Offered Summer 2022. Analysis of water resources from a water-in-ecosystem perspective. Application to natural, managed, and urban systems, considering ecological interactions with hydrological processes. Exploration of biogeochemical processes related to water quality, and human impacts on water resources. [3-0-0] Prerequisite: One of GEOB 305, EOSC 329, or permission of instructor.
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
Dr. Mark Johnson
This is a course for upper-level students in Environmental Sciences and related disciplines in which students will learn integrated approaches and methods within the interdisciplinary field of ecohydrology to study water processes and management. In this course, ecohydrology will be used as a lens to explore relationships between hydrological and biogeochemical processes that are conditioned by ecological controls in natural, managed and urban ecosystems. This course will evaluate water within complex, adaptive systems, including water management in relation to global change issues, water for agricultural productivity to ensure an adequate food supply for a growing population, drinking water quality in municipal systems, and environmental flow requirements to ensure ecological integrity.
Rationale and Intended Audience
Water processes, use and management are central to a multitude of complex environmental problems and require integrated analytical frameworks. Water is involved in multiple ecosystem and municipal services for which water quantity and water quality are strongly influenced by ecological interactions. The course is designed for students in Environmental Sciences and related specializations such as Geographical Biogeosciences.
Course Outline
The course will consist of three hours per class of mixed lectures and experiential learning activities. Lecture sessions will provide opportunities for students to engage with current state-of-knowledge in fundamental and emerging areas of ecohydrology, and will employ an experiential, peer-learning approach to explore course topics. Assignments will incorporate each of the “four paradigms of science”[1] over the course of the term.
Each class meeting will be structured around a 50-minute lecture with two hours planned for working in groups on assignments. Plan for Classes 1 – 8: During odd numbered weeks, the group assignments will be introduced and students will begin working on the activity. In even numbered weeks, students will complete an in-class quiz and then continue with the group assignments. Plan for Classes 9 – 12: Lectures will continue, with the two-hour block utilized for providing guidance on final projects.
Topic outline by class meeting:
Classes 1-2:
Introduction to Ecohydrology in Watersheds and Water Systems
Key Ecohydrologic Processes
Classes 3-4:
Ecohydrologic Connectivity within Terrestrial Systems
Ecohydrologic Connectivity between Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems
Classes 5-6:
Ecohydrology and Carbon Cycling in Watersheds and Water Systems
Ecohydrology and Nitrogen Cycling in Watersheds and Water Systems
Classes 7-8:
Water Supply and Demand: Extensive Systems
Water Supply and Demand: Intensive Systems
Classes 9-12:
Current topics in Ecohydrology
--Global Change Issues for Ecohydrology
--Green Water, Blue Water and Virtual Water
--Biofuels and Water Use
--Water Use and Water Quality Issues of Hydraulic Fracturing