M E S M

MESM: Wetland, Watershed, and Ecosystem Science

This specialization focuses on the science and management of ecosystems at all scales from landscape to interstitial.

Students may concentrate studies • in the ecology, mapping, management, and conservation of inland or coastal wetlands, streams or lakes •in watershed science and management, particularly land use-water resource interactions related to environmental quality; •in the ecology and management of forests for human use and biodiversity; •or in soils, including mapping, bioremediation of organic pollutants.

M E S M Program Overview

• Students take courses from natural science:

ecosystem science and management; earth science, water resources, hydrology, soils, and spatial analysis. In addition coursework can include statistics environmental planning, policy, law, and economics.

• Track Chair: Dr. Art Gold http://nrs.uri.edu/people/faculty/gold.html

M E S M Ecosystem Science and

Management

UNEP: United Nations Environmental Programme

M E S M Scale ranges from microbial to

watershed and global Areas of Interest: • Environmental monitoring and mapping • Ecohydrology • Ecosystem services • Pollution assessment/abatement • Lake and estuarine eutrophication • Habitat and hydrologic restoration • Watershed dynamics of flow and nutrients • Climate change adaptation

M E S M Potential Focus Areas

• Green Infrastructure (LID) • Wetlands assessment and management • Water Quality Monitoring • Watershed management • Stream flow/continuity/environmental flows • Soil Interpretations – Soil certification possible • Groundwater Protection • Pollution abatement strategies

M E S M Careers Graduates find employment with federal and state resource

management and regulatory agencies, municipal government, nongovernmental conservation organizations, and private environmental consulting firms.

• State Agencies – Department of Environmental

Management; Coastal Resources Management Council • Federal Agencies – United States Geologic Survey; Natural

Resources Conservation Service • Private Consulting Firms – Geospatial Information Systems;

Soils; Wetlands; Hydrology expertise often sought • NGOs – Conservancies; Watershed Councils

M E S M Common Certificates

• Hydrology (URI Graduate) • GIS (URI Graduate) • Soil Science (select courses that meet national

certification)

M E S M Private sector opportunities

within WWE track

M E S M Track Requirements

Core courses (21-25 credits), including: Natural Sciences (12-16 credits)

- Three credits in each of Watersheds, Wetlands, and Ecosystems (at least 9 total credits)

Social Sciences (6 credits) Quantitative Methods (3 credits) Elective courses (6-10 credits): Hydrology, soils,

wetlands, pollution, GIS Independent study (3 credits: EVS 597) Graduate seminar (2 credits)

M E S M Track Requirements con’t Natural Science Core Courses NRS 406 Wetland Wildlife 4 cr.

NRS 423 Wetland Ecology 4 cr.

NRS 525 Wetlands Seminar 1 cr NRS 426 Microbial Ecology 3 cr.

NRS 450,452 Soil Conservation and Land Use 4 cr.

NRS 461 Watershed Hydrology & Management 4 cr.

NRS 471 Soil Morphology & Mapping 3 cr.

NRS/BIO 585 Salt Marsh Ecology 3 cr.

NRS 501 Restoration Ecology 4 cr.

NRS 518 Ecohydrology 3 cr.

NRS 526 Microbial Ecology of Soils and Sediments 3 cr.

GEO 483 Hydrogeology 3 cr.

GEO 482/582 Innovative Subsurface Remediation 3 cr.

GEO/NRS 535 Geospatial Watershed Modeling 3 cr.

GEO/NRS 584 Environ. Hydrogeology

Social Science Courses Community Planning (CPL) Environmental Law Writing and Rhetoric!!!! NRS 555 Applied Coastal Ecology Hazwopper course ENRE MAF courses (Cost Benefit)

MAF – 465 GIS Applic in Coastal and Marine Envir.

Plus GIS courses and possible certificates in GIS and Hydrology

M E S M

Internship and Major Paper Opportunities –

• NRS Cooperative Extension Water Quality Program • NRS Individual faculty work: Wetlands, Watersheds, Soils • URI Coastal Resources Center • URI Coastal Institute • Narragansett Bay Estuary Program • Save the Bay – Westerly office • Buzzards Bay Coalition • State of RI: Coastal Resources Mgmt Council • NRCS: Warwick • Soil Conservation Districts • Watershed groups • Local communities (storm water)

M E S M Recent Grads http://web.uri.edu/cels-gradprograms/hear-from-our-students/

• Molly (Hunt) Allard, (Wetlands lab; Watershed Watch): Northern RI Conservation District

• Eric Ford (Mark Stolt, wetland soils): MA Dept. of Fish and Game, focus on wetland restoration. (Prior jobs in environmental consulting)

• Jacob Peterson (Art Gold, water pollution). RI Conservation Districts • Drew Youngs (Mark Stolt, wetlands soils): New England Interstate Water

Pollution Control Commission (linked to Region 1 EPA). Groundwater pollution abatement

• Josh Oakley and Dustin Weisel (URI international project) Lake carrying capacity for aquaculture, Indonesia): LS Cable (Energy Related)

• Stefan Bengtson and Sarah Frasar: (Watershed Hydrology lab, Wetlands Lab, Town of Charlestown groundwater project) Fuss and O’Neill – water resources

• Kim Osienski and Tim Brosnan: (Watershed Hydrology Lab): US Natural Resources Conservation Service

M E S M Eivy Monroy, Environmental Analyst Narragansett Bay Estuary Program

• Recommended Courses: Watershed Hydrology; GIS; Wetlands; Ecohydrology, Soils.

• Suggestions for Major Paper • - Find a tractable question. The topic does not set your professional

direction • - If it requires data, it would be better these data are readily available • - Communicate with adviser as much as possible to clarify objectives

and deliverables • - Focus on why is this important and why others should care?

Major paper, Water Use Conflicts in East Africa, used

an existing UN model analyze a multi-faceted problem.