UBC research on pest infestations, resource development nab national awards

UBC Science research on urban pest infestations and responsible resource development are the focus of awards announced today by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).

Kaylee Byers and Rowan Cockett have been awarded NSERC’s $10,000 Gilles Brassard Doctoral Prize for Interdisciplinary Research Byers is studying host-parasite relationships and animal behaviour—particularly the bacterial communities associated with rat fleas to determine and whether they carry any known or novel bacteria which pose a risk to human health. She is using rat genetic data to determine how rats move between blocks in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to assess how their movement influences disease transmission among rats.

Cockett is developing new computational tools that are giving resource companies and regulators a clearer picture of what’s happening underground so they can better manage Canada’s oil resources and protect the environment. He specializes in the field of hydrogeophysics, which combines hydrology, geology, physics and computer modeling to create accurate 3D images of subsurface activity. Cockett is designing numerical frameworks that enable scientists from multiple disciplines to communicate and combine their results and expertise.

Leslie Smith, a groundwater hydrology expert with Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, earned a NSERC Synergy Award for Innovation for his work as part of the Diavik Waste Rock Research Project. The project is working to develop better mine waste management—minimizing and preventing acid rock drainage. The 10-year collaboration involving a multidisciplinary team from three Canadian universities and engineers at the Diavik Diamond Mine has determined what causes mining waste and produced methods to predict the effects it will have on the environment.

The research team’s techniques are now working their way around the globe, helping mining companies worldwide design more cost-effective mitigation strategies that better protect the environment.

Leslie Smith, a groundwater hydrology expert with Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, earned a NSERC Synergy Award for Innovation for his work as part of the Diavik Waste Rock Research Project.

Chris Balma
balma@science.ubc.ca
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