www.civilengineering.egerton.ac.ke

Introduction

Kenya is basically an agricultural country. In the absence of a strong industrial sector, agricultural production activities constitute the main support base of the country?s increasing population. The population relies mainly on agricultural output, and water resource that comes from 20% of the country?s high rainfall zone. The remaining 80% is arid and semi-arid land (ASAL) of marginal agricultural productivity. In spite of the fragility of Kenya?s marginal lands, they serve as important biodiversity reservoirs, wildlife habitats, anthropogenic sites and landscape of great attraction.

Currently there are calls to develop industries, and remove the country from over dependency on agriculture. As the country gears for industrialization by the year 2020 it is necessary to proceed with caution so that the benefits of industrial development do not become a curse to the nation. The need to foster food production from the country?s arable lands and the inevitability of the use of agricultural inputs, such as fertilizers, pesticides and other agrochemicals is posing new problems to the environment. If these problems are not given due attention, they are bound to adversely affect the quality of the environment and lower the people?s standards of living. An increasing population, growing industrial sector and agricultural production are major threats to the environment. These require sound management.

Justification

For many centuries, man has continued to draw all his support resources from the environment. By-products of resources use are dumped in the environment. Present knowledge reveals that there are safe levels of carrying capacities, which must not be exceeded. Rapid human population growth places enormous demands on land resources, energy, shelter and living space. Outdoor recreation lacks the right environment partly because of polluted waters, degraded wildlife habitats, sea and lakeshores and deforested watersheds among others.

Above all, the laws and policies which are related to protection and utilization of resources are currently inadequate and the existing ones are not fully enforced for sustainability of environmental resources. There is need for trained environmental custodians at all levels. In order to provide safety valves to our production, manage the ecological systems that are highly susceptible to stress and monitor environmental quality, there is need to train environmentalists who are able to provide advisory services on the overall use, conservation and enhancement of environmental quality.

Objectives

The BSc (Environmental Science) Progrrame is designed to provide a broad-based education for undergraduate students who wish to study environmental issues related to resource use, protection and enhancement of environmental quality. Upon completion of the course, the graduates will be qualified to:
? Provide advisory capacity services on matters of environmental law and policy;
? Carry out environmental impact assessment;
? Participate and provide leadership in the formulation of appropriate early warning systems of environmental change;
? Analyse and explain the interactive relationships between man and the physical, biological and social environments and relate the emanating issues to the enhancement of environmental quality;
? Pursue graduate studies in environmental science and;
? Carry out teaching and provide environmental extension services.
The BSc (Environmental Science) graduates can be employed in various sectors across the country. They will fit in the civil service as environmental protection officers, and as environmental science teachers for both primary and secondary school levels. They will also work as researchers in various institutions, for environmental NGOs, as extension officers. They may also be privately engaged in environmental related entrepreneurships, such as consultant in environmental impact assessment. Other graduates will find it rewarding to pursue further studies in environmental science and join universities as lecturers.

Admissions

Candidates must in addition satisfy the minimum requirements for the university offer at least grade B- in Biology or Biological Sciences, B- in Geography, B- in Chemistry or B in Physical Sciences, and C+ in Mathematics at K.C.S.E. or equivalent examination.
4.2 An added advantage will be given to candidates who have passed with at least grade C in Agriculture or Economics at K.C.S.E. or equivalent examination.
4.3 Admission may be granted to outstanding Diplomats in Range Management, Animal Husbandry and Animal Health, Forestry, Wildlife, Environmental Science from institutions such as Kenya Polytechnic, Kenya Science Teachers College etc. candidates with other related fields from recognized institutions, and who have passed with distinction or credit or other equivalent may also be admitted.

Course Loading and Duration of Study

This is a multidisciplinary programme, which will take four academic years to complete. Each year will consist of two semesters. Each semester will have three components; lectures and practicals (where applicable), revision and examination weeks. The duration of semesters will be as per Egerton University Statutes. Students will be required to take all courses prescribed, unless exempted through credit transfers. The total credit factors to be covered, including field attachment is 160.

Course Coding

The course codes used are: ENSC, followed by 3 digits. Digit 1 indicates the year the course is offered. Digit 2 and 3 indicate the serialization of the course.

Examinations

The examinations will be administered and graded as per the Egerton University Examination Regulations.

