Arctic Marine Pollution

The course focuses on marine pollution issues in the Arctic ecosystems. It builds upon principles of ecotoxicology (contaminant sources, transport, uptake by organisms, effects). Classes of pollutants of concern in Arctic environments as well as other man made impacts (eutrophication, acidification, aquaculture). Pollutants are introduced along with their presence/effects in Arctic environments and in relation to climate change impacts and environmental management.  

Students who have completed this course will be able to:

Knowledge:

• describe the specificity of Arctic ecosystems.
• know the main types of pollution (persistent organic pollutants, microplastics, radioactivity, heavy metals and hydrocarbons) and explain their occurrence/transport in the Arctic.
• understand the accumulation of contaminants in biota, their trophic transfer and biotransformation.
• describe the effects of pollutants at the individual (physiology), population and ecosystem levels.
• have an understanding of environmental monitoring of pollutants, risk assessment and environmental management in Arctic regions.
• have a basic knowledge of climate change, ocean acidification, impacts of aquaculture.

Skills:

• search for relevant scientific literature
• read scientific publications critically
• write an abstract
• implement relevant study designs in ecotoxicology

General competence:

• have a holistic understanding of marine pollution issues in Arctic environments.
• utilize scientific literature to identify information needed to understand, interpret and critically evaluate ecotoxicology-related data
• demonstrate an understanding of legal, regulatory, and ethical considerations relating to ecotoxicology within the broader societal context.
• develop their scientific writing skills
• communicate clearly and concisely their knowledge concerning the fundamentals in the basic areas of Arctic marine ecotoxicology.  

If you pass the examination in this course, you will get an reduction in credits (as stated below), if you previously have passed the following courses:

• BIO-3001 Anthropogenic pollution and environmental impact in marine Arctic environments I 10 stp
• BIO-8015 Arctic Marine Pollution 10 stp

Language of instruction and examination