Michael Rutherford, Professor Emeritus
Catherine Nolin, Professor and Chair
Stephen Déry, Professor and NSERC/Rio Tinto Industrial Research Chair in Climate Change and Water Security
Peter Jackson, Professor
Philip Owens, Professor and FRBC Endowed Chair in Landscape Ecology
Youmin Tang, Professor
Hossein Kazemian, Associate Professor
Theresa Adesanya, Assistant Professor
Siraj Ul Islam, Assistant Professor
Nikhil Aravindakshan, Adjunct Professor
Nikolaus Gantner, Adjunct Professor
Jason Raine, Adjunct Professor
Corinne Schiller, Adjunct Professor
Daniel Selbie, Adjunct Professor
Ronald Stewart, Adjunct Professor
Website: http://www.unbc.ca/environmental-science
Major in Environmental Science (BSc)
BSc Honours - Environmental Science
Minor in Aquatic Science
Minor in Atmospheric Science
Minor in Environmental Science
Minor in Soils and the Environment
Major in Environmental Science
The Environmental Science Bachelor of Science is an interdisciplinary degree in which students take a core curriculum along with a minor. The core curriculum is designed to provide students with knowledge of the fundamental biological, chemical, physical, and applied aspects integral to the field of environmental science. In addition, students are exposed to many of the human dimensions that underlie environmental issues. This approach ensures a uniform preparation among students and allows for the development of a diversity of expertise necessary to address the complexity of present environmental problems and future unanticipated ones.
The degree has been designed in part to address educational components of the National Occupational Standards (NOS) for Environmental Employment set out by Environmental Careers Organization of Canada (ECO Canada). The NOS forms the basis of the Canadian Certified Environmental Practitioner (CCEP) accreditation process of the Canadian Environmental Certification Approvals Board (CECAB). In addition, it may be possible to use some courses toward professional designations (i.e. P.Ag., P.Geo.). Students interested in this option are responsible for making themselves aware of the required courses for the professional designations and for planning to take the courses at the appropriate points in their program.
Undergraduate students are required to take a total of 94 credit hours of program core requirements in addition to a minor as indicated below. Students take foundational science courses in year 1 (e.g. biology, chemistry, physics and calculus) as well as ENSC 111-1 which introduces students to environmental systems and provides information on courses and options available in years 2 to 4 of the Environmental Science major. The minor requirement allows students to develop expertise within an area of their interest. There is also an option to take a BSc Honours in Environmental Science program, which is described below. The major requires elective credit hours as necessary to ensure completion of a minimum of 127 credit hours including any additional credit hours necessary to meet the Academic Breadth requirement of the University (see Undergraduate Academic Regulation on Academic Breadth). Students needing to improve their communication skills should take ENGL 170-3 or NRES 100-3 as an elective. Note that ENGL 170-3 also fulfills the Academic Breadth requirement for Arts and Humanities. Other areas of Academic Breadth are covered in the major.
Program Core Requirements
Lower-Division Requirement
| BIOL 103-3 | Introductory Biology I |
| BIOL 104-3 | Introductory Biology II |
| BIOL 123-1 | Introductory Biology I Laboratory |
| BIOL 124-1 | Introductory Biology II Laboratory |
| BIOL 201-3 | Ecology |
| BIOL 203-3 | Microbiology |
| CHEM 100-3 | General Chemistry I |
| CHEM 101-3 | General Chemistry II |
| CHEM 120-1 | General Chemistry Lab I |
| CHEM 121-1 | General Chemistry Lab II |
| CHEM 210-3 | Analytical Chemistry I |
| ENSC 111-1 | Earth and Environment |
| ENSC 201-3 | Weather and Climate |
| ENSC 202-3 | Introduction to Aquatic Systems |
| ENSC 250-3 | Environmental and Geospatial Data Analysis |
| FSTY 205-3 | Introduction to Soil Science |
| GEOG 204-3 | Introduction to GIS |
| GEOG 210-3 | Introduction to Earth Science |
| MATH 100-3 | Calculus I |
| MATH 101-3 | Calculus II |
| PHYS 100-4 | Physics for Life Sciences I |
| and PHYS 101-4 | Physics for Life Sciences II |
| or | |
| PHYS 110-4 | Introductory Physics I: Mechanics |
| and PHYS 111-4 | Introductory Physics II: Waves and Electricity |
| STAT 240-3 | Basic Statistics |
| or STAT 371-3 | Probability and Statistics for Scientists and Engineers |
Students who are interested in pursuing professional designations should contact the program advisor regarding the correct course sequences required for individual programs as well as the appropriate choice of electives.
