Students
ENVS7498 – Environmental Remediation
2020 – Session 2, Weekday attendance, North Ryde
Notice
As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group learning activities on campus for the second half-year, while keeping an online version available for those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.
To check the availability of face to face activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.
General Information
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| Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Vladimir Strezov
|
|---|---|
| Credit points |
Credit points
10
|
| Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
Admission to MRes
|
| Corequisites |
Corequisites
|
| Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
ENVS7498 - Environmental Remediation
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| Unit description |
Unit description
This interdisciplinary unit aims to develop an understanding of some of the impacts of human activities on the environment and the actions that can be undertaken to remediate, rehabilitate or restore degraded environments. It includes interactive classes, field-based learning and engagement to enable students to build their knowledge of the causes and impacts of environmental degradation. Students will then put knowledge into practice by developing a comprehensive remediation/rehabilitation report for a contaminated site. |
Important Academic Dates
Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- ULO1: understand, explain and compare the current remediation technologies from a management point of view
- ULO2: research the emerging developments in environmental remediation and critically assess their commercial readiness
- ULO3: describe laboratory and field methods for sample collection and analysis of pollutants
- ULO4: interpret and evaluate data for enviromental risk evaluation and design of remediation programs for effective management
- ULO5: work independently and in a team to assess complex environmental problems and propose technological solutions for remediation
- ULO6: demonstrate verbal and written communication skills by disseminating knowledge to a specialist audience
General Assessment Information
Assessment Criteria
Assessment at Macquarie University is standards-based, as outlined in the Assessment Policy. This means that your work will be assessed against clear criteria, and these criteria (e.g. in a rubric) will be made available when the assessment tasks are released to you on iLearn.
Submission of Assessments
All assessments must be submitted online through Turnitin unless otherwise indicated. Links for the submission of each assessment will be available on iLearn.
You should always check that you have uploaded the correct file. If you have a problem, please email the Unit Convenor with your correct file. You must also keep a copy of your assessments until the end of semester in case there is a problem with your submission. It is your responsibility to ensure that you can provide a copy of your assessment if requested.
Marking of Assessments
Assignments will usually be marked through Turnitin with grades provided through Gradebook on iLearn. Please do not submit your assessments via email or in hard copy unless requested (e.g. a sketch or drawing).
We aim to return your assessment grades and feedback within two to three weeks of the date that you submitted it. We appreciate your patience and will advise you through iLearn when your marked assessments and feedback are available for viewing.
Penalties for Late Assessments
The penalty for late submission of assessments in this unit is ten percent (10 %) of the assessment value per day, calculated from the due time and date. This means that if the assignment is worth a total of 30 marks (or 30 % of the unit) you will lose 3 marks for each day it is late. This is a hefty penalty designed to make you aware of the importance of organising yourself around assessment due dates. The penalty will be applied over weekdays and weekends unless you have been granted an extension prior to the due date.
Extensions for Assessments
To obtain an extension for an assessment task, you will need to follow the formal process as outlined in the Special Consideration Policy, and you must provide appropriate supporting evidence (e.g. medical certificate - see advice for Special Consideration requests). The final decision regarding the granting of an extension lies with the unit convenor. Permission for extensions must be sought before the due date unless there are exceptional circumstances. Please let us know of problems in advance or as soon as possible, not after the event. We are likely to be much more sympathetic and able to accommodate your circumstance if you follow this advice.
Assessment Tasks
| Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case study | 20% | No | Week 6 |
| Quiz | 20% | No | Week 8 |
| Presentation | 20% | No | Weeks 9 and 10 |
| Project | 40% | No | Week 13 |
Case study
Assessment Type 1: Case study/analysis
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 6
Weighting: 20%
Case study of urban runoff contamination remediation design
On successful completion you will be able to:
- understand, explain and compare the current remediation technologies from a management point of view
- demonstrate verbal and written communication skills by disseminating knowledge to a specialist audience
Quiz
Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 13 hours
Due: Week 8
Weighting: 20%
The quizzes will test knowledge and may be online or in-class. See iLearn for a detailed list of quizzes in this unit.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- understand, explain and compare the current remediation technologies from a management point of view
- interpret and evaluate data for enviromental risk evaluation and design of remediation programs for effective management
Presentation
Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Weeks 9 and 10
Weighting: 20%
Presentation of research inquiry of a selected emerging environmental remediation technology
On successful completion you will be able to:
- understand, explain and compare the current remediation technologies from a management point of view
- research the emerging developments in environmental remediation and critically assess their commercial readiness
- demonstrate verbal and written communication skills by disseminating knowledge to a specialist audience
Project
Assessment Type 1: Project
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 40%
Assessment of contaminants in contaminated soil and design of effective remediation program
On successful completion you will be able to:
- understand, explain and compare the current remediation technologies from a management point of view
- describe laboratory and field methods for sample collection and analysis of pollutants
- interpret and evaluate data for enviromental risk evaluation and design of remediation programs for effective management
- work independently and in a team to assess complex environmental problems and propose technological solutions for remediation
- demonstrate verbal and written communication skills by disseminating knowledge to a specialist audience
1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:
- the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
- the Writing Centre for academic skills support.
