Associate Professor of Geography

E-mail:  faulkndj@uwec.edu
Telephone:  (715) 836-5166
Homepage:  http://www.uwec.edu/faulkndj/

Education
B.A., Geography, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (1980)
B.A., Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, Oxford University (1983) 
M.S., Water Resources Management, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1986) 
M.S., Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1987) 
Ph.D., Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1994) 

Courses Taught (at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire)
GEOG 104: The Physical Environment
GEOG 178: Conservation of the Environment
GEOG 363: Watershed Analysis
GEOG 364: Fluvial Processes and Landforms
GEOG 365: Outdoor Recreation
GEOG 375: Environmental Quality
GEOG 378: International Environmental Problems and Policies

Courses Taught (at the University of Missouri-Kansas City)
ENVS 110R: Introduction to Environmental Science (see the online lab manual) 
GEOG 150: Introduction to Physical Geography 
GEOG/GEOL 314: Principles of Geomorphology 
GEOL 398: Midcontinent Field Trip 
GEOG 401: Introduction to Geographic Information Systems 
GEOG 420/520: Water in Environmental Planning 
GEOG 424/525: Fluvial Geomorphology

Courses Taught (at Dartmouth College)
GEOG 3: Introduction to Physical Geography
GEOG 10: Freshman Seminar -- The American West: Environment Perceptions and Realities
GEOG 14: Water Resources Management and Policy
GEOG 28: Earth Surface Processes and Landforms

Research Interests
* human impacts on fluvial systems
* fluvial adjustments to environmental change 
* watershed sediment delivery 
* floodplain sedimentation
* Holocene fluvial and environmental history of the central Great Plains

One of the main thrusts of my current research is the reconstruction of the Holocene history of sediment delivery in small watersheds in the central Great Plains.  I am also investigating the Holocene alluvial history of the Platte River, the largest river in the central Great Plains and the largest tributary of the Missouri River. The specific focus of my work is on alluvial fans in the Platte River valley of south-central Nebraska and on the buried soils they contain, which provide a means for deciphering chronologies of watershed sediment yield and for determining past changes of the Platte River.  (To view a map of my study area, click here.  But before you do, be forewarned that this is a large image -- ~250 KB.)

A second thrust of my research focuses on recent channel changes and floodplain sedimentation in the lower Buffalo River watershed in west-central Wisconsin.  In the summer of 2001, I, along with Tobi Rutten (UWEC geography major), resurveyed several transects across tributary streams that I originally surveyed in 1992 and 1993 in order to quantify the channel and floodplain changes that have occurred over the past decade.

In the future, I will also be taking part in collaborative investigations of the lower Chippewa River, which was recently designated a State Natural Area by the Governor and the Natural Resources Board of Wisconsin.  The lower Chippewa is an interesting river that exhibits both braided and meandering planforms. My research goals will be to reconstruct the channel changes that have occurred over the past century and to identify the factors that control why certain reaches of the river appear to be more morphologically dynamic than others.

Recent Publications
Faulkner, D.J. 2002. "Alluvial Fans as Records of Holocene Sediment Yield in the Central Great Plains of Southwest Nebraska." Physical Geography 23: 343-365.

Faulkner, D.J. 1998. "Spatially Variable Historical Alluviation and Channel Incision in West-Central Wisconsin." Annals, Association of American Geographers 88: 666-685.

Faulkner, D.J. 1996. "Field Guide – Brush Creek: Urban Menace or Asset?" In: Papers and Proceeding of the Applied Geography Conferences (Volume 19), F.A. Schoolmaster, ed., pp. 307-316.

 

Faulkner, D.J., and McIntyre, S.C. 1996. "Persisting Sediment Yields and Sediment Delivery Changes."  The Water Resources Bulletin 32(4): 817-829.

Manuscript in Preparation
Faulkner, D.J. "Evidence of Holocene Vertical Stability Along the Platte River in the Central Great Plains." To be submitted to Geology.