AAA 3151 Environmental Science and Agrometeorology
COURSE OF THE PURPOSE
To enable learners to gain knowledge on the concepts and principles governing the environment and the ecosystems and climate change issues.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the course, the learner should be able to:
- Describe plant and animal ecology systems.
- Explain food and energy chains in ecosystems.
- Describe types of natural resources, their utilization and conservation.
- Explain climate change and international efforts to mitigate.
- Enumerate laws governing environmental protection.
- Do environmental assessment and audit.
COURSE CONTENT
Introduction to plant and animal ecology: ecosystems; concept, types and dynamics. Populations interactions: food chains, food levels, primary productivity, biomass, habitat, ecological niche and trophic levels. Energy flow in an ecosystem. Material transfer in nature: biogeochemical cycles. Natural resources: inexhaustible, renewable and non-renewable. Conservation of natural resources. Climate change and agriculture: Global warming, protocols and international efforts to mitigate climate change. The effects of human activities on the environment. Environmental pollution. Population growth and food supply. Environmental auditing. Environmental impact assessment. Law and the environment. Introduction; meteorological elements; temperature, precipitation, light and wind. Relationships of meteorological elements. Use of meteorological equipment.