Dr Miranda Prendergast-Miller

Biography:

2019 - present: Senior lecturer, Geography and Environmental Sciences, Northumbria University

2015 - 2019: Postdoc, Environment and Geography, University of York

2012 - 2015: Postdoc, Agriculture Flagship, CSIRO Australia

2009 - 2011: Postdoc, School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh

Research interests

The focus of my research is in below-ground soil ecology and understanding how the ecosystem services provided by the complex interactions between microbes, soil fauna and plants can be disrupted by anthropogenic activities. Moreover, understanding these interactions forms the basis for finding sustainable solutions to global environmental challenges such as climate change, food and water security, and pollution.

I apply this knowledge through research on greenhouse gas emissions, soil carbon sequestration, sustainable soil management in agriculture, microplastic pollution, recycling organic wastes, novel soil amendment technologies and nutrient use efficiency in agricultural systems.

I have a broad training in soil science-related analytical techniques, working in semi-natural and managed systems, using a combination of techniques in biogeochemistry, microbiology, molecular microbiology and soil ecology in laboratory and field-based studies.

• Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
• The role of hedgerows in soil functioning within agricultural landscapes, Holden, J., Grayson, R., Berdeni, D., Bird, S., Chapman, P., Edmondson, J., Firbank, L., Helgason, T., Hodson, M., Hunt, S., Jones, D., Lappage, M., Marshall-Harries, E., Nelson, M., Prendergast-Miller, M., Shaw, H., Wade, R., Leake, J. 1 Mar 2019, In: Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment
• Polyester-derived microfibre impacts on the soil-dwelling earthworm Lumbricus terrestris, Prendergast-Miller, M., Katsiamides, A., Abbass, M., Sturzenbaum, S., Thorpe, K., Hodson, M. 1 Aug 2019, In: Environmental Pollution
• Plastic Bag Derived-Microplastics as a Vector for Metal Exposure in Terrestrial Invertebrates, Hodson, M., Duffus-Hodson, C., Clark, A., Prendergast-Miller, M., Thorpe, K. 18 Apr 2017, In: Environmental Science and Technology
• Network analysis reveals that bacteria and fungi form modules that correlate independently with soil parameters, De Menezes, A., Prendergast-Miller, M., Richardson, A., Toscas, P., Farrell, M., Macdonald, L., Baker, G., Wark, T., Thrall, P. 1 Aug 2015, In: Environmental Microbiology
• Soil microbial organic nitrogen uptake is regulated by carbon availability, Farrell, M., Prendergast-Miller, M., Jones, D., Hill, P., Condron, L. 1 Oct 2014, In: Soil Biology and Biochemistry

• Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
• Invited talk: The role of the soil microbiome in carbonate precipitation and soil health. 2026
• Oral presentation: Reconstructing soils using demolition byproducts to enhance carbon capture function following conflict. 2025
• Other: Microbial Ecology Advisor to PhD candidate: K. Stott. Carbonate precipitation in natural and engineered soils incorporating industrial by-products. 2020

• Kevin Stott Sustainable carbon capture within engineered and natural soils incorporating industrial by-products using experimental lysimeters and field trials Start Date: 01/10/2020 End Date: 17/10/2025
• Kevin Stott Sustainable carbon capture within engineered and natural soils incorporating industrial by-products using experimental lysimeters and field trials Start Date: 01/10/2020 End Date: 17/07/2026
• Emily Donaghy Microfibres in Soils: Detection, Degradation and Impact Start Date: 01/10/2023 End Date: 17/10/2025

• PhD November 30 2009
• Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Authority (2019)