Science Moab

Tribal communities are working on their own terms and with their own knowledge system to address and create resiliency to the coming changes. We talk with Nikki Cooley, the Interim Assistant Director for the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) with their tribes and Climate Change Program. While her master's degree is in forestry from Northern Arizona University, she has now found her dream job where she can combine all of her interests and passions, and feel like she’s making a difference.

The Colorado Plateau is host to many environmental contaminants, both natural and man-made. These substances can find their way into waterways and eventually to ecosystems. We talk with Jonathan Credo and Amy Chandos about their research on the relationship between human activity and the environment. We talk about how mining and agriculture impact tribal and non-native communities and the ecology of this region.

The majority of Rock Art in southern Utah has not been documented. Jonathan Bailey is working on changing that. Hiking many miles into the backcountry, Jonathan is seeking out and photographing rock art in order to protect and preserve its heritage and to conserve the cultural landscapes that surround it. We talk with Jonathan about his work in photography and conservation in Utah and the special places it takes him to.

Traditional knowledge systems that contain regenerative relationships with the land have been in place for generations on the Colorado Plateau. With Talia Boyd, we talk about these relationships and the necessity of Native peoples leading the region through issues like the climate crisis and environmental contamination. Talia calls for those with power, including non-Native scientists, to step back and give power back to this land's First Peoples. This episode is sponsored by the Colorado Plateau Foundation

Biogeography is the distribution of life within and around landforms. In a large deep canyon, that distribution is influenced by the elevation and the aspect of a slope which also controls the sunlight received. We talk with Larry Stevens of the Museum of Northern Arizona about his decades long investigation of biogeography within the Grand Canyon. More than 70% of the species found in the Grand Canyon are genetically affected by the landform itself and many can live nowhere else.

In the red rock deserts of the southwest, there is little soil to absorb rainfall. It usually runs off the rock to the lowest point which is commonly a narrow incised canyon. These canyons can fill with flood waters very quickly. We talk with hydrologist Brian McInerney about the conditions that come together to form these flash floods and how dangerous they can be.

The beautiful red rock desert surrounding Moab is host to more than 10 geohazards that can affect the structural integrity of buildings, bridges, or roads. We talk with Taylor Hall who is a geotechnical engineer studying the physics of soils and rocks in order to understand their mechanical properties and how they may affect such structures. Taylor has recently started his own business in Moab where he finds the unique environment curious and fun to work in.

Join scientists Chris Benson and Terry Dial on a geology tour of Arches National Park! Learn about rock layers, ancient environments and arch formation. The drive takes you along the main Arches NP road, highlighting the amazing geology seen at six different and incredibly scenic stops. Download the Arches National Park GeoTour now and take an epic educational drive through this sandstone wonderland!

To Indigenous archaeologist Lyle Balenquah, archaeological sites are places that are connected to a living culture. As a Hopi archaeologist working on Ancestral Lands on the Colorado Plateau, Lyle's experience in archaeology is different from his non-Native colleagues.  We speak with him about his journey into archaeology and what it means for him to be preserving Hopi culture within Ancestral Lands.  This episode of Science Moab was sponsored by the STEM Action Grant from the Society for Science.

“Leave No Trace” is not a new concept for most outdoor enthusiasts but the LNT recommendations for engaging with the outdoors are always updating as new learnings evolve. We talk with Ben Lawhon, the head of LNT’s research team about the science behind the curriculum of LNT. For this episode, we’ve partnered with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics in advance of the upcoming Arches Leave No Trace Hotspot Sep 24-27th. An event that is working to help address the mountain recreation problems in Arches National Park.

Taming Tamarisk by Kristina Young

Monsoons in the desert southwest rely on a seasonal wind shift to occur. They don’t always materialize. When they come, though, the drastic change in weather and rainfall amounts can often lead to flash floods in a sun-parched desert. We talk with Megan Stackhouse from the National Weather Service in Grand Junction, CO. We talk about the difficulty in predicting rainfall and flooding in arid environments with so much topographic variation.

As the number of climbers grows across the country, so does the number of climbing visitors to Indian Creek (San Juan County, UT). Concern is rising for the conservation of the climbing resource and the fragile desert ecosystem it sits in. This is the second of two podcasts dedicated to the recent attention in this climbing area. We talk with Ty Tyler, Stewardship Director for the Access Fund - a national non-profit organization dedicated to leading and inspiring the climbing community in keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment. We talk about the upcoming stewardship program in Indian Creek that begins this fall (2021).

The number of climbers coming to Indian Creek (San Juan County, UT)has increased like so many outdoor recreation areas. The resource, though, is limited at Indian Creek. This is the first of two podcasts dedicated to this climbing area and the attempts being made to preserve the resource. We talk with David Carter, assistant professor of public policy and administration at the University of Utah’s Department of Political Science. An avid climber himself, David is responsible for distributing a survey to Indian Creek climbers in 2021.

The invasive quagga mussel found its way into Lake Powell in 2012. This rapidly spreading nuisance species is affecting the lake’s ecology, namely its fish population. We talked with biologist Nathan St. Andre about his work with the stable isotopes in the fish of Lake Powell and how they are changing with the presence of the quagga mussel. The results echo a broader geographical division in the Lake itself.

The unique ecosystem of Southwestern Utah includes bits of the Mojave Desert, the Colorado Plateau, and the Great Basin. Here you can find 18 of the 23 species of lizards in the state of Utah. Some species are found nowhere else. Dr. Geoffrey Smith, professor of physiology at Dixie State University, lives in this part of the world for this reason. We talk with him about his work with lizards, in particular the Side-blotched Lizard, which he describes as the most beautiful lizard you’ve ever seen.

The sheer number of recreationists in southern Utah has brought the subject of human waste in the backcountry to a head. The Southeast Utah Health Department is spearheading a campaign to educate visitors and tourists about having a bathroom plan when recreating. We talk with Ginger Allen, the Environmental Stewardship Coordinator at the SEUHD, about the interagency message and a public health campaign that hopes to result in an overall increase in the public’s awareness of human waste issues and disposal techniques for the backcountry.

There are lots of different forms of knowledge, from place-based, community knowledge to science in laboratories. When this wide diversity of understanding isn't listened to or valued, we all lose out. Here, Science Moab speaks with Dr. Sabah Ul-Hasan, who grew up near the Great Salt Lake, about their experience as a scientist studying bioinformatics and how bringing inclusive understandings into science is essential to understanding the world and making it a better place.

Soil mapping involves interpreting landscapes, how soil changes across it, and a bit of art to represent repeatable patterns in a map. The mapping of soils began in the U.S. in the 1930’s as a result of the Dust Bowl, but many remote areas in the West are just getting mapped for the first time. Soil scientist Kristi Mingus talks to Science Moab about her work mapping soils in remote areas of Emery County, Utah. We discuss how the data is collected, how the maps are made, and how the information is available to the public.

When dinosaurs roamed the earth, Southeast Utah was a coastal paradise. Dinosaurs flourished in this utopia in numbers and variety of species unlike any other place. This coupled with the effective preservation of the bones in the rock, make Southeast Utah mecca for paleontologists young and old. Science Moab speaks with John Hankla from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and a few of his recent students, Jake Percival and Megan Sims. We talk about life in the field and the work they are doing in the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.