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Courses in Environmental and Resource Sciences (ERS)

Lower Division Courses

6. Map Reading and Remote Sensing (3)

Lecture/discussion—3 hours. Basic skills in map reading, map grid systems, projections, aerial photography, photogrammetry, remote sensing sensors and platforms; the role of cartography and remote sensing in environmental analysis.—I.

8. Water Quality at Risk (3)

Lecture—2 hours; discussion—1 hour. Natural and human threats to water quality. Balance of science and policy in all aspects of attaining, maintaining, and managing water quality, water contamination. Decoding popular media coverage of water quality and water contamination. GE credit: SciEng, SocSci, Wrt. (Same course as Science and Society 8.)—II. (II.) Hernes

30. World Ecosystems & Geography (3)

Lecture—3 hours. An introduction to the earth's major geographic regions and associated ecosystems, such as deserts, temperate forests, and oceans with an examination of how climate, vegetation regimes, ecological processes, and human activities interact in different regions of the world. (Same course as Environmental Science and Policy 30.) GE credit: SciEng.—II, III. (II, III.)

47. Watershed Processes and Water Quality in the Tahoe Basin (2)

Lecture/laboratory—21 hours; fieldwork—9 hours; discussion—3 hours; term paper. Prerequisite: basic knowledge of environmental, soil, or hydrologic sciences. Course involves 3 days of instruction in Tahoe City. Watershed processes, runoff water quality management, and restoration in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Soils, precipitation-runoff, revegetation and adaptive management related to erosion control, effective solutions, and development of restoration strategies. Students develop and initiate field restoration. (Same course as Hydrologic Science 47.)—Grismer

92. Resource Sciences Internship (1-12)

Internship—3-36 hours. Prerequisite: lower division standing and consent of instructor. Work experience off and on campus in resource sciences. Internship supervised by a member of the faculty. (P/NP grading only.)

98. Directed Group Study (1-5)

Prerequisite: consent of instructor. Primarily for lower division students. (P/NP grading only.)

99. Special Study for Undergraduates (1-5)

(P/NP grading only.)

Upper Division Courses

100. Principles of Hydrologic Science (4)

Lecture—4 hours. Prerequisite: Chemistry 2B, Mathematics 16B, and Physics 7A or 9A. Topics include hydrology (surface and ground water), hydraulic flow through porous media, water in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum, water quality, flow through open channels, and representative water-resource problems. GE credit: SciEng.—I. (I.) Grismer

100L. Principles of Hydrologic Science Laboratory (2)

Laboratory—3 hours; discussion—1 hour. Prerequisite: course 100 concurrently. Principles governing water transport in pipes, soil, and rainfall runoff. Water quality concerns associated with salinity and contamination. GE credit with concurrent enrollment in course 100: Wrt.—I. (I.) Grismer

108. Environmental Monitoring (3)

Lecture/discussion—2 hours; laboratory—2 hours; fieldwork. Prerequisite: entry-level course work in student's major; specifically: Evolution and Ecology 101, Environmental Science and Policy 100, Environmental Toxicology 101, Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology 100, Environmental and Resource Sciences 100, Soil Science 100, Environmental Horticulture 100, Landscape Architecture 50 or the equivalent for any of these courses. Instrumentation and methods for environmental and ecological monitoring; GPS, sensors, datalogging, and GIS. Wide range of measurement techniques for environmental parameters.—III. (III.) Hopmans

120. Global Environmental Interactions (4)

Lecture—3 hours; discussion—1 hour. Prerequisite: Chemistry 8B or the equivalent General Biology or equivalent. Relationships among climate, hydrology, biogeochemical cycles, soils and vegetation distribution in diverse landscapes and biomes. Emphasis on physical, chemical, and biological processes affecting ecosystems from the poles to the equator, and human impacts on the environment. Limited enrollment.—II. (II.) Southard

121. Water and Society (3)

Lecture—2 hours; discussion—1 hour. Prerequisite: Physics 10 or Geology 1. The role of water as an essential natural resource in contemporary society. Aspects of the scientific method, including descriptions of natural phenomena, measurement techniques, and predictive models. Supply and use of water for municipalities, agriculture, industry, wildlife and recreation. GE credit: SciEng, Wrt.—I. (I.) Silk

131. Air as a Resource (3)

Lecture—2 hours; discussion—1 hour. Prerequisite: Chemistry 10. Degradation of the atmospheric resource, historical aspects and effects of air pollution examined. Evaluation of primary gaseous and particulate pollutants and discussion of their impact. GE credit: SciEng, Wrt.—II. (II.) Flocchini

136. Chemistry of the Hydrosphere (3)

Lecture—3 hours. Prerequisite: Chemistry 2B and an upper division course in soil science, hydrologic science, geology, or limnology. Chemical characteristics of water in the hydrologic cycle. Understanding processes and conditions regulating chemical composition of natural waters with particular emphasis on dissolved mineral constituents. Not open for credit to students who have completed Water Science 180 or Hydrologic Science 136. (Former course Hydrologic Science 136.)—III. (III.)

