Project Team
The proposed team includes diverse disciplines that cover the breadth of contemporary mining issues. A particular strength is our team's extensive experience working directly with the mining industry, public land management agencies, and the technical research teams that conduct predictive environmental modeling. All proposed lead researchers have distinguished publication records, with demonstrated skills in research, innovative thinking, and clear communication. (To see a PDF version of each team member's complete resume, please click on his or her name.)
Patty Limerick
PhD (Principle Investigator)
Patty Limerick is an environmental historian at the University of Colorado and Faculty Director and Chair of the Center of the American West. She is a MacArthur Fellow (1995-2000), and brings a historical and social context to the issues of science, prediction, and environmental policy in the western US. Dr. Limerick recently published a report on the environmental legacy of Western mining entitled Cleaning Up Abandoned Hardrock Mines in the West: Prospecting for a Better Future.
Houston Kempton
MS (Technical Coordinator)
Houston Kempton is a consulting geochemist with 17 years experience studying hardrock mining, mine permitting, and policy implications of long-term impacts.
Luke Danielson
JD (Policy and Legal Analyst)
Luke Danielson is an attorney and researcher with experience in analysis of the environmental, social, and economic effects of mineral development. He has served as Director of the Mining Policy Research Initiative of the International Development Research Centre, and Director of the Mining Minerals and Sustainable Development Project at the International Institute for Environment and Development. He has consulted with environmental and natural resource ministries in numerous principal mining countries.
Graham Davis
PhD (Economic Analyst)
Graham Davis is a professor of mining economics at the Colorado School of Mines specializing in economic sustainability analysis related to mining.
Jason Hanson
MA (Researcher)
Jason Hanson is a researcher at the Center of the American West at the University of Colorado who specializes in historic and contemporary mining.