Education
| Ph.D. |
1989 |
Iowa State University, Soil Chemistry
Minor in Analytical Chemistry |
| M.S. |
1984 |
Iowa State University, Soil Science |
| B.S. |
1981 |
The Pennsylvania State University, Chemistry |
Professional Experience
| 7/03–present |
Professor of Soil and Environmental Chemistry, School of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH |
| 8/91-6/03 |
Professor of Soil Chemistry, Dept. of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK |
| 6/90-7/91 |
Research Soil Scientist, USDA ARS, North Central Soil Conservation Research Laboratory, Morris, MN |
Co-Director of the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-basta-032b5b22/
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Kmp3-e0AAAAJ&hl=en
Keywords
Urban soil, Soil remediation, Heavy metals in soil, Biosolids, Urban agriculture, Public health
Research Interests
My research program focuses on environmental soil chemistry
- Fundamental biogeochemical processes that affect heavy metal and trace element bioavailability, human health, and ecological risk in soil-water systems
- Development of innovative chemical methods and techniques to evaluate soil chemical processes and soil components that control bioavailability and/or risk of chemical species (e.g., nutrients, contaminants)
- Risk-based environmental chemistry of organic and inorganic pollutants in contaminated soils with emphasis on human (e.g., public health), agronomic (e.g., crop, animal), and ecotoxicity bioavailability and contaminant transmission pathways
- Development and evaluation of new technologies used for remediation of contaminated soils (e.g., in situ immobilization, bioremediation)
- Development of innovative in vitro chemical methods to evaluate the ability of new remediation methods to reduce contaminant bioavailability and risk and to evaluate the long-term environmental fate (e.g., longevity) of remediation
- Beneficial use of agricultural, industrial, and municipal by-products through land application
- Soil and environmental chemistries of by-products in agronomic/environmental systems with emphasis on their risk and environmental impact
Links to news articles
College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Science News: Spent Foundry Sand’s Second Life: OK to Use in Some Soils. April 14, 2015.
http://cfaes.osu.edu/news/articles/spent-foundry-sand%E2%80%99s-second-life-ok-use-in-some-soils
News Release. Reuse of Spent Foundry Sands Yields Environmental Benefits. USEPA Sustainable Materials Management Program. January 8, 2015.
Ohio’s high soil arsenic levels due to natural processes.
Science Daily News Release. April 16, 2014. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140416125432.htm
Soil Science Society of America Reserch News Release. April 25, 2014.
Courses offered
Environment and Natural Resources 5262: Soil Chemical Process and Environmental Quality
ENR 5262 (3 semester hr) has two 1-hr lectures and a 2-hr wet/computer laboratory.
A comprehensive study of chemical processes in soil systems that impact biogeochemical cycles and environmental quality. Modern theory of thermodynamics and kinetics of soil chemical processes. Effect of soil and environmental chemistries of agricultural/environmental systems on risk and environmental impact. Environmental soil chemistry topics including environmental fate of toxic substances, contaminant bioavailability, water quality, and remediation of contaminated soil. Course included hands-on experience with modern techniques used for soil chemical investigations including USEPA geochemical speciation models used to predict chemical reactions and chemical species in soil and aqueous environments (offered every Autumn Semester).
Environment and Natural Resources 5273: Environmental Fate and Impact of Pollutants in Soil and Water
ENR 5273 (3 semester hr) has two 1.5 hr lecture classes. (offered every Spring Semester).
An overview of pollutant sources, pollutant transport through soil and water, and environmental fate of pollutants. Soil and environmental chemistry or organic and inorganic contaminants. Pollutant transport through human and ecosystem exposure pathways.
Environment and Natural Resources 5279: Urban Soils and Ecosystem Services: Assessment and Restoration
ENR 5279 (3 semester hrs ) has one 2-hr class and one 3-hr lab. A comprehensive study focused on assessment and restoration of urban soil to provide essential ecosystem services. Urban soil laboratory provides hands-on experience with soil assessment and restoration,
Selected publications (a 5 year span)
Zhang, Xiaoqin, Elizabeth A. Dayton, Nicholas T. Basta. 2020. Predicting the modifying effect of soils on arsenic phytotoxicity and phytoaccumulation using soil properties or soil extraction methods. Environ. Pollut. 263:1-10.
Brown, Sally, James A. Ippolito, Lakhwinder Hundal, and Nicholas T. Basta. 2020. Municipal biosolids – A resource for sustainable communities. Current Opinion in Environmental Science & Health. 14:56-62
Brooke N. Stevens, Aaron R. Betts, Bradley W. Miller, Kirk G. Scheckel, Richard H. Anderson, Karen D. Bradham, Stan W. Casteel, David J. Thomas, and Nicholas T. Basta. 2018. Arsenic Speciation of Contaminated Soils/Solid Wastes and Relative Oral Bioavailability in Swine and Mice. Soil Syst. 2:1-13.
Obrycki, John F., Darryl B. Hood, Tyler Serafini, Chris Alexander, Pam Blais, Nicholas T. Basta. Public health data contextualizes soil Pb hazard management in Ohio. 2018. Journal of Public Health Manag Pract 24(2): e18-e24.
Whitacre, Shane D., Nicholas T. Basta, Brooke N. Stevens, Valerie Hanley, Richard H. Anderson, and Kirk G. Scheckel. 2017. Modification of an Existing In vitro Method to Predict Relative Bioavailable Arsenic in Soils. Chemosphere 180:545-552.
