- Using organic, inorganic and radionuclide species as tracers of environmental processes
- Carbon sequestration and nature-based Negative Emission Technologies (NETs)
- Understanding the behaviour of pollutants in the environment
- Remediation of environmental contaminants
- Environmental analytical chemistry
My research and teaching interests comfortably encompass organic, inorganic and radionuclide geochemistry, focusing on applying biogeochemical tracers, environmental chemistry, and soil science to address challenges associated with climate change, pollution, sustainable agriculture, water security, and ecosystem degradation.
Current Research
Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) : Quantifying co-benefits for agricultural productivity and the environment of crushed basalt rock application
This project, jointly funded by UNDO Carbon Ltd, investigates the potential benefits and trade-offs of spreading ground basaltic rocks and other silicate waste quarry fines on agricultural soils.
The project aims to: investigate the change in soil elemental composition, with and without ERW; evidence the enhanced weathering process; quantify the release of elements from waste quarry fines to the soil and determine the bioavailability of these elements in the soil and to plants and assess whether ERW may have negative impacts such as potential toxic element (PTE) contamination.
Biography
Gillian has >20 years academic and industrial research experience in environmental analytical chemistry. She has a BSc (Hons, Environmental Chemistry), PhD (Chemistry) and Postgraduate Certificate, Academic Practice in Higher Education Teaching and Learning from the University of Glasgow. Her early research spanned the topics of natural attenuation and phytoremediation of petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated soils, potential transfer into the human food chain of toxic and allergenic metals derived from vehicle exhaust emissions and the behaviour of uranium in natural systems as part of an on-going waste repository assessment. She then moved to industry to project manage a team engaged in the development and application of analytical methods for trace levels analysis of veterinary pharmaceutical residues/ agrochemical residues to support regulatory submissions. She returned to the University of Glasgow in 2007 to take up the position of lecturer in Biogeochemical Tracers at SUERC/University of Glasgow. Her research, teaching and supervision comfortably encompass organic, inorganic and radionuclide geochemistry, focusing on using carbon isotopes, inorganic isotopes and radioisotopes as biogeochemical tracers in the environment.
She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, Advance HE Aurora Women in Leadership Programme and past chair of the Scottish Analytical Division of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
Supervision
Gillian has supervised 8 PhD students and several Masters research projects to successful completion.
She has also acted as an external examiner (UK and internationally) and internal examiner for PhD examinations.
Current PhD supervision- Gribble, Lara. Rapid Coastal Change at Slag-Based Anthropogenic Coasts
- M. A. Mamun Siddiquee. Integrated Assessment of Chemical Pollution, Ecological Risks, and Climate-Change Vulnerability in the River Nith (Scotland).
- Danielle Whitlock. Understanding the drivers of, and threats to, carbon sequestration in Scottish seagrass. 2016 – 2021.
- Felipe Sepulveda. Development of a sustainable low-cost bio-active amendment for the in-situ remediation of urban brownfield sites. 2016-2020.
- Leisa A Douglas. Understanding the persistence, transformation and fate of CIPC (Chlorpropham) in commercial potato stores to help guard against cross-contamination. 2014 – 2019.
- Michael Muir. Role of organic matter in binding U/Ra and incorporating 14C. 2014 – 2019.
- Kieran Tierney. Long-distance transfer, speciation and food web modeling of 14C. 2014 – 2017.
- Wolfram Buss. Contaminant issues in production and application of biochar from both virgin and non-virgin feedstock. 2012 – 2016.
- Kenneth Macgregor. Variations in potentially toxic elemental (Sb, Pb, Cu and Zn) and PAH concentrations and associations in run-off from urban and rural areas. 2012 – 2016.
- David Blair. Carbon and contaminant trace metal biogeochemistry in surficial organic-rich terrestrial systems. 2008 - 2013.
Teaching
Gillian is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) and alumni of Aurora; Advance HE's leadership development initiative for women. She served as the Appointed external examiner for the BSc/ BSc (Hons) Forensic Investigation for Glasgow Caledonian University, 2016 – 2020.
In addition to supervising PGR students, she supervises undergraduate and PGT research projects:
- 2019 – current, BSc research project supervisor, Geographical Earth Science, University of Glasgow.
- 2019 – current, MSc/PGT dissertation supervisor, Physics & Astronomy, University of Glasgow.
- 2018 – current, MSc/PGT dissertation supervisor, School of Biodiversity One Health Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow.
- 2022 – current, Academic Interviewee, PGT Academic & Professional Skills Course, Geographical Earth Science, University of Glasgow.