140. Culinary and Medicinal Herbs (3)

Lecture/discussion—3 hours. Prerequisite: Biological Sciences 1C. Growth, identification, cultivation, and use of common culinary and medicinal herbs; herbal plant families; effects of climate and soils on herbs; herbal medicine; ecology and geography of herbs; herb garden design; secondary chemistry of active compounds. (Same course as Plant Biology 140.)—III. Bledsoe

141. Role of Fire in Natural Ecosystems (4)

Lecture—3 hours; term paper. Prerequisite: Biological Sciences 1B and 1C, upper division or graduate standing or consent of instructor; general ecology or environmental science course recommended. Fire regimes and roles in major North American vegetation types, especially in the west. Physics of fire, fire effects on organisms and ecosystem functioning, reconstructing fire histories, fire in resource management, and fire use by indigenous people.—II. (II.) Barbour

144. Trees and Forests (4)

Lecture—3 hours; discussion—1 hour. Prerequisite: Plant Sciences 2 or Biological Sciences 1C or 2C. Biological structure and function of trees as organisms; understanding of forests as communities and as ecosystems; use of forests by humans; tree phenology, photosynthesis, respiration, soil processes, life histories, dormancy, forest biodiversity, and agroforestry. Not open for credit to students who have completed Plant Biology 144 or Environmental Horticulture 144. (Former course Plant Biology/Environmental Horticulture 144.) (Same course as Plant Sciences 144).—I. (I.) Bledsoe, Berry, Dahlgren

185. Aerial Photo Interpretation and Remote Sensing (4)

Lecture—2 hours; laboratory—4 hours. Basics of remote sensing and photogrammetry, grids and map projections, aerial photo interpretation, sensors and platforms for aerial and space photography and non-photographic imaging systems, aerial thermography, microwave sensing, and introduction to remote sensing applications.—I. (I.)

186. Environmental Remote Sensing (3)

Lecture—3 hours. Prerequisite: Mathematics 16B and Physics 7C or 9B; upper division standing. Overview of satellite, airborne, and ground-based remote sensing. Building on properties of EM Radiation, isotropic and non-isotropic scattering and absorption, examines applications in hydrologic processes, weather and climate, ecology and land use, soils, geology, forestry, and agriculture. Not open for credit to students who have taken Hydrologic Science 186. (Former course Hydrologic Science 186.)—III. (III.) Ustin

186L. Environmental Remote Sensing Lab (2)

Laboratory—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 186 with grade of C or better. Computer based analysis and visualization of digital images and image processing techniques. Continuation of course 186 providing theory and direct experience in digital image processing.—III. (III.) Ustin

192. Resource Sciences Internship (1-12)

Internship—3-36 hours. Prerequisite: completion of 84 units and consent of instructor. Work experience off and on campus in resource sciences. Internship supervised by a member of the faculty. (P/NP grading only.)

194H. Senior Honor Thesis (2-6)

Independent study. Prerequisite: senior standing, overall GPA of 3.500 or higher and consent of master adviser. Independent study, guided research on an environmentally related subject of special interest to the student. May be repeated for credit.—I, II, III. (I, II, III.)

195. Integrating Environmental Science and Management (2)

Lecture/discussion—2 hours. Prerequisite: consent of Instructor; senior status in Environmental Science and Management major or other environmental science major (e.g., Environmental and Resource Sciences, Environmental Biology & Management, Environmental Toxicology, Environmental Policy Analysis and Planning, Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, Hydrologic Sciences). Students learn about contemporary environmental issues or problems from the combined perspectives of the physical sciences, ecological sciences and policy/management. May be repeated two times for credit.—II. (II.)

198. Directed Group Study (1-5)

(P/NP grading only.)

199. Special Study for Advanced Undergraduates (1-5)

Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
(P/NP grading only.)