Pollution

Catalog description

Prerequisite: a prior chemistry course or equivalent The pollution of our air, water, and soils is responsible for millions of deaths across the world each year, along with immeasurable harm to natural ecosystems. In this seminar, we will study the chemistry of environmental pollutants that are most salient today—including lead, soot, pesticides, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), sewage, nutrients, and greenhouse gases—and how their chemistry influences their fate and transport through the environment and, in turn, their impacts on human health and natural ecosystems. We will also learn about basic techniques of pollutant monitoring and strategies to remediate different types of pollution and restore healthy ecosystems and communities. Beyond this, we will explore the broader concept of pollution, considering how compounds that can be vital to our survival can also harm our environment and how thresholds for when a compound becomes a “pollutant” are determined. Course work will include both chemistry problem sets and diverse readings about historic and current pollution issues. Conference work will allow students to develop a case study of a pollution incident or ongoing issue. This course is part of the Sarah Lawrence Interdisciplinary Collaborative on the Environment (SLICE) and will participate in interdisciplinary events and/or collaborative projects with other SLICE students. Courses offered in related disciplines this year are listed below. Full descriptions of the courses may be found under the appropriate disciplines. Ecology (p. 32), Michelle Hersh Biology Botany: The World of Plants (p. 33), Lydia Paradiso Biology Microbiology (p. 35), Michelle Hersh Biology 55 Environmental Science The Plant Tree of Life: Evolution and Systematics (p. 35), Adam Negrin Biology Environmental Chemistry (p. 36), Mali Yin Chemistry Nutrition (p. 37), Mali Yin…