Stacey Sloan Blersch

• Stream and wetland restoration
• Hydrological and hydraulic engineering in streams

Stacey Sloan Blersch joined the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering at the University of Buffalo (UB) in the Fall of 2008 to pursue a PhD in environmental engineering as an NSF fellow in UB’s Ecosystem Restoration through Interdisciplinary Exchange (ERIE) Program. She attained an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame in 1993 and a M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from Johns Hopkins University in 1999. Prior to starting her doctoral studies, Ms. Blersch worked as a watershed and restoration planner both in the private and public sector in the Chesapeake Bay region for 15 years. Most recently, she worked as a project manager and planner for the US Army Corps of Engineers Baltimore District, focusing on ecosystem restoration in highly urbanized or disturbed areas in the greater Washington DC Metropolitan area. Her project planning experience in the Chesapeake Bay led to questions about ecosystem response and recovery as a result of restoration planning efforts.  As an ERIE Fellow at UB, she is studying the linkages between ecological processes and restoration practice in the Western New York region to help develop design criteria and tools for future restoration efforts. 

• BS in Mechanical Engineering (Notre Dame, 1993)
• MS in Environmental Science and Policy (Johns Hopkins, 1999)

Publications

Bennett, S.J., Simon, A., Castro, J.M., Atkinson, J.F., Bronner, C.E., Blersch, S.S., and Rabideau, A.J. The evolving science of stream restoration, in Stream Restoration in Dynamic Fluvial Systems: Scientific Approaches, Analyses, and Tools, Geophysical Monograph Series, Volume 194. A. Simon, S. J. Bennett & J. M. Castro (Eds.), pp. 1-8, American Geophysical Union (AGU), Washington, D.C. (2011).

Blersch, Stacey S. 2003. Anacostia River Estuary Restoration: A case study in adaptive management in Washington, DC. Ecological Restoration 21:48.

Blersch, Stacey S. 2002. The Anacostia River of the 21st Century: Restoration of an estuary in the nation’s capital.  National Wetlands Newsletter 24(6): 7-10.

Presentations

Burks-Copes, K.A., Blersch, S.S. & Bridges, T.S. (2012, November). Incorporating ecosystem services into the evaluation, operations and maintenance of US Army Corps of Engineers Projects. Paper presented at the 4th International Ecosummit, Columbus, Ohio.

Blersch, S.S. (2012, October). Hydraulic signatures of ecosystem integrity: a modelling framework for evaluating stream restoration techniques. Paper presented at the Fourth International EcoSummit, Columbus, Ohio.

Blersch, D.M., Blersch, S.S., Habberfield, M., Hannes, I., Malzone, J., & Whiteway, S. (2012, June). The disconnect between ecosystem services concept and ecosystem function in stream restoration: where do we go from here? Paper presented at the 12th Annual American Ecological Engineering Society Meeting, Syracuse, New York.

Blersch, Stacey S., "A modeling framework for evaluating stream restoration techniques and ecosystem response." Poster session presented at the Fourth National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration, Baltimore, MD. (2011, August)

Blersch, Stacey S., Habberfield, Michael. “Comparison of rapid assessment techniques for signatures of dynamic equilibrium in a disturbed stream”. Poster presented at 2009 AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco CA, December 14-18, 2009.

Blersch, Stacey S. “Urban watershed restoration planning using Arc GIS to determine benefits of restoration options in the Cameron Run Watershed”. Poster presented at Third National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration, Los Angeles, CA, July 20-24, 2009.

Blersch, Stacey S. “Comparison of stream assessment techniques to determine the degree of instability in the system in a Western New York stream”. Poster presented at Third National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration, Los Angeles, CA, July 20-24, 2009.

Blersch, Stacey S., Rabideau, A. J. “A Conceptual Model for Stream Restoration in Western New York: A Developing Case Study in the Elton Creek Watershed.” Poster presented at the 2009 AGU Joint Assembly, Toronto, ON, May 2009.

Blersch, S., J. Nestler. “Development of a Conceptual Model for the Potomac Watershed.” First National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration. Orlando, FL, Dec 6-10, 2004.

Blersch, S., H. Karimi. “Stream Restoration or Stormwater Management: Setting Priorities in Urban Watersheds.” Chesapeake Bay Watershed Restoration Conference. Baltimore, MD. Sept 24-26, 2003.

Blersch, S., H. Karimi, S. Pugh. “Restoring the Anacostia Estuary: A Developing Case Study in Federal/Municipal Adaptive Management.” Society of Ecological Restoration/ Ecology Society of America Joint Conference. Tucson, AZ. Aug 4-9, 2002.

Blersch, S. “Wetland Restoration in the Nation’s Capital.” Conference of State Wetland Managers, 2002.