Evan S. Kane
Contact
- eskane@mtu.edu
- 906-482-6303 x1318
- USDA Northern Research Station Forest Service Building room 123
- Professor
- PhD, Forest Ecology, University of Alaska Fairbanks
- MS, Forestry, Michigan Technological University
- BS, Applied Ecology and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University
Soil Processes
I am broadly interested in nutrient dynamics in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, particularly in "hotspots" of soil carbon storage. As such, research has focused on belowground changes in northern peatlands, boreal ecosystems, and temperate forests, and the corresponding changes in dissolved chemistry. Ecosystem change is a pretty relative concept, but study designs incorporating experimental manipulation or natural disturbances can be particularly persuasive in learning an ecosystem's secrets.
Natural disturbances offer great opportunities to determine how ecosystems reorganize, and wildfires in particular can dramatically alter how long carbon can stay in above and belowground components of an ecosystem. Besides, getting outside and seeing first-hand how disturbances such as flooding or wildfire have altered the functioning of an ecosystem is just really exciting!
Areas of Expertise
- Soil carbon
- Plant/soil relationships
- Decomposition
- Dissolved organic carbon
- Wildfire
- Black carbon