ECTS credits ECTS credits: 4.5
ECTS Hours Rules/Memories Student's work ECTS: 74.25 Hours of tutorials: 2.25 Expository Class: 18 Interactive Classroom: 18 Total: 112.5
Use languages Spanish, Galician
Type: Ordinary Degree Subject RD 1393/2007 - 822/2021
Departments: Functional Biology, Plant Production and Engineering Projects
Areas: Ecology, Engineering Projects
Center Higher Polytechnic Engineering School
Call: Second Semester
Teaching: With teaching
Enrolment: Enrollable
The aim is for students who have studied and passed this subject to have the ability to:
- Understand and detect environmental problems, the concepts involved and their manifestation at global, regional and local levels.
- Understand the implications of the environmental issue on development, its relationship with sustainable development and the specific criteria for sustainability.
- Understand the idea of environmental management and know the instruments with which it operates.
- Collaborate in the application of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) at any of the levels involved: promoter, Administration, affected population and society in general.
- Plan the implementation of an Environmental Management System and carry out audits on it.
- Plan the treatment of a degraded space and, in general, of any environmental degradation.
- Work as part of a team.
According to the Degree's Verified Report, the contents of this subject are as follows:
Introduction. Environmental Integration. Procedure and Methodology of Environmental Impact Assessment and Correction. Associated Environmental Management Instruments.
These contents will be developed according to a programme organised in two modules, in total 6 subjects will be taught. The tentative duration of each subject, distinguishing by attendance lecturing (DP) and non-attendance lecturing (DNP) is specified hereinafter.
MODULE I. Introduction to EIA. (DP: 11 hours; DNP: 20.5 hours)
1. Introduction to Environmental Impact: Introduction. Ecosystem services. Ecosystem stability. Disturbances.
2. Indicators of the state of an ecosystem. Physico-chemical parameters: water, soil, air. Use of organisms, bioindication: Introduction; use of indicator species; indices based on indicator species; indices based on species richness and diversity; indices based on the biomass and abundance of species; biomonitoring.
3. Environmental Inventory: Content. key species. Sampling: sampling theory; sampling methods.
MODULE II. Environmental Impact Assessment Procedure and Methodologies. (DP: 7 hours; DNP: 15 hours)
4. Environmental Impact Assessment. Conceptual framework. Characteristics of impacts: sign, magnitude and incidence. EIA administrative procedure. Content, scope and programme of EIAs. Public participation. Types of EIA. Acceptability of environmental impact.
5. Methodologies for carrying out an Environmental Impact Assessment. Qualitative and quantitative methods. Identification, assessment and prevention of impacts. Evaluation of alternatives. Correction and prevention of impacts. Communication of impacts: final synthesis document.
6. Legal and institutional framework of Environmental Impact Assessment. Specific legislation: EU, State and Autonomous Community level. Sectoral legislation. Institutional framework of EIAs. Dimensional characteristics for specific projects in the agroforestry sector.
INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES
Practical trip (DP: 7 hours; DNP: 17.5 hours).
Practicals consisting of: 1) identification of possible environmental factors and project actions to be considered, 2) quantification of impacts using matrices, and 3) evaluation of alternatives, all for a case study to be defined by the lecturer. Students will submit an individual report on each practical. A group work will also be carried outconsisting of the evaluation of an EIA, presentation of the methodological aspects and critical evaluation of the EIA with those evaluated by other groups. (DP: 11 hours; DNP: 17.5 hours)
Basic Bibliography
- Freedman, B. (1995). Environmental Ecology: the ecological effects of pollution, disturbance and other stresses. Academic Press, San Diego.
- Gómez Orea, D. 2013. Evaluación de Impacto Ambiental. Ed. Mundi - Prensa.
- Gómez Orea, D. 2007. Evaluación Ambiental Estratégica. Ed. Mundi - Prensa.
- Garmendia, A. Salvador, A. Crespo C. Garmendia L. 2010. Evaluación de impacto ambiental. Pearson-Prentice Hall.
-Canter, L.W. 2003. Manual de evaluación de impacto ambiental: técnicas para la elaboración de estudios de impacto ambiental. Ed. Mc Graw Hill
Complementary Bibliography
- Gómez Orea, D. 2014. Recuperación de Espacios degradados. Ed. Mundi - Prensa.
- Gómez Orea, D. 2007. Consultoría e Ingeniería Ambiental. Ed. Mundi - Prensa.
- Andrews, J., Kinsman, D. 1990. Gravel pit restoration for wildlife. RSPB, Londres.
- Beeby, A. 1993. Applying ecology. Chapman & Hall, London.
Cairns, J. (Ed.) Rehabilitating damaged ecosystems. Vol. I y II. CRC Press, Boca Ratón, Florida.
- Cooke, G.D., Welch, E.B., Peterson, S.A., Newroth, P.R. 1993. Restoration and managament of lakes and reservoirs. CRC Press, New York.
