Beizhan Yan

Lamont Research Professor, Geochemistry, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO), Columbia Climate School

Affiliated with: M.S. in Sustainability Science

School of Professional Studies

Affiliated with: M.P.A. in Environmental Science and Policy

School of International and Public Affairs

401 Comer
61 Route 9W
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Palisades, NY 10964

BIOGRAPHY:

Dr. Beizhan Yan is an Adjunct Associate Professor of International and Public Affairs and a Lamont Research Professor at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO). His Ph.D. study at RPI (2000-2004) focused on the source apportionment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the Hudson River. After two years of postdoc in Idaho National Laboratory, he joined Washington University in St. Louis to study nanoscale size effects on biogeochemical processes for environmental bioremediation. At LDEO, he has established an Environmental Organic Geochemistry Lab with ability to extract, isolate, and identify organic contaminants and biomarkers from environmental and biological samples.

He has successfully traced metals and aromatic hydrocarbons in the waters and air of NYC and linked the exposures of these air pollutants to pediatric asthma outcomes. He is also leading a collaborative study to examine the association between pediatric respiratory outcomes and air pollutants (including PM2.5 and black carbon, VOCs) in Beijing China. To determine possible impacts of hydrofracking on environment stresses (e.g., noise and air and water pollutions), psychological stress, and health outcomes, he is leading a collaborative study in Pennsylvania. He is also conducting the ecological impact of microplastics in estuaries and oceans.

PROJECTS

Only select projects listed below
Name Start Date End Date
Accquisition of a Sensitive Qtrap LC/MS/MS System for Biomaker Analyses 3/15/16 3/14/17
Active Modular Phytoremediation Systems 12/15/15 12/31/16
Ecosystem Impacts of Oil and Gas Inputs to the Gulf (ECOGIG) 9/1/11 12/31/15
Ecosystem Impacts of Oil and Gas Inputs to the Gulf (ECOGIG) 1/1/15 12/31/18
Environmental Impacts of RAP 7/14/14 4/30/17
Pregnancy and Prenatal PAHs and other Environmental Exposures and Breast Cancer 7/1/16 6/30/19
PAHs and Puberty in Girls at Increased Breast Cancer Risk 10/1/18 9/30/20
Distribution, Transport, and Fate of Microplastics and Associated Pollutants in the Lower Hudson River and Waterways around New York City 7/1/19 6/30/22
Novel extracellular vesicle and molecular biomarkers of environmental exposure and disease in ALS progression 9/30/19 9/29/21
Health impacts of herbicides and pesticides: bridging the gap from correlation to causation with more low‐cost environmental data 1/1/21 12/31/22
Accounting for the Health Benefits of Air Pollution Regulations in China, 2008-2020 6/1/20 5/31/21
MRI: Acquisition of Continuous Flow Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer (IRMS) for Climate Change and Environmental Research at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory 9/1/21 8/31/23
Developing Sustainable and Closed loop Solutions to Reduce Synthetic Fibers, Microplastics, and Nanoplastics Leakage from Laundry Systems into the Marine Environment 4/1/23 3/31/27
EAGER: QuantiFY20ing Spatial Distribution of Micro- and Nanoplastics along an Antarctic Traverse 12/15/23 11/30/25

13 PUBLICATIONS ON COLUMBIA | ACADEMIC COMMONS

Only select publications listed below
Name Published Date
Assessment of exposure to air pollution in children: Determining whether wearing a personal monitor affects physical activity. 2019
Effect of personal exposure to black carbon on changes in allergic asthma gene methylation measured 5 days later in urban children: importance of allergic sensitization 2017
Physical activity, black carbon exposure, and DNA methylation in the FOXP3 promoter 2017
Differences in Ambient Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Concentrations between Streets and Alleys in New York City: Open Space vs. Semi-Closed Space 2016
Elevated surface chlorophyll associated with natural oil seeps in the Gulf of Mexico 2016
Unconventional Gas and Oil Drilling Is Associated with Increased Hospital Utilization Rates 2015
Natural oil slicks fuel surface water microbial activities in the northern Gulf of Mexico 2014
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure, obesity and childhood asthma in an urban cohort 2014
Prenatal Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon, Adiposity, Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor (PPAR) γ Methylation in Offspring, Grand-Offspring Mice 2014
Time trends of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in New York city from 2001 to 2012: Assessed by repeat air and urine samples 2014
Thermal/Optical Methods for Elemental Carbon Quantification in Soils and Urban Dusts: Equivalence of Different Analysis Protocols 2013
Effects of Floor Level and Building Type on Residential Levels of Outdoor and Indoor Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Black Carbon, and Particulate Matter in New York City 2011
Assessment of Benzo(a)pyrene-equivalent Carcinogenicity and Mutagenicity of Residential Indoor versus Outdoor Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Exposing Young Children in New York City 2010