Learn to understand the environment, developing your capacity to work in

• environmental sustainability
• ecotourism or
• other types of the environmental enterprises 

Course Duration:

900 hours of self-paced study

Learn About Living Things and How they Interact with the Environment

The core modules in this course have been chosen to ensure you have a good, broad understanding of the living and non living parts of the environment and the interactions that occur between these components.  The Environmental Assessment module is particularly important because it shows you how to undertake assessments; which are a fundamental part of how society uses the expertise of environmental graduates. This module prepares you for the sort of work that is in demand.

Much of what happens in the environment is at a Microscopic Level

Microbes and chemicals may not be visible to the naked eye; but their actions often have a huge impact on that which is visible. 

Chemical compounds in the atmosphere (air), hydrosphere (water), and geosphere (including soil) can affect everything from how we process nutrients to the development of certain cancers and reproductive capability. Although this lesson will focus primarily on humans, the underlying principles of environmental impact apply to all living organisms, including pets, livestock, aquatic species, plants, and even organisms in the soil.

When discussing environmental chemistry in relation to human health, large scale organisations, governments, governmental agencies, and nongovernmental organisations or NGOs (such as WHO, the World Health Organisation) usually refer to “environmental health”. This can be defined as the physical and biological factors influencing human health. (Some experts also include social factors, as these have a bearing on living spaces.)

HEALTH RISKS

Environmental chemicals pose many health risks to humans, such that it is impossible to detail every single one.

Heavy Metals

Heavy metal toxicity can lead to serious health issues via chronic or acute exposure. In most cases, environmental exposures are chronic – an individual is exposed to excessive levels of the heavy metal over a longer period. This most commonly occurs through contaminated soils and water. In environmental settings, lead is the most common contaminant. 

Short term negative health effects of heavy metal exposure can include:

• Reduced mental function
• Reduced central nervous system function
• Fatigue 

Long term negative health effects of heavy metal exposure can include ongoing physical, muscular, and neurological degeneration. In children, cognitive impacts may quickly become permanent.

Endocrine Disruptors

The body’s endocrine system is a sophisticated set of chemical messengers: a collection of hormones signal changes in the body covering everything from reproductive pathways to bone and muscle growth. An endocrine disruptor is a compound that gets in the way of how this system works. Some endocrine disruptors mimic the effects of hormones, while others block hormones from working. Such disruptions can have long term, overreaching health effects, causing cancer, birth defects, reproductive changes, and even neurological changes. Environmental exposure is usually through contaminated soil or water, via pesticides and agricultural and industrial waste. 

However, bisphenol-A, also known as BPA, is also a well-known endocrine disruptor, commonly found in plastics, such as water bottles, and the lining of canned food tins. 

Cancer

Cancer refers to cell growth which is abnormal. It can be growth when there should be none, growth that is too fast, or the growth of cells with mutated DNA (these cells should normally die). The significance of cancerous growths to health will vary according to the type of cancer. 

A benign cancer occurs only in a localised area (it does not spread), and is not normally of great concern because its growth is very slow. They are typically removed and tested because a benign tumour can progress to a more invasive malignancy.  Malignant cancers grow rapidly, can spread to other parts of the body, and are generally a far more serious problem.  The prognosis with malignant cancers is much worse than with benign and treatment is pursued rapidly and aggressively.  

Environmental exposure usually occurs via contaminated air, soil, and water, particularly via agricultural and industrial waste.