16 - Erin Haacker - Nebraska Groundwater

Erin Haacker is a hydrogeologist and assistant professor at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. As Erin would say, her professional path has been a winding road. She has two bachelor’s degrees – zoology from the University of Montana and geology from University College Cork in Ireland. She ventured to Michigan State University for her Ph.D., double majoring in environmental science and policy and is now teaching in UNL’s Department of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences.

Erin is interested in groundwater management, especially in terms of profit and risk. She likes to ask thought-provoking questions such as how people adapt to natural resources and how that can be represented in physical and statistical models.

In this episode, Frances Hayes, DWFI director of communications and public relations, and Erin discuss the interconnections of groundwater and surface water in Nebraska, as well as the role agriculture plays in the equation.