Michael Barber

Dr. Michael Barber is a Professor in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Utah. He holds a BS from the University of New Hampshire, MS from Purdue University, and PhD from the University of Texas-Austin. His expertise spans hydrology, water resources, climate change impacts, and environmental engineering. He teaches courses on water resources, hydraulic design, and ecological modeling, and oversees the department’s academic and research activities.

Education:

• BS in Civil Engineering, University of New Hampshire, 1981
• MS in Civil & Environmental Engineering, Purdue University, 1983
• PhD in Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Texas-Austin, 1992

Research Interests: Dr. Barber focuses on climate change impacts on water quantity/quality, groundwater modeling, and sustainable water management. His work integrates field investigations and numerical modeling, particularly in river-groundwater interactions, bioenergy’s water demand implications, and aquifer storage solutions. Recent research includes studies on cyanobacterial blooms, wildfire effects on floods, and remote sensing for evapotranspiration.

Articles Overview: His recent publications emphasize climate change adaptation, harmful algal blooms, and watershed management. Key themes include nutrient dynamics in freshwater systems, nonstationary hydrology for low-flow projections, and UAV-Landsat integration for water resource optimization. His work bridges ecological and engineering challenges in water sustainability.

Grants and Advising: Dr. Barber advises graduate students on thesis research and collaborates on grants addressing climate resilience, water policy, and environmental engineering. He has led multi-stakeholder projects on consensus-building for water management strategies.

Labs/Teams: While specific labs are not mentioned, his research involves collaborative teams on projects like the Great Salt Lake resilience analysis and Jordan River water quality frameworks.