Environmental Science
Charles A. Dana Professor Richard K. Dunn (Chair); Charles A. Dana Professor David S. Westerman; Assistant Professor G. Christopher Koteas; Lecturer Laurie D. Grigg; Research Associate George E. Springston
This major is interdisciplinary, designed for those with environmental interests and career goals. The program emphasizes experiential learning, commonly through field studies and outdoor education. Courses include real projects and original research participation. Students begin their curriculum with the development of a firm base in the sciences and mathematics. Each student develops an area of specialization by selecting a Concentration from one of two Options. Option I Concentrations lead to a heavier emphasis in science and engineering, and include Environmental Biology, Environmental Geology, Environmental Engineering, Environmental Chemistry, and Climate Science. Option II Concentrations result in a stronger emphasis in the social sciences, humanities and business, and include Environmental Policy & Management, Environmental Law & Protection, Environmental Writing, Green Design, and Environmental Education.
All Environmental Science majors take a pair of capstone courses involving an original research project and a seminar designed to synthesize their education and tie scientific thought to issues in society. The Department houses a number of instruments for environmental monitoring and analysis, and students also have access to resources in their area of Concentration.
Goals:
- To provide an interdisciplinary Liberal Arts degree program in Environmental Science having a strong foundation in the physical and life sciences with a focus on relationships connecting society and nature.
- To provide two options, one with a concentration in the sciences and engineering, and the other with a concentration in the social sciences and humanities.
- To provide instruction and experiences with emphasis on field studies, solution of active problems, and communication in a professional format.
Outcomes:
- Understand the physical laws of nature that control the formation and evolution of Earth materials and biological organisms.
- Understand what controls the behavior of the chemical compounds that make up the inorganic and organic materials of the Earth.
- Know how to define a problem, design a study to acquire data, critically analyze and interpret data, and discuss the implications of results and
- Be able to think critically about published work, synthesize the content of such work, and present findings at a professional level both in writing and orally
- Meet the University's General Education Goals.
Careers for this Major:
- Understand the physical laws of nature that control the formation and evolution of Earth materials and biological organisms,
- Understand what controls the behavior of the chemical compounds that make up the inorganic and organic materials of the Earth,
- Know how to define a problem, design a study to acquire data, critically analyze and interpret data, and discuss the implications of results, and
- Be able to think critically about published work, synthesize the content of such work, and present findings at a professional level both in writing and orally.
- Meet the University’s General Education Goals.
- Graduate education
- Industry and consulting
- Military
- Environmental agencies
- Non-profit organizations
B.S. in Environmental Science – Curriculum Map
Option I
Concentrations for Option 1 are: Environmental Biology, Environmental Chemistry, Environmental Geology, Environmental Engineering, or Climate Science.
| Freshman | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| BI 101 Principles of Biology I1 | 4 | BI 102 Principles of Biology II1 | 4 |
| EN 101 Composition and Literature I | 3 | EN 102 Composition and Literature II | 3 |
| GL 110 Introduction to Geology (General Education Lab Science) | 4 | GL 111 Oceanography (General Education Lab Science) | 4 |
| MA 107 Precalculus Mathematics (General Education Math) | 4 | MA 108 Applied Calculus (General Education Math)2 | 4 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Sophomore | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CH 103 General Chemistry I | 4 | CH 104 General Chemistry II | 4 |
| Concentration Elective | 3-4 | Concentration Elective | 3-4 |
| ES 251 Sophomores Seminar Environmental Science | 1 | General Education Literature (or ES 130) | 3 |
| ES 270 Fundamentals of Environmental Science (or Free Elective)3 | 4 | MA 232 Elementary Statistics | 3 |
| PH 323 Environmental Ethics (General Education Ethics) | 3 | Free Elective3 | 3-4 |
