Special Research Facilities in the Department of Soil, Water & Environmental Science

The Water Resources Research Center (WRRC)

The WRRC was established in 1957 to facilitate university research at all three Arizona universities on water problems of critical importance to the state and region. Located within the College of Agriculture at The University of Arizona, the WRRC administers the Federal 104 grant program authorized by the Water Resources Research Act of 1964.

Related missions are to communicate water-related research needs from research users to researchers and to report research findings to potential users of that information. An expertise directory available on the WRRC web site includes information from researchers at the UA, ASU, and NAU; a similar directory includes information from researchers throughout the Southwest. The goal is to make all data and research results that were collected over the years more accessible to the public.

The WRRC also works with public and private organizations and individuals and provides information and services through a publications program, including two newsletters (Arroyo and Arizona Water Resource), conferences and symposia, and through outreach.

For more information, contact Water Resources Research Center College of Agriculture The University of Arizona 350 N. Campbell Ave Tucson, AZ 85721 (520) 792-9591
Web site: http://ag.arizona.edu/azwater/

Soil, Water and Plant Analysis Laboratory (SWPAL)

As a service unit, this laboratory is available to support research, extension and instruction activities located in the Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science, other departments within the College of Agriculture, and The University of Arizona at large. This on-campus facility performs most routine soil, water, plant tissue, and waste analyses utilized in environmental monitoring, soil fertility, and plant nutrition. Where applicable, EPA-approved methods have been adopted for the analysis of water, soils, and wastes.

Major analytical equipment available at SWPAL includes an ion chromatograph, emission spectrometer, microwave digestion oven, elemental C-N-S analyzer, scanning UV-Vis spectrophotometer, and flow-through analyzer, along with a wide array of support equipment.

For more information, contact Soil, Water & Plant Analysis Laboratory Shantz Building #38, Room 431 Tucson, AZ 85721 (520) 621-9703 Web site: http://ag.arizona.edu/SWES/

Environmental Research Laboratory (ERL)

The ERL is a teaching and research unit within the Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science in the College of Agriculture. Located at Tucson International Airport, the ERL is an internationally recognized center dedicated to studying ways to better understand and improve how we live in the desert. For 30 years, its faculty have investigated and showcased opportunities for establishing a more resource-conscious and sustainable relationship with our fragile desert environment.

The Laboratory maintains more than 63,000 square feet of offices, laboratories, and controlled experimental facilities on-site. These include an oasis designed to display resource-conscious concepts for living in arid regions by creating an outdoor environment that is comfortable year-round. The ERL also has access to experimental field plots on the desert seacoast (Gulf of California) near Puerto Penasco, Mexico.

Areas of expertise include:

1. environmental planning,
2. warm water aquaculture with particular emphasis on intensive penaeid shrimp and tilapia culture,
3. seaweed culture,
4. greenhouse agriculture with emphasis on vegetable production,
5. soil-plant relationships,
6. soil chemistry,
7. culture of halophytes (salt-tolerant plants) for both agronomic crops and landscape plantings,
8. low energy use environmental control systems for building interiors as well as adjacent exterior space, and
9. environmental science and engineering with emphasis on water quality and resource remediation.

Faculty have conducted projects with Disney’s EPCOT in Florida; shrimp culture in Oahu, Hawaii; fish hatcheries in Arizona, France and Colombia; and seawater irrigated agriculture in the Middle East and Mexico, to name just a few.

ERL has a long tradition of outreach and service to the community, from monthly public tours to special events in support of community endeavors. For the last two years, ERL has been host to the Solar and Renewable Resource Adventure. The fall event showcases the community’s commitment to making Tucson more resource-conscious.

For more information, contact Environmental Research Laboratory 2601 E. Airport Drive Tucson, AZ 85706-6985 Tel. (520) 741-1990 FAX: (520) 573-0852
Home page: http://ag.arizona.edu/azaqua/erlhome.html

Document part of 1997 The Agricultural Experiment Station Today
Located at http://ag.arizona.edu/pubs/general/azlp46-1/special_fac.html
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