Course Description

ENSC 101: Approaches to Environmental Studies
Explore the holistic perspectives of the study of environment. Study of environment is introduced through integrative perspectives emphasising socio-environmental problems and solutions, action, actors, ethics. Philosophy and natural resources: physical and biotic, geological factors controlling formations and distribution of mineral resources. Ethnography, human population-environmental interactions. Natural and man-made hazards. The concept of sustainable environmental management: role of government agencies, NGO?s and individuals. Environmental Health Management. Y1S1

ENSC 102: Introduction to the Physical Environment
Major features of the earth, Geomophorlogical process and features (vulcanicity, denudation, faulting, folding, weathering process and glaciation. Atmospheric composition and structure. Hydrological cycle and their estimation. Weather elements and their measurements. Climate and climate classification. Characteristics and factors affecting climate. Global climate changes, causes, effects and control. General circulation between the atmospheric and ocean masses. Laws of atmospheric motion and development of general circulation models (CGPs). Coastal features, Emerging Issues. Y1S2

ENSC 103: Environment and Development
Definition of terms. Concept of sustainable development: faces and generic causes of underdevelopment: resources and development: gender and development: development under constraints of investment and social capital. Major rural social institution and social change in rural life. Sociological concepts in rural development. Demographic trends stakeholder participation. Community development, agricultural technology, legal and policy frameworks, MDGs, Agenda 21, EMCA 1999. Y1S2

ENSC 200: Biodiversity Conservation
Introduction to Biodiversity. Threat to biological diversity. Global concern towards conservation of biodiversity. Conventions of biological diversity. Invasive species, NBSAP ? GMOs : Emerging Issues in Biodiversity. Y2S1

ENSC 201: Gender, Environment Development
Definitions: Gender and Sex: From WID to GAP. Framework of gender analysis environment and development; maldevelopment, conceptual understanding of gender analysis. Gender roles in development and Environmental conservation. Feminism V/s Environmentalist in development. Gender mainstreaming, Gender and community based development. Emerging issue in Gender environment and development. Y2S1

ENSC 202: Energy and Environment
Introduction to physics underlying the concept of energy. Different forms of energy and units of measurement. Laws of thermodynamics; energy production and conservation technology. Patterns of energy use in Kenya and Industrialised countries, The social, environmental and economic implications of different energy strategies. Relationships between the social and cultural nature of the society and the resulting patterns of energy production and use. Characteristics of energy and social systems of sustainable future. Discussion seminars. Emerging Issues. Y2S1

ENSC 203: Human Settlements and Population
Concepts of Human Settlements and Population. A historical perspective of human settlement and population. Rural-Urban settlement. Human demographic processes, quantitative and qualitative. The historical and cultural factors affecting human settlement, their types and evolution and their emergence into industrialised urban areas (Urbanization). Factors affecting size, growth and pattern. Impact of globalisation on Human Settlement and Population, settlement trends in Kenya. Y2S1

ENSC 204: Global Ecosystems and Environment
Introduction, definition of terms, Geochemical cycles. Survey of the major global ecological and physical systems. The functions of the ecosystems. The potential of the functioning of ecosystems to disrupt the Natural Cycles of Life, Impact of human activities. Selected from the oceans, atmosphere, forests, agricultural lands and wild species. Linkage of livelihood ecosystems. Ecosystems as an approach in Mgmt. Transboundary ecosystems Management. Y2S2

ENSC 205: Statistics for Environmental Science
Review if basic statistics as tools for environmental research. Scientific methods of environmental data collection. Quantitative and qualitative statistical methods of data analysis. Relationships and variations between populations and samples. Frequency distributions, measures of central tendency and dispersion. Basic concepts in correlation and regression analysis. Hypotheses formulation and testing. Y2S

ENSC 206: Environment, Peace and Human Rights
Concepts of Peace and Human rights. Resource Based Conflicts. Human rights perspective: theoretical justifications. Historical evolution and the range of rights. Violation of human rights because of particular approaches to development. Development styles. Military conflict. The face of indigenous peoples refugees, famines. Protection of human rights through international law, advocacy and international relations. Case Studies. Discussion seminars. Approaches to conflict causes and management. Role of corporations in resource based conflict and other institutions. Y2S2

ENSC 207: Nature, Technology and Society
Definitions of nature, technology and society in sustainable development. History of technology from the industrial revolution to now. Nature and society, Gender and technology: technology and politics, food and technology. Media literacy and nature, environmental law and technology, nature technology and the military and environmentally resilient technologies. GMOs, WTO roles in technology. Nature Science and Technological ? globalization. Emerging Issues. Y2S2

