Dr. Buck’s research focuses on medical geology – in particular how geological materials impact health. Currently, her work focuses on dust and hazards associated with dust exposure including those from asbestiform minerals, arsenic, and other carcinogens. She also performs research to better understand and quantify arid soil processes so that this knowledge can be applied in land use decisions, radionuclide and heavy metal contamination, biologic soil crusts, paleoclimate interpretations, landscape evolution, soil genesis, geomorphic hazards, and other applications.
Dale Devitt
Dr. Dale Devitt is a soil and water scientist who focuses his research on soil plant water relationships in arid environments. Much of his research has addressed osmotic and matric interactions on plants, with special emphasis on irrigated systems with poor quality water. He currently is the UNLV water component lead of the NSF EPSCoR climate change study in which two transects comprised of sophisticated weather stations are being placed on two mountain ranges in Nevada. He is also the Director of the Center for Urban Water Conservation that conducts both applied and basic research related to urban water related issues. A current study is investigating the fate and transport of pharmaceuticals in turfgrass systems irrigated with recycled water.