Stephen Ebbs Email & Phone Number

The broad focus of my laboratory’s research involves questions at the interface between pollutants, plants, and the soil-water environment. Having been trained in ecotoxicology, I am interested first and foremost in the pollutants and their fate. By working with plants, I have the opportunity to focus on a variety of questions of importance to both environmental and human health. From an empirical perspective, the central questions addressed with my work include:* What are the phytotoxic effects of the pollutants?* How do plants detoxify or tolerate the pollutants?* Does the accumulation of the pollutant in plants pose a risk to animal consumers of those plants?In examining these questions, my work has involved different combinations of pollutants and plants. The pollutants of continuing interest include Cd, Zn, cyanide, and metal cyanides while past work has examined Au, Cu, Pb, As, Se, radionuclides (137Cs, 90Sr), and uranium. More recently, collaborative work is examining engineered nanoparticles and automotive friction materials. This empirical includes fundamental studies of plant uptake and transport of contaminants, physiological effects of pollutants on plants, interactions of pollutants with mineral nutrients, phytotoxicity, hyperaccumulation, tolerance, and detoxification. My work also focuses on the biogeochemistry of pollutants and their trophic transfer to wildlife and humans. I also have a long standing interest in phytotechnologies such as phytoremediation, phytomining, and green roofs. While some field work in these areas has been performed with collaborators, work on phytotechnologies in my laboratory principally involves basic research that contributes to the development of those techniques.

Listed skills include Science, Botany, University Teaching, Field Work, and 18 others.