| 15-16 | 16-18 | ||
| Junior | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Concentration Elective | 3-4 | ES 130 Introduction to Environmental Law (or General Education Literature) | 3 |
| EC 201 Principles of Economics (Macro) or 202 Principles of Economics (Micro) (General Education Social Science) | 3 | Concentration Elective | 3-4 |
| General Education Arts & Humanities (or PH 323) | 3 | ES 340 Project Development in Environmental Science | 1 |
| PS 201 General Physics I | 4 | PS 202 General Physics II | 4 |
| Free Elective (or ES 270)3 | 3-4 | Free Elective3 | 3-4 |
| 16-18 | 14-16 | ||
| Senior | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| BI 405 Ecology | 4 | Concentration Elective | 3-4 |
| Concentration Elective | 3-4 | ES 451 Environmental Seminar (General Education Capstone) | 3 |
| ES 440 Research Project in Environmental Science (General Education Capstone) | 3 | ES 460 Project Completion in Environmental Science/Geology | 1 |
| GL 255 Hydrogeology | 3 | General Education History | 3 |
| Free Elective3 | 3-4 | ||
| 13-14 | 13-15 | ||
| Total Credits: 117-127 | |||
| 1 | EnvCH and EnvEG concentrations students take CH 103 and CH 104 as freshmen, and BI 101 and BI 102 in the second year. |
| 2 | Or equivalent, especially if needed as a prerequisite for Concentration courses. |
| 3 | Can be used out of sequence and to take more than one concentration elective concurrently. |
Available Concentrations – Option I
Environmental Biology
| GL 261 | Field Geology | 4 |
| CH 205 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | 4 |
| Two of the following: | 8 | |
| Environmental Biology | 4 | |
| Plant Taxonomy | 4 | |
| Dendrology and Silvics | 4 | |
| Woodland Ecology and Management | 4 | |
| Two of the following: | 8 | |
| Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy | 4 | |
| Introductory Microbiology | 4 | |
| Invertebrate Zoology | 4 | |
| Natural History of the Vertebrates | 4 | |
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Environmental Geology
| GL 253 | Geomorphology | 4 |
| GL 257 | Sedimentation | 4 |
| GL 261 | Field Geology | 4 |
| GL 263 | Mineralogy | 4 |
| GL 2XX Elective or EG 203 Materials Science | 3-4 | |
| CH elective: CH204 or above, 3-4 cr. options only | 3-4 | |
| Total Credits | 22-24 | |
Environmental Chemistry
| CH 204 | Quantitative Analysis | 4 |
| CH 205 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | 4 |
| GL 263 | Mineralogy | 4 |
| Three of the following: | 10-12 | |
| Field Geology | 4 | |
| Instrumental Methods (+/- CH 315 Lab) | 3/4 | |
| Materials Science | 3 | |
| Introductory Microbiology | 4 | |
| Total Credits | 22-24 | |
Environmental Engineering
| EG 109 | Introduction to Engineering I | 3 |
| CE 211 | Surveying | 3 |
| EG 203 | Materials Science | 3 |
| AP 221 | Site Development and Design | 3 |
| GL 253 | Geomorphology | 4 |
| One of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Field Geology | 4 | |
| Environmental Biology | 4 | |
| Mathematical Computation and Modeling | 3 | |
CH elective: CH 204 or above, 3-4 cr. options only | 3-4 | |
| Total Credits | 19-20 | |
Climate Science
| GL 265 | Glacial Geology and Paleoclimate | 4 |
| CH 204 | Quantitative Analysis | 4 |
| GL 253 | Geomorphology | 4 |
| MA 241 | Mathematical Computation and Modeling | 3 |
| Two of the following: | 6-8 | |
| Instrumental Methods (+/- CH 315 Lab) | 3/4 | |
| Evolution | 4 | |
| Geopolitics (recommended) | 3 | |
| International Law | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 21-23 | |
B. S. in Environmental Science – Curriculum Map
Option II
Concentrations for Option 2 are: Environmental Policy and Management, Environmental Law and Protection, Environmental Writing, Green Design, or Education
| Freshman | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| BI 101 Principles of Biology I | 4 | BI 102 Principles of Biology II | 4 |
| EN 101 Composition and Literature I | 3 | EN 102 Composition and Literature II | 3 |
| GL 110 Introduction to Geology (General Eduction Lab Science) | 4 | GL 111 Oceanography (General Education Lab Science) | 4 |
| MA 107 Precalculus Mathematics (General Education Math) | 4 | MA 108 Applied Calculus (General Education Math) | 4 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Sophomore | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Concentration Elective | 3-4 | Concentration Elective | 3-4 |
| ES 251 Sophomores Seminar Environmental Science | 1 | General Education Literature (or ES 130) | 3 |
| ES 270 Fundamentals of Environmental Science (or EC 201 or EC 202) | 4 | MA 232 Elementary Statistics | 3 |
