I am in the last 6 months working toward a PhD in Environmental Sciences titled ‘Greenhouse Gases in River Catchments to Coastal Seas’. My research aims to address knowledge gaps in the production and transport of greenhouse gases from freshwater systems into the coastal and marine environment. Greenhouse gases (GHG) contribute to climate change by trapping heat in the atmosphere. The top three most powerful GHGs are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). Because they have significantly higher warming effects than CO2, reducing emissions of N2O and CH4 could help us slow the speed of our rapidly changing climate. Approximately 40% of CH4 and 60% of N2O come from natural sources which include soils, rivers, estuaries and oceans. 

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The way we use the environment can cause changes to processes in the water which control our climate. When too many nutrients enter the water system from agriculture or wastewater treatment, there are more ingredients available to create more N2O and CH4. When we add low river flows and increasing summer temperatures to this scenario, it creates an ideal mixing bowl for tiny microbes to get cooking and pump these gases out into the atmosphere. This could change where see increasing 'hotspots' of natural N2O and CH4 sources and risk our chances of transitioning to a net-zero emission society. It's important we monitor this so we can implement the most effective nature-based solutions, in the most effective places, in the most effective way.  

 

So how do we do this? Every month, I've been out with my team collecting samples of river, estuary and seawater from the top of the River Tamar to Devils Point, Plymouth UK. When these samples get back to the lab, a method called gas chromatography is used to find out how much N2O and CH4 has built up in the water. We can then look at these results in the wider picture of environmental conditions such as river flows, rainfall and surrounding land use to find out what could be driving higher vs lower concentrations.​

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You can stay up to date with my research through my blog, Instagram or ResearchGate. I love receiving questions and talking about my work - you know where to find me! 

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​My research is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council and the ARIES Doctoral Training Partnership [grant number NE/S007334/1], Plymouth Marine Laboratory, University of East Anglia, and Sercon Ltd.

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