| CODE | IES5018 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Freshwater Resources Management | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 6 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Institute of Earth Systems | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit focuses on the exploration and analysis of case studies in the development of sustainable water policies and practices around the world, including potable water supply and production and water pollution. Connections of water sustainability to other key areas, such as agriculture and food, energy, air and waste and coastal resources will be emphasized. The unit will commence with an overview of global water resources. Following this, aspects of water chemistry will be introduced, including (i) bonding, structure and solubility properties, (ii) acid, base and pH properties, (iii) acid rain, and (iv) chemical buffering and carbonates. Additionally, students will be introduced to relevant sampling techniques and to chemical analysis and instrumentation, through fieldwork and lab sessions. The unit will furthermore address relevant concepts relating to water pollution and treatment, water treatment technologies, and wastewater treatment, including a case study on mercury pollution. Additional components of the unit will provide an overview of watersheds and watershed management, drawing on several case studies, and with reference to the geopolitical dimensions of water resources. Aspects addressed include geomorphological connections between freshwater, rivers, coastal and marine environments, the effects of river damming, water pollution and human health, and water-related policies. Study-unit Aims: - Develop students' understanding of the state of water resources; - Introduce students to concepts of water chemistry; - Introduce students to skills and techniques relating to chemical analysis of water, including sampling & instrumentation; - Develop students' understanding of water pollution & water treatment technologies; - Enable students to situate water resource management issues within the broad context of geopolitical factors and integrated river basin management. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Evaluate basic water needs globally; - Identify key issues in water supply in different parts of the globe; - Identify physical and chemical properties of water that derive from its molecular bonding; - Describe key elements causing water pollution in different parts of the globe; - Describe buffering through proper use of the terms: pH, acid, base, conjugate pair, equilibrium; - Describe some effects of acid rain on watersheds, soils, and aquatic ecosystems; - Describe how water infiltrates soil and moves in response to hydraulic gradients; - Evaluate the role of water in the relations between nations; - Compare and contrast different national policies regarding water supply; - Define geopolitics, environmental security, and strategic resources; - Identify stressors on water resources; - Explain the concepts of “virtual water” and “water footprint”; - Recognize inequity in global distribution of water resources; - Describe Malta’s two freshwater aquifer types and their historic use and quality; - Distinguish grab and composite samples and describe the relative advantages of each; - Describe common methods for preserving water samples (e.g. refrigeration, acid treatment); - Explain why water quality will vary on temporal and spatial scales; - Define salinity, water hardness, alkalinity, and total dissolved solids; - Distinguish spectroscopic, chromatographic, and electrochemical methods of analysis; - Describe pretreatment techniques such as extraction, filtration, and acidification and identify analytes where these techniques are necessary; - Distinguish total solids, total dissolved solids (TDS), and suspended solids; - Explain titration as a method for determining hardness of a water sample; - Define and relate the variables and constants (A, I, ε, b, c) in Beer’s Law; - Identify and describe the function of different high- and low-technology water production and water treatment technologies and facilities; - Distinguish organic and inorganic forms of carbon; - Define biochemical oxygen demand (BOD); - Identify wastewater treatment methods used to reduce BOD and total suspended solids; - Describe political water management issues in the Middle East, with specific reference to the Nile River Basin and the Jordan River Basin; - Describe the causes and impacts of water resource exploitation in the Aral Sea; - Describe the Great Manmade River Project and implications for the use of transboundary groundwater resources; - Extrapolate from case studies in order to discuss potential future political conflicts relating to water management in Malta, the United States, and on a global basis; - Recognize the complexity of the fluvial system-coastal marine system relationship and relate the processes of fluvial sediment transport and coastal beach nourishment; - Explain why and describe how groundwater, in particular the ‘hydrological lens’ within each dune ridge, is important for the very survival of the stenacious floral assemblage typical of individual components of the dunal sequence; - Define bathymetry, aeolian processes, river delta, longshore drift, saltation, and surface creep; - Explain sediment supply and dune morphology; - Describe how building dams across rivers and valley systems can lead to unintended consequences; - Identify consequences of building the Aswan High Dam on human populations, sediment transport, water quality, fisheries at the Nile Delta, disease patterns, and the economy of Egypt; - Describe methylation, bioaccumulation, leaching, and smelting and their relevance in understanding the environmental fate of mercury. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Represent simple compounds and reactions using chemical formulas and equations; - Use basic chemistry to discuss pollution remediation; - Calculate pH given the concentration of the hydroxonium or hydroxide ion; - Represent acid and base dissociation reactions with chemical equations; - Delineate a watershed given a topographic map; - Collect a water sample in a way that minimizes contamination and other sources of error; - Identify situations where automated monitoring technologies are reasonable and appropriate; - Calculate analyte concentration given the mass of precipitate in a gravimetric analysis (e.g. chloride, sulfate); - Convert mass, volume, and chemical concentration units in the metric system; - Relate conductivity, TDS, electrical resistance, and cell constant (L/A) for a conductivity meter; - Calculate water hardness given the volume of sample, the EDTA titrant concentration, and the volume of titrant used to reach endpoint; - Calculate alkalinity given the volume of sample, the standard acid titrant concentration, and the volume of titrant used to reach endpoint; - Explain the scientific principles, basic components, and limitations for spectroscopic methods of water analysis such as UV-visible spectrometry and atomic absorption spectrophotometry; - Represent the weathering (i.e. dissolution) of limestone using chemical equations; - Propose and defend solutions to limited water supply in different nations; - Interpret the WHO burden of disease estimates for a population exposed to mercury in fish with appropriate use of the terms: IQ, MMR, DALY; - Interpret the output from a systems model for mercury in fish, its sources, and the processes that control its environmental fate; - Identify connections between the water case study on mercury in fish and other study-units in this programme. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main text: Spiro, T. G., & Stigliani, W. M. (2003). Chemistry of the Environment. UK: Prentice-Hall, Inc. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Fieldwork, Lab Sessions, Lectures & Tutorials | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Robert Brent Kevin Gatt Colette Pace Maria Papadakis |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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