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Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies

Specialisation streams: Water Resources Management

Water Resources Management

The goal of this stream is to prepare graduates to address technical, social, economic and political dimensions of water resources management, especially in Small Island Developing States. The specialisation courses will cover the physical and organisational dimensions of water supply, distribution and wastewater management and the variety of issues facing water services managers. They will provide training in hydrological and hydrogeological (groundwater) analysis techniques and their application.


The four (4) specialisation courses offered in this stream are:


ENVT 6220 - Water and Wastewater Management

The focus of this course is on the technical, managerial, and organizational aspects of making water resources available to consumers and the removal, treatment and disposal of wastewater. Students will be provided with an understanding of the issues surrounding aspects of water and wastewater management such as water collection and treatment, transportation and distribution of water; water demand estimation, supply and demand management; water distribution in urban and rural areas; water quality standards and measurement; definitions and characteristics of wastewaters; the potential environmental and public health concerns;   sanitation, different wastewater collection and wastewater treatment and disposal systems; green-, grey- and black-water recycling and reuse; residuals management; storm-water drainage and management in urban and coastal areas; policy, legislation and regulations; financial mechanisms and institutional arrangements.

In addition, the potential impact of climate change on water and wastewater management and the range of responses, adaptations and mitigations measures will be explored.
 
ENVT 6230 - Water Management and the Environment

Integrated water resources management considers how water should be managed by considering the multiple viewpoints and factors that need to be taken account when making decisions and taking actions. The competing uses of water in the natural, social, and economic environment requires knowledge and expertise from across many different disciplines. The aim of this course will be to examine the varying aspects that constitute water resources management in island and non-island countries in the Caribbean region and the relationships between the technical, natural, social, economic and political environment, particularly those issues facing SIDS.

The course places an emphasis on the economics of water and water resources as well as on legal and policy perspectives.  Course material will cover: concepts of catchment/watershed management, integrated water resources management; national and international laws and institutional arrangements that impact on water management; economics; the political ecology of water; the impacts of water resources developments including land/marine interaction issues, decision support tools and, development pressures.
 
ENVT 6236 – Hydro-meteorological Risks and Water Resource Management

This course introduces students to hydrological concepts and principles that underpin scientific and operational management of water resources. The course starts by providing a context on and implications of the varied hydrogeology for water resource endowment and management in Small Island Developing States in the Caribbean.

The hydrologic cycle and associated processes that underpin water flows and storage above and below the ground are discussed. These include precipitation, infiltration and percolation, evaporation, runoff and streamflow). General guidance on measurement and analysis of the hydrologic components will be provided. A catchment approach is adopted to understand these processes, as well as the storage of water on the surface and below the ground.

The utility of hydrological principles and analysis for water resources management will be discussed, complemented with hands-on activities. Case studies will be provided to help deepen understanding and the application of the knowledge gained through the course to relevant problems in the Caribbean and elsewhere.
 
ENVT 6238 - Surface and Groundwater Hydrology

This course aims to enable students to understand weather or climate and hydrological combinations that underpin water-related disaster. The course covers the relationships and interactions between the physical processes of weather or climate and the water cycle to create or exacerbate risks of undesirable hydrometeorological events, the nature of these events and how to assess, monitor and manage the risks in the context of water resources management. The impacts of climate change on hydrometeorological processes and risks of undesirable events are covered, as well as the human dimensions of risk amplification and/or attenuation in water resources management decisions.
 
Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies
Telephone: (246) 417-4316 Email: cermes@cavehill.uwi.edu