My academic career started in 1988, when I began the undergraduate program in Oceanography at the Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) in Brazil. I was introduced to water quality research during my time at UERJ and worked for almost three years under the supervision of Prof. David Zee, studying the water quality effects of submarine groundwater discharge in the Marapendi Lagoon, Rio de Janeiro. I graduated in 1994 and, after a sabbatical year to start a family, applied to the graduate program in Coastal Geology and Geochemistry at the Universidade Federal da Bahia (Brazil). Under the supervision of Prof. Zelinda Leao, I investigated the effects of submarine groundwater discharge on coral reefs from northern Bahia. After finishing my MSc in 1998, I moved to the University of Plymouth (United Kingdom) to work on a PhD. For my dissertation, I studied the changes in the benthic community structure of coral reefs in response to coastal eutrophication. My supervisors were Dr. Martin Attrill, Dr. Malcolm Nimmo, and Dr. Axel Miller. In 2002, after the conclusion of my PhD, I was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship from the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences (CFCAS). I moved to Nova Scotia (Canada) where I worked with Dr. Lisa Kellman and Dr. Hugo Beltrami (from St. Francis Xavier University) looking at CO2 production and storage in forested soils from Atlantic Canada. In 2003, a year after my move to Canada, I began my teaching career, as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences at St. Francis Xavier University. I worked there until 2006 and, during these three years, I taught Principles of Oceanography, Health Impacts of Global Environmental Change, and Environmental Health. In 2006 I moved to the USA and joined the faculty in the School of Earth Sciences at The Ohio State University.
CURRENT AND RECENT RESEARCH PROJECTS
- Nutrient concentrations and nitrogen speciation in tropical watersheds of central Panama
- Prediction of soil erodibility in a Neotropical arid biome
- Landscape fragmentation and forest fires in the Amazon rainforest
- Phytoremediation of nutrient pollution using floating wetlands
- Geochemistry and pedogenetic history of soils from the Brazilian Cerrado
- Major and trace element geochemistry of lake sediments in Ohio
- Nutrient geochemistry in water and sediments of northern Beibu Gulf, South China Sea
- Hydrodynamic controls on the elemental geochemistry of São Marcos Bay estuary, Brazil
- Modelling the effects of sea-level rise on Amazonian mangroves
- Effects of stream discharge on nutrient fluxes in a mixed-use watershed
- Multi-decadal changes in rainfall patterns and water availability in Ohio
- Nutrient transport across a mixed-use headwater catchment in North-Central Ohio
- Environmental controls on the geochemistry of constructed wetlands
- Physical controls on water quality of north-central Ohio lakes and reservoirs
- Landscape influences on stream chemistry in the Mohican River Watershed, OH
- ENSO teleconnections with moisture regime and water availability in Ohio
- Soil organic matter in natural and constructed wetlands at the OSU Mansfield Campus
PUBLICATIONS
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., Lyons, W.B., Harmon, R.S., Carey, A.E., Welch, S.A., Mitasova, H. (in review). Nutrient concentrations and nitrogen speciation in tropical watersheds of central Panama. PLOS Water. Preprint available at https://doi.org/10.31223/X5CD5V
- BARBOSA, R.S., MARTINS, V., COSTA, O.S. Jr., SILVA, Y., SILVA, Y., SOUSA, S., VASCONCELOS, V., NARDOTO, G. (in review). Pedo-isotopic approach to study Brazilian Cerrado sandy soils: Does the landscape matter? Landscape Ecology.
- GUO, J., YANG, F., COSTA, O.S. Jr., YAN, X., WU, M., QIU, H., LI, W., XU, G. (2024). Nutrient budgets and biogeochemical dynamics in the coastal regions of northern Beibu Gulf, South China Sea: Implication for the severe impact of human disturbance. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2024.106447
- CHEN, Z., COSTA, O.S. Jr. (2023). Nutrient Sequestration by Two Aquatic Macrophytes on Artificial Floating Islands in a Constructed Wetland. Sustainability, Volume 15(8): 6553. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su15086553.
