Carol Arlene Johnston is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Natural Resource Management at South Dakota State University.[1] Johnston is known for her research on beaver ecology and wetlands.[2]
Johnston earned a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources from Cornell University. She then went on to earn a Master of Science in Land Resources and Soil Science, both degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Johnston also received her PhD in Soil Science from University of Wisconsin-Madison.[1][2]
Johnston began her career in wetland science as an aerial photo interpreter for the New York City wetlands inventory. [2] Johnston is currently a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Natural Resources Management at South Dakota State University.[1] While at SDSU, Johnston has served as the director of the Center for Biocomplexity studies.[1] Johnston became the first female president of the Society of Wetland Scientists in 1992, before serving on the EPA Science Advisory Board as a member of the Ecological Processes and Effects Committee.[1][2] She sat as a member of the National Research Council's Committee on Wetland Delineation and Mitigation in 1995 and 2001.[2] In 2000, Johnston became the Chair of the Wetland Soils Division of the Soil Science Society of America.[1][2]
Johnston's research interests focus on the use of plants as indicators of ecological health, the effects of wetlands on water quality, beaver ecology, and remote sensing of wetlands and watersheds.[1] One of Johnston's major contributions is her book Beavers: Boreal Ecosystem Engineers which focused on landscape and ecosystem alterations by beavers.[3] Johnston collaborated with researchers across the country to prepare a brief in support of Clean Water Rule.[4]
Johnston, C. A. (2017). Beavers: Boreal Ecosystem Engineers. Springer, New York. [3]
Johnston, C.A. (1991). Sediment and nutrient retention by freshwater wetlands: effects on surface water quality. Critical Reviews in Environmental Control, 21 (5/6), 491-565. [8]
Johnston, C.A., Detenbeck, N. E., and Niemi, G. J. (1990). The cumulative effect of wetlands on stream water quality and quantity: a landscape approach. Biogeochemistry, 10, 105-141.[9]
Johnston, C.A. et al. (2004). Carbon cycling in soil. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2, 522-528.[10]