| PH 323 Environmental Ethics or EN 276 Environmental Writing (General Education Ethics) | 3 | PO Elective 21 | 3 |
| PO Elective1 | 3 | PY 211 Introduction to Psychology (General Education Social Science) | 3 |
| 14-15 | 15-16 | ||
| Junior | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CH Chemistry Elective | 4 | Concentration Elective | 3 |
| Concentration Elective | 3 | ES 130 Introduction to Environmental Law (or General Education Literature) | 3 |
| EC 201 Principles of Economics (Macro) or 202 Principles of Economics (Micro) (or ES 270) | 3 | ES 340 Project Development in Environmental Science | 1 |
| EN 276 Environmental Writing | 3 | General Education History | 3 |
| SO 201 Introduction to Sociology | 3 | GL 253 Geomorphology (or Free Elective)2 | 4 |
| Free Elective2 | 3-4 | ||
| 16 | 17-18 | ||
| Senior | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| BI 405 Ecology | 4 | Concentration Elective | 3 |
| Concentration Elective | 3 | ES 451 Environmental Seminar (Capstone) | 3 |
| ES 440 Research Project in Environmental Science (Capstone) | 3 | ES 460 Project Completion in Environmental Science/Geology | 1 |
| General Education Arts & Humanities | 3 | Free Elective (or GL 253)2 | 3-4 |
| Free Elective2 | 3-4 | ||
| Free Elective2 | 3-4 | ||
| 13 | 16-19 | ||
| Total Credits: 121-127 | |||
| 1 | Selected from PO 105 American Politics, PO 215 International Relations and PO 305 Geopolitics; Green Design concentration students take EG 109 Introduction to Engineering I and EG 110 Introduction to Engineering II. |
| 2 | Can be used out of sequence and to take more than on concentration elective concurrently. |
Available Concentrations – Option II
Environmental Policy and Management
| MG 101 | Introduction to Business | 3 |
| CS 120 | Business Applications & Problem Solving Techniques | 3 |
| SO 202 | Problems of Modern Society | 3 |
| PO 321 | U.S. Constitutional Law | 3 |
| MG 309 | Management of Organizations | 3 |
| MG 341 | Business Law I | 3 |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
Environmental Law and Protection
| CJ 101 | Introduction to Criminal Justice | 3 |
| CJ 102 | Substantive Criminal Law | 3 |
| CJ 402 | Law and Society | 3 |
| Two of the following three: | 6 | |
| U.S. Constitutional Law | 3 | |
| The Legislative Process | 3 | |
| State and Local Politics | 3 | |
| SO 202 | Problems of Modern Society | 3 |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
Environmental Writing
| EN 274 | Introduction to Creative Writing | 3 |
| EN 364 | Intermediate Creative Writing | 3 |
| Four of the following: | 12 | |
| Advanced Composition | 3 | |
| Survey of American Literature I | 3 | |
| Survey of American Literature II | 3 | |
| Literature of the Sea | 3 | |
| Literary Methods | 3 | |
| American Ethnic Literature & Cultural Literature | 3 | |
| Literature of the Developing World | 3 | |
| Introduction to Mass Media | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
Green Design
| AP 111 | Fundamentals of Architecture | 4 |
| AP 118 | Fundamentals of Architecture II | 4 |
| AP 221 | Site Development and Design | 3 |
| AP 225 | Introduction to Passive Environmental Systems | 3 |
| AP 325 | Materials, Construction, and Design | 3 |
| One of the following three: | 3 | |
| History/Theory of Architecture I | 3 | |
| History/Theory of Architecture II | 3 | |
| History/Theory of Artchitectural III | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 20 | |
Environmental Education1
| ED 104 | Foundations of Education | 3 |
| Five of the following: | 16-19 | |
| Learning and Teaching Strategies | 4 | |
| Special Needs Child | 3 | |
| Methods of Teaching Science to Elementary Students | 3 | |
| Reading and Writing in the Content Area | 4 | |
| Developmental Psychology | 3 | |
| Adolescent Psychology | 3,4 | |
| Learning and Memory | 4 | |
| Total Credits | 19-22 | |
| 1 | For Environmental Education concentration students seeking licensure, a double major in Education, Elementary Teacher Licensure is required, and may require an additional semester for student teaching. |
Courses
ES 115 Geographic Info. Systems 3 Credits
Open to all majors; an introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS is a powerful computer mapping tool essential in: the natural, health, and social sciences; engineering; architecture; and the military. It is used for a wide-range of spatial analyses and data management. Students learn basic GIS and cartographic concepts, ArcGIS software, and application of GIS to their own discipline. During the final 4 weeks of the semester students design, implement, and present a GIS project. Offered Fall of odd numbered years.
