NTRES 3240 - Sustainable, Ecologically Based Management of Water Resources

(CU-SBY)

Spring. 3 credits. Student option grading.

Permission of instructor required for first-year students and sophomores. Enrollment limited to: juniors, seniors or graduate students. Co-meets with NTRES 6240.

R. Schneider.

In-depth analyses of those ecological and biological principles relevant to the sustainable management of global fresh and marine water resources. Lectures and discussion integrate scientific literature with current management issues, including water supply, dams, irrigation, and groundwater overdraft, and coastal development. Topics include linkages between hydrologic variability and communities, groundwater-surface connections, flow paths for dispersal, patchily distributed water resources, and water quality controls on organisms, and adaptations to climate change.

Outcome 1: Students will be able to synthesize relevant hydrologic, ecological, and sociological information in order to make sound recommendations for sustainable watershed management.

Outcome 2: Students will gain insights into, and understanding of cultural, religious, and philosophical influences on water policy decisions around the world.

Outcome 3: Students will be able to analyze critical hydrologic data and tools, such as hydrographs and groundwater potentiometric surface maps, to understand natural and altered processes in water resources.

Outcome 4: Students will be able to access web-based, federal data-bases necessary for appropriate watershed management decisions.

Outcome 5: Students will gain experience in critical professional skills, including interpretation of research journal articles, creation of extension fact sheets, team-based negotiation, and presenting professional quality talks using Powerpoint.