575.714.81 - Water Resources Management

Expanded Course Description

Prerequisites 

This course assumes that students have a basic understanding of the state of climate change science and related issues. 

Course Structure

The course is organized into week-long modules. Each module starts on a Tuesday and ends on the following Monday. The Modules can be accessed by clicking “Modules” in the menu of the course. Each module has several sections including the overview, learning guide, content and lectures, discussions, and assignments. Students are encouraged to preview all sections of the module before starting. See "Student Coursework Requirements" below, under "Evaluation and Grading", for more information. 

Course Topics

The following is a list of topics that will be covered in this course:

• Historical Context of Water Resources Management
• Planning vs Management
• Water Science Basics
• Hydrologic Cycle
• Water Balance
• Surface water and ground water
• Institutional Frameworks
• The Water Management Industry
• Federal, State and Local Governments
• Public Trust Doctrine
• Social Good Vs Economic Good
• Reviews, Permits, Certifications, Licenses and Registrations
• Federal Clean Water Act
• National Environmental Policy Act
• Financial Management
• Costs, Pricing, Economic vs Financial maters
• Federal Infrastructure Funding
• Water Use in the United States
• Water Supply and Demand
• Dams and Reservoirs
• Climate Change Impacts on Water Resources
• Droughts
• Floods
• Decision Making Methods
• Economic Theory & Water Resources Management
• Cost-Benefit Analysis
• Multi-Criteria Analysis
• Collaborative Decision Making
• Ecological Stream Flow Management
• Stream Functions Pyramid
• Water Quality Based Management
• Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs)
• Regional Aquatic System Management

Course Goals

1. To gain broad knowledge and a practical understanding of the diverse and interrelated scientific, institutional, and analytical aspects of managing water quantity and quality primarily in the United States but with applications worldwide.
   
2. To apply this knowledge to a water resources management problem or issue of particular interest to you in a way that enhances your technical writing skills as well as your ability to analyze and articulate complex, multidisciplinary problems. 

Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs)

• Apply the knowledge conveyed in this course about water science, history, institutions, decision- making, and financial matters to the investigation and analysis of current multi-objective water quantity and quality management needs.
• Use theoretical principles and knowledge of historical experiences to envision how water resource management policies and activities should evolve in response to regional climatic trends and extreme events that are anticipated to result from global climate change.
• Explain how reviews, approvals, permits, certifications, licenses and certificates function and how they can interact with each other in the implementation of federal, state and local laws governing water use and water quality management.
• Describe the major categories of water use in the United States and explain their primary environmental impacts and interactions with other sectors of the economy and society.
• Describe how quantitative modeling and decision-support methods for water resources management can accommodate multiple objectives and multiple stakeholders having a diverse range of priorities and values.

Textbooks

No Required Textbooks to Purchase. Texts available through eReserves.

Student Coursework Requirements

The course is organized into week-long modules. Each module starts on a Tuesday and ends on the following Monday. Assignments in this course include quizzes and essays. In each module there is also an online discussion to participate in. Finally, there is the course project, which involves researching and writing a “technical memo”. Each of these coursework requirements is described below: 

Discussion Participation (20% of Final Grade Calculation) 

Each module has at least one discussion. Participation in the online discussions involves two parts: for each of the discussions in a module, students are expected to (1) make one original posting, and (2) respond to the original postings of at least two other students, as explained below.

1. Your original posting is your response to the discussion question(s). Post your response to each discussion by day 4 of that module week (by Friday, 11:59 PM your local time zone). 
2. In addition to your original posting to the discussion question(s), you must respond to the original postings of at least two classmates. Your responses to two classmates must be posted day 7 of that module week (by Monday, 11:59 PM your local time zone). 

Your original posting should be responsive to the question, thoughtful, detailed, and exhibit critical thinking. You may draw upon information both in the course material and from outside the course. You should provide references when appropriate. 

In your responses to the original postings of classmates consider using the 3CQ Model (Compliment, Connect, Comment, Question). That is, compliment a specific aspect of the original post. Connect by sharing any personal relationship, such as, "I had a similar reaction..." or experience, or observation. Comment by providing substantive feedback, which may agree or disagree on some aspect of the original post.  Consider posing a question to help carry the discussion forward. Student awareness of the 3CQ Model can promote more substantive discussions.

The instructor for the module will monitor class discussions and will respond to some of the discussion posts. Grading is fairly liberal if for those who make an effort. However, brief responses, like, "Great post! I thought that too. People really should conserve water. Are you going to do that for your course project?", while following the 3CQ Model could be marked down for being too brief. 

