Course 2024-2025 a.y.

The course is structured into two modules

• Module 1 covers the following topics:
  • Fundamental ecosystem processes Ecosystems at work: productivity, decomposition, efficiencies, and ecological pyramids. The grand cycles of nutrients (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur) in natural and industrialized processes.
  • Management of renewable resources The essential nature of managing natural resources and the tragedy of the commons. Dynamics of harvested renewable resources. Effects of some regulation policies. The problem of maximum sustainable yield. The bio-economic viewpoint and ways to optimally managing natural resources.
  • Valorizing biodiversity and ecosystem services Indices of biodiversity and pricing of it. Ecosystem services and their values. Effects of altered cycles and anthropogenic activities on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Various kinds of footprints and ways to reduce them toward an ecological transition.
• Module 2 covers the following topics:
  • Strategies and instruments for sustainable development Environmental pollutants: definitions, features, space-time scale of pollution phenomena. Environmental indicators and related conceptual models. Approaches and methodologies for environmental impact assessment.
  • Air pollution control Air quality management at global and local scale. Technologies for gaseous and particulate emission control.
  • Contaminated soils Remediation technologies for soil and groundwater: in situ versus on site and ex situ methods. Biological and physic-chemical treatment technologies.
  • Waste and wastewater treatment technologies Basic concepts for waste and wastewater treatments. Biological and chemical-physical processes. Sludge production and treatment.
  • Waste management and disposal Waste management hierarchy. Integrated waste management schemes. Technologies for waste treatment and disposal.

a basic capacity of identifying and understanding the major ecological processes,

• a basic understanding of how to manage renewable resources,
• a basic knowledge of the metrics used to evaluate impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services Attending the second module of the course, students are expected to develop:
• a basic understanding of the general principles of environmental pollution issues
• a basic knowledge of approaches and methodologies for environmental impact assessment
• a basic knowledge of the technologies used for air pollution emissions control, water and wastewater treatment, soil remediation, and waste management.

These capacities will help students to elaborate strategies that can support policy-design of public institutions and private organizations at various scales (local, regional, national and global) towards sustainability.

• make a preliminary design of a power plant based on a renewable source, as well as energy efficiency and decarbonization interventions in the industrial sector, assessing both the economic feasibility and the environmental benefits, in terms of avoided emissions and energy saving
• autonomously manage the design choices concerning the construction and operation of a real plant
• communicate the results of their activities in a clear and effective way

• Lectures

Face-to-face lectures

There will not be any difference in terms of assessment methods for the attending and the non-attending students. Learning outcomes are evaluated through the results of a written test based on open and closed questions concerning the theoretical issues and on the solution of some simple numerical exercises.

Each of the two instructors will provide material related to the module he coordinates either on this site (https://www.ecologia.polimi.it/courses/ecopro/documents/) (Prof. Casagrandi) or on WeBeep (Prof. Lonati). A book of reference that will be useful and used (in part) is the following: Marino Gatto and Renato Casagrandi (2022), Ecosystem Conservation and Management: Models and Applications, Springer.