Course content

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.

Prerequisites

Local admission, application code 9371 - - Master`s level singular course. Admission requires a Bachelor`s degree (180 ECTS) or equivalent qualification, with a major in biology of minimum 80 ECTS.

Learning outcomes

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.