ENSC 300: Industrial Management and Environment
Sustainable industrial development, cleaner production and the scope of environmental management: theory of firms with market power and their implementation of profit maximisation, decisions in view of the firm and the environment. Nature of organisations and public relations, industrial relations, Legal systems in industrial management, Financing pollution and environmental rehabilitation. Measurement of human performance, job and work place environment. Industrial disasters, accidents, and occupational hazards. Y3S1

ENSC 301: Environmental Risk Assessment
Theories and concepts of risk and hazards application to environmental risks of general nature e.g., floods or specific nature e.g., Toxic spills or discharges. Concepts of probability and toxicology and their application to current methods of environmental risks and hazards. Case Studies and Emerging Issues in Environmental Risk Assessment. Y3S1

ENSC 303: Land Use Systems and Classification
Fundamental environmental factors affecting productivity of land: geological-soil inter-relationships, soil water relations. Comprehensive classification of soil, Philosophies of land classification, use of soil survey reports. Soil site studies and environmental approaches for land capability - classification. Multiple use evaluations for various land-uses. Land evaluation. Farming Systems analysis. Land use planning. Land use in Kenya /zoning. Y3S2

ENSC 304: Methods in Environmental Research
Principles and Purpose of research; Types & designs of research; Types of ecological research; formulating research objectives; conceptual framework; the concept proposal; research methods; measurement scales; sampling unit and frame; sampling procedure, sample size and survey precision; data collection; quality control; data processing and analysis; Report writing and presentation. Y3S2

ENSC 305: Environmental Pollution and Control
The concept of environmental degradation and pollution. Classification of pollutants. Air pollution, the ozone layer depletion. Nuclear and geothermal pollution. Alternative sources of fuel. Water pollution, industrial domestic and agricultural sources. Thermal discharges and oil spill control or water pollution. Solid waste disposal and land degradation. The State of environmental pollution in Kenya, market based instruments for pollution control. Y3S2

ENSC 306: Environment and Health
Environmental health, principles and issues; basic principles of toxicology; Principles of toxic action of chemical substances; Dose response relationships; Exposure pathways, metabolism and storage of toxic substances; Carcinogenicity, mutagen city & teratogenecity; Immune system & reproductive defects, Methods of estimating exposure; physiologic health effects of toxicants, food related diseases, Housing and hazards of poor housing, Microbial agents of exposure and ionising radiation, legal systems in Environmental health, Public Health Act; EMCA. Y3S2

ENSC 307: Environmental Resource Economics
Micro-economics; elementary theory of supply and demand, market and the theory of market structures. Macro-economics; national accounts; circular flow of income (Consumption, Investment and Savings functions), Theory of exchange. Time value of resources and decision making process. Y3S2

ENSC 308: Environmental Forestry
Forestry operationalization in respect to environment. Role of Forestry in environmental conservation. Natural forests versus planted forests. Agro forestry role of multipurpose trees and shrubs in soil and water conservation. Forest ecosystems, functions and their provisional roles. Role of forests in carbon sequestration and carbon trade. Forest Management steps. Y3S2

ENSC 309: Environmental Degradation and Management
Historical perspective of environment and development. Global environmental agenda and dimensions. The dynamics of environmental degradation. Use of driving forces, pressures, state, impacts and response (DPSIR) tool. Methods and indicators of physical, chemical and biological degradation assessment. Land degradation and desertification in arid and semi arid lands. Poverty and environment. Climate change and environmental degradation. Principles of sustainable land management. UNCCD and NAP to combat desertification. Policy and institutional framework for environmental management in Kenya. Y3S2

ENSC 310: Field Attachment
Students are attached to selected districts in the country. They will work with government ministries and non-governmental organisations and authorities in charge of environmental monitoring and control. Students will write and submit a report in the department after the completion of the field attachment. After Y3S2

ENSC 400: Ecological Surveys and Techniques
Introduction to ecological principles. Ecological classification. Introduction to methods of ecological surveys and techniques. Tools for measuring a wide range of environmental variables. Ecological census techniques for counting plants, insects, fish amphibians, reptiles, mammals and birds. Approaches to integrated natural resource assessment. Tools for rapid ecological assessments. Use of aerial surveys and remote sensing in ecological surveys. Planning of field work and sampling techniques. Multivariate techniques and statistical methods used by ecologists to collect and analyze data Y4S1

