Professional Affiliations:

National Society of Consulting Soil Scientists, 1988, President, 1997; Professional Soil Scientists Association of California, 1983, President 1987-89; Soil Science Society of America, 1977; American Society of Agronomy, 1977; Georgetown Divide Resource Conservation District, Director, 1980-present.

Certifications:

Registered Professional Soil Scientist (NSCSS); Certified Professional Soil Scientist / Soil Classifier (ARCPACS); Certified Professional Erosion and Sediment Control Specialist (CPESC); Registered Environmental Assessor (State of California); Instructor Credential, Agricultural Services and Processing, Plant Production, Forestry, Natural Resources and Related Technologies, The California Community Colleges.

Publications (partial list):

Early Agriculture in the Eastern Grand Canyon of Arizona, USA. Geoarchaeology: An International Journal, Vo. 5, No. 8, 783-798 (2000).

Erosional History of the Colorado River Through Glen and Grand Canyons. In Young, R.A. and Spamer, E. E., eds. The Colorado River Origin and Evolution: Proceedings of a Symposium Held at Grand Canyon National Monument, Grand Canyon Association Monograph #12, Grand Canyon Association, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 280 p. (2001)

The Colorado River and the Age of Glen Canyon. In Young, R.A. and Spamer, E. E., eds. The Colorado River Origin and Evolution: Proceedings of a Symposium Held at Grand Canyon National Monument, Grand Canyon Association Monograph #12, Grand Canyon Association, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 280 p. (2001)

Cyclic Aggradation and Downcutting, Fluvial Response to Volcanic Activitiy and Carlibration of Soil-Carbonate Stages in the Western Grand Canyon, Arizona. Quaternary Research 53, 23-33. (2000)

Soils Map of Quarternary Flood Plain of Colorado River, From Palisades to Unkar, Grand Canyon National Park. Detailed soil map of Quarternary flood plain of the Colorado River from Palisades to Unkar, Grand Canyon National Park, as part of United States Bureau of Reclamation, Glen Canyon Environmental Studies Environmental Impact Statement on Operation of Glen Canyon Dam. (1995)

Soil Development Correlating With Cosmogenic Radionuclide Dating Techniques on Quaternary Alluvial Surface, Rainbow Plateau, Utah. A part of the Gilbert Fellowship Quaternary (?) Deposits On The Rainbow Plateau, T. Hanks, I. Lucchitta, Co-investigators, U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA. (1995)

Relations Between Soils and Geomorphic Age in the Grand Canyon, Arizona and Rainbow Plateau, Utah, Geological Society of America, Seattle, WA, October, 1994.

In Context

From January 25, 2007, Response to NSCSS Members Discussion: Thread 770 - NSCSS News and Views: Being a Client of Soil Science Education.

My curriculum at UC Davis in 1976 focused on soils, which largely means chemistry, calculus, physics, with electives in biology, ecology and yes, agriculture. I have been running my own consulting company for 25 years, after having worked for an engineer for a four years mapping soils on US Forest Service lands and then running some big and complicated construction projects in the eastern Central Valley of California. My clients include US Geological Survey, US Bureau of Reclamation, the CA State Attorneys General Office, engineers, archaeologists, hydrologists, architects, planners, developers, contractors, farmers and I have even taught part-time at a community college for 12 years. Beyond my BS degree, I had the good fortune and privilege to work under two of perhaps the most experienced field soil scientists in California, or the west for that matter, both retired from the NRCS, and a few of their colleagues. It took five years of very intensive field investigations, mapping soils, assessing drainage conditions, running percolation tests, designing and inspecting onsite sewage systems, attending geomorphology field trips, to become comfortable enough to make the "call" in the field that a consultant has to do. By spending the time at each soil pit and completely filling out the NRCS 232 field sheet I learned that I had all the information I needed to make what ever soil interpretation is necessary for nearly any application. The USDA Soil Survey program and the National Cooperative Soil Survey are the keystone of field investigations. They have developed standards that no other profession has in evaluating soil bodies and landforms. They have come up with the guidelines for Hydric soils that are germane to Clean Water Act regulations. There are few regulators in the agencies in charge of that program that have a clue as to how to tell a true Hydric soil from one with only a Mollic or Umbric epipedon, especially if they are supporting facultative hydrophytic vegetation.

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