Joseph Maser

 
 

Last updated 14 July 2003.

Links
ESR 102

ESR429/529

ESR 424/524

Nehalem River Watershed Assessment

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Introduction

I am currently an Assistant Professor of Environmental Science at Portland State University. Prior joining Portland State in the Spring quarter of 1996, I was an environmental consultant for 17 years preparing numerous environmental impact statements, water quality studies, wetland studies and wildlife studies throughout the United States. Before becoming an environmental consultant, I was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Roche Institute of Molecular Biology.
 

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Research Interests

I am interested in the general areas of wetland ecology and regulations. In particular, my research interests are focused on the effectiveness of wetland mitigation projects to compensate for ecological functions lost due to anthropogenic activities. The mitigation sites I have studied were upland areas designed and constructed to mimic existing wetland areas. The studies, done in New Jersey, New York, Delaware and Oregon, measured hydrological activity, vegetative community structure and species composition and wildlife use at the mitigation sites. These measured functions were compared to control areas (upland areas similar to pre-mitigation conditions) and existing wetlands which were mimicked by the mitigation design.

 I am also interested in the effect of wetland regulations on land use and development patterns and the effect of wetland mitigation policies on ecological functions at a landscape level.
 

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Teaching

I have developed and taught four courses in the Environmental Studies Program: environmental regulations and policy; wetland ecology and regulations; coastal ecology and wetland plant identification. I have developed and taught courses for the University Studies program of Portland State University, including two courses in natural science inquiry and a course in environmental sustainability. I have also directed student projects including: a wetland delineation in Troutdale, OR; a ground water monitoring program in Vancouver, WA; and an assessment of transportation improvements in Gresham, OR.
 

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Recent Publications

Maser, J.A. and Martin, J. 1997. 1997 Government Island Wetland Mitigation Monitoring Report. Prepared for the Port of Portland.

 Maser, J.A., and Tolman, D. 1997. Using Watersheds to Teach the Scientific Method and Critical Thinking to Non-science Majors. Presented at the Lilly Conference on College Teaching - Northwest.

 Maser, J.A., Tolman, D., Weston, S. and Ritson-Williams, R. 1996. Wetland Determination and Delineation of Thousand Acres Area of Sandy River Delta. Prepared for USDA Forest Service and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

 Maser, J.A. 1996. Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Bal'diyaka Interpretive Center. Prepared for the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management and the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians.
 

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