At the Baker Environmental Hydraulics Laboratory (BEHL), we experimentally study processes pertaining to the movement and interaction of water, sediment, vegetation, nutrients, contaminates, and manmade structures and machines in fluvial and estuarine systems – including both surface and groundwater. We are interested in understanding the basic dynamics of natural river and coastal systems as well as their interaction with mankind and the build environment.

The aim of all of our work is to understand the underlying physics involved in river and estuarine systems so that we can develop tools that can be used to more accurately predict the system behavior.

Improving understanding and modeling in the broad fields of river mechanics and environmental fluid mechanics aids responsible management of river and coastal resources, allows for better practical and sustainable engineering solutions, and gives a more accurate picture of earth’s river and coastal history and its future trajectory under a changing climate.