Renee Takesue
Research Geologist with the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
I grew up exploring tide pools and visiting family who threw nets to catch reef fish and harvested ʻopihi. This close connection with the ocean from an early age shaped my path to become a marine scientist. My degrees in oceanography taught me to use physical sciences to understand influences on coastal resources. I study land-to-sea runoff of sediment and contaminants driven by both natural processes and human activities and their effects on coastal communities. My studies span a wide range of topics – urban contaminants in nearshore food webs, wildfire contaminants entering coastal streams and biota, post-hurricane mass wasting to coral reefs, and blue carbon burial in seagrass beds. Insights about how these systems function help decision-makers balance the needs of society and well-functioning ecosystems that provide resources, reduce risks from climate change, and improve human well-being.
Professional Experience
Research Geologist, USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program
Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellow, USGS Volcano Hazards Program
Graduate Fellow, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Columbia University, Chemical Oceanography
B.S., Cal Poly Humboldt, Geological Oceanography
Science and Products
Geochemical sourcing of runoff from a young volcanic watershed to an impacted coral reef in Pelekane Bay, Hawaii
Tracking riverborne sediment and contaminants in Commencement Bay, Washington, using geochemical signatures
Sources and dispersal of land-based runoff from small Hawaiian drainages to a coral reef: Insights from geochemical signatures
Environmental and eelgrass response to dike removal: Nisqually River Delta (2010–14)
Eelgrass habitat near Liberty Bay: Chapter 5
Sediment geochemistry of Corte Madera Marsh, San Francisco Bay, California: have local inputs changed, 1830-2010?
Integration of bed characteristics, geochemical tracers, current measurements, and numerical modeling for assessing the provenance of beach sand in the San Francisco Bay Coastal System
Over 150 million m3 of sand-sized sediment has disappeared from the central region of the San Francisco Bay Coastal System during the last half century. This enormous loss may reflect numerous anthropogenic influences, such as watershed damming, bay-fill development, aggregate mining, and dredging. The reduction in Bay sediment also appears to be linked to a reduction in sediment supply and recent
Arrival and expansion of the invasive foraminifera Trochammina hadai Uchio in Padilla Bay, Washington
Hydrography of and biogeochemical inputs to Liberty Bay, a small urban embayment in Puget Sound, Washington
More than 100 Years of Background-Level Sedimentary Metals, Nisqually River Delta, South Puget Sound, Washington
Extended abstracts from the Coastal Habitats in Puget Sound (CHIPS) 2006 Workshop
Sources of land-derived runoff to a coral reef-fringed embayment identified using geochemical tracers in nearshore sediment traps
Science and Products
Geochemical sourcing of runoff from a young volcanic watershed to an impacted coral reef in Pelekane Bay, Hawaii
Tracking riverborne sediment and contaminants in Commencement Bay, Washington, using geochemical signatures
Sources and dispersal of land-based runoff from small Hawaiian drainages to a coral reef: Insights from geochemical signatures
Environmental and eelgrass response to dike removal: Nisqually River Delta (2010–14)
Eelgrass habitat near Liberty Bay: Chapter 5
Sediment geochemistry of Corte Madera Marsh, San Francisco Bay, California: have local inputs changed, 1830-2010?
Integration of bed characteristics, geochemical tracers, current measurements, and numerical modeling for assessing the provenance of beach sand in the San Francisco Bay Coastal System
Over 150 million m3 of sand-sized sediment has disappeared from the central region of the San Francisco Bay Coastal System during the last half century. This enormous loss may reflect numerous anthropogenic influences, such as watershed damming, bay-fill development, aggregate mining, and dredging. The reduction in Bay sediment also appears to be linked to a reduction in sediment supply and recent