Professor Kevin Thomas

Centre Director - QAEHS

Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences
Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences
kevin.thomas@uq.edu.au
+61 7 344 32443

Overview

Professor Kevin Thomas is Director of the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS). Kevin is an environmental health scientist with a particular interest in understanding the environmental exposures associated with contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) with the goal of protecting environmental and human health. Kevin also leads the Minderoo Centre- Plastics and Human Health at UQ and is Deputy-Director of the Australian Research Council Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Hyphenated Analytical Separation Technologies (HyTech).

His current research is focused on understanding human exposure to plastics pollution and developing mass spectrometric analytical methods for characterizing plastics and other CECs, assessing community-wide health status through analysing wastewater (wastewater-based epidemiology) and establishing alternative approaches to exposure monitoring, for example explanted silicone prostheses and wristbands.

Author of over 300 peer-reviewed papers and Associate Editor for the journal Science of the Total Environment, Kevin is a strong collaborative researcher having founded the international SCORE network on sewer biomarker analysis for community health assessment (see www.score-network.eu) and together with colleagues has recently launched InSpectra- A platform for identifying emerging chemical threats.

Qualifications

  • Doctoral Diploma of Science (Advanced), Plymouth University
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Plymouth University

Publications

View all Publications

Supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • Doctor Philosophy

View all Supervision

Available Projects

  • Projects are available arounf four broad themes.

    • Assessing the environmental plastics cycle with a focus on human exposure.
    • Assessing community-wide health status through wastewater-based epidemiology.
    • Alternative matrices for exposure monitoring. For example explanted silicone prostheses and wristbands.
    • Analytical methods for the characterization of contaminants of emerging concern (target/suspect-screening/non-target analysis).

    Project specific opportunities are advertised on our centre website

View all Available Projects

Publications

Book Chapter

  • Choi, Phil M., Thomas, Kevin V., O’Brien, Jake W. and Mueller, Jochen F. (2019). Mining population exposure and community health via wastewater-based epidemiology. A new paradigm for environmental chemistry and toxicology: from concepts to insights. (pp. 99-114) Singapore: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-981-13-9447-8_8

  • Ort, Christoph, Bijlsma, Lubertus, Castiglioni, Sara, Covaci, Adrian, de Voogt, Pim, Emke, Erik, Hernández, Félix, Reid, Malcolm, van Nuijs, Alexander L. N., Thomas, Kevin V. and Kasprzyk-Hordern, Barbara (2018). Wastewater analysis for community-wide drugs use assessment. New psychoactive substances: pharmacology, clinical, forensic and analytical toxicology. (pp. 543-566) edited by Hans H. Maurer and Simon D. Brandt. New York, NY, United States: Springer. doi: 10.1007/164_2018_111

  • Gaw, Sally, Thomas, Kevin and Hutchinson, Thomas H. (2016). Pharmaceuticals in the marine environment. Pharmaceuticals in the environment. (pp. 70-91) edited by R. E. Hester and R. M. Harrison. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Royal Society of Chemistry. doi: 10.1039/9781782622345-00070

  • Harman, C., Allan, I. and Thomas, K.V. (2012). Passive sampling of organic contaminants in waters. Comprehensive sampling and sample preparation. (pp. 265-280) edited by Janusz Pawliszyn. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-381373-2.00014-4

  • Houtman, Corine J., Legler, Juliette and Thomas, Kevin (2011). Effect-directed analysis of endocrine disruptors in aquatic ecosystems. Effect-directed analysis of complex environmental contamination. (pp. 237-265) edited by Werner Brack. Berlin, Germany: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-18384-3_10

  • Thomas, Kevin V. and Langford, Katherine H. (2010). Point sources of human pharmaceuticals into the aquatic environment. Green and Sustainable Pharmacy. (pp. 211-223) Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-05199-9_14

  • Thomas, Kevin V. and Langford, Katherine H. (2009). Europe and USA. Ecotoxicology of Antifouling Biocides. (pp. 331-344) Tokyo: Springer Japan. doi: 10.1007/978-4-431-85709-9_19

  • Thomas, Kevin V. and Langford, Katherine H. (2009). The analysis of antifouling paint biocides in water, sediment and biota. Ecotoxicology of Antifouling Biocides. (pp. 311-327) Tokyo: Springer Japan. doi: 10.1007/978-4-431-85709-9_18

  • Thomas, K. (2009). The use of broad-spectrum organic biocides in marine antifouling paints. Advances in Marine Antifouling Coatings and Technologies. (pp. 522-553) Cambridge, United Kingdom: Elsevier Ltd. doi: 10.1533/9781845696313.3.522

  • Bakker, J. F., Belzunce-Segarra, M. J., Castro, R., van de Heuvel-Greve, M., Klamer, H. J.C., Brack, W., Altenburger, R., Poulsen, V., Thomas, K. V. and Leonards, P. E.G. (2007). Effect Directed Analysis and Toxicity Identification Evaluation. Sustainable Management of Sediment Resources. (pp. 163-214) Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/S1872-1990(07)80077-8

Journal Article

Conference Publication

Other Outputs

  • Tscharke, B, O'Brien, J., Reeks, T., Elisei, G., Grant, S., Mueller, J., Thomas, K., Ghetia, M., Bade, R., Nguyen, L., Gerber, C. and White, J. (2019). National wastewater drug monitoring program - report 8. Canberra, ACT, Australia: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC).

  • Tscharke, B., Reeks, T., Elisei, G., O'Brien, J., Grant, S., Mueller, J., Thomas, K., Ghetia, M., Bade, R., Nguyen, L., Gerber, C. and White, J. (2019). National wastewater drug monitoring program - report 7. Canberra, ACT, Australia: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC).

  • Tscharke, B., Mackie, R., O’Brien, J., Grant, S., Mueller, J., Thomas, K., Ghetia, M., Bade, R., Gerber, C. and White, J. (2018). National wastewater drug monitoring program: sixth report. Canberra, ACT, Australia: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC).

Grants (Administered at UQ)

PhD and MPhil Supervision

Current Supervision

Completed Supervision

Possible Research Projects

Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.

  • Projects are available arounf four broad themes.

    • Assessing the environmental plastics cycle with a focus on human exposure.
    • Assessing community-wide health status through wastewater-based epidemiology.
    • Alternative matrices for exposure monitoring. For example explanted silicone prostheses and wristbands.
    • Analytical methods for the characterization of contaminants of emerging concern (target/suspect-screening/non-target analysis).

    Project specific opportunities are advertised on our centre website