- PONTES, S.F., SILVA, Y.J.A.B., MARTINS, V., BOECHAT, C.L., ARAUJO, A.S.F., DANTAS, J.S., COSTA, O.S. Jr., BARBOSA, R.S. (2022). Prediction of Soil Erodibility by Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy in a Neotropical Dry Forest Biome. Land, Volume 11: 2188. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/land11122188
- SILVA-JUNIOR, C.H.L., BUNA, A.T.M., BEZERRA, D.S., COSTA, O.S. Jr., SANTOS, A.L., BASSON, L.O.D., SANTOS, A.L.S., ALVARADO, S.T., ALMEIDA, C.T., FREIRE, A.T.G., ROUSSEAU, G.X., CELENTANO, D., SILVA, F.B., PINHEIRO, M.S.S., AMARAL, S., KAMPEL, M., VEDOVATO, L.B., ANDERSON, L.O., ARAGAO, L.E.O.C. (2022). Forest fragmentation and fires in the eastern Brazilian Amazon – Maranhão state, Brazil. Fire, Volume 5(3): 77. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/fire5030077
- MARTINS, V., BARBOSA, R.S., COSTA, O.S. Jr., SILVA, Y.J.A.B, SILVA, Y.J.A.B, SOUSA, S., VASCONCELOS, V., NARDOTO, G. (2021). Potentially toxic elements and rare earth elements in sandy soils from the Brazilian Cerrado. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, Volume 193: 780. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09583-0
- GUO, J., COSTA, O.S. Jr., WANG, Y., LIN, W., WANG, S., ZHANG, B., CUI, Y., FU, H., ZHANG, L. (2020). Accumulation rates and chronologies from depth profiles of 210Pbex and 137Cs in sediments of northern Beibu Gulf, South China Sea. Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, Volume 213: 106136. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvrad.2019.106136
- MARAFON, G., BARBOSA, R.S., LACERDA, J.J.J., MARTINS, V., SILVA, J.D.F., COSTA, O.S. Jr. (2020). C and P pool restoration by a no-tillage system on Brazilian Cerrado Oxisol in Piauí State. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, Volume 192: 254. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-020-8221-6
- AL-OTOUM, F., AL-GHOUTI, M.A., COSTA, O.S. Jr., KHRAISHEH, M. (2017). Impact of temperature and storage time on the migration of antimony from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) containers into bottled water in Qatar. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, Volume 189: 631-642. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-6342-3
- VOLK, J.M., COSTA, O.S. Jr. (2010). The influence of land-use and seasons on SOM distribution in headwaters of a central Ohio watershed. Journal of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Volume 1(2): 19-27. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/essoar.10510467.1
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., NIMMO, M., ATTRILL, M.J. (2008). Coastal nutrification in Brazil: A review of the role of nutrient excess on coral reef demise. Journal of South American Earth Sciences, Volume 25: 257-270. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsames.2007.10.002
- COSTA, O.S. Jr. (2007). Anthropogenic nutrient pollution of coral reefs in Southern Bahia, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, Volume 55(4): 265-279. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1679-87592007000400004
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., ATTRILL, M.J., NIMMO, M. (2006). Seasonal and spatial controls on the delivery of excess nutrients to nearshore and offshore coral reefs of Brazil. Journal of Marine Systems, Volume 60(1-2): 63-74. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmarsys.2005.11.006
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., ATTRILL, M.J., PEDRINI, A.G., DE-PAULA, J.C. (2003). Benthic macroalgal distribution in coastal and offshore reefs at Porto Seguro Bay, Brazilian Discovery Coast. In M.K. Kasim Moosa, S. Soemodihardjo, A. Nontji, A. Soegiarto, K. Romimohtarto, Sukarno and Suharsono (editors). Proceedings of the 9th International Coral Reef Symposium (ISBN 979-8105-97-4), Bali, Indonesia, October 23-27 2000. International Society for Reef Studies. p. 499-508.
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., ATTRILL, M.J., PEDRINI, A.G., DE-PAULA, J.C. (2002). Spatial and seasonal distribution of seaweeds on coral reefs from Southern Bahia, Brazil. Botanica Marina, Volume 45(4): 346-355. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/BOT.2002.035
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., LEÃO, Z.M.A.N., NIMMO, M., ATTRILL, M.J. (2001). Nutrification impacts on coral reefs from northern Bahia, Brazil. In M.B. Jones, J.M.N. Azevedo, J.R.M. Neto, A.C. Costa and A.M.F. Martins (editors). Proceedings of the 34th European Marine Biology Symposium (ISBN 0-7923-6846-0), Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal, September 13-17 1999. University of the Azores and Plymouth Environmental Research Centre (University of Plymouth, UK). Developments in Hydrobiology, Volume 152: 307-315. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1982-7_28
- COSTA, O.S. Jr., LEÃO, Z.M.A.N., NIMMO, M., ATTRILL, M.J. (2000). Nutrification impacts on coral reefs from northern Bahia, Brazil. Hydrobiologia, Volume 440: 307-315. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004104118208
RECENT CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2023). Removal of microcystin using artificial floating islands in residential wastewater. Abstracts, GSA Connects 2023, Annual Meeting, October 15-19, 2023. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 55, No. 6, paper No. 032-10.