Obrycki, John F, Nicholas T. Basta, Robyn S. Wilson. 2017. Evaluating public and regulatory acceptance for urban soil management approaches. J. Environ. Qual. 46: 20-26. doi:10.2134/jeq2016.06.0230.
Obrycki, John F, Kirk G. Scheckel, and Nicholas T. Basta. 2017. Soil solution interactions may limit Pb remediation using P amendments in an urban soil. Environ Pollut. 220:549-556.
Obrycki, John F., Nicholas T. Basta, Steven W. Culman. 2017. Management Options for Contaminated Urban Soils to Reduce Public Exposure and Maintain Soil Health. J. Environ. Qual. 46(2): 420-430.
Beyer, Nelson, W., Nicholas T. Basta, Rufus Chaney, Paula F. P. Henry, Thomas May, David Mosby, Barnett A. Rattner, Kirk G. Scheckel, Daniel Sprague. Bioaccessibility tests accurately estimate bioavailability of lead to quail. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 35: 2311–2319, 2016.
Basta, N.T., D.M. Busalacchi, L.S. Hundal, K. Kumar, R.P. Dick, R.P. Lanno, J. Carlson, A.E. Cox, and T.C. Granato. 2016. Restoring ecosystem function in degraded urban soil using biosolids, biosolids blend and compost. Special Issue: Soil in the City. J. Environ. Qual. 45(1): 74-83.
Obrycki, John F., Nicholas T. Basta, Kirk Scheckel, Albert Juhasz, Brooke N. Stevens, and Kristen K. Minca. 2016. Phosphorus amendment efficacy on soil Pb depends upon bioaccessible method conditions. Special Issue: Soil in the City J. Environ. Qual. 45(1): 37-44.
Yuqin Jiao, Wansoo Im, Mohammad Z. Al-Hamdan, John Obrycki, Nicholas Basta, Allison Wilder, Claire Bollinger, Tongwen Zhang, Charmi Patel, Denerica Curry, Michael Allen, Jessica Hamilton, Yvonne Efebera, Slessor Fombang, Elizabeth L. Singh, Premal Bhatt, John Boudouris, Alyson Gray, Daniel Collins, Jen Eggerichs, Iness Jedidi, Ludie Hatten Sr., Jerrie Hatten, Yvonne Davis, Sylvia Parker, Lauretta Freeman, Diane Davis, Phenon Lowery, Richard C. Williams, Tony Freeman and Darryl B. Hood. 2014. Development of Educational PPGIS Risk-Communication Tools and Application to Evaluating Urban Soils. In Proceedings from the 2014 Minority Health and Health Disparities Grantees' Conference, as a Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH). J. Community Medicine. http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/13/1/11.
Heather Henry , Marisa F. Naujokas , Chammi Attanayake , Nicholas T. Basta , Zhongqi Cheng, Ganga M. Hettiarachchi , Mark Maddaloni , Christopher Schadt , and Kirk G. Scheckel. 2015. Bioavailability-based in situ remediation to meet future lead (Pb) standards in urban soils and gardens. Environ. Sci. Technol. 49 (15), pp 8948–8958.
Michelle L. Kaiser, Michele L. Williams, Nicholas Basta, Michelle Hand, Sarah Huber. 2015. When vacant lots become urban gardens: Characterizing the perceived and actual food safety concerns of urban agriculture in Ohio. In press.
Li, Jie, Kan Li, Xin-Yi Cui, N.T. Basta, Li-Ping Li, Hong-Bo Li, and L.Q. Ma. 2015. In press. In vitro bioaccessibility and in vivo relative bioavailability in 12 contaminated soils: method comparison and method development. Science of the Total Environment.
Carlson, J., J. Saxena, N. Basta, L. HUndal, D. Busalacchi. 2015. Application of organic amendments to restore degraded soil: effects on microbial properties. Environ. Monit. Assess 187(3):1-15.
Books / Book Chapters
Basta,N.T., Alyssa M. Zearley, Jeffory A. Hattey, and Douglas L. Karlen. 2021. A Risk-Based Soil Health Approach to Management of Soil Lead. In: D.L. Karlen, D.E. Stott, and M.M. Mikha (eds). Soil Health: Vol. 1: Approaches to Soil Health Analysis, Chapter 7, Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) & Wiley International, SSSA, Madison, WI.
Obrycki J.F., K.K. Minca, and N.T. Basta. 2016. Screening for Soil Lead Contamination Using a Common Soil Test Method. In Sowing Seeds in the City: Municipal and Ecological Considerations (S. Brown, K. McIvor and E. Snyder (eds.), Springer, NY.
Basta, N.T. and A. Juhasz. 2014. Chapter 9: Using In Vivo Bioavailability and/or In Vitro Gastrointestinal Bioaccessibility Testing to Adjust Human Exposure from Soil Ingestion. In : R.J.Bowell, J. Majzlan and C.Alpers (eds.) Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Microbiology of Arsenic in Environment, Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, Mineralogical Society of America.
Whitacre, S.D., N.T. Basta, C.J. Everett, K. Minca, and W.L. Daniels. 2013. Identification of toxic agents and potential exposure routes to Appalachian coal mining communities. In: J.R. Craynon (ed.) Environmental considerations in energy production. Soc. Mining Met. & Explor., Englewood, CO.