Source: Prud'homme, Genereux. (2021). 21 Ways to Structure an Online Discussion, Part 3. Faculty Focus. Magna Publications. April 12, 2021. https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/online-student-engagement/21-ways-to-structure-an-online-discussion-part-three/#3cqmodel 

Assessments (50% of Final Grade Calculation)

This course has two types of weekly assessments: quizzes and essays. Each module will have no more than one assessment, either a quiz or an essay question (An exception may be in module 14, for non-summer terms, in which an audio-visual presentation about the course project will be presented in a discussion forum format, but graded and weighted as an assessment, not as part of the course project grade). Each assessment will be weighted equally. Guidance for each type of assessment is given below. 

Guidance on Quizzes:

Quizzes are the assessment method used in some of the modules. All quizzes are “open book” in the sense that course material may be consulted while the quiz is completed. This might entail having more than one internet browser tab opened in Canvas simultaneously to enable consulting instructional materials while also taking the quiz.  Quizzes are not timed - you have the entire week of the module to work on them. Quizzes typically contain 20 questions that are true/false, multiple choice, matching, or exact numeric answer. Quizzes must be completed by the end of day 7 of the module (by Monday, 11:59 PM your local time zone).

IMPORTANT NOTE about Canvas Quizzes: Canvas quizzes currently deduct points for incorrect answer to questions that entail more than one response, e.g., "Identify the three ...". Therefore, if you are certain about two responses, but don't know the third, it might benefit you not to guess at the third answer, because if you get it wrong, credit will be deducted.

Guidance on Essay Questions:

Some of the assignments are in the form of essay questions. One of the goals of this course is to promote excellent written communication, which is vital skill for successful water resource managers and others. Below are some helpful guidelines for responding to essay questions. 

1. Address the key elements in the question: If your project topic or an essay question involves three elements, for example, “...  a description of the watershed, identification of a water quality problem, and a description of causes of the problem”, then be sure your written response specifically addresses each of those three issues. See: “Writing Presentation Devices”, which could be used to highlight the three responses. 

2. Demonstrate an understanding of the material: Write about the subject in a way that demonstrates your understanding of the material. This is conveyed through a clear, concise, and sufficiently comprehensive written presentation. A suggestion: If you don't fully understand something, it's best figure it out. It is second best to avoid trying to write about something you don't understand.

3. Clear Presentation: Think about how to organize the material in advance. For example, organizing the material according to required elements of an assignment is a good starting point.  Be concise.  Use plain language when possible being mindful of the likely audience. 

4. Writing Presentation Devices: Written communications can benefit from the appropriate and balanced use of good writing presentation devices. These include things like section headings, graphs, images, tables, bulleted lists, and other things that enhance the communications. “Appropriate” means these presentation devices are used carefully to add value, such as by organizing the material for ease of reading or for future reference, for further explaining, for visualizing, for highlighting important points, or for summarizing.  “Balanced” means avoid overusing these presentation devices.

5. Proofread and Edit:  Aside from finding obvious errors and omissions, re-reading allows you to improve the clarity of presentation.

Course Project - Technical Memo (30% of Final Grade Calculation)

A key part of this course is the course project. For the course project you will: (a) select a specific course project topic in water resources management; (b) investigate your chosen topic; and (c) document your topic and findings of your investigation in a technical memorandum (memo). 

Process: You will collaborate with the instructor to identify a suitable project topic. This involves the student conducting background research, proposing a topic to the instructor, and typically making several iterative revisions in response to instructor reviews.

IMPORTANT:  The topic must be expressed in the form of a problem or set of questions that your technical memo will try to answer. As a graduate level project, the findings should involve the synthesis of information in support of answering the project topic question(s), and not simply summarize other reports (this is not simply a "book report" exercise).

Timeline:  You will be prompted to begin the topic selection process from the beginning of the course leading up to submitting an initial project topic idea in Module 6. Based on interactions with the instructor, students refine their initial proposal and submit a draft final project topic proposal in Module 8. By the end of Module 8 or 9 you should have a finalized topic. You will submit your final Course Project technical memo by the end of Module 12 in summer term or Module 13 in other terms. 

The Course Project workload is in addition to the other module workload. You are encouraged to make continual progress during the course so that you do not face an overwhelming workload at the end of the term when the technical memo is due. 

More Information about the Course Project is available in the "Course Project Guidance" located in the Course Information & Resources module. 

Grading Policy

Student assignments and completion of discussion forums are due at the end of each module week. There is a one-day grace period after the due date for students to turn in assignments and make Discussion posts with no penalty. Assignments and Discussion posts that are more than one day late, up to one week late, will be reduced by 10% of the available points. For example, suppose that an assignment worth 100 points was turned in five days late and that its raw score was 94 (grade A). This score would be reduced by 10% or 10 points to an 84 (grade B). 

