MS-EAEE, Water Resources and Climate Risks Concentration

Scope

Climatic uncertainties can be broadly classified into two areas:

• those related to anthropogenic climate change; and
• those related to seasonal-to- century-scale natural variations.

The climate change issues impact the design of physical, social, and financial infrastructure systems to support the sectors listed above. The climate variability and predictability issues impact systems operation, and hence design. The goal of the M.S. concentration in Water Resources and Climate Risks is to provide:

• A capacity for understanding and quantifying the projections for climate change and variability in the context of decisions for water resources and related sectors of impact; and
• Skills for integrated risk assessment and management for operations and design, as well as for regional policy analysis and management.

Specific areas of interest for integrated risk assessment include:

• Numerical and statistical modeling of global and regional climate systems and attendant uncertainties
• Methods for forecasting seasonal to interannual climate variations and their sectoral impacts
• Models for design and operation of water resource systems, considering climate and other uncertainties
• Integrated risk assessment and management across water resources and related sectors

Audience

The M.S. concentration in Water Resources and Climate Risks is aimed at professionals working in or interested in careers in the application of quantitative risk management methods in any of the sectors listed above. The program is particularly appropriate for engineers and planners who are interested in continuing education in climate and risk management with an interest in water resources. Employment opportunities are anticipated with engineering consultants; federal, state, and local resource management, environmental regulation, hazard management, and disease control agencies; the insurance and financial risk management industry; and international development and aid agencies. A complementary degree (master of arts in climate and society) is available through Columbia University for students who are more directly interested in social or planning aspects of climate impacts, and are not quantitatively oriented.

Coursework

A total of 30 credits, including a 3-credit research course or a 6-credit thesis, are required. For students with a B.S. or a B.A., preferably with a science major, up to 48 points are required to allow for make-up undergraduate courses. Any changes should be done in consultation with the student’s advisor. For a list of classes please visit the Student Orientation booklet.

MSc in water resources and climate risks

EAEE E4100: Water management and Development (Fall)

CIEE E4250: Hydrosystems (Spring)

CIEE E4163: Sustainable Water Treatment and Reuse (Spring)

EAEE E4257: Environmental Data Analysis and Modeling (Spring) or E4000 Machine learning for Env. Eng and Sci. (Fall)

Electives:

A minimum of 1 class is required from each group below. Selections should be made in consultation with the student’s advisor.

Group A: Data Analytic Classes

APMA E4300: Numerical Methods (Fall)

IEOR E4004: Optimization Models and Methods (Fall)

IEOR E4150: Intro to Probability and Statistics (Fall)

Stat GU4001: Intro to Probability and Statistics (Fall)

Stat GU4205: Linear Regression Models (Fall)

APMA E4001: Principles of applied maths (Spring)

APMA E4300: Computational Maths: intro to numerical methods (Spring)

CS W4701: Artificial Intelligence (Fall/Spring)

CS W4731: Computer Vision (Fall)

CS W4271: Machine learning for Data science (Spring)

Group B: Applied Sciences & Engineering

EAEE E4009: GIS, Infrastructure Mngmt (Spring)

EAEE W4100: Mngmt of water systems (Spring)

EAEE E4150: Air pollution (Spring)

EAEE E4257: Env. Data Analysis (Spring)

EAEE E4001: Industrial Ecology of Earth Resources (Fall)

EAEE E4003: Aquatic Chemistry (Fall)

EAEE E4350: Planning and Management of Urban Hydrologic Systems (Fall)

EAEE E6140: Environmental physicochemical processes

EAEE E4000: Machine Learning for Environmental Engineers and Scientists (Fall)

EAEE E4901: Env Microbiology (Spring)

EAEE E6140: Env Physicochemical processes (Spring)

CIEE E4252: Environmental Engineering (Fall)

CIEE E4163: Sustainable Water Treatment & Reuse (Fall)

CIEE E4257: Groundwater Contaminant Transport & Remediation (Fall)

EESC GU4008: Introduction to Atmospheric Science (Fall)

EESC GU4050: Global Assessment and Remote Sensing (Fall)

EESC W4925: Principles of Physical Oceanography (Fall)

EESC GU4835: Wetlands & Climate Change (Fall)

EESC GR5400: Dynamics Climate variability & change (Fall)

EESC GR5403: Managing and adapting to climate change (Fall)

EESC GR6920: Dynamics of climate (Spring)

EESC GU4924: Intro to atmospheric chemistry (Spring)

EHSC P8301: Atmospheric & Climate Science for Public Health (Fall)

Group C: Decision Sciences

CIEN E4133: Capital Facility Planning & Financing (Fall)

SDEV U9245: Environmental & Resource Economics (Fall)