivers. We primarily use field and
modeling studies to understand the interaction of
geomorphology, hydrology, hydraulics, ecology, and
biogeochemistry. My students¡¯ research spans ecosystems and
scales, from analysis of biogeochemical dynamics at the river
network scale to flume studies of turbulence and organic
matter mobilization from stream beds. We have studied
whitewater streams in the Adirondacks, urban streams in Chapel
Hill, and blackwater streams on the coast of North Carolina.
We place this research into an applied context via studies of
river restoration, dam removal, and floodplain management, and
use these different management activities as experiments from
which to develop and test geomorphic and ecological theory.
Ecosystem Markets
The second area of my research is primarily
focused on the emerging ecosystem commodities of stream
mitigation and water quality trading programs. The applied
part of this research is being done with Todd BenDor (City and
Regional Planning at UNC), and is focused on understanding how
current stream mitigation banking programs in North Carolina
have developed over the past few years, the policies that have
allowed them to develop, and where these practices are
impacting state water resources. The more theoretical part of
the work is being done with Morgan Robertson (Geography, Univ
of Kentucky) and with Rebecca Lave (Geography, Berkeley). This
work is focused on how stream mitigation is leading to
alternative commodification of specific stream features, and
how stream mitigation banking is leading to different forms of
streams than would be present under traditional stream
restoration programs. Finally, I am also working with Andy
Yates (Economics, Univ of Richmond) on a purely economic
analysis of stream mitigation banking, and how the physical
size of mitigation banks can affect the economic efficiency of
no-net-loss programs.
Political Economy of U.S.
Rivers
The final area of my research is focused on
tracing the evolution of river economies in the United States.
Almost accidentally, I have become very interested in the role
that rivers have played in the American economy, and the role
that federal policies have purposely or inadvertently had on
driving the economies and associated river changes. For
example, rivers to be used as transportation corridors in the
1700s and 1800s, to be harnessed as hydropower in the early
1900s; to be controlled as sources of flooding in the 1800s
and 1900s; and now, to be ¡®restored¡¯ and sold as an
environmental commodity. My particular theoretical interest in
this is addressing whether there is a characteristic river
form that a particular economy leaves on the landscape.
Key Publications
Doyle, Stanley, Havlick, Kaiser, Steinbach, Graf, Galloway and Riggsbee (2008). Aging infrastructure and ecosystem restoration. /Science /319 (5861): 286-287.
Ensign, S.H., and M.W. Doyle (2006). Nutrient
spiraling in streams and river networks. /Journal of
Geophysical Research ¨C Biogeosciences/, 111, G04009, doi:
10.1029/FG000114/./
Doyle, M.W., E.H. Stanley, D. Strayer, R.
Jacobson, and J.C. Schmidt (2005). Effective discharge
analysis of ecological processes in streams. /Water Resources
Research/, 41, W1141, doi: 10.1029/2005WR004222.
Doyle, M.W., and J.M. Harbor (2003). Modeling
the effect of form and profile adjustments on channel
equilibrium timescales. /Earth Surface Processes and
Landforms/ 28: 1271-1287.
Doyle, M.W., E.H. Stanley, and J.M. Harbor
(2003). Hydrogeomorphic controls on phosphorus retention in
streams. /Water Resources Research/ 36(6): 1147, doi:
10.1029/2003WR002038.
Doyle, M.W., E.H. Stanley, and J.M. Harbor
(2003), Channel adjustments following two dam removals in
Wisconsin. /Water Resources Research/. 39(1), 1011, doi:
10.1029/2002WR001714.
|
