About the Course

This course is about the global water crisis. The central issue is providing water for people and also ecosystems. Four key themes are maintained: hydrology, ecological protection, social justice, and economic opportunity. Global demand for freshwater resources grows continuously, while at the same time there is increasing emphasis on preventing pollution and leaving enough water for natural ecosystem functions. These combined pressures define the need for sustainable water resource management.

This course describes the effects of human impacts on hydrologic ecosystems (aquifers, watersheds, coastal zones, lakes, and wetlands) with quantitative measures of impacts and mitigation/attenuation efforts. Case studies from around the world will be used to illustrate both the detrimental effects of unsustainable resource utilization and the benefits of implementing sustainable resource management strategies.

This course is intended for graduate students interested in the interactions between human civilization and hydrologic systems and should be of interest to agricultural and environmental scientists and engineers, and natural resource managers.