Upper-Division Requirements
| ENPL 305-3 | Environmental Impact Assessment |
| ENPL 401-3 | Environmental Law |
| ENSC 308-3 | Northern Contaminated Environments |
| ENSC 406-3 | Environmental Modelling |
| ENSC 418-3 | Environmental Measurement and Analysis |
| ENSC 440-(2-6) | Internship* |
| or ENSC 499-(1-6) | Independent Study |
| or an approved 3-credit field course | |
| ENSC 450-3 | Environmental and Geophysical Data Analysis |
| ENVS 414-3 | Environmental and Professional Ethics |
| NREM 306-3 | Society, Policy and Administration |
Two of the following:
| ENSC 404-3 | Waste Management |
| ENSC 412-3 | Air Pollution |
| ENSC 452-3 | Reclamation and Remediation of Disturbed Environments |
| ENVE 351-4 | Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport |
*Students with extensive experience related to the environment or who have completed a co-op work term may be waived from this degree requirement with approval from the Program Chair. Co-op students may receive credit for ENSC 440-(2-6) at the same time as they are completing a co-op work term with the following conditions: students must register in ENSC 440-(2-6) before the co-op work term starts, and meet both the co-op and the ENSC 440-(2-6) requirements.
Minor Requirement Associated with the Environmental Science Degree
Environmental Science students are required to complete any available minor at UNBC as part of their degree. A minor allows students to specialize in a subject area relevant to the advancement, utilization and dissemination of environmental knowledge. Some minors may result in students taking more than the required 127 credit hours in order to obtain the Environmental Science major. Many minors allow 100-level prerequisite courses and an additional 6 credit hours of other courses to be used to meet the requirements of both the major and minor. Consult the current Undergraduate Calendar for the requirements of minors available at UNBC.
BSc Honours - Environmental Science
The BSc Honours-Environmental Science provides a higher level of specialization and research experience, especially for students planning to proceed to postgraduate work.
Honours students are required to complete the degree requirements for the BSc Environmental Science major, with the exception that Honours students must complete an undergraduate thesis chosen from ENSC 430-6 (Undergraduate Thesis), or NRES 430-6 (Undergraduate Thesis) in place of the requirement for ENSC 440-(2-6) (Internship) or ENSC 499-3 (Independent Study). ENSC 440-(2-6) or ENSC 499-(1-6) may be taken by Honours students, but they are not required for the Honours degree. The undergraduate thesis must be conducted under the supervision of a faculty member.
The minimum requirement for a BSc Honours degree is 130 credit hours. Students are responsible to find their own undergraduate thesis research supervisor. Faculty members are under no obligation to supervise Honours students. To be admitted to the Honours degree program, students must have completed 60 credit hours and obtained a minimum Cumulative GPA of 3.33. Attaining the minimum requirement will not guarantee admission into the Honours program, which will be at the discretion of the Environmental Science Program. Maintenance of a Cumulative GPA of 3.33 is required to remain in the Honours program.
Minor in Aquatic Science
The minor in Aquatic Science provides students with an opportunity to focus on aquatic processes associated with different water environments, such as rivers, lakes, and groundwaters. Emphasis is given to physical, chemical, and biological processes that govern the movement, fate, and management of water on timescales of seconds to decades. Attention is also given to the role of water (and associated chemicals, nutrients, and sediments) within ecosystems and society.
