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ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

MODULE 1: AGRICULTURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT Specific Objectives 1. Comparing and contrasting agricultural systems in the Caribbean(i) Definition of agriculture. (ii) Characteristics of agricultural systems with respect to commercial and small scale farming including subsistence. 2. Explain the roles of agriculture in the region(i) Food Security (production of food and non-food material (ii).Production of materials for agroprocessing industries (iii) Economic 3. Assessing the impact of agriculture on the environment(i) Technological. (ii) Environmental. 4. Explaining the features of sustainable agriculture(i) Ecological integrity. (ii) Economic viability. (iii) Social Equity (iv) Adaptability. 5. Discussing threats to sustainable agriculture(i) Natural disasters. (ii) Climate change. (iii) External shocks (iv) Certification to meet international standards (v) Importation of cheap agricultural products. 6. Evaluating environmentally sustainable practices in agricultural systems 7. Presenting and interpret data using appropriate charts, tables and graphs MODULE 2: ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Specific Objectives 1. Describing the nature, from and conversion of energy 2. Explaining the importance of energy to society 3. Describing the characteristics of primary energy sourcesA. Non-renewable (i) Fossil fuels. (ii) Nuclear Power (iii) nuclear fuel cycle B. Renewable (i) Solar energy (ii) Indirect solar power (iii) Geothermal solar energy (iv) wave, tidal etc. 4. Describing the characteristics of various secondary energy sources- For example Fuel cells: (i) Technological limitations (ii) Geographical restrictions (iii) Reliability of supply (iv) Economic, political, social issues 5. Describing the conventional generation and distribution of electricity(i) Conventional generation. (ii) Transmission 6. Evaluating the use of renewable energy 7. Discussing factors affecting electricity generating capacity and demand(i) Cost. (ii) Demand patterns. (iii) Energy storage (iv) Stock piling capability for fossil fuel

(v) Diversity of energy sources (vi) Economic cost (vii) Government policies. 8. Discussing various methods of energy conservation and improving efficiency(i) Definition of energy conservation, energy efficiency (ii) Approaches to energy conservation (iii) Improving energy efficiency through various methods 9. outlining the impact of the use of various forms of energy on the environment(i) Environmental: (a) global Warming (b) Pollution impact (c) habitat destruction 10. Explaining the total cost of energy use(i) Political. (ii) Economic. (iii) Social. (iv) Environmental. (v) Technological MODULE 3: POLLUTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT Specific Objectives 1. Describing pollutants(i) Definition of pollution and pollutant. (ii) Local examples of pollutants and incidence of pollution (iii) nature of pollutants: persistence, mobility, synergistic effect, toxicity (iv) Movement through the environment. 2. Identifying environmental receptors of specific pollutants- Environmental receptors (micro-organisms, plant, animals, humans) 3. Describing the various pathways of pollution in the ecosystem and the biosphere- Environmental pathways (biotic and abiotic) feeding relationship, bioaccumulation and biomagnifications.

4. Outlining the underlying causes of pollution(i) Resource extraction, transportation, processing and use. (ii) Population growth: behavioral pattern, lifestyle, consumption pattern (iii) institutional framework (iv) Lack of environmental ethics 6.1. Discussing the major sources, impact and mitigation of Atmospheric Pollution(i) The Atmosphere. (ii) Primary air pollutants (iii) Secondary air pollutants (iv) Global impact of atmospheric pollutants (v) mitigative measures and monitoring. 6.2. Discussing Water Pollution(i) Properties of water. (ii) Point and non-point sources. (iii) Factors affecting concentration of pollutants (iv) Environmental pathways and receptors (v) Environmental impacts (vi) Mitigative measures and monitoring 6.3. Discussing Land Pollution(i) Sources: industrial; agricultural; municipal; domestic. (ii) Causes of land pollution (iii) Environmental pathways and receptors (iv) Environmental impacts (v) General mitigative measures and monitoring. 7. Analyzing the environmental impacts of pollution from specific sources(i) Sources (medical and industrial waste) (ii) Toxic effect (carcinogenic, mutagenic, tetratogenic effect)

(iii) Improper disposal methods. 8. Assessing the effectiveness of measures to mitigate environmental impacts of pollution 9. Discussing the importance of international conventions and agreements regarding pollution control(i) UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol (ii) Montreal protocol (iii) MARPOL (iv) Cartagena convention (v) Basel convention (vi) UNCLOS

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