No credit will be given for Assignments and Discussion posts that are more than one week late. Exceptions regarding late penalties or no credit may be made when the student has had an unexpected family or medical/health emergency, or the student has informed the instructors in advance that he/she will have trouble meeting a future due date. In such cases we will try to work out a mutually agreeable solution for submitting course material. 

We generally do not directly grade spelling and grammar. However, clarity of presentation, which demonstrates an understanding of the material and ability to communicate that to others, is relevant to the grading of essays. Further, consistently poor performance in either spelling or grammar is taken as an indication of poor written communication ability that may detract from your grade. 

The instructors will post grades about one week after assignment due dates. 

A grade of A indicates achievement of consistent excellence and distinction throughout the course—that is, conspicuous excellence in all aspects of assignments and discussion in every week. 

A grade of B indicates work that meets all course requirements on a level appropriate for graduate academic work. These criteria apply to both undergraduates and graduate students taking the course. 

97.00 – 100 = A+ 

93.00 – 96.99 = A 

90.00 – 92.99 = A− 

87.00 – 89.99 = B+ 

83.00 – 86.99 = B 

80.00 – 82.99 = B− 

70.00 – 79.99 = C 

< 70 = F 

Final grades will be determined by the following weighting: 

Academic Policies

Deadlines for Adding, Dropping and Withdrawing from Courses

Students may add a course up to one week after the start of the term for that particular course. Students may drop courses according to the drop deadlines outlined in the EP academic calendar (https://ep.jhu.edu/student-services/academic-calendar/). Between the 6th week of the class and prior to the final withdrawal deadline, a student may withdraw from a course with a W on their academic record. A record of the course will remain on the academic record with a W appearing in the grade column to indicate that the student registered and withdrew from the course.

Academic Misconduct Policy

All students are required to read, know, and comply with the Johns Hopkins University Krieger School of Arts and Sciences (KSAS) / Whiting School of Engineering (WSE) Procedures for Handling Allegations of Misconduct by Full-Time and Part-Time Graduate Students.

This policy prohibits academic misconduct, including but not limited to the following: cheating or facilitating cheating; plagiarism; reuse of assignments; unauthorized collaboration; alteration of graded assignments; and unfair competition. Course materials (old assignments, texts, or examinations, etc.) should not be shared unless authorized by the course instructor. Any questions related to this policy should be directed to EP’s academic integrity officer at ep-academic-integrity@jhu.edu.

Students with Disabilities - Accommodations and Accessibility

Johns Hopkins University values diversity and inclusion. We are committed to providing welcoming, equitable, and accessible educational experiences for all students. Students with disabilities (including those with psychological conditions, medical conditions and temporary disabilities) can request accommodations for this course by providing an Accommodation Letter issued by Student Disability Services (SDS). Please request accommodations for this course as early as possible to provide time for effective communication and arrangements.

For further information or to start the process of requesting accommodations, please contact Student Disability Services at Engineering for Professionals, ep-disability-svcs@jhu.edu.

Student Conduct Code

The fundamental purpose of the JHU regulation of student conduct is to promote and to protect the health, safety, welfare, property, and rights of all members of the University community as well as to promote the orderly operation of the University and to safeguard its property and facilities. As members of the University community, students accept certain responsibilities which support the educational mission and create an environment in which all students are afforded the same opportunity to succeed academically. 

For a full description of the code please visit the following website: https://studentaffairs.jhu.edu/policies-guidelines/student-code/

Classroom Climate

JHU is committed to creating a classroom environment that values the diversity of experiences and perspectives that all students bring. Everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect. Fostering an inclusive climate is important. Research and experience show that students who interact with peers who are different from themselves learn new things and experience tangible educational outcomes. At no time in this learning process should someone be singled out or treated unequally on the basis of any seen or unseen part of their identity. 
 
If you have concerns in this course about harassment, discrimination, or any unequal treatment, or if you seek accommodations or resources, please reach out to the course instructor directly. Reporting will never impact your course grade. You may also share concerns with your program chair, the Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, or the Office of Institutional Equity. In handling reports, people will protect your privacy as much as possible, but faculty and staff are required to officially report information for some cases (e.g. sexual harassment).

Course Auditing

When a student enrolls in an EP course with “audit” status, the student must reach an understanding with the instructor as to what is required to earn the “audit.” If the student does not meet those expectations, the instructor must notify the EP Registration Team [EP-Registration@exchange.johnshopkins.edu] in order for the student to be retroactively dropped or withdrawn from the course (depending on when the "audit" was requested and in accordance with EP registration deadlines). All lecture content will remain accessible to auditing students, but access to all other course material is left to the discretion of the instructor.