88398 - Marine Spatial Planning and Monitoring of Marine Environment

Learning outcomes

After completing the course, the students possess knowledge about the technical and scientific methodologies for the monitoring and ecological evaluation of marine ecosystems status, as required by the current European legislations, to be used for conservation and management purposes. In particular, students are able to: - individuate and characterize the main causes of habitat alterations; - individuate the critical factors for an ecologically sustainable use of the resources; - define evaluation strategies, and their applications, for the protection of the habitats, populations and ecosystems; - use GIS tools to create different types of maps of marine habitats and of the anthropogenic pressure acting on them.

Course contents

Module 1 (GIS and habitat mapping)

GIS is a powerful tool to manage, analyse and visualize spatial data and therefore essential in spatial planning. In the complex marine coastal environment, GIS is essential to allow a correct use of the sea and of the coasts and to evaluate the main causes of habitat alteration due to multiple impacts. Beside theoretical knowledge, the course provides practical applications through computer exercises using real data from research projects focused on the management of coastal development and on the monitoring of the habitats’ status. The software ESRI ArcGIS, or the QGIS, will be used.

Module 2 (monitoring, evaluation and management of the biological resources and ecosystems)

The marine ecosystems and the problems related to their alteration due to exploitation of the resources, with specific focus on fisheries resources. Definition of ecological quality, preservation of the populations and ecosystems in view of the European legislations on marine environment (CFP, MSFD). Presentation of the methodologies for the monitoring and the status evaluation of the exploited resources and ecosystems. Presentation of tools for the management of antropogenic activities of exploitation. Application of the methodologies of monitoring and resource status evaluation in selected case studies.

Readings/Bibliography

Power-point presentations and other teaching material will be provided during the course and, together with the personal notes, are sufficient to prepare the examination. The books listed below are not necessary, but of support for potential further deepening. Other bibliographical recommendations will be provided during the classes.

Marine Fisheries Ecology. Jennings S, Kaiser MJ, Reynolds JD. Blackwell Publishing 2001.

Marine Ecology: Processes, systems and impacts. Kaiser MJ, Attrill MJ, Jennings S, Thomas DN, Barnes DKA, Brierley AS, Polunin NVC, Raffaelli DG. Oxford University Press 2011 (second edition).

Geographic Information Systems and Science 3e Paul A. Longley, Mike Goodchild, David J. Maguire, David W. Rhind August 2010, ©2011.

Burrough P A and McDonnell R A; 1998. Principles of Geographical Information Systems. Spatial Information Systems and Geostatistics. Oxford University Press.

Paul Longley John Wiley & Sons; 2005 Geographic Information Systems and Science. Wiley.

Teaching methods

The course is comprised of 6 CFU: 3 CFU are covered by prof.ssa Federica Foglini (Module 1) and 3 CFU by prof. Michele Casini (Module 2). The course is developed around different teaching methodologies and requires the active participation of the students.

For Module 1, lessons of frontal teaching where the main concepts and cases tudies are presented. Exercises in computer lab for habitat mapping using GIS (ArcGIS and QGIS) and statistical analysis of real data, where the teacher provides a detailed explanation and a demonstration of the exercises that the students then perform indipendently.

For Module 2, lessons of frontal teaching where the main concepts and cases tudies are presented. Exercises in computer lab about the evaluation of populations and ecosystems status using real data, where the teacher provides a detailed explanation and a demonstration of the exercises that the students then perform indipendently. Working groups dealing with specific topics within which each student choose and present a scientific article in the classroom.

Assessment methods

The exam will assess the acquired knowledge and the capability to use this knowledge in the discussion of case studies and in practical applications. The final mark is expressed in 30ies.

For Module 1, there will be a practical exam in computer lab covering all topics covered during the exercises. Five exercises will be proposed together with theoretical questions. The final evaluation for Module 1 will be made of the weighted mean of all the exercises.

For Module 2, there will be a test at the end of the module, based on the presentation of one scientific article, where the critical thinking in its exposure and discussion in relation to the specific topic is evaluated. Moreover, there will be an oral exam to assess the gained knowledge, based on all the topics of the module. The final evaluation for Module 2 will be made of the weighted mean (40% presentation of the article and 60% oral exam) of the evaluations. 

The final mark will result from the arithmetic mean of the final evaluations from the 2 modules.

The dates of the exams will be posted on the site Almaesami. Students can book for the examination exclusively using the procedures provided by the online system Alma Exams (https://almaesami.unibo.it/almaesami/welcome.htm ) respecting the given deadlines.

The planning and methods of the exams can change depending on Covid-19 situation.

Teaching tools

Black- or whiteboard, projector, power-point presentations for the frontal teaching. Computers for the practical exercises supported by explanatory documents provided by the teachers. Scientific articles to be presented by the students in the classroom.

Office hours

See the website of Michele Casini

See the website of Federica Foglini