| Department of Natural Sciences | |||||||||||||||||
| Earliest Possible Year | BSc. 3 year to MSc. 2 year | ||||||||||||||||
| Duration | One block | ||||||||||||||||
| Credits | 7.5 (ECTS) | ||||||||||||||||
| Course Level | Joint BSc and MSc | ||||||||||||||||
| Examination | Final Examination written examination Written Exam in Lecturehall All aids allowed Description of Examination: Evaluation 4 hours written exam. Weight: 100% 7-point scale, internal examiner | ||||||||||||||||
| Requirement For Attending Exam | At least 3 of the 4 possible reports on excursions and laboratory results and the project report must be submitted and approved before the exam. | ||||||||||||||||
| Organisation of Teaching | Integration of lectures, problems solving, excursions, laboratory exercises and report writing. | ||||||||||||||||
| Block Placement | Block 1 Week Structure: A Field excursions will be followed by laboratory analyses on soil samples from excursion sites. | ||||||||||||||||
| Teaching Language | English | ||||||||||||||||
| Optional Prerequisites | Jord, vand og planter or equivalent. Arealanvendelse, stofbalancer og miljøpåvirkning. | ||||||||||||||||
| Restrictions | None | ||||||||||||||||
| Areas of Competence the Course Will Address | |||||||||||||||||
| Basic Science Comprehend spatial and temporal variability of soils Comprehend the importance of soils as part of ecosystems Conduct and evaluate soil classification by the American Soil Taxonomy system Understand global soil composition, properties and distribution Applied Science Be able to conduct soil description and sampling in the field Comprehend and evaluate soils and soil classification in relation to plant growth and environmental protection Understand and comprehend mechanisms of soil degradation and measures of soil amendments/remediation Understand and evaluate soil quality and sustainability under different global conditions Ethics & Values Ability to discuss the criteria underlying key terms such as "soil quality", "soil sustainability", "soil degradation", "soil suitability", "soil variability" Awareness of soils as an indispensable but vulnerable and limited resourcn | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Objectives | |||||||||||||||||
| In a global perspective, the course objectives are to comprehend i) how soils form and develop in response to the soil forming factors and processes, ii) how soil composition determines quality and properties of soils, iii) how soils are described, sampled and classified and iv) what are the potentials and limitations of different soils in relation to plant growth and environmental protection | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Contents | |||||||||||||||||
| Soil spatial and temporal variability is overviewed. Structure, chemical composition and properties of soil minerals and humic matter. Interactions between abiotic and soil biochemical processes. Soils in relation to ecosystems. Sampling, description, properties and designations of soil profiles and horizons. Diagnostic horizons and properties, and overall principles used in classification. Introduction to soil distribution and geography. Soil forming factors and soil forming processes with emphasis on acidification, mineral weathering, humification/mineralization, clay migration, podzolization, redox processes and leaching. Concentration on soil formation, development and classification in order to understand relationships between the soil forming factors, soil properties and sustainable soil use in a global perspective. Occurrence, quality and properties of various soil types are highlighted and exemplified, and their suitability for various land uses such as conventional and ecologic agriculture, horticulture and forestry is evaluated in relation to plant growth and environmental protection. Emphasis is put on training soil classification by the American Soil Taxonomy system as a tool for understanding soil composition and properties under current and changing external conditions. The consideration of the soil forming factors (parent material, climate, topography, vegetation, human influence, time) and the soil forming processes (acidification, clay migration, erosion, gleization, humification, podzolisation, salinization, weathering) in soil classification and evaluation is taught. | |||||||||||||||||
| Teaching And Learning Methods | |||||||||||||||||
| Lectures, theoretical exercises and case studies are integrated. Four excursions will be arranged followed by laboratory exercises resulting in a report on classification and evaluation of each soil. At the excursions, soils with different composition and properties because of natural and anthropogenic factors are studied in situ, and samples are taken and analysed in the laboratory. Lectures are based on the textbook used. The theoretical exercises/cases are integrated in the lectures. Groups of students work together in the field and laboratory as well as in solving theoretical exercises/cases. | |||||||||||||||||
| Learning Outcome | |||||||||||||||||
| Stipulated in "Areas of Competence the Course Will Address" | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Litterature | |||||||||||||||||
| Borggaard, O.K. & Elberling, B. (2007). Pedological Biogeochemistry. Handout notes. | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Coordinator | |||||||||||||||||
| Ole Kragholm Borggaard, okb@life.ku.dk, Department of Natural Sciences/Soil and Environmental Chemistry, Phone: 35332419 | |||||||||||||||||
| Attendance Fee | |||||||||||||||||
| None except 100 DDK for excursions | |||||||||||||||||
| Study Board | |||||||||||||||||
| Study Committee NSN | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Scope | |||||||||||||||||
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