Maricopa Community Colleges  GPH210   19956-20025 
Official Course Description: MCCCD Approval: 05/23/95
GPH210 19956-20025 LEC 3 Credit(s) 3 Period(s)
Physical Environment
Principles of physical geography relating to environmental problems pertinent to contemporary society. Pollution, maladjusted land use, resource exploitation. Prerequisites: None.
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MCCCD Official Course Competencies:
 
GPH210   19956-20025 Physical Environment
1. Describe the history/development of environmental science. (I)
2. Describe ecosystems and their dynamics. (II)
3. Describe the causes and consequences of the population explosion and possible solutions. (III)
4. Describe critical factors of the soil ecosystem. (IV)
5. Describe methods for controlling erosion from croplands on the American farm. (IV)
6. Describe the objectives for sustainable agriculture and their relation to food production. (V)
7. Describe problems related to water usage and water pollution. (VI)
8. Identify major atmospheric pollutants, and describe their effects on climate and on humans. (VII)
9. Describe the causes and consequences of wildlife extinction. (VIII)
10. Identify natural resources and their geographic locations, and describe contemporary issues related to their availability and/or depletion. (IX)
11. Describe the methods for and feasibility of recycling. (IX)
12. Identify renewable and nonrenewable energy resources and describe contemporary issues related to their availability and/or depletion. (X)
13. Describe the impact of pollution and exploitation of resources on modern lifestyle. (XII)
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MCCCD Official Course Outline:
 
GPH210   19956-20025 Physical Environment
    I. Introduction to physical environment
        A. The aim of environmental science
        B. History of the environmental movement
      II. Ecosystems
          A. Definition and major types
          B. How ecosystems work
          C. What keeps them the same and what makes them change
        III. The population explosion
            A. Causes and consequences
              1. Birth and death rates
              2. Age structure of a population
              3. Geographic distribution of population
            B. Addressing global population growth
              1. Birth control
              2. Population trends in less developed countries (LDCs) and developed countries (DCs)
              3. Impact on ecosystems
          IV. Soil and the soil ecosystem
              A. Critical factors of the soil system
              B. The soil profile
              C. Soil orders
              D. Soil erosion/degradation
            V. Sustainable agriculture
                A. Causes of world hunger
                B. Ways to increase food production
                C. Objectives for sustainable agriculture
                D. Traditional farming versus commercial farming
                E. Farm policy in the United States
              VI. Water
                  A. The hydrologic cycle
                  B. Types of water resources
                  C. Water usage
                  D. Water pollution/geographic distribution
                  E. Sediments, nutrients, and eutrophication
                  F. Water treatment facilities
                VII. Air pollution
                    A. Structure/composition of atmosphere
                    B. Major atmospheric pollutants
                    C. Geographic distribution of air pollution
                    D. Effects of air pollution on climate
                    E. Effects of climate on air pollution
                    F. Effects of air pollution on humans
                    G. Air pollution laws
                  VIII. Plants and animals
                      A. Causes and consequences of species extinction
                      B. Species management
                    IX. Natural Resources and their geographic locations
                        A. Availability/depletion
                        B. Converting trash to resources: recycling
                      X. Energy resources
                          A. Nonrenewable energy resources
                          B. Renewable energy resources
                        XI. Lifestyle and sustainability
                            A. Impact of population
                            B. Exploitation of resources
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