Students are required to take a minimum of 36 credit hours. Of these, 14 credit hours are foundational courses in Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics; 13 credit hours are required aquatic science courses; and a minimum of 9 credit hours are selected from a list of suggested elective courses. Students may use 17 credit hours of lower-division courses and 7 credit hours of upper-division courses to meet the requirements of a major or another minor. Note: Some upper-division courses may be taught in alternate years; students should consider this when planning their course sequences.
Required Courses
Lower-Division Requirement
| CHEM 100-3 | General Chemistry I |
| CHEM 120-1 | General Chemistry Lab I |
| ENSC 202-3 | Introduction to Aquatic Systems |
| MATH 100-3 | Calculus I |
| MATH 101-3 | Calculus II |
| PHYS 100-4 | Physics for Life Sciences I |
| or PHYS 110-4 | Introductory Physics I: Mechanics |
Upper-Division Requirement
| BIOL 302-3 | Limnology |
| ENVE 351-4 | Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport |
| GEOG 310-3 | Hydrology |
Elective Courses*
A minimum of 9 credit hours from the following list:
| BIOL 402-3 | Aquatic Plants |
| BIOL 406-3 | Fish Ecology |
| ENGR 254-4 | Fluid Mechanics I |
| ENSC 450-3 | Environmental and Geophysical Data Analysis |
| ENSC 454-3 | Snow and Ice |
| GEOG 311-3 | Drainage Basin Geomorphology |
| GEOG 405-3 | Fluvial Geomorphology |
*Students must ensure that all prerequisites are fulfilled prior to registering in any course.
Minor in Atmospheric Science
Atmospheric Science, or meteorology, is the study of the Earth’s atmosphere, weather and climate. The minor in Atmospheric Science provides students with an opportunity to focus on atmospheric processes that occur near the Earth’s surface. Emphasis is given to physical and chemical processes that govern the development of weather systems on timescales of days and that regulate the Earth’s climate on timescales of decades.
Students are required to take 32 credit hours. Of these, 14 credit hours are foundational courses in Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics; 12 credit hours are required atmospheric science courses; and 6 credit hours are selected from a list of suggested elective courses. Students may use 17 credit hours of lower-division courses and 6 credit hours of upper-division courses to meet the requirements of a major or another minor. Note: Some upper-division courses may be taught in alternate years; students should consider this when planning their course sequences.
Required Courses
Lower-Division Requirements
| CHEM 100-3 | General Chemistry I |
| CHEM 120-1 | General Chemistry Lab I |
| ENSC 201-3 | Weather and Climate |
| MATH 100-3 | Calculus I |
| MATH 101-3 | Calculus II |
| PHYS 100-4 | Physics for Life Sciences I |
| or PHYS 110-4 | Introductory Physics I: Mechanics |
Upper-Division Requirements
| ENSC 312-3 | Biometeorology |
| ENSC 408-3 | Storms |
| ENSC 425-3 | Climate Change and Global Warming |
Elective Courses*
Six credit hours from the following list:
| ENSC 412-3 | Air Pollution |
| ENSC 450-3 | Environmental and Geophysical Data Analysis |
| ENSC 454-3 | Snow and Ice |
| GEOG 310-3 | Hydrology |
*Students must ensure that all prerequisites are fulfilled prior to registering in any course.
Minor in Environmental Science
The minor in Environmental Science is intended for students who are not majoring in Environmental Science and offers an introduction to pollution and its management and the four environmental systems: aquatic, atmospheric, ecological, and terrestrial. Students are given the opportunity to develop more depth in one or two areas. Students in this minor gain an exposure to fundamental biological, chemical, and physical aspects integral to the field of environmental science.
The minor in Environmental Science requires the completion of a minimum of 21 credit hours from the courses listed below, a minimum of 12 of which must be at the upper-division level. Students may use a maximum of two courses (a minimum of 6 credit hours) to fulfill the program requirements for a major or another minor.
Students must select at least one course from each of the following lists. All courses listed for the minor have prerequisites; students must ensure that all prerequisites are fulfilled prior to registering in any course. Note: Some upper-division courses may be taught in alternate years; students should consider this when planning their course sequences.
