GEOG3947: PEATLAND LANDSCAPES AND MANAGEMENT

• Any Level 2 GEOG module

• None

• None

• The aim of this moduleis to provide an understanding of the significance of peatland lansdcapes as a resouce, their importance in regulating climate change; and discuss how they can be effectively managed.

• Introduction What is peat? Global significance of peatlands
• Blanket peatlands - The terrestrial sponge? - hydrology of peatlands
• Erosion processes
• Slope processes and mass movements
• Calculating change - sediment budgets and landscape change
• The Carbon question - erosion dynamics and carbon cycling
• The blame game - peatland drainage and burning
• Putting things right - peatland restoration
• Tropical peatlands under pressure
• Arctic peatlands and changing climate

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• Understand the key characteristics of peat and peatland landscapes
• Specify the linkages between landscapes and processes
• Appreciate the importance of peatland landscapes in controlling carbon cycling
• Recognise current issues affecting peatlands and available management strategies.

Subject-specific Skills:

• Appreciate the range of peatland research methodologies
• Critically assess scientific approaches in to peatland landscape studies
• Understand how the physical characteristics and material properties of peat influence peatland process

Key Skills:

• Order knowledge and be able to relate and synthesise key concepts
• Read critically and make links between lecture-based knowledge and published material (advanced bibliographic skills).
• Relate lecture-based concepts to field / management examples

• This will be a lecture- based module with a one-day field excursion to the North Pennines to look at contemporary peat erosion and management on blanket peat. This is supplemented by a series of desktop (classroom) demonstrations of the physical properties of peat which are incorporated into the lecture programme.
• Lectures will enable students to gain subject-specific knowledge and understand approaches to studying peatland science.
• Desktop demonstrations allow students to appreciate first-hand the special properties of peat.
• The field excursion provides practical experience of methods of peatland restoration and management.
• Tutorials provide a discussion forum (review) at the end of the module where students can raise key topics and issues and prepare essay-plan answers. This will prepare students for the summative assessment (exam).
• Formative assessment is provided through short tests/quizzes in lectures and the group revision tutorial at the end of the module. The tutorial reviews subject-specific knowledge and provide guidance on structuring exam question to best synthesise key concepts and published material.The summative assessment (written exam) will test subject specific knowledge and; the ability of students to critically assess scientific approaches in to peatland science, synthesise key conceptsand make links between lecture-based knowledge, published material and field / management examples.

This is provided through question and answer session in lectures; the interactive classroom demonstrations; spot tests/quizzes; discussion on the one-day field excursion and in the group review tutorial at the end of the module

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