GEOLOGY 220, WINTER
2008 Instructor:
Dr. Linda McCollum
ENVIRONMENTAL GEOLOGY Office: SCI 126
Office Hours: M-Th 10-11 359-7473,
lmccollum@ewu.edu
TEXT: E.A. Keller, Environmental Geology, Eighth Edition
Environmental geology is a required course within the
Environmental Science and Earth Science degrees. Inclusion of this course in the Environmental
Science degree is justified by the requirements of employment in state and
federal agencies, such as the EPA and state geologic hazard evaluation. The other major employers are individual
consulting firms, which regularly prepare environmental impact statements or
are involved directly with reclamation issues.
Environmental geology is a course that is taught in virtually every
college and university in the
This course examines current environmental geology issues from social and natural science perspectives. The course has two goals. The first goal is fulfilled by the textbook, that is, to give examples of environmental issues across the wide spectrum of natural hazards and natural resources. The second goal is to address ongoing environmental issues in our region through readings outside of the course text.
Two of the skills most commonly listed by employers as desirable or essential for their employees are ability to communicate, both orally and written; and ability to work in collaborative groups. This class is designed to give you some practice in these skills, as well as a content-based understanding of the subject material.
Therefore, there will be a group project and a term paper. Early in the quarter, you will be divided into groups of 3-4 students and allowed to pick a topic to collaborate on. The grade for this project will be based on the report the group gives as a whole, although individual students can report on separate aspects.
Attendance:
Attendance is mandatory, simply because students that don’t show up don’t do well. What is the point in paying tuition and then skipping out? I do realize that illness, accidents, and requirements of family life are fairly common reasons for missing class; however, it is up to the individual to obtain the class lecture notes from one of the other students. It is the student’s responsibility to acquire the knowledge that they missed by their absence from class.
Cell Phones:
If you carry a cell phone, beeper, or anything else that might make noise during class, please turn it off at the beginning of the class.
Academic Integrity
policy:
The instructor assumes that as a student you are familiar with and understand the definitions in the Student Academic Integrity Policy (p. 210 of the 2000-2002 EWU catalog). Violations of academic integrity will be sanctioned. Violations of academic integrity include plagiarism and cheating and any other misrepresentation of your work. Students committing academic dishonesty will be reported to the appropriate university officials and your course grade may be 0.0.
Expectations:
A class either succeeds or fails largely on whether the students feel that they are an integral part of the learning process. I emphasize an applied approach and independent thinking, in which students are encouraged to ask questions, make observations, and propose their own interpretations. I use case histories and local examples to teach basic concepts and to demonstrate the complexity and interrelated nature of environmental geology. Above all, I want students to develop a sense of curiosity that will motivate them to continue learning beyond the classroom. To assure this, these are my expectations of each student.
1. Attend all classes; be prepared by reading the assignments and participate.
2. All students are encouraged to see me during my office hours, or make arrangements to see me at other times. I also welcome your comments and suggestions about course content, so don’t wait until the last day of class to make your suggestions on the student evaluation form. Students have great ideas, but if they wait until the end of the course, there is no way they can be implemented in a timely fashion. This course is taught only once a year.
Exams:
There will be two exams during the quarter. The final exam will have one (new) question from the material covered on each of the previous exams, plus questions from material covered after the last exam.
Late homework or other assignments are penalized at the rate of 10% of the value of the assignment per day.
Missed lab exercises or exams may be made up if a satisfactory written excuse is presented. I reserve the right to reject excuses I consider to have little merit. If you foresee a need to miss a lab or exam, as for a medical appointment or participation in an out-of-town sporting event, you should make arrangements for completing the missed work or exam before the date of the lab or exam.
Week of:
January 7 Chapter 1, Philosophy and Fundamental Concepts; Chapter 3, Soils and Environment. LAB on topographic maps
January 14 Chapter 4, Natural Hazards Overview
January 21 HOLIDAY on Monday. Chapter 5, Rivers and Flooding; Chapter 6, Landslides and Related Phenomena. LAB on soils
January 28 Chapter 7, Earthquakes and Related Phenomena. LAB on floods
February 4 Chapter 8, Volcanic Activity. EXAM on Monday. LAB on earthquakes
February 11 Chapter 9, Coastal Hazards. Lab on volcanoes
February 18 HOLIDAY on Monday. Chapter 10, Water: Process, Supply, and Use. Chapter 11, Water Pollution and Treatment
February 25 Chapter 12, Waste Management. EXAM on Monday. LAB on water resources
March 3 Chapter 14, Mineral Resources and Environment; Chapter 15, Energy and Environment. LAB on mineral resources
March 10 Chapter 16, Global Change and Earth System Science; Chapter 17, Air Pollution. LAB on African lakes
March 19 LAB – field trip
GRADING:
Final exam 20%
Labs 30%
Exams 30%
Paper 20%
A word of wisdom: A student that excels in a class, does so not through the efforts of the instructor, but through their own efforts. You will find this true in the employment world also.