ENSC 401: Management and Conservation of Arid and Semi-Aridlands
Description of ASALS and their characteristics. Aridization and desertification processes, Resources and uses of ASALS. Monitoring of ASALS, agrometeorological and water management in ASALS. Global concern on desertification process. Relevant conventions on ASALS and their implementation. Land ?use changes and their impacts. Traditional land use practices in respect to ASALS Management, and Lands biodiversity and their conservation. Y4S1

ENSC 402: Water and Sanitation
Review of basic physical and chemical characteristics of water, water cycle and global water resource sanitation. Fresh water use. Competing uses for fresh water, increase in water demands. Reasons and consequences of water scarcity. Water pollution, water treatment and supply. Waste water treatments. The short comings of conventional sanitation. Ecological sanitation as a sustainable alternative. The Bellagio Principles. Ecosan basic projects. Advantages of Ecosan systems. Y4S1

ENSC 403: Students Projects and Seminars
Supervised discussions and review of resource use problems, environmental pollution, monitoring and control. Review of important contributions and current literature in environmental science research. Topics will be assigned for library and field research and presentations made for class discussions. Pre-requisite ENSC 304. Y4S1

ENSC 404: Environmental Information Systems
Introduction to GIS. Maps and Map analysis. The use of object-oriented software to present environmental data. Raster and Vector-based GIS. GIS applications in urban rural and urban planning. GIS applications in resource management. Y4S2


ENSC 405: Environment and International Relations
Global environmental picture and human development. Relationship between industrial development and environment. Global commons and their transboundary nature (air, water, soil and biodiversity). Management of the environment in the era of globalisation. North - South divide. International conventions and non-binding agreements in respect to the environment. Global, Regional and national responses to global issues of environmental significance. Y4S2

ENSC 406: Environmental Impact Assessment and Audit
Introduction to Environmental Impact Assessment. Impact assessment processes. Impact identification measurement. Evaluation and mitigation. Methods of impact assessment and preparation of environmental impact statements. Methods to identify the human and social consequences of human-made alterations in the natural and physical environment. Systematic appraisal of the impacts on the day-to-day quality of life of persons and communities whose environment is affected by a development or policy change. Environmental Policy Analysis. Y4S2

ENSC 407: Environmental Law and Policy
Principles of law with particular reference to environment. Legal process governing agricultural and industrial pollution; specific legal environmental acts and statues in Kenya: Introduction to international environmental law. Y4S2

ENSC 408: Environmental Geology
Basic concepts in environmental geology; environmental systems and feedback mechanisms; earth materials and processes; properties of earth materials and their determination; geologic resources; land use and decision making; landscape evaluation; natural hazards, evaluation to minimise loss of life and property; waste classes and properties; disposal sites ? selection, construction and management; medical geology ? geologic factors of environmental health, trace elements and health, chronic diseases and geo ? environment, radon gas and indoor pollution. Y4S2

ENSC 409: Environmental Planning and Project Analysis
Time value of resources: investment analysis of environment control methods and projects: measure of project worth. Cost benefit analysis: environmental project identification, design, organisation, monitoring and evaluation. Y4S2

ENSC 410: National Environmental Planning and Management
Introduction. Institutional frameworks. National Environmental Planning and Management issues in Kenya. Institutional framework. Role of government agencies. Role of local authorities. Civil society. National Environment secretariat. National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP). Legislation and enforcement. Public interests and Public participation. Challenges facing Africa Sustainable Development in Kenya. Y4S2

10.0 Service Courses
ENSC 0100: Introduction to Environmental Science
This course presents an overview of environmental science. The ecological concepts and principles governing ecosystem structure and function as models of sustainability will be explained. Fundamental environmental issues such as human population growth global climate change, acid precipitation, world wide habitat destruction and biodiversity loss, food security, soil erosion, deforestation. Environmental pollution (air, water and soil) and techniques of controlling and preventing them. Waste generation and management and environmental emerging issues.

ENSC 100: Environmental Education
The basic concept of environment; ecosystems ? structure function and characteristics: biomes, atmosphere and other geospheres. Definition, origin and relevance of environmental education, history of environmental education. History of environmental movements, human population-environmental interactions. Natural and human-induced hazards. Water/air pollution, waster disposal and management. Concept of sustainable development. Major environmental issues in Kenya. Environmental, Protection and conservation of biodiversity. The role of the government and NGOs, international organisations, public participation.