2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation
Delivery and Resources
Unit iLearn
This unit has an iLearn page that can be accessed through ilearn.mq.edu.au. It contains important information and other materials relating to the unit, including details and links for assessments.
Communication
The unit iLearn is the primary way that we communicate with you. Please check it regularly for announcements and posts. You are encouraged to use the Discussion Board on iLearn to post questions and generate discussion with other students. Please only email the convenor with private matters – all other questions should be posted on iLearn.
Unit Organisation
This unit is delivered in (modules/weekly topics). The organisation of these is outlined in a detailed unit schedule which is available on iLearn.
Classes
The class timetable for this unit can be found through the Timetable portal. You should also check the unit schedule as some weeks may have other instructions or locations.
Workload
The expected workload for this 10-credit point unit is 150 hours of activity, comprising 72 hours on learning activities and 78 hours on assessment tasks.
Requirements to complete this unit satisfactorily
To complete this unit satisfactorily, you must:
1. Participate in all scheduled classes;
2. Complete all assessments; and
3. Achieve a pass grade or higher.
The descriptions for grades common to all coursework units offered by Macquarie University are outlined in Schedule 1 of the Assessment Policy.
Recommended Texts and/or Materials
P. Nathanail and R.P. Bardos, Reclamation of contaminated land, John Wiley & Sons, Chichester UK, 2004.
M. van der Perk, Soil and water contamination, Taylor & Francis, London UK, 2006.
T. Carney and D.M. Hobson, Contaminated land, E&FN Spoon, New York USA, 1998.
P.B. Bedient, H.S. Rifai and C.J. Newell, Ground water contamination, PTR Prentice-Hall, New Jersey USA, 1994.
I. Mirsal, Soil Pollution Origin, Monitoring & Remediation, Springer, 2008.
D.D. Reible, Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering, CRC Press, Boca Roca USA, 2000.
N.K. Shammas and L.K. Wang, Water Engineering: Hydraulics, Distribution and Treatment, Wiley & Sons, Chichester UK, 2015.
US EPA, How To Evaluate Alternative Cleanup Technologies For Underground Storage Tank Sites, 2017.
US EPA, Guidelines for Human Exposure Assessment, 2019.
NSW EPA, Managing Urban Stormwater: Treatment Techniques, Sydney 1997.
NSW EPA, Waste Classification Guidelines Part 1: Classifying waste, Sydney, 2014.
A.T Yeung, Remediation Technologies for Contaminated Sites, in book Advances in Environmental Geotechnics pp 328-369, 2009.
Schoonover and Crim, An Introduction to Soil Concepts and the Role of Soils in Watershed Management, Journal of Contemporary Water Research & Education, 154, 21, 2015.
C. Reimann and P. de Caritat, Establishing geochemical background variation and threshold values for 59 elements in Australian surface soil, Science of the Total Environment, 578, 633, 2017
A. Jankaite and S. Vasarevicius, Remediation technologies for soils contaminated with heavy metals, Journal of Environmental Engineering and Landscape Management, 2005.
Technology Used and Required
This unit will use iLearn and Echo360. See the Instructions on how to log in to iLearn and the iLearn quick guides for students which will help you:
- Getting started - Find out how to navigate and familiarise yourself with the iLearn environment
- Activities - Learn how to effectively complete the activities required of you in iLearn
- Assignments and Gradebook - Find out how to submit assessments and view your grades using iLearn
- Online study tips - Studying online is a unique experience, learn how to navigate it here
- Discussion forums - Explore the different types, and features of discussion forums in iLearn
- Lecture recordings - Find out how to access lectures online, as well as the features available to you
Policies and Procedures
Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
- Academic Appeals Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progression Policy
- Assessment Policy
- Fitness to Practice Procedure
- Grade Appeal Policy
- Complaint Management Procedure for Students and Members of the Public
- Special Consideration Policy (Note: The Special Consideration Policy is effective from 4 December 2017 and replaces the Disruption to Studies Policy.)
Students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.
If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).
Student Code of Conduct
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct
Results
Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au
Student Support
Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/
Learning Skills
Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.
The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources.
Student Services and Support
Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.
Student Enquiries
For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au
If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au
IT Help
For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/.
When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.