ES 130 Introduction to Environmental Law 3 Credits
Major Federal pollution regulation schemes, environmental economics, risk analysis, relevant common law, and constitutional and procedural issues are introduced. Vermont Environmental Law is addressed, as is a survey of the extensive and often novel regulatory approaches of the state of Vermont. The course introduces the law pertaining to environmental issues such as population, economic growth, energy, and pollution. Environmental problems are defined and alternative approaches for dealing with them are examined. Existing statutory efforts such as the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act are analyzed. Does not fulfill a science requirement. Three lecture hours per week. Offered Spring of even numbered years.
ES 251 Sophomores Seminar Environmental Science 1 Credit
This course introduces the fundamentals of scientific investigation and communication. A research project introduces the Sceinctific Method, while reading and comprehension of scientific literature is coupled with instruction in and application of technical and scientific writing. Other forms of scientific communication, including poster and oral presentations, are addressed. Students learn the appropriate techniques for displaying and interpreting scientific data. Students may not earn credit for both ES 251 and GL 251. Offered Fall semester.
ES 270 Fundamentals of Environmental Science 4 Credits
This lab science course investigates the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and pedosphere and their interrelations as well as the affect they have on humans and the role that humans play in large-scale change within these spheres. Subjects include modern climate principles and global climate change, water as a natural resource, natural hazards such as landslides, earthquakes and volcanoes, soil nutrient loss and erosion, sustainable agriculture, and other topics related to natural-human interactions. Prerequisite, one introductory Geology lab science. Offered Fall semester of even numbered years.
ES 340 Project Development in Environmental Science 1 Credit
A course for students majoring in Environmental Science aimed to develop the skills for designing and executing an original scientific research project. Topics include research plan development, literature research to inform methodology, generation of site maps and protocols for collecting field and laboratory data, and generation of a properly formatted research proposal. Prerequisite: Junior-year status and permission of instructor. Offered spring semesters.
ES 399 Junior Topics 4 Credits
ES 440 Research Project in Environmental Science 3 Credits
A capstone original research project under the direction of a faculty member in coordination with others taking this course. Field and laboratory work will generate new data on an expanding base; after analysis and interpretation, data will be presented in a technical format. All aspects of the project will be interpreted in the context of the literature. Prerequisite: ES 340/GL 340 or permission of the instructor. Students cannot receive credit for both ES 440 and GL 440. Offered fall semester.
ES 451 Environmental Seminar 3 Credits
A capstone course offered in a seminar format with required reading, writing, and group participation. Designed to provide an integrating experience with sufficient flexibility to pursue individual interests. This course also includes oral and poster presentations of senior research projects and examination of codes of ethics in the environmental sciences. Classroom 3 hours. Prerequisite: junior or senior standing and permission of the instructor. Credit cannot be received both for this course and GL 451. Offered spring semesters.
ES 460 Project Completion in Environmental Science/Geology 1 Credit
Designed to follow senior research work in ES 440, this course provides the support for students to turn their technical product into a professional technical paper in which the research is integrated into the peer-reviewed knowledge base for the subject. The course is writing intensive and self-driven directed, with a student working collaboratively with their research advisor. Prerequisite: ES 440 and permission of the instructor. Offered spring semesters.
ES 499 Env Sci 4 Credits