Dr. Suresh Sharma, originally from Nepal, completed his BS in Civil Engineering from Pulchowk Engineering Campus, Nepal in 2000, and also MS in Water Resources Engineering from the same University. Dr. Sharma completed his PhD from Auburn University, Auburn, AL in 2012. Before coming to YSU, Dr. Sharma worked for several years for the government in Nepal as a Civil Engineer on rural infrastructure projects.

Dr. Sharma recently received a grant of $48,562 from the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District. The Tappan and Atwood Lakes located in Muskingum Watershed have experienced significant nutrient enrichment and frequent algal blooms due to non-point source pollution from various locations of the watershed. The Atwood Lake supplies water to few locations in Carroll County, whereas the Tappan Lake is the source of drinking water for the village of Cadiz. The grant provides for one graduate student to assist Dr. Sharma in this research for two years.

Dr. Sharma and his team will collaborate with the watershed specialist of Caroll and Harrison Counties to collect nutrient data. Once the water quality samples are analyzed, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) developed by the graduate student will be utilized to experiment with various best management practices (BMPs) and suggest viable strategies for nutrient and algal bloom reduction. The BMPs include the two-stage ditch, grass waterways, reduction of fertilizer application, use of cover crops, tillage management, filter strips, and additional sewage treatment.

The team will coordinate with federal agencies to incorporate the scientific information in modeling, and will coordinate with local agencies to inform the community about the potential water quality issues. The Carroll and Harrison County commissioners are in support of the project and can provide valuable local insight. They will prepare a detailed outreach plan to ensure their active participation and collaboration in this research.

1. Ghimire, Ekaraj, Suresh Sharma. “Flood Damage Assessment in HAZUS Using Various Resolution of Data, and One- Dimensional (1D) and Two-Dimensional (2D) HEC-RAS Depth Grids, Natural Hazards Review, (2020), DOI:10.1061/(ASCE)NH.1527-6996.0000430.

2. Dhungel, Hari, Suresh Sharma, Rajesh Bhatt, and Krishna Dhakal. "Monitoring ungauged watersheds for investigating the variability of flow and salinity to implement the possible removal of salt fill sites." Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 192, no. 12 (2020): 1-19.

3. Ghimire, Ekaraj, Suresh Sharma, and Niraj Lamichhane. "Evaluation of one-dimensional and two-dimensional HEC-RAS models to predict flood travel time and

inundation area for flood warning system." ISH Journal of Hydraulic Engineering (2020): 1-17.

4. Lamichhane, Niraj, Suresh Sharma, and Abhijit Sharma Subedi. "Effects of climate change in winter ice cover and ice thickness in flooding: a case study of Grand River, Ohio, USA." ISH Journal of Hydraulic Engineering (2020): 1-15.

5. Shrestha, Sabin, Suresh Sharma. “Assessment of climate change impact on high flows in a watershed characterized with flood regulating reservoirs”, International Journal of Agricultural and Biological Engineering (Fully Accepted) (2021), Issue 1, Vol. 14.