Terry Hazen

Terry C. Hazen serves as the UT-ORNL Governor's Chair for Environmental Biotechnology at the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Appointed in 2011, he holds professorial appointments in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, with joint appointments in the Department of Microbiology and the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences. He works closely with the UT-ORNL Joint Institute for Biological Sciences and ORNL's Biological Sciences Division. Hazen formerly directed UT's Institute for Secure and Sustainable Environment (ISSE) and its Methane Center, contributing significantly to environmental biotechnology research and education.

Hazen's educational background includes:

• Bachelor of Science with honors in Interdepartmental Biology from Michigan State University (1973)
• Master of Science in Interdepartmental Biology (Parasitology specialty) from Michigan State University (1974)
• Doctor of Philosophy in Microbial Ecology from Wake Forest University (1978)

Hazen's research focuses on environmental biotechnology, particularly how microorganisms can remediate industrial waste in water bodies. His work spans microbial ecology in stressed environments, including oil spill remediation (notably the Deepwater Horizon incident), wastewater monitoring for pathogens like SARS-CoV-2, and nitrate contamination in groundwater systems. He investigates how microbial communities respond to environmental stressors, with applications in nuclear waste sites and agricultural runoff. His research bridges fundamental microbial ecology with practical environmental engineering solutions, emphasizing the role of microbial communities in maintaining ecosystem health and providing bioremediation services.

Hazen's recent publications demonstrate a clear trajectory focusing on microbial community responses to environmental stressors. His work spans wastewater epidemiology for pandemic monitoring, bioremediation of nitrate and metal contaminants, and microbial responses to oil spills. A unifying theme is understanding how microbial communities assemble and function in contaminated environments, with particular attention to groundwater systems. His research increasingly integrates omics technologies to understand microbial community dynamics at a systems level, while maintaining a strong applied focus on environmental remediation technologies.

Hazen has received significant recognition for his contributions to environmental microbiology:

• Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology
• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Two R&D100 awards
• Federal Technology Transfer Medal
• American Society for Microbiology Career Award for Environmental Research (2020)

Hazen has mentored numerous graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, with current PhD students including Isis Fukai, Diliya Murtazina, Chase K. Yancey, and Grace E. Brucker. His research has been supported by multiple grants from the Department of Energy, including funding for the SubSurface Observatory (SSO) project studying microbial communities at the Y-12 National Security Complex. He has also received funding from British Petroleum through the Energy Biosciences Institute and has collaborated on numerous industry partnerships. Hazen holds five patents on bioremediation technologies that have been licensed by more than 50 companies worldwide.

Hazen leads the Hazen Laboratory, which maintains facilities at both the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. His team operates the SubSurface Observatory (SSO), a grid of wells near the Y-12 National Security Complex's S-3 Waste Disposal Ponds, to study microbial communities in nitrate-contaminated groundwater. The lab also manages wastewater monitoring systems for pandemic surveillance and conducts research on oil spill remediation. His team includes research associates, technicians, and graduate students working across multiple projects focused on environmental biotechnology and microbial ecology.