ASSESSMENT INFORMATION: ENVS8104/ENVS7104 2022 Offering

Practical Report: Due 08 April 2022 (30% of final grade)

Students will be allocated to one of four regions within New South Wales. Produce a 2-page fact sheet for public consumption which describes trends over the past few decades, and projections, both short-term (next two decades) and long-term (to 2070). An additional one page addendum should also be submitted (i.e. bringing the total assignment submission to 3 pages) which provides additional background information on the models used, sources of information and caveats around potential errors and variability in model projections.

Use the best available data and projections for temperature, rainfall, extreme fire risk days, and sea-level.

For Climate trends, use the Bureau of Meteorology data accessed in Tutorial Week 3:

https://climatechange.environment.nsw.gov.au/About-climate-change-in-NSW  

For Climate Projections, use the NARCLIM down-scaled climate modelling results accessed in Tutorial Week 4:

https://climatechange.environment.nsw.gov.au/Climate-projections-for-NSW/Climate-projections-for-your-region

For sea-level trends (where relevant), use the resources provided in Week 5 practical (the Port Kembla sea-level rise time-series, and the Coast Adapt and Coastal Risk Australia http://coastalrisk.com.au/

https://coastadapt.com.au/tools/coastadapt-datasets#future-datasets

The report should be intelligible to the lay person, but clearly based on and referencing the best available science.

Reports will be graded with reference to:

• Concise graphical representation of trends
• Meaningful spatial representation of modelling results
• Clear interpretation of the results relevant to the general population
• Explanation of the basis for measurement and prediction
• Explanation of uncertainty

Climate Change Adaptation group report: Due 27 May 2022 (40% of grade)

This is a group report. You will provide an integrated regional vulnerability assessment for your region (allocated for the Practical report), and specific, implementable adaptation options for local and state government.

For the allocated region within New South Wales provide a precis of the potential impacts of climate change between now and 2070. In this section you may wish to reference the regional vulnerability assessments conducted by the NSW government (https://climatechange.environment.nsw.gov.au/Adapting-to-climate-change/Regional-vulnerability-and-assessment)

Informed by current NSW government strategy, you will address vulnerability and provide adaptation options for the four themes below:

• Infrastructure and Tourism
• Agriculture and water resources
• Human Health and emergency services
• Natural ecosystems and cultural heritage

Provide immediate, short term (2-5 years) and long-term (5-10 year) strategies for implementation. Maximum 3000 words.

On-line Quiz

Each on-line quiz will consist of 30 multiple choice questions, based solely on the lecture material. The quiz will be open in the afternoon and evening on the dates listed below. Students will have 1 hour to complete the quiz including reading time, and accessed through iLearn.

Quiz 1 will cover material presented in lectures weeks 1-3 inclusive and will be held the Wednesday Week 4 (16^th March 2022)

Quiz 2 will cover material presented in lectures weeks 4,5 7 and 8 and will be held on the Wednesday Week 9 (4^th May 2022)

Quiz 3 will cover material presented in lectures weeks 9-12 inclusive and will be held on the Wednesday of Week 13 (25^th May 2022)

General Faculty Policy on assessment submission deadlines and late submissions: 

Online quizzes, in-class activities, or scheduled tests and exam must be undertaken at the time indicated in the unit guide. Should these activities be missed due to illness or misadventure, students may apply for Special Consideration.

All other assessments must be submitted by 5:00 pm on their due date. Should these assessments be missed due to illness or misadventure, students should apply for Special Consideration.

Assessments not submitted by the due date will receive a mark of zero unless late submissions are specifically allowed as indicated in the unit guide or on iLearn.

If late submissions are permitted as indicated in the unit guide or on iLearn a consistent penalty will be applied for late submissions as follows: 

A 12-hour grace period will be given after which the following deductions will be applied to the awarded assessment mark: 12 to 24 hours late = 10% deduction; for each day thereafter, an additional 10% per day or part thereof will be applied until five days beyond the due date. After this time, a mark of zero (0) will be given. For example, an assessment worth 20% is due 5 pm on 1 January. Student A submits the assessment at 1 pm, 3 January. The assessment received a mark of 15/20. A 20% deduction is then applied to the mark of 15, resulting in the loss of three (3) marks. Student A is then awarded a final mark of 12/20

The Unit consists of a weekly lecture (11am-12 noon Mondays, delivered and recorded on-line) which can be viewed at a time convenient to the student. There will be a weekly 2-hour tutorial/practical session, with an on-line option for those students unable to present at campus. On Campus tutorial times are:

Monday 2pm-4pm 29WW room 134

Monday 4pm-6pm ONLINE and recorded

Wednesday 1pm-3pm 29WW room 132

Off-shore students

Off-shore students must email the convenor as soon as possible to discuss study options.

COVID Information and on-campus classes

On-campus teaching continues to be scheduled for Session 1, 2022. Masks are compulsory for all classes in indoor spaces and social distancing will be implemented wherever possible. Students will also be required to sanitise surfaces before and after use.

Students are requested to minimise the risk of spreading COVID to themselves and others in accordance with the university and NSW Health guidelines: https://www.mq.edu.au/about/coronavirus-faqs and https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/stay-safe.