Natalie Cápiro

Biography

Dr. Natalie Cápiro is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering at Cornell University. She joins us from Auburn University where she was an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Prior to Auburn, Dr. Cápiro was a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Tufts University. Her educational background includes postdoctoral work at the Georgia Institute of Technology, M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Rice University, and B.S. in Biological and Environmental Engineering at Cornell University.

Research Interests

Dr. Cápiro’s research interests include applied environmental microbiology, bioremediation, fate and transport of legacy and emerging contaminants in natural systems, development of groundwater remediation strategies, and nanoparticle-microbial interactions in the environment. Her work is primarily supported by funding from the National Science Foundation and the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), including a study that won the 2012 SERDP Environmental Restoration Project of the Year.

Research in the Cápiro lab focuses on the biotransformation of toxic emerging and traditional organic contaminants in the environment. We are particularly interested in resolving degradation pathways, microbial dynamics, and the interactions between biotic and abiotic processes that impact the fate and transport of these contaminants. Ongoing or recently completed investigations examine: (i) biological processes influencing natural attenuation of emerging contaminants (e.g., per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances-PFAS); (ii) secondary impacts of in-situ bioremediation (e.g., iron mineral species and low pH) on groundwater quality; (iii) benefits and shortcomings of combining biological and physical-chemical processes (e.g., thermal treatment, reactive or sorptive nanoparticles) to achieve improved contaminant treatment (detoxification or sequestration) of  legacy (e.g., chlorinated ethenes) and/or emerging contaminants (e.g., PFAS and nanoparticles); and (iv) assessment of natural attenuation potential and development of predictive tools for remediation system design.  These studies lay the foundation for tackling a large variety of water quality issues and have implications for protecting human health and the environment. To expand the impact of the acquired knowledge beyond the traditional academic framework, we are working to make these (and other) results accessible to practitioners and impacted communities.