Associate ProfessorLeanne Morgan

I am interested in understanding how hydrologic systems function, specifically the groundwater component. My research areas include groundwater management, groundwater - surface water interaction and groundwater dynamics in coastal regions. I characterise field systems using various methods and parameters including pressure, conductivity and natural tracers. I test processes and perform sensitivity analyses using analytic, numeric and physical modelling.

I served as Associate Editor for Hydrogeology Journal, the flagship journal of the International Association of Hydrogeologists, from 2019-2025 and on the Marsden Earth Sciences and Astronomy panel from 2022-2025. I am currently Chair of the UC School of Earth and Environment Postgraduate Committee.

My research is funded through the following MBIE Endeavour research programs:
* Subsurface processes in braided rivers - hyporheic exchange and leakage to groundwater (2019 - 2024, as a Principal Investigator)
* Transforming coastal lowland systems threatened by sea-level rise into prosperous communities (2021 - 2026, as a Principal Investigator)

* Derisking Carbon Dioxide Removal at Megatonne Scale in Aotearoa (2025 - 2030, as an Associate Investigator)