- COSTA O.S. Jr., WELCH, S., LYONS, W.B. (2023). Sources, sinks, and transport of nutrients across a mixed-use watershed in north-central Ohio. Abstracts, 57th Annual North-Central Section Meeting, May 3-5, 2023. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 55, No. 3, paper No. 003-6.
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr., VOLK, A., LEE, J. (2023). Removal of microcystin using artificial floating islands in residential wastewater. Abstracts, 57th Annual North-Central Section Meeting, May 3-5, 2023. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 55, No. 3, paper No. 015-5.
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2022). Investigating the potential of artificial floating islands for water quality improvement of residential wastewater. Abstracts, GSA Connects 2022, Annual Meeting, October 9-12, 2022. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 54, No. 5, paper No. 267-1.
- BUNA, A.T.M., SILVA JUNIOR, C.H.L., COSTA, O.S. Jr., BEZERRA, D.S. (2021). Synergy between landscape fragmentation and forest fires in eastern Amazon. Abstracts, GSA Connects 2021, Annual Meeting, October 10-13, 2021. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 53, No. 6, paper No. 221-1.
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2021). Growth of two aquatic macrophyte species in artificial floating islands in an Ohio wetland: Potential for nutrient sequestration. Abstracts, GSA Connects 2021, Annual Meeting, October 10-13, 2021. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 53, No. 6, paper No. 052-4.
- COSTA O.S. Jr., COSTA, E.T.F., BARBIERI, R. (2021). Effects of urbanization and riparian vegetation density on water quality of two tropical, macrotidal rivers. Abstracts, GSA Connects 2021, Annual Meeting, October 10-13, 2021. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 53, No. 6, paper No. 230-12.
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2021). Growth performance and nutrient retention potential of two aquatic plant species in artificial floating islands. Abstracts, Joint 55th Annual North-Central / 55th Annual South-Central Section Meeting, April 18-20, 2021. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 53, No. 3, paper No. 11-7.
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2020). Artificial Floating Island System as a Sustainable Solution for Addressing Nutrient Pollution and Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) in Ohio. Abstracts, AGU 2020 Fall Meeting, December 1-17, 2020. American Geophysical Union (AGU).
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2020). Spatial and temporal controls on nutrient fluxes across a mixed-use watershed in north-central Ohio. Abstracts, AGU 2020 Fall Meeting, December 1-17, 2020. American Geophysical Union (AGU).
- CHEN, Z., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2020). Artificial Floating Island System as a Sustainable Solution for Addressing Nutrient Pollution and Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) in Ohio. Abstracts, GSA 2020 Connects Online, Annual Meeting, October 26-30, 2020. Geological Society of America (GSA), Abstracts with programs, Vol. 52, No. 6, paper No. 258-9.
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2020). Sources, sinks, and transport of nutrients across a mixed-use headwater catchment in north-central Ohio. Abstracts, General Assembly of the European Geophysical Union, Vienna, Austria, May 3-8, 2020. European Geophysical Union (EGU).
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2019). Using satellite based AOD to estimate particulate matter in Qatar. Abstracts, 2019 CSPP Users’ Group Meeting, Chengdu, China, June 25-27, 2019. Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS), University of Wisconsin-Madison.
- BARBOSA, R.S., COSTA O.S. Jr., MARTINS, V., SILVA, Y., SOUSA, S. (2019). Comparison of X-Ray Fluorescence and Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry for Determination of Fe, Mn and Sr in Soils from the Brazilian Cerrado. Abstracts, Pedometrics 2019, Guelph, ON, Canada, June 2-6, 2019. Commission 1.5 of the IUSS, Book of Abstracts, page 79.
- COSTA O.S. Jr., BARBOSA, R.S., MARTINS, V., SILVA, Y., SOUSA, S. (2019). Identification of the Best Spectrometric Method for Determination of Ca, K, and Zn Elemental Composition in Tropical Soils. Abstracts, Pedometrics 2019, Guelph, ON, Canada, June 2-6, 2019. Commission 1.5 of the IUSS, Book of Abstracts, page 50.
- GUO, J., WANG, Y., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2019). Accumulation Rates and Chronologies from Depth Profiles of 210Pb in Sediments of Northern Beibu Gulf, South China Sea. Abstracts, Pedometrics 2019, Guelph, ON, Canada, June 2-6, 2019. Commission 1.5 of the IUSS, Book of Abstracts, page 118.
- ZHANG, F., LIANG, S., COSTA, O.S. Jr., JIYOUNG, L. (2018). Potential linkage between zebra mussel establishment, cyanobacterial community composition and microcystin levels in the United States lakes. 38th International Symposium of the North American Lake Management Society, Cincinnati, OH, USA, Oct 30 – November 2, 2018. NALMS 2018 (North American Lake Management Society).
