Continuing & Professional Education

Environmental Studies

This course will introduce students to the basic concepts of applied soil physics, with an emphasis on the quantitative aspects. Basic physical aspects of both the solid and liquid phases of soils as well as how water is held by soils and how it moves through soils, will be covered. The course will examine the link between the soil water regime and processes within the hydrologic cycle, with emphasis on infiltration and the soil physical properties affecting this key hydrologic process. Soil management challenges that involve soil physics and how to manipulate soils to enhance their physical properties will also be examined.

This course will introduce students to the soil principal reactive chemical constituents and their processes. Topics will include an introduction to the soil solid and liquid components (chemical composition, mineralogy, organic matter and soil solution); and description of important soil chemical processes and their relevance to environmental and agricultural applications (mineral stability and weathering, oxidation-reduction, surface adsorption and exchange, colloidal behaviour and soil acidity and salinity).

The course will address the relevance of soil fertility including the importance of soil fertility in plant growth and nutrient uptake by crops. The agronomic significance of soil physical, chemical, and biological properties as they pertain to soil fertility will be discussed. Topics will include major nutrients, as well as secondary and micronutrients, and corresponding fertilizers. The course will also examine soil fertility evaluation: soil testing; the backbone of soil fertility and problems soils (acid and saline soils). Soil management challenges including fertilizer application, water use efficiency, interactions amount nutrients, and economics of plant-nutrient use will be addressed.

Introduction to classification and mapping of soils with emphasis on soil-forming processes; principles of the Canadian system of soil classification; soil profiles, diagnostic features, soil-forming factors and processes; kinds and distribution of soils in Canada; soil survey procedures, and utilization of existing spatial information to support soil mapping at a detailed scale. This course includes a mandatory field trip to collect data for mapping exercises. Prior knowledge of soil science is recommended.