Erika Helen Young

mun-environmental-science-program

Erika is a soil ecologist applying the study of below-ground food-webs to soil health and quality assessments. The work is centred on the Atlantic region of Canada and the boreal biome. Most recently, through her doctoral project and work with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (Memorial University of Newfoundland, Dr. Adrian Unc and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Dr. Claudia Goyer) she determined and interpreted morphological and molecular soil nematode community compositions and related indices as functional markers of soil quality across the four Atlantic provinces of Canada. Her early research investigated the variability of physicochemical soil properties and invertebrate communities in natural and managed podzols. Also during her time as a student researcher, she examined the impacts of management, including biochar application and rock pulverization practices, on soil quality and soil food-web dynamics. Erika’s research has highlighted the increasing need for reliable functional indicators of soil quality in Canada and the global North and that nematode-based indicators are strong contenders to best reflect functional changes induced by land use, land use change, and climate change in these regions.

Research Interests

  • Northern land use and land use change.
  • Soil food-webs and associated carbon and nutrient dynamics.
  • The use of biological indicators of soil quality for sustainable agricultural management.
  • Free-living and plant parasitic nematode communities.

Education

  • PhD candidate in Environmental Science, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
  • Certificate in the identification of terrestrial and freshwater nematodes for ecologists and environmentalists, Wageningen University and Research Centre.
  • MSc in Boreal Ecosystems and Agricultural Sciences, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
  • BSc in Environmental Science, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Employment

  • Student Researcher, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Fredericton Research and development centre (2019-present).
  • Nematode Specialist (contract), Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Fredericton Research and Development Centre (2019).
  • Research Assistant, four positions, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland (2014-2016).

Publications

ORCID iD

Google Scholar

 

Blog

project

Initial assessment of a new research farm: Pye Farm, Labrador

Labrador (the mainland portion of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador) is a sparsely populated but actively growing region of Canada. Like Yukon and northern Ontario, Labrador offers a snapshot…

project

Influence of Crushed Rock on Soil Suitability for Crop Production

A fast online search for information leads to numerous non-scientific articles that tout rock and rock dust as effective soil amendments for improving soil quality, enhancing its carbon storage capacity,…

project

Canadian Soil Biodiversity Observatory - Atlantic Provinces

AAFC has funded two projects to characterize soil biodiversity and its relationships with soil physico-chemical parameters and land use. The Atlantic provinces project is led by Dr. Louis-Pierre Comeau and…

article

Corrigendum to “A review of nematodes as biological indicators of sustainable functioning for northern soils undergoing land-use conversion” [Appl. Soil Ecol. 195 (2023) 104762]

Young EH, Unc A. 2024. Applied Soil Ecology, Pages 105208, Volume 195, March 2024, 105208 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2023.105208

article

A review of nematodes as biological indicators of sustainable functioning for northern soils undergoing land-use conversion. 

Young EH, Unc A. 2023. Applied Soil Ecology, 183: 104762, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2022.104762 Highlights Abstract Food webs and the functional status of soils are governed primarily by microbial carbon and nitrogen fluxes as determined by ecosystem…

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Soil nematode trophic structure and biochar addition in recently converted boreal lands

E. H. Young, J. Abedin and A. Unc, Soil Research 2023 Vol. 61 Issue 5 Pages 456-467 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR22228 Context: Climate change facilitated expansion of agriculture into northern regions increases the…

article

A review of nematodes as biological indicators of sustainable functioning for northern soils undergoing land-use conversion

E. H. Young and A. Unc, Applied Soil Ecology 2023 Vol. 183 Pages 104762, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2022.104762 Food webs and the functional status of soils are governed primarily by microbial carbon and…

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The impacts of rock pulverization on soil quality and functional soil nematode and respiration properties of boreal lands converted from forest to agricultural use

E. H. Young, J. D. Vallotton, A. J. Kedir, A. O. Medaiyese, C. Goyer, L.-P. Comeau and A. Unc, Canadian Journal of Soil Science 2022 Vol. 102 Issue 4 Pages…

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Expansion of Agriculture in Northern Cold-Climate Regions: A Cross-Sectoral Perspective on Opportunities and Challenges

Unc A, Altdorff D, Abakumov E, Adl S, Baldursson S, Bechtold M, Cattani DJ, Firbank LG, Grand S, Guðjónsdóttir M, Kallenbach C, Kedir AJ, Li P, McKenzie DB, Misra D, Nagano H,…

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Agriculture in boreal and Arctic regions requires an integrated global approach for research and policy

Altdorff D, Borchard N, Young EH, Galagedara L, Quideau S, Unc A. 2021. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 41:23. doi:10.1007/s13593-021-00676-1 (link to article) Under food security concerns and accelerated global warming, northern regions are becoming new…

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Organic Waste in Newfoundland and Labrador: A Review of Available Agriculture, Fishery, Forestry and Municipal Waste Literature.

Butler, Lesley, Altdorff, Daniel, Young, Erika, Galagedara, Lakshman, Hawboldt, Kelly, Helleur, Robert J., Unc, Adrian (2017)  Research Report. Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador; https://www.mun.ca/harriscentre/media/production/memorial/administrative/the-harris-centre/media-library/reports/UNC_WASTE_15-16.pdf Re-­utilisation of organic waste is globally widely employed to maximize…