- BEZERRA, D.S., COSTA O.S. Jr., SANTOS, A., TOMAZ, R., BUNA, A. (2018). Impacts of sea-level rise on the Amazon Macrotidal Mangrove Coast. Abstracts, 4th International Symposium on the Effects of Climate Change on the World’s Oceans (4th ECCWO), Washington, DC, USA, June 4-8, 2018. FAO-CNRS-NOAA-PICES-UNESCO-IOC, Book of Abstracts, page 311
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2018). Stream discharge and nutrient export from the Ohio River watershed under future climate change scenarios. Abstracts, 4th International Symposium on the Effects of Climate Change on the World’s Oceans (4th ECCWO), Washington, DC, USA, June 4-8, 2018. FAO-CNRS-NOAA-PICES-UNESCO-IOC, Book of Abstracts, page 77
- COSTA, E.T.F., BARBIERI, R., COSTA, O.S. Jr. (2017). Estudo da Variação Nictemeral dos Parâmetros Físico-Químicos em um Estuário de Macromaré – Rio Anil, Maranhão. Abstracts, 17th Congresso Latino-Americano de Ciências do Mar (Latin-American Ocean Sciences Congress) – COLACMAR, Balneário Camboriú, SC, Brazil, November 13-17, 2017. ALICMAR (Asociación Latinoamericana de Investigadores en Ciencias del Mar). Book of Abstracts, pages 1415-1416
- COSTA, E.T.F., BARBIERI, R., COSTA, O.S. Jr. (2017). Estudo da Variação Nictemeral dos Parâmetros Físico-Químicos em um Estuário de Macromaré – Rio Anil, Maranhão. Abstracts, 29th Semana Nacional de Oceanografia (National Oceanography Week), São Luís, MA, Brazil, August 29 – September 1, 2017. AOCEANO (Associação Brasileira de Oceanografia). Book of Abstracts, #55065
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2017). Changing Precipitation Patterns in the U.S. Midwest: Causes and Consequences. Abstracts, Annual Meeting of the Rocky Mountain Section of the Geological Society of America, Calgary, AB, Canada, June 9-10, 2017. Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Program, Vol. 49, No. 5
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2016). Effects of land use and stream discharge on nutrient concentrations in the Mohican River watershed. Abstracts, 45th Annual Conference of the Water Management Association of Ohio, Columbus, OH, USA, November 9-10, 2016. WMAO, Conference Proceedings, page 39.
- COSTA O.S. Jr., Zahn, J.R., Woogerd, M. (2016). Physical and anthropogenic controls on nutrient concentrations across a mixed-use headwater catchment in North-Central Ohio – What have we learned in the last 5 years. Abstracts, Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Section of the Geological Society of America, Albany, NY, USA, March 20-23, 2016. Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Program, Vol. 48, No. 2.
- COSTA O.S. Jr. (2015). Physical and anthropogenic controls on nutrient concentrations across a mixed-use headwater catchment in North-Central Ohio. Abstracts, 44th Annual Conference of the Water Management Association of Ohio, Columbus, OH, USA, November 17-18, 2015. WMAO, Conference Proceedings, pp 23.
- HENSAL J., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2015). Multi-decadal changes in rainfall patterns and water availability in Ohio. Abstracts, AURCO 2015 Conference, Salem, Ohio, USA, April 17-18, 2015. Kent State University, Association for University Regional Campuses of Ohio. Abstracts with Program.
- ZAHN J., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2015). The effects of stream discharge on nutrient export from a mixed-use watershed in north-central Ohio. Abstracts, AURCO 2015 Conference, Salem, Ohio, USA, April 17-18, 2015. Kent State University, Association for University Regional Campuses of Ohio. Abstracts with Program.
- BROKAW S.S., COSTA O.S. Jr. (2015). Spatial distribution and seasonal variation of soil organic matter in wetlands of the OSU Mansfield Campus. Abstracts, 20th Denman Undergraduate Research Forum, Columbus, Ohio, USA, March 25, 2015. The Ohio State University. Abstracts with Program.
TEACHING
- Earth Sciences 1100: Planet Earth – How it Works
- Earth Sciences 1105: Geology of the National Parks
- Earth Sciences 1121: The Dynamic Earth
- Earth Sciences 2203: Environmental Geoscience
- Earth Sciences 2206: Principles of Oceanography
- Earth Sciences 4798: Environmental Sustainability in Costa Rica (study abroad)
- Earth Sciences 4998: Undergraduate Research in Earth Sciences
- Earth Sciences 5189: Field Geology for Educators – The Mohican Watershed (workshop)
- Earth Sciences 5580: Standards-Based Earth Sciences for Educators (workshop)
- Earth Sciences 7998: Graduate Research in Earth Sciences
- Environment & Natural Resources 2100: Introduction to Environmental Science