EES 360: Geology and Sustainability of India
Course Description
This course will examine the interactions between climate, geology and population of India from an Earth Systems approach. Emphasis will be placed on the geologic history, natural resources, energy issues, water issues, agricultural issues, natural ecosystems, natural hazards, and sustainability. Given the broad array of topics, it will be beyond the scope of this course to cover in-depth on every one of the topics included. Hence, we will use the class time to cover some basic foundations and discuss broader issues and concepts that are related to our travel in India. This class will be based on equal amount of lectures and discussions. Your participation will be necessary in order to prepare yourself for the travel part in India. I am expecting this course to provide you a good foundation on the status of and challenges facing 21st century India.
Reading List
25th - Aug: Introduction, course and program expectations, on campus and abroad plans.
Course Description
This course will examine the interactions between climate, geology and population of India from an Earth Systems approach. Emphasis will be placed on the geologic history, natural resources, energy issues, water issues, agricultural issues, natural ecosystems, natural hazards, and sustainability. Given the broad array of topics, it will be beyond the scope of this course to cover in-depth on every one of the topics included. Hence, we will use the class time to cover some basic foundations and discuss broader issues and concepts that are related to our travel in India. This class will be based on equal amount of lectures and discussions. Your participation will be necessary in order to prepare yourself for the travel part in India. I am expecting this course to provide you a good foundation on the status of and challenges facing 21st century India.
Reading List
25th - Aug: Introduction, course and program expectations, on campus and abroad plans.
- Reading 1: Molnar, P., 1986. Geologic History and Structure of Himalayas. American Scientist, 74:144-154.
- Reading 2: Molnar, P., Boos W. R., Battisti, D. S., (2010). Orographic Controls on Climate and Paleoclimate of Asia: Thermal and Mechanical Roles for the Tibetan Plateau, Annual Reviews of Earth and Planetary Sciences, 38:77-102.
- Reading 3: Oelkers, E. H., Hering, J. G., Zhu, C., (2011). Water: Is there a Global Water Crisis?, Elements, 7:157-162.
- Reading 4: Kumar R., Singh, R. D., Sharma, K. D., (2005). Water resources of India, Current Science, 89 (5):794-811.
- Reading 5: Jain, S. K., Agarwal, P. K., and Singh, V. P., (2007). Problems Related to Water Resources Management in India (Chapter 18), In. Hydrology and Water Resources of India. Springer.
- Reading 6: Townsent et al., (2003). Human Health Effects of a Changing Global Nitrogen Cycle, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 1(5): 240-246.
- Reading 7: Aufdenkampe et al., (2011). Riverine Coupling of Biogeochemical Cycles between land, oceans, and atmosphere, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 9(1):53-60.
- Reading 8: Filippelli, G. M., (2008). The Global Phosphorus Cycle: Past, Present, and Future. Elements. 4:89-95.
- Reading 9: Vaughan, D. J., (2006). Arsenic, Elements, 2:71-75.
- Reading 10: Sarkar A., (2009) Sustainable solutions to Arsenic contamination of groundwater: The Ganga-MeghnaBrahmaputra Basin (Ch 3), In Water, Agriculture, and Sustainable Well Being. Oxforf University Press.
- Reading 11: Macfarlane, A. M., (2007). Energy: The Issue of the 21st Century, Elements, 3:165-170.
- Reading 12: Yadugiri, V. T., (2011). Biomass to Fuel: The Uncertain Path, News Focus. Current Science, 101(2): 141-145.
- Reading 13: Madsen P. H., and Natarajan, A., (2011). Challenges and Prospects for Wind Energy to Attain 20% Grid Penetration by 2020 in India. Current Science, 101(1):35-42.
- Reading 14: Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Status in India (2007), ICLEI Report.
- Reading 15: Arora, D. S., et al., (2010). Indian Renewable Energy Status Report, National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
- Reading 16: Bilham, R., Gaur, V. K., and Molnar, P., (2001). Himalayan Seismic Hazard, Science, 293:1442-1444.
- Reading 17: R. Rajakumar, S. Sanjeevi, S. Jayaseelan, G. Isakkipandian, M. Edwin, P. Balaji and G. Ehanthalingam, (2007).
- Reading 18: Landslide Susceptibility Mapping in a Hilly Terrain Using Remote Sensing and GIS, Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 35(1):31-42.
- Reading 19: Gombos, A. M. Jr., Powell, W. G., Norton, I. O., (1995). The Tectonic Evolution of Western India and Its Impact on Hydrocarbon Occurrences: An Overview, Sedimentary Geology, 96:119-129.
- Reading 20: Andelouas, A., (2006). Uranium Mill Tailings: Geochemistry, Mineralogy, and Environmental Impact, Elements, 2:335-341.
- Reading 21: Sathaye, J., Shukla, P. R., Ravindranath, N. H., (2006). Climate change, sustainable development and India: Global and National Concerns, Current Science, 90(3): 314-325.
- Reading 22: Singh, K., (2011). India’s emissions in a climate constrained world, Energy Policy, 39:3476-3482.
- Reading 23: Reading : Dash, S. K., (2007), Evidences of climate and environmental changes in India (Ch. 4), In. Climage Change: An Indian Perspective, Cambridge University Press .
- Reading 24: Dash, S. K., (2007), Possible impacts of climate change in India (Ch. 5) In. Climage Change: An Indian Perspective, Cambridge University Press.
