Environmental Geoscience 3rd Year Field Course (U03086)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 9 ? Acronym : GEO-3-JAMFC

This is a two-week trip based at Discovery Bay Marine Laboratory on the north shore of Jamaica. Field studies will include coral reef ecology and geomorphology, coastal oceanographic processes, and stream and groundwater sampling and analyses, as well as trips to investigate Jamaica's bauxite mining industry, the geology of the igneous Central inlier region, and karst processes in the Cockpit Country.

Entry Requirements

? This course is not available to visting students.

? Pre-requisites : Aquatic Systems

? Costs : £600 contribution to the fieldwork costs per student.

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Earth Science, (School of GeoSciences, Schedule N)

Other subject areas

Environmental Courses, (School of GeoSciences, Schedule N)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 1 hour(s) per week for 3 weeks

? Other Required Attendance : 35 hour(s) per week for 2 weeks

? Additional Class Information : Two-week field trip, with prepartory lectures and reading beforehand.

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

- Hands-on experience with field sampling and analytical methods
- Introduction to biological survey methods and data analysis.
- First experience with sample collection through analysis and interpretation of a large and diverse environmental data set.
- First experience of coastal oceanographic methods and processes' providing a Tropical counterpart to subsequent studies in a Scottish sealoch (Oban fieldtrip).
- Comprehensive exposure to environmental studies in both marine and terrestrial systems, linked through assessment of natural waters - from rivers to groundwaters to a coastal embayment.
- Assessment methods for water quality and an appreciation of the nature and impacts of natural and anthropogenic factors.
- Development of statistical and data quality assessment methods, and of oral and written presentation skills.