Environmental Science Courses

ENVS 1042-4. Introduction to Environmental Sciences. This laboratory or survey course develops a basic understanding of ecological relationships and environmental systems. Issues such as the effects of human activities on earth's environment, extinction or diversity, greenhouse effect, hazardous or toxic wastes and human population growth are discussed. Note: counts toward the UC Denver CLAS Core requirement.

ENVS 1342. Introduction to Environment and Society. An overview of human perspectives on environmental issues within the context of sustainable development, taking a systems approach. The focus is on social science approaches to explore the human footprint on the earth, environmentalism, scientific uncertainty, policy creation, and social change.

ENVS 2939-3. Internship/Cooperative Education. Experiences involving application of specific, relevant concepts and skills in supervised employment situations. Prereq: 15 hours of 2.75 GPA.

ENVS 3082-3. Energy and the Environment. For students of various backgrounds who wish to increase their understanding of the environmental and technical issues of supplying the energy demands of our society. Alternative energy sources and conservation are explored as solutions to promote a sustainable society. PrJanuary 22, 2008ed with PHYS 3082.

ENVS 4500-1 to 6. Topics In Environmental Sciences. Note: Topics may vary from one offering to the next. Prereq: varies according to the topic.

ENVS 5000-3. Biogeochemical Cycles. Topics include an introduction to ecosystem structuresand functions of the biosphere, with a focus on the hydrologic cycle and the global cycles of sulfur, nitrogen and carbon. The global carbon cycle is reviewed as it relates especially to global warming. Prereq: GEOG 1202 or 3232 or permission of instructor.Cross-listed with GEOG 4010/GEOL 4000.

ENVS 5020-3. Earth Environments and Human Impacts. Concepts describing Earth’s biomes as well as atmospheric and oceanic environments are presented in a systems context. Climate change assessments, from both scientific and political perspectives are analyzed and discussed. Basic quantitative model visualizations to consider human impacts on the Earth system are a part of problem-solving exercises. Geography majors in the Environmental Science Option are recommended to take the Option-required, two-semester applied statistics sequence, Intro. to Applied Stats (see Math Dept.) and GEOG 4770, Applied Stats for the Natural Sciences, before taking this course.
Cross-listed with GEOG 4020.

ENVS 5030-3. Environmental Geology. Applies geological information to the interactions between people and the physical environmentSeptember 6, 2006January 22, 2008req: admission to MSES or upper-level standings and permission of instructor.

ENVS 5403-3. Unsaturated Zone Hydrology. Focuses on water and contaminant transport through theunsaturated zone, infiltration and drainage, and heat and gas transport. Students learn to design, perform field installation, and collect data in order to modeland predict contaminant movement on/off site. Prereq: chemistry, physics, calculus or permission of instructor. Cross-listed with GEOL 4402.

ENVS 5410-3. Aquatic Chemistry. Course objectives are to: (1) identify and understand the composition of natural water, (2) prepare students to critically evaluate scientificliterature and experimental design related to water quality and environmental remediation, and (3) examinethe validity of environmental water data. Prereq: graduate status and general chemistry and/or CHEM 4700.

ENVS 5500-1 to 6. Topics in Environmental Sciences. Topics may vary from one offering to the next.

ENVS 5600-3. Applied Statistics for the Natural Sciences. Surveys statistical techniques including: quick review of basic statistics, tests for normality and outliers, display of data; simple and multiple regression; ANOVA and its relation to regression. Emphasis on computer or stat-pak analysis and interpretation of statistical results. Prereq: college algebra and geometry. Cross-listed with GEOG 4770/GEOL 4770/5770.

ENVS 5620-3. Health Risk Communication. Acquaints students with contemporary theory, research,and practice in health risk communication. Cross-listed with CMMU 5620/4620 and HBSC 5620/4620.

ENVS 5730-3. Air Quality Modeling and Analysis. Emphasizes the use of air dispersion modeling tools. Topics include: sources and effects of air pollution, use of the WWW, and analysis of modeling results. Note: For graduate students in environmental sciencesor engineering, and for those working in the environmental field. Prereq: graduate standing.

ENVS 5840-1 to 3. Independent Study.

ENVS 5939-1 to 6. Cooperative Education.

ENVS 6000-1. Environmental Sciences Seminar. Student and faculty presentations of UC Denver research projects and other current environmental sciences topics. All environmental sciences students are encouraged to attend, but credit is given only to students who present seminars. Two semesters of this course are required to receive an M.S.E.S. degree. M.S. in Environmental Sciences students must register for this seminar and give presentations the first semester they are in the M.S.E.S. program and the semester in which they defend their master's project. Prereq: must be an M.S. Environmental Science student.

ENVS 6002-2. Environmental Sciences Seminar. Introduces research and professional development in the environmental sciences, focusing on current issues and trends in the field, methods of developing research and project proposals, and defense of a proposal written during the semester. Students are introduced to the MSES faculty and their research programs. Prereq: must be an MS Environmental Science student or permission of instructor.

ENVS 6200-3. Risk Assessment. The process of determining the likelihood and extent of harm that may result from an activity or event. Topics covered are: hazard identification, dose-response evaluation, exposure assessment, and risk characterization. The subjects of risk management, risk perception, and risk communication are also discussed. Prereq: graduate standing or permission of instructor.Cross-listed with C E 5494/HBSC 7340.

ENVS 6210-3. Human Health and Environmental Pollution. Examines the roles of technology and society in the etiology and control/prevention of adverse health outcomes associated with releases of toxic substances.Examples come from experience and the literature on occupational cancer and reproductive hazards occupational and environmental regulation of of hazardous wastes, air, and water pollution. Cross-listed with HBSC 7210.

ENVS 6220-3. Toxicology. Introduces the field of toxicology. Emphasizes the mechanisms by which chemicals produce toxic effects and the methods for assessing toxicity. Note: Designed for students in the environmental sciences and occupational health fields. Prereq: one year college chemistry and one year college biology. Cross-listed with HBSC 7360.

ENVS 6230-3. Environmental Epidemiology. Provides a basic understanding of the methods used to study the effects on human health of exposures to physical, chemical, or biological factors in the external environment. The course explains the use of epidemiologic methods through a problem solving approach to investigating environmental health case studies. Prereq: a basic statistics course and graduate standing or permission of instructor. Cross-listed with HBSC 7310.

ENVS 6840-1 to 3. Independent Study.

ENVS 6950-1 to 6. Master's Thesis.

ENVS 6960-3 or 6. Master's Report.

Additional Courses for M.S. in Environmental Sciences Program

The courses listed here are environmental courses offered at the University of Colorado at Denver. Some of the courses in this list may not be appropriate for all graduate ES student programs and will not be accepted for the MS degree without prior approval as part of the student's Program Plan. Contact Jon Barbour (jon.barbour@cudenver.edu) if you have questions regarding courses.

Anthropology: