Learning objectives
The course is offered to students of the 2nd year of the second degree who are expected to deal with the assessment and management of complex environmental issues that are relevant to human society.
Four main goals are proposed.
1) Analyze the implications of ecological processes for human society.In this context, the main processes, functions and ecosystem services, the state of conservation and degradation of ecosystems, and the potential of restoring degraded ecosystems are illustrated. A major focus is on aquatic ecosystems and wetlands.
2) Illustrate and discuss major biogeochemical processes that support key ecosystem services, emphasizing their quantitative assessment.
3) Evaluate how such processes and related ecosystem services can be managed at the local/regional scale.
4) Address the ecological restoration as a tool for restoring degraded ecosystems. This goal is achieved by addressing case studies at local/regional level.
Objectives 1 and 2 are aimed at completing basic knowledge and acquiring new knowledge and skills in ecosystem ecology.
Objectives 3 and 4 are aimed at the application of acquired knowledge in a professional context, whereby the ability to identify and analyze problems is required, as well as to propose solutions. In parallel, the students are trained at developing communication, judgment and selflearning abilities.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge from the undergraduate program
Course unit content
The course composes of three parts.
Part 1 addresses the main concepts on the ecosystem structure and processes which are relevant to environmental management. This activity aims at harmonizing the background knowledge and skills of students coming from different undergraduate degrees and formation pathways.
Part 2 provides the presentation of ecosystem proceses, functions and services, and green and blue infrastructures as systems that provide their availability. The ecological and economic concepts are integrated to assess the benefits and limits of ecosystem services in environmental management.
Part 3 addresses ecosystem management and restoration. The basic concepts and methods of restoration ecology are presented as modes of managing altered ecosystems. This part of the course is organized with case studies, in collaboration with experts.
Full programme
PART 1. ECOSYSTEM STRUCTURE, PROCESSES AND FUNCTIONS
FRAMEWORK. Rise of the environmental crisis vs ecology and its applications.
ECOSYSTEM. Brief summary of current knowledge on ecosystem structure and processes. Relationships between ecosystems and biodiversity. The ecosystem as a basic unit in environmental management.
PART 2. NATURE GOOD AND SERVICES, GREEN AND BLUE FRASTRUCTURES AND NATURE BASED SOLUTIONS
NATURE GOODS AND ECOSYSTEM SERVICES. Ecosystems constitute the natural capital and provide services and benefits for human wellbeing. Ecosystem services: structure and operational scheme, classification and examples. Pivotal international projects (eg MEA, PEER, TEEB, CICES). Introduction to the economic evaluation of ecosystem services. Payment of Ecosystem Services (PES)
SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CARBON CYCLE - Carbon sink and climate regulation. Examples. Riverine woodland. Methods for measuring the carbon stock in plants and soil. Reeds as a model wetland: CO2 and CH4 balance and evaluation of the climate regulation services.
SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH THE NITROGEN CYCLE – Key processes: nitrogen-fixation, nitrification and denitrification. Nitrogen, agriculture and livestock. Nitrate pollution: causes, effects and possible remedies. Nitrate Directive. Nitrate removal in urban wastewater treatment plants and in alternative systems based on natural solutions: wetlands, canals and quarry lakes.
SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH THE PHOSPHORUS CYCLE - Phosphorus as a limiting factor. Main geochemical control factors: metals, carbonates and clays. Phosphorus and eutrophication of waters. Prevention and remedies. The success of the legislation for the reduction of P in detergents.
GREEN AND BLUE INFRASTRUCTURES AND NATURE BASED SOLUTIONS - Ecosystems as green (terrestrial) and aquatic (blue) “natural infrastructures”. Definitions and reference documents (e.g. green and blue infrastructures for Europe). Natural infrastructures as fundamental components for the conservation of natural capital and ecosystem services. Examples: inland water wetlands, mangroves, seagrass beds,estuaries and river mouths,river margins and land-water interfaces.
PART 3. MANAGING, REPAIRING AND REBUILDING ECOSYSTEMS TO MAINTAIN AND IMPROVE THEIR SERVICES
INTRODUCTION AND FRAMEWORK - General considerations and development prospects for restoration ecology. Reference conditions. Analytical and integrative ecological approaches. Adaptive management. Evolution of the ecosystem and time scales of interventions and management: perturbations, resilience and shift regime. International initiatives: United Nation decade on ecological restoration (2021-2030); European Biodiversity Strategy 2030.
STUDY CASES. The study of ecosystem restoration is proposed through some case studies related to the research experience and collaborations of the teacher and to projects and applications that have been launched in the Poriver basin.
CASE 1. Management and restoration of natural and artificial channels: methods, objectives and first results. The channels are handled as systems for the treatment of the diffuse nitrogen and phosphorus pollution and as a support for the biodiversity conservation.
The activity will be carried out in collaboration with the Consorzio di Bonifica dell’Emilia Centrale (CBEC) and is organized into two activities
- introductory lecture on the ecosystem services provided by the channels and the importance of their restoration;
- field activities in sites were channel restoration is running since 2016, with the support of the CBEC technical staff.
CASE 2. Environmental design and restoration of sand quarries: methods, objectives and results.
The activity refers to a research sector in which the teacher is engaged for since 30 years; it is carried out in collaboration with companies of the aggregate sector. The activity consists of an introductory lecture by the teacher, followed by a field trip in a series of quarries in the Po river floodplain in the province of Piacenza, along with a meeting with experts of the sector.
CASE 3. Ecosystem services in urban systems with emphasis on "community gardens" and "food forests". A seminar and a field activity will be organized in the "Picasso Food Forest" in Parma. This activity is organized in collaboration with Dr. Francesca Riolo (Fruttorti, Parma)
CASE 4.The biosphere reserves of UNESCO as a tol for managing the transition towards a sustainable use of resources. The MaB UNESCO Reserve “Po grande". This activity is carried out with the support of the Po River Authority.
CASE 5. The project for the restoration of the Po river as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. This activity is carried out with the support of the Po River District Basin Authority.
Bibliography
Textbook: Galassi, Ferrari, Viaroli, 2014. Introduzione all'Ecologia Applicata. Dalla teoria alla pratica della sostenibilità. CittàStudi Edizioni, Milano (Italian only).
A list of books available in the university libraries and open access papers, reporrts, e-books and web pages will be provided at the beginning of the course. In addition the lecture slides and note booklet on the main topics will be made available and uploaded in the Elly platform.
Teaching methods
The organization of the course consists of three modes with different degrees of student participation.
Mode 1 (~40% of class time). Lectures with presentation and discussion of relevant environmental issues for which ecology can provide diagnostic tools and solutions.
Mode 2 (~40% of class time). Presentation and discussion of case studies on ecological applications in the regional context. These activities compose of three main steps: 1) definition of the context and ecological backgrounds by the teacher; 2) case study presentation by experts running restoration projects, with focus on management issues, i.e. restoration design, cost/benefit analysis, monitoring program, etc. 3) field work in the area where the restoration program is performed with the experts' assistance . Excursions and field works are the main part of this activity.
Mode 3 (~20% of the class time). Two-three student workshops (depending on the number of attendees). Students are requested to identify and choose 2-3 topics among those in the program of the course and develop it in workshops self-organized and self-managed by them.
Assessment methods and criteria
At the end of the course, the students are expected to be able to critically analyze the goods and services provided by the ecosystems. They are also expected to be capable of discriminating between natural and altered processes, to identify the causes of alterations and the most critical components, and to propose possible solutions.
Students will be evaluated with a final exam in which they have to submit and discuss one of the topics in the program. Specifically, this topic has to deal with the assessment and exploitation of ecosystem functions and services and the ecological tools for managing and restoring degraded ecosystems. The exam is evaluated by 50% from the contents (ability to apply knowledge and technical skills), and by 50% from the discussion (communication and judgment skills). The final vote ranges between 0 and 30. The exam is passed with 18/30, the maximum is 30/30, excellence deserves cum laude.
The workshops are collectively evualuated up to 3 points, which are summed up with the final mark.
Other information
This module is integrated with the Module "Quaity, functions and sustainable uses of soils" (Prof. Cristina Menta).
2030 agenda goals for sustainable development
The relevance of ecosystems and biodiversity for the benefits (services) they provide to human society are extensively treated and discussed in the course. These issues are clearly related to goals 14 and 15 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations. Also relevant is objective 12 which concerns the responsible, sustainable and equitable use of the resources provided by ecosystems.
