Master of Science in Environment and Natural Resources - Specialisation Sustainable Water and Sanitation, Health and Development
Department of Academic Affairs- This master program meets with the demand for competence arising from the millennium goals for water and sanitation.
- The program gives a broad introduction to sanitation engineering, water and associated health issues.
Specialisation Sustainable Water and Sanitation, Health and Development
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Strong need for experts in Water, Sanitation, Health and Development
Nearly half the world’s population lacks adequate sanitation and more than 3.4 million people die annually due to diseases caused by insufficient sanitation infrastructure.
UN intends in its Millennium Goals to half the number of people without access to clean water and half the number of people lacking proper sanitation by the year 2015.
To reach these ambitious goals, new sanitation facilities for more than 500.000 people needs to be established each day.
Water toilets and centralised sewer systems, such as used in most of the industrial countries, are often too expensive and inappropriate regarding water consumption.
Alternative new solutions with more focus on source separation and recycling are emerging and implemented in both developed and developing world.
However, there is a lack of knowledge and experts dealing with these new solutions.
By giving comprehensive competence in water supply and sanitary engineering, and associated health issues UMB’s master program for Water Sanitation and Health and development builds the required capacity to tailor solutions to local needs related to the UN Millennium Goals for water and sanitation.
Program Objectives
To give the students competence and skills raised by the challenges related to inadequate water and sanitation in developing countries especially. To provide the students an overview of potential technical solutions and knowledge of the advantages and limitations of different water and sanitary systems (large and small scale), as well as the socioeconomic factors of relevance for successful implementation in different parts of the world.
To build necessary competence required to design and implement decentralized and small-scale solutions for water and sanitation including natural and source separating systems for wastewater treatment.
Program content:
Water resources and water management
As water percolates through soils, sediments and even bedrock unwanted substances such as pathogens, nitrates and organic compounds are removed. If we do not exceed the removal capacity of the soil system this will act as a barrier against groundwater pollution. Soil and wetlands act as sinks for pollutants. A comprehensive knowledge of soil and groundwater systems will provide background for design and protection of groundwater supply systems and as well as natural systems for wastewater treatment and rainwater harvesting.
The hydrogeology courses GEO220 and GEO300 give knowledge needed to find, develop and protect drinking water sources and some of the background needed for design of natural systems for wastewater treatment.
Ecological engineering
Phosphorous fertilizer is one of the most important external recourses for the intensive food production systems. However, mineral phosphorus is a limited resource and predictions indicate that the known deposits will be depleted in some decades yielding increasing food prices and potential inability to feed the world population.
Human waste and human excreta especially contains high amounts of phosphorous, but also nitrogen and potassium the two other major nutrients limiting plant growth. Recycling resources from human waste helps to counteract potential phosphorous shortages and provides a dependent source of cheap local fertilizer.
The course THT282 gives an introduction to ecological engineering for design water and sanitary systems and the course THT 283 train students in design of decentralized natural and source separating systems and focus on recycling of water and nutrients and processing biowaste to yield energy (as biogas) and soil amendment. (THT283 will not be given 2012)
Conventional and decentralised wastewater treatment systems
In industrialized countries centralized wastewater collection systems and advanced wastewater treatment is dominating. Due to cost mainly decentralized systems are given increasing focus. To meet the sanitary challenges in all parts of the world and to be able to select an optimum solution or combination of solutions knowledge of modern conventional water and sanitary systems are important.
The course THT310 give in depth knowledge needed to perform technical design plan and implement such systems.
Natural systems wastewater treatment
Natural systems utilizing soil, sand or wetlands for wastewater treatment are technically simple and use little or no electricity yet they can provide treatment on the level of advanced tertiary systems.
Knowledge about the soil structure, soil chemistry and biology and classification given in soils courses, the hydrogeology courses (GEO 220 and 300), together with the courses ( THT282, 283 and 310) gives a comprehensive background needed for design and implementation of various soil infiltration systems, and natural and constructed wetland systems.
Health and Development
Diarrhoea caused is one of the main causes of child mortality especially in developing countries. Inappropriate sanitation facilities both pollute drinking water and render local environments a risk area for children.
Basic knowledge of the health aspects of sanitation is given in the course (EDS255) and practical aspects of health and risk assessment are also elucidated in THT282 and 283. Implementing an appropriate sanitary system at a given location is not purely an engineering task. In order to develop a sustainable system, ie. a system that the local population can accept, maintain and operate based on their culture, religion, skills, economic and academic resources issues other than engineering may be just as important. This is why the concept of “total sanitation” or ecological engineering has evolved.
In these approaches the technical installations are viewed as part of a total system including the natural, socioeconomic, (including gender) and legal conditions. These issues are emphasized in EDS255 and provide an important part of the systems thinking that this mSc program is based on.
Admission
Admission requirements:Applicants should have an university bachelor degree equivalent to at least 180 ECTS.
The curricula should comprise basic courses innatural science (maths, statistic, biology, chemistry and physic)equivalent to at least 60 ETCS and advanced courses equivalent to atleast 80 ECTS in the fields of geology, soil science, plant science, limnology, hydrology, environmental chemistry, radioecology, biology,ecology or natural resource management. Further have students to document sufficient English proficiency.
For admission to English-language Master´s programmes, one of the following special admission requirements for English apply:
a) foundation/level 1 course in English at upper secondary school (5 weekly periods) with the mark 4 or better (alternatively, a pass in the English Advanced course I and/or II)
b) Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a result of at least 550 points for the Paper-based test (PBT), or 80 points for the Internet-based test (IBT)
c) International English Language Testing Service (IELTS) with a score of at least 6.0
d) other approved documentation following an individual assessment
For alternative documentation please see the GSU-list above and the Language requirements from the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education
Study costs
Tuition at UMB is subsidized by the Norwegian Government such that students do not pay tuition fees. However, every semester students are required to pay a NOK 340 registration fee to the University Foundation for Student Life in Ås.
Students are responsible for their own living expenses. For this reason the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) requires documentation that you can provide a sum of NOK 89.000 per year to cover the cost of accommodation and board, clothing, transport, study materials, medical and dental care, semester fees and other necessities. There are no scholarships available for this program.
Published: 07.01.11
Updated: 15.10.12
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Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB)
PO Box: 5003, N-1432 Ås
Phone: (+47) 64 96 61 00
Fax: (+47) 64 94 75 05
E-mail: opptak@umb.no
PO Box: 5003, N-1432 Ås
Phone: (+47) 64 96 61 00
Fax: (+47) 64 94 75 05
E-mail: opptak@umb.no