EDUCATION:

Ph.D., Geography, 2006, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
M.S., Geology, 2001, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, TX
B.S., Geology, 1999, Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, PA

GEOLOGY COURSES:

Geology 1000: The Physical Earth
Geology 2000: Plate Tectonics and Earth History
Geology 2300: Sedimentary Geology
Geology 3100: Geomorphology
Geology 3510: Yellowstone Field Study

RESEARCH PROGRAM:

My field of research is fluvial geomorphology, with an emphasis on geomorphic processes in streams of the coastal plain on the Gulf Coast. I have previously conducted research on the semi-arid fluvial systems of the Chihuahuan desert of the southwestern United States, investigating Quaternary alluvial fan formation using paleoflood analysis and environmental reconstruction. I emphasize the use of field-based studies in my research on geomorphic change, as fieldwork is an indispensable tool for investigating systems that incorporate both surficial processes and human impacts over varying temporal and spatial scales.

My dissertation research focused on the fluvial geomorphology of the Texas coastal plain, the development of which can inform us on the complex responses of large river systems to long-term climate change coupled with short-term anthropogenic forcings. A geologically recent factor overwriting much of the coastal plain evolution is the influence of anthropogenic alterations to the landscape. The recent decline in Texas coastal wetlands has been attributed to subsurface fluid withdrawal, roads, levees, canals, and upstream impoundments. The downstream responses of rivers to these perturbations are complex and variable, and often dependent upon local factors. Although most previous research has focused on dammed trunk streams, little attention has been focused on the impacts of the tributaries downstream of an impoundment. In my dissertation, I explore these effects of damming on downstream tributaries. By comparing channel planform and geomorphic indicators of change at tributary-trunk stream junctions, I determined that these areas are sensitive to geomorphic change. In the lower Trinity River basin, the two largest tributaries have reacted drastically different since impoundment; the first has experienced downcutting over three meters and subsequently created a delta, the second has experienced relatively little vertical change and has contributed to a mid-channel bar within the trunk stream. Further upstream on these tributaries, channel planform change has been relatively minor and sedimentological characteristics suggest alluvial storage may be buffering impoundment effects. Studies such as these are surprisingly missing in the geomorphic literature, even as government agencies are supporting river restoration and dam removal projects at record rates.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:

Phillips, J.D., Slattery, M.C., Musselman, Z.A. 2005. Channel Adjustments of the Lower Trinity River, Texas, Downstream of Livingston Dam. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 30, 1419-1439.

Phillips, J.D., Slattery, M.C., Musselman, Z.A. 2004. Dam-to-Delta Sediment Inputs and Storage in the Lower Trinity River, Texas. Geomorphology, 62, 17-34.

Musselman, Z.A. 2003. Biography of Grove Karl Gilbert. The Compass of Sigma Gamma Epsilon, 77 (2), 31-34.

Phillips, J.D., Musselman, Z.A. 2003. The Effect of Dams on Fluvial Sediment Delivery to the Texas Coast. Proceedings of Coastal Sediments, American Society of Civil Engineers, New York, 1-14.