University of Tennessee
Subsurface Observatory Science Lead
tchazen@utk.edu
(707) 631-6763
Terry Hazen, the Subsurface Observatory Science Lead, has a background in environmental microbiology, especially related to bioremediation and bacterial stress. Terry maintains close collaboration with the executive and project leads in administration, management, and operations of the project, focusing on accomplishing the goals and deliverables.
Hazen has dedicated the past 20-plus years to unraveling what discoveries lie beneath the Y-12 National Security Complex. The complex first began refining uranium during World War II and has a history of hazardous groundwater contamination, not only from uranium but also acids, heavy metals, and nitrates.
Terry’s work anchors ENIGMA’s ongoing field activities to install Subsurface Observatories as sampling portals into the field site for the high-resolution data collection on a time, space, and replicate schedule to allow for meaningful statistics. These observatories will allow ENIGMA researchers to work with samples and data collected directly from the automated samplers at a frequency that will allow for high-resolution observation of microbial processes.
Research efforts in the laboratory of Dr. Hazen at the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory drive the ENIGMA SFA understanding of the program field site by providing detailed and often continuous analysis of the field site lithography, hydrology, meteorology, groundwater, and gas evolution chemistry and microbial interactions.
UTK directed laboratory-based analysis of these field samples will include molecular microbiology and analytical chemistry-related assays and techniques to understand the microbial community structure, including the emerging UMB fraction, abundance, and activity. In addition, this laboratory will serve as the base for PHREEQC/ModelMuse and RockWorks analysis for the generation of high-resolution 3D models of the lithography of the field site overlayed with transport models to determine the flow and presence of parameters of interest through the subsurface.
Relevant Publications
ENIGMA, Hazen Highlighted in University of Tennessee Feature - Terry Hazen, now the ENIGMA Subsurface Observatory Science Lead, discusses his journey with ENIGMA and current research interests. More →
Nuclear Waste Sites Yield Microbial Ecosystem Insights - In a flagship seven-year study, published this January in the journal Nature Microbiology, ENIGMA researchers explored how environmental stresses influence the composition and structure of microbial communities in the groundwater of the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR), a former nuclear waste disposal site. More →
Rainfall Impacts Hydrology Of Test Site More Than Field Sampling - ENIGMA researchers measured physical and geochemical effects of cone penetrometer testing on nearby shallow groundwater wells. They found that the effects of cone penetration on water level and conductivity were minimal. More →
Examining adaptations of a dominant bacterial species at a contaminated subsurface site - Leveraging comparative genomics, community analysis, and geochemical data to understand adaptations that facilitate survival of a dominant community member in the contaminated Oak Ridge Reservation subsurface. More →
Environmental exposure history is critical in groundwater contaminant attenuation - Paradis, CJ, JI Miller, J-W Moon, SJ Spencer, LM Lui, JD Van Nostrand, D Ning, AD Steen, LD McKay, AP Arkin, J Zhou, EJ Alm, TC Hazen Sustained Ability of a Natural Microbial Community to Remove Nitrate from Groundwater (2021) Groundwater [DOI]:10.1111/gwat.13132 OSTI:1807518 A consortium of ENIGMA researchers at University of Tennessee, Oak Ridge National Lab, MIT, Berkeley Lab, University… More →
Terry Hazen Receives 2021 ASM Award for Environmental Research - The 2021 ASM Award for Environmental Research recognizes an outstanding scientist with distinguished research achievements that have improved our understanding of microbes in the environment, including aquatic, terrestrial, and atmospheric settings. For more information click through to see all ASM Awardees https://asm.org/Academy/Award-Winners He will be presented the award on June 23rd, 2021 at the joint virtual international World… More →