WELCOME TO
THE Coastal Hydrology Lab (CHL)

The Coastal Hydrology Lab aims to enhance the scientific understanding of coastal systems influenced by freshwater, such as river estuaries, wetlands, deltas, and harbors worldwide. These densely populated areas feature a rich diversity of ecosystems and economic resources. However, they face significant threats from human activities, which can alter their physical, hydrological, and socioeconomic characteristics, along with indirect impacts from climate change, such as rising sea levels. To fulfill our mission of advancing scientific knowledge about estuarine systems, our research group employs various data sources and emerging technologies. This allows us to gain a deeper understanding of these dynamics and to predict their responses to ongoing changes. Our areas of exploration include estuarine dynamics, hydrological controls on sediment supply and salinity intrusion; ecosystem responses and morphological evolution due to sea level rise; the flow and exchange of surface and groundwater in coastal watersheds; and the cascading and compounding effects of hydroclimate extremes, such as hurricanes.

Dr. Hamed Moftakhari is an associate professor at the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering at the University of Alabama.
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​Phone:  +1 205 348 0239
Email:    hmoftakhari@eng.ua.edu
Office:   1029 Cyber Hall, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487