Emile Elias is a Research Hydrologist with the USDA Agricultural Research Service and Director at the USDA Southwest Climate Hub. She holds a MS in Watershed Science from Colorado State University and a PhD in Hydrology from Auburn University. Her research interests include land use and climate change impacts on hydrology, water quality and agricultural communities in the Southwestern United States. Emile collaborates with partners to study and report on the impacts of regional changes on water resources, agriculture and interconnected communities reliant on these resources. This includes publishing in traditional peer-reviewed scientific journals, developing tools for informed decision-making and managing science synthesis projects. She has reported on the impacts of climate change on snowmelt runoff in western streams and the cumulative impacts of these changes. She is serving as one of the authors on the Southwestern Chapter of the 4th National Climate Assessment. When not studying water, she likes to play on, in and around lakes, streams and rivers with her family.
Featured Work
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9964-3177
White, D.D., E.H. Elias, K.A. Thomas, C.E. Bradatan, M.W. Brunson, A.M. Chischilly, C.A.F. Enquist, L.R. Fisher, H.E. Froehlich, E.A. Koebele, M. Méndez, S.M. Ostoja, C. Steele, and J.K. Vanos, 2023: Ch. 28. Southwest. In: Fifth National Climate Assessment. Crimmins, A.R., C.W. Avery, D.R. Easterling, K.E. Kunkel, B.C. Stewart, and T.K. Maycock, Eds. U.S. Global Change Research Program, Washington, DC, USA. https://doi.org/10.7930/NCA5.2023.CH28
Elias, E. et.al. 2023. A vision for integrated, collaborative solutions to critical water and food challenges. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. 78 (3) 63A-68A. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.2023.1220A
Elias, E., Fuchs, B., Lisonbee, J., Bernadt, T., Martinez, V., Haigh, T. 2023. Evolution of the Southwest Drought Learning Network: Collective Response to Exceptional Drought. Bulleting of the American Meteorological Society. E935-E942. https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-22-0017.1
Elias, Emile, Savoy, Heather M., Swanson, Dustin A., Cohnstaedt, Lee W., Peters, Debra P. C., Derner, Justin D., Pelzel-McCluskey, Angela, Drolet, Barbara, and Rodriguez, Luis. 2022. “ Landscape Dynamics of a Vector-Borne Disease in the Western US: How Vector–Habitat Relationships Inform Disease Hotspots.” Ecosphere 13( 11): e4267. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4267
Elias, E.H., James, D., Heimel, S., Steele, C., Steltzer, H., Dott, C. 2021. Implications of observed changes in high mountain snow water storage, snowmelt timing and melt window. Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies. In press.
Peterson, C. L., L. A. Brandt, E. H. Elias, and S. R. Hurteau (2021), Community forests prepare for climate change, Eos, 102, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021EO154456. Published on 11 February 2021.
Elias, E., S. Aney, G. Duff, C. Gifford, S. Spiegal, A. Cibils, J. Steiner and R. Estell (2020). "Snapshot of rancher perspectives on creative cattle management options." Rangelands 42(6): 191-195.
Reyes, J., E. Elias, E. Haacker, A. Kremen, L. Parker and C. Rottler (2020). "Assessing agricultural risk management using historic crop insurance loss data over the ogallala aquifer." Agricultural Water Management 232: 106000.
Elias EH, Flynn R, Idowu OJ, Reyes J, Sanogo S, Schutte BJ, Smith R, Steele C, Sutherland C. Crop Vulnerability to Weather and Climate Risk: Analysis of Interacting Systems and Adaptation Efficacy for Sustainable Crop Production. Sustainability. 2019; 11(23):6619. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11236619
Reyes Julian Reyes (1), Emile Elias (1), Erin Haacker (2), Amy Kremen (3), Lauren Parker (4), Caitlin Rottler (5) 2019. Assessing agricultural risk management using historic crop insurance loss data over the Ogallala Aquifer. Agricultural Water Management. V 232, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2020.106000.
Reyes, J.R. and Elias, E.H. 2019. Spatio-temporal variation in crop loss. Environ. Res. Lett. in press https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab1ac9
Edwards, B.L., Webb, N.P., Brown, D.P., Elias, E., Peck, D.E., Pierson, F.B., Williams, C.J., Herrick, J.E. 2019. Climate change impacts on wind and water erosion on US Rangelands. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. 74(4). 260-273.
Patrick Gonzalez, Gregg M. Garfin, David D. Breshears, Keely M. Brooks, Heidi E. Brown, Emile H. Elias, Amrith Gunasekara, Nancy Huntly, Julie K. Maldonado, Nathan J. Mantua, Helene G. Margolis, Skyli McAfee, Beth Rose Middleton, Bradley H. Udall. 2018. Southwest Chapter of the Fourth National Climate Assessment. https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/chapter/25/
Elias, E.H., McVey, D.S., Peters, D., Derner, J. , Pelzel-McCluskey, P.A., Schrader, T.S., Rodriguiz, L. 2018. Contributions of Hydrology to Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Emergence in the Western United States. Ecosystems. 10.1007/s10021-018-0278-5
Elias, E.H., Reyes, J.J, Steele, C.M. Rango, A. 2018. Diverse landscapes, diverse risks: Climate change and adaptive capacity in a hotter, drier Southwestern United States. Climatic Change. https://rdcu.be/PugY
Elias, E.H., Markelin, A., J.T. Abatzoglou, J. Dialesandro, J. Brown, C. M. Steele, A. Rango, K. Steenwerth. 2016. Vulnerability of field crops to midcentury temperature changes and yield effects in the Southwestern United States, Climatic Change.
Elias, E.H., T. S. Schrader, J. T. Abatzoglou, M. Crimmins, J. Weiss, and A. Rango. 2017. 'County-level climate change information to support decision-making on working lands within USDA Climate Hub regions', Climatic Change. 148, 355–369 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-017-2040-y
Elias, E. H., H. Rodriguez, P. Srivastava, M. Dougherty, D. James, and R. Smith. 2016. 'Impacts of Forest to Urban Land Conversion and ENSO Phase on Water Quality of a Public Water Supply Reservoir', Forests, 7: 29.
Elias, E. H., A. Rango, C. M. Steele, J. F. Mejia, R Baca, D.K. James, T.S. Schrader, and P. Gronemeyer. 2016. 'Simulated impact of Climate Change on hydrology of multiple watershed using traditional and recommended Snowmelt Runoff Methodology ', Journal of Water and Climate Change, 7.4: 665-682. doi: 10.2166/wcc.2016.097
Elias, E., Rango, A., Smith, R., Maxwell, C., Steele, C., & Havstad, K. (2016). Climate Change, Agriculture and Water Resources in the Southwestern United States. Journal of Contemporary Water Research & Education, 158(1), 46-61.
EHavstad, K., J.R. Brown, R. Estell, E. Elias, A. Rango, and C. M. Steele. 2016. 'Vulnerabilities of Southwestern US Rangeland-Based Animal Agriculture to Climate Change', Climatic Change, DOI 10.1007/s10584-016-1834-7.
Elias, E. H., A. Rango, C. M. Steele, J. F. Mejia, and R. Smith. 2015. 'Assessing climate change impacts on water availability of snowmelt-dominated basins of the Upper Rio Grande basin', Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies, 3: 525-46.
Elias, E. H., M. Dougherty, P. Srivastava, and D. Laband. 2011. 'The impact of forest to urban land conversion on streamflow, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and total organic carbon inputs to the converse reservoir, Southern Alabama, USA', Urban Ecosystems, 16: 79-107. DOI 10.1007/s11252-011-0198-z