- López-Cadenas, F. (Coord.) 1994. Restauración hidrológico forestal de cuencas y control de la erosión. TRAGSA/TRAGSATEC/Mundi-Prensa, Madrid.
- Ministerio de Medio Ambiente. 2006. Guía para la Elaboración de Estudios del Medio Físico.
In this subject the students will acquire or practice a series of generic competences, desirable in any university degree, and specific competences, specific to engineering in general or to forestry and environmental engineering in particular. Within the list of competences designed for the degree, the following competences will be worked on:
Basic, general and transversal competences:
CG4 - Ability to assess and correct environmental impact, as well as apply environmental auditing and management techniques.
CG13 - Ability to design, direct, elaborate, implement and interpret projects and plans, as well as to write technical reports, reconnaissance reports, valuations, expert reports and appraisals.
TC1 - Capacity for analysis and synthesis.
CT2 - Capacity for reasoning and argumentation.
TC3 - Ability to work individually, with a self-critical attitude.
CT5 - Ability to obtain adequate, diverse and up-to-date information.
CT6 - Ability to prepare and present an organised and comprehensible text.
CT11 - Use of foreign language information.
CT12 - Ability to solve problems through the integrated application of their knowledge.
Specific competences:
CECF5 - Assessment and correction of environmental impact.
Lectures will be used for the presentation and development of the theoretical contents. The realization of small exercises in class that can be evaluated is contemplated. There will be a trip where the students will put into practice different topics dealt with in the theoretical classes. A report of this trip will be required.
The practical contents of the course will also be developed through group work. Each group of students will be assigned a real EIA, on which they will have to make a presentation on the methodology used and a critical comparative analysis using the EIAs assigned to the other groups as a reference.
The Virtual Campus will be used so that students can access the course materials.
Students who have been granted dispensation from attending any of the scheduled teaching activities according to the provisions of the Instruction 1/2017 of the General Secretariat, must take into account that in order to pass this subject, attendance to the practical activities, both laboratory and field, indicated in the class timetable and scheduled in the Teaching Guide is compulsory.
There will be a final exam for the whole course. Students will carry out work corresponding to each of the practical activities carried out, which will be assessed continuously by the lecturer.
The following aspects will be assessed in the evaluation:
- Attendance. Nas = 10 %.
- Written test. Nex = 60 %.
- Practical work/student participation in activities. Ntra = 30 %.
The final grade: It is obtained according to the following expression:
CF = Nex x 0.60 + Ntra x 0.30 + Nas x 0.10
Repeating students will have the same attendance regime as those taking the subject for the first time, with the following exceptions:
- Repeating students who pass the labs / practical trip will keep the grade obtained for a maximum of two academic years. Therefore, they will not have to take the labs again, but they will attend the remaining classes under the same conditions as the other students.
They will take the whole exam.
- Repeating students who do not obtain a pass mark in the labs /practical trip, but pass the part corresponding to the theoretical content of the subject, will have to take the labs again, and their exam mark will be retained for a maximum of two academic years, as well as the mark corresponding to the remaining sections.
The relationship between the assessment systems and the competences assessed is as follows:
- Attendance (10 %)
- Written test (60 %): competencies CG4, CG13, CECF5
- Practical work/student participation in activities (30 %): competences CECF5, CT1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12.
The assessment system for second chance students will be the same as for first chance students.
The evaluation criteria and procedure for students with dispensation from attendance will be the same as for the rest of the students.
For cases of fraudulent performance of exercises or tests, the provisions of the "Regulations on the evaluation of students' academic performance and review of grades" shall apply.
Reading and preparation of topics: 18.5 hours
Prior preparation and subsequent work on the practicals: 20 hours.
Preparation of course work: 15 hours
Preparation of evaluation tests: 15 hours
Total hours of study and personal work: 68,50 hours
Reading the bibliography for the next class according to the teacher's instructions.
Consulting doubts during the development of the corresponding class or in tutorials.
Reviewing the material explained in class and drawing up a schematic summary (lecture diary).
It is recommended to have completed the subject "Ecology"
Ruben Villares Pazos
Coordinador/a- Department
- Functional Biology
- Area
- Ecology
- ruben.villares [at] usc.es
- Category
- Professor: Temporary PhD professor
Cesar Perez Cruzado
- Department
- Plant Production and Engineering Projects
- Area
- Engineering Projects
- cesar.cruzado [at] usc.es
- Category
- Professor: University Lecturer
Cesar Perez Cruzado
- Department
- Plant Production and Engineering Projects
- Area
- Engineering Projects
- cesar.cruzado [at] usc.es
- Category
- Researcher: Ramón y Cajal
Joel Rodriguez Ruiz
- Department
- Plant Production and Engineering Projects
- Area
- Engineering Projects
- joel.ruiz [at] usc.es
- Category
- Predoutoral USC_Campus Terra
Yago Lestido Cardama
- Department
- Plant Production and Engineering Projects
- Area
- Engineering Projects
- yago.lestido.cardama [at] usc.es
- Category
- Xunta Pre-doctoral Contract