121-420 Environmental Impacts and Assessment

Credit Points:

Coordinator:

Prerequisite/s:

Timetable:

Contact:

Objectives:

To prepare students for environmental management roles by providing them with the principles of how human activities act upon natural and cultural systems; how physical and ecological processes fit into political and other regulatory frameworks and how human impacts on the environment might be mitigated. At the completion of the subject students should:

• understand the theory and practice of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA);

• understand current practices of preparing Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) and have experience in preparing the relevant documentation;

• understand the physical, ecological and social pathways through which impacts are effected;

• be able to recognise and recommend practical treatments for a wide variety of ecological problems in a variety of ecosystems.

Content:

Relevant ecological and physical principles. The characteristics of ecosystems which are most sensitive to change. Rates of change in ecosystems. Philosophies underpinning EIA. Global practice in the preparation of EIS documentation. The regulatory framework that exists between formulation of EIS and implementation of recommendations. Case studies of particular environmental problems from a number of ecosystems.

Assessment: