Shivendra Srivastava is pursuing a Doctorate degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering, specializing in water resources. His professional interests include Water Resources Management, Agriculture Management, and Socio-Hydrology. His current research as part of a research group under Dr. Tirthankar Roy focuses on floods and human health and conservation practices, risk assessment, and machine learning.
This year he has had two journal publications. The first titled “The efficacy of conservation practices in reducing floods and improving water quality”, co-authored by Dr. Tirthankar Roy from UNL’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Dr. Andrea Basche from the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, and Mr. Elbert Traylor from the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy, was published in Frontiers in Environmental Science. In the study they classified conservation practices such as crop rotation, filter strips, and constructed wetlands based on the mode of their application and described what prior research efforts have concluded about the efficacy of different practices. They found practices such as reduced or no-till farming, grassed waterways, and creation of wetlands significantly reduced the peak flow. Similarly, water quality was improved with implementation of conservation practices such as using cover crops, filter strips, and managing residue and tillage.
Scientific Reports published Srivastava’s article on “Integrated flood risk assessment of properties and associated population at county scale for Nebraska, USA”, co-authored with Dr. Tirthankar Roy. It developed a flood risk framework consisting of interactions among drivers, i.e. hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and response, to assess the risks related to properties and associated populations in Nebraska. Researchers quantified vulnerability under the four categories of social, ecological, economic, and health and categorized response with structural, non-structural, and emergency. They concluded that counties in eastern Nebraska have a higher risk of flooding consequences due to more exposure to vulnerable assets such as population and property, and as such are in the process of improving their flood control measures with dams, levees, and higher insurance coverage that can subdue the risks associated with flooding. The results of this study are anticipated to guide water managers and policymakers in making more effective and locally relevant policies and measures to mitigate flood risks and consequences.
Another notable achievement for Mr. Srivastava is his reception of the UNL Civil Engineering Scholarship Fund Fellowship for the 2022-2023 Academic Year.
