RRG's Key Personnel:

Dennis R. Neuman (Analytical Chemist) recently retired as Director and Research Scientist in the Reclamation Research Unit, and Assistant Research Professor in the Land Resources & Environmental Sciences Department at Montana State University. For the past 30 years, he has been involved in land reclamation/restoration research and policy issues on drastically disturbed sites in the West. These lands include semi-arid areas strip mined for coal, historic hard rock mines, abandoned mineral mines, transportation corridors, and some of the nation's largest Superfund sites. Emphasis has been of ameliorating plant limiting conditions (acidity, phytotoxicity, and fertility), species selection, and monitoring vegetation and soil response variables. Soil column studies, greenhouse investigations, and large scale field studies have been conducted. Neuman has helped establish reclamation/restoration policy for state and federal land management (USFS, BLM) and risk management (USEPA) agencies. Neuman is the chairman and co-convener of the Billings Land Reclamation Symposia series, former chairman of the Western Coordinating Committee (USDA) on Revegetation and Stabilization of Deteriorated and Altered Lands. Neuman is currently a member of American Society of Mining and Reclamation's National Executive Committee and was recently named President-elect of the Society. Mr. Neuman is continuing his land reclamation career as a principal in the environmental consultancy firm, Reclamation Research Group, LLC. 
E-mail address: dneuman@reclamationresearch.net

Stuart Jennings (Environmental Geologist) received his B.S. degree in Geology and M.S. degree in Land Rehabilitation. He has 19 years of work experience in disturbed land rehabilitation at mine, Superfund, transportation and recreation sites. His recent research focus has been the development of revegetation strategies for metal and arsenic contaminated land associated with historic releases of mine waste into riparian systems currently used for recreation and agriculture.  Mr. Jennings served as principal investigator at Montana State University on several research projects including stormwater control on construction sites (funded by EPA), water quality monitoring at a coal-fired power plant (funded by Battelle-Pacific), compost application on steep slopes for enhanced vegetation development (funded by the Montana Department of Transportation) and evaluation of reclaimed hardrock mine sites (U.S. Forest Service). His research interests include geochemical processes in mine waste, water quality protection and native plant restoration. Mr. Jennings is also active in community service projects involving land rehabilitation of public properties. 
E-mail address: sjennings@reclamationresearch.net

Pam Blicker (Natural Resource Scientist).  Ms. Blicker's expertise centers on studying and implementing revegetation techniques at areas disturbed by human activities.  Monitoring and reclamation evaluation protocols have been the focus of several recent projects including a reclamation evaluation process that looks at the effectiveness of reclamation at abandoned mines on public lands in the Northern Rockies. Additionally, Ms. Blicker has been involved with the development of a vegetation database and data analysis methods for quantifying baseline vegetation at eastern Montana coal mines.  Ms. Blicker uses GIS to produce maps for multiple Superfund sites within Montana's Clark Fork River Basin and other project locations throughout the region.  Due to her special interest in the detection, monitoring, mapping, control and eradication of noxious weeds, Ms. Blicker has been involved with the development of several Weed Management Plans and weed mapping projects.  She also participates in document reviews, field oversight, collection and monitoring of water, plant, and soil samples as well as data analysis and species selection. Ms. Blicker's specific interests include plant community ecology, noxious weed issues, data management, GIS, and evaluating the effectiveness of reclamation efforts.
E-mail address: pblicker@reclamationresearch.nett

Frank Munshower, PhD., (Plant Ecology).  Retired Director of the Reclamation Research Unit and Emeritus Research Professor (Montana State University), Dr. Munshower is a Plant Ecologist specializing in the investigation of heavy metal toxicity in soil and plants. Dr. Munshower's research has involved problems related to plant inhibition due to root zone trace elements associated with surface coal and metal mines, establishment of vegetation on active and abandoned mine wastes, revegetation of tailings and mill waste, and capping of coal ash disposal ponds. He continues to perform research activities involving vegetation establishment on the multiple Superfund sites within the Clark Fork River Basin and on industry and private lands near Colstrip, Montana. He is author of the book entitled "Practical Handbook of Disturbed Land Revegetation" published by Lewis Publishers.
E-mail address:  fmunshower@reclamationresearch.net

Loren Barber has a B.S. degree in Biomedical Sciences and an M.S. in Land Rehabilitation. Loren’s past project experience emphasizes human and ecological risk assessment,both as a research scientist at Reclamation Research Group and as a research associate at Montana State University. Her most recent projects includeseveral for the U.S. Forest Service: construction oversight at Riley Pass, South Dakota (abandoned uranium mine), staff training on Soil Bioengineering and Native Plant Revegetation, and risk assessment at theForest Rose Mine Site, near Missoula, Montana. Her specialties include GPS, GIS, and database compilation. Lorenalso has international experience in environmental health in Mongolia’s Darhad Valley, where she completed a dietary risk assessment for the Darhad residents on a traditionally-consumed saline soil for its nutritional values.
E-mail address: lbarber@reclamationresearch.net