Professor Dr. Richard Petrone

Biography

Richard Petrone is a Professor at the University of Waterloo, specializing in Geography and Environmental Management. His research focuses on understanding soil-vegetation-atmosphere interactions, particularly under varying hydrological and climatic conditions. Key areas of interest include trace gas exchange in wetland and forested systems, vegetation-hydrology-climate interactions, and the modeling of impacts due to climate and land-use stresses. He is particularly focused on high latitude systems, such as the Western Boreal Forest, and is involved in research questions related to landscape reclamation. As the lead principal investigator and node leader of the Southern Ontario Water Consortium, he examines the effects of agricultural land-use change on water quantity and quality in Southern Ontario. Additionally, he is a core faculty member of the Master’s Climate Change Program at the University. His work combines theoretical, laboratory, and fieldwork approaches to study micrometeorological and hydrological processes as well as gas exchange in heterogeneous vegetated systems. Current research projects include examining the hydrology and ecology of disturbances in the Western Boreal Forest and the restoration and reclamation of wetland ecosystems impacted by oil and gas development.

Research Interests

Courses