This course will provide students with the skills and knowledge to understand and explain the complex chemical and biogeochemical cycles that drive environmental systems and processes. The course will provide a foundation in modern environmental chemistry, exploring the interaction between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere. Building upon these foundational topics, the course will investigate the chemical nature and physical properties of pollutants. Students will develop an understanding of the chemical behaviour of polluting compounds in the environment, with an emphasis on aquatic, marine, atmospheric, and soil chemistry. Using this understanding, the course will address the measurement and treatment of air, water, and soil pollutants to prevent future environmental contamination and ensure that environmental health can be maintained. This course will provide an important focus on indigenous perspectives and contributions to this field of study. Students will be able to draw on course materials that provide diverse gender, cultural, and geographical perspectives on these topics.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Understand and explain the chemical and biogeochemical cycles that drive environmental systems and processes.
- Understand and analyse the energy and material flow between various environmental systems and processes.
- Explain the interaction and dependency between biogeochemical, biological, and chemical processes in the air, water and soil and the impacts of pollutants on these systems and processes.
- Identify and differentiate between various kinds of environmental pollutants and their treatment methods.
- Evaluate methods of monitoring environmental health and explain the steps necessary to maintain the health of various environmental systems.
Indicative Assessment
- Assignments (10) [LO 1,2,3]
- Tutorial activities (10) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
- Midterm exam (20) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Quizzes (5) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
- Project/Research Paper Submission (15) [LO 3,4,5]
- Final Exam (40) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
The students are expected to put in 130-140 hours of work throughout the semester with an average of 10 hours per week for the course. 4 hours per week of contact teaching including lectures and tutorial activities. Followed by 5-6 hours of self-readings/modelling activities, pre-readings, preparation for weekly assignments/quizzes and preparation for exams and research paper submission on a selected topic related to course content.
Inherent Requirements
Information on inherent requirements for this course are currently not available.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
None
Preliminary Reading
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 2
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2023 | $4860 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2023 | $6180 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7414 | 24 Jul 2023 | 31 Jul 2023 | 31 Aug 2023 | 27 Oct 2023 | In Person | View |