Aquatic Systems
| BIOL 302-3 | Limnology |
| BIOL 402-3 | Aquatic Plants |
| BIOL 406-3 | Fish Ecology |
| ENGR 254-4 | Fluid Mechanics I |
| ENSC 202-3 | Introduction to Aquatic Systems |
| ENSC 454-3 | Snow and Ice |
| ENVE 351-4 | Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport |
| GEOG 310-3 | Hydrology |
Atmospheric Systems
| ENSC 201-3 | Weather and Climate |
| ENSC 312-3 | Biometeorology |
| ENSC 408-3 | Storms |
| ENSC 412-3 | Air Pollution |
| ENSC 425-3 | Climate Change and Global Warming |
| ENSC 454-3 | Snow and Ice |
Ecological Systems
| BIOL 201-3 | Ecology |
| BIOL 202-3 | Invertebrate Zoology |
| BIOL 203-3 | Microbiology |
| BIOL 210-3 | Genetics |
| BIOL 301-3 | Systematic Botany |
| BIOL 404-3 | Plant Ecology |
| BIOL 410-3 | Population and Community Ecology |
| BIOL 411-3 | Conservation Biology |
Terrestrial Systems
| ENSC 325-3 | Soil Physical Processes and the Environment |
| ENSC 435-3 | Soil Biological Processes and the Environment |
| ENSC 452-3 | Reclamation and Remediation of Disturbed Environments |
| ENVE 351-4 | Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport |
| FSTY 205-3 | Introduction to Soil Science |
| GEOG 210-3 | Introduction to Earth Science |
| GEOG 311-3 | Drainage Basin Geomorphology |
| GEOG 405-3 | Fluvial Geomorphology |
| GEOG 411-3 | Quaternary and Surficial Geology |
Environmental Pollution and Management
| ENPL 305-3 | Environmental Impact Assessment |
| ENSC 308-3 | Northern Contaminated Environments |
| ENSC 404-3 | Waste Management |
| ENSC 406-3 | Environmental Modelling |
| ENSC 412-3 | Air Pollution |
| ENSC 452-3 | Reclamation and Remediation of Disturbed Environments |
| ENVE 351-4 | Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport |
| NREM 410-3 | Watershed Management |
Minor in Soils and the Environment
Processes and their dynamics at the interface between the biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere are critical to the regulation of environmental quality from the micro-scale of millimeters to the macro-scale of climatic conditions. The minor in Soils and the Environment provides students with an opportunity to focus on the Earth’s “Critical Zone,” the thin outer layer which supports terrestrial life on the planet. The emphasis is on key biological, chemical, and physical processes active in soils, and how they influence environmental conditions.
Students are required to take 34 credit hours. Of these, 16 credit hours are foundational courses in biology and chemistry, 15 credit hours are required soils and geochemistry courses, and 3 credit hours are selected from a list of suggested elective courses. Students may use 16 credit hours of 100-level courses and 6 credit hours of other courses to meet the requirements of a major or another minor. Note: Some upper-division courses may be taught in alternate years; students should consider this when planning their course sequences.
Required Courses
| BIOL 103-3 | Introductory Biology I |
| BIOL 104-3 | Introductory Biology II |
| BIOL 123-1 | Introductory Biology I Laboratory |
| BIOL 124-1 | Introductory Biology II Laboratory |
| CHEM 100-3 | General Chemistry I |
| CHEM 101-3 | General Chemistry II |
| CHEM 120-1 | General Chemistry Lab I |
| CHEM 121-1 | General Chemistry Lab II |
| ENSC 307-3 | Introduction to Geochemistry |
| ENSC 325-3 | Soil Physical Processes and the Environment |
| ENSC 435-3 | Soil Biological Processes and the Environment |
| FSTY 205-3 | Introductory Soil Science |
| FSTY 425-3 | Soil Formation and Classification |
Elective Courses*
A minimum of 3 credit hours from the following list:
| ENSC 404-3 | Waste Management |
| ENSC 452-3 | Reclamation and Remediation of Disturbed Environments |
| ENVE 351-4 | Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport |
| FSTY 415-3 | Forest Soils |
*Students must ensure that all prerequisites are fulfilled prior to registering in any course.
Updated: June 7, 2024