Year 2
Course of Studies
Course | Name | Credit | |
---|---|---|---|
RFW 200 | Field Trip Study | 1 | |
RFW 256 | Backcountry Risk Analysis and Mitigation I | 2 | |
RFW 262 | Ecosystem-Based Management | 3 | |
RFW 263 | Outdoor Recreation Operations and Management | 3 | |
RFW 272 | Techniques in Wildlife Management I | 3 | |
RFW 280 | Techniques in Aquatics and Fisheries I | 3 | |
ENVR 290 | Computer Applications in Resource Management | 2 | |
Total | 17 |
Course | Name | Credit | |
---|---|---|---|
ENVR 250 | Indigenous Peoples of Canada and Environmental Management | 3 | |
RFW 251 | Environmental Legislation and Policy | 2 | |
RFW 257 | Backcountry Risk Analysis and Mitigation II | 3 | |
RFW 265 | Commercial Recreation Management | 3 | |
RFW 271 | Applied Research Project | 1 | |
RFW 273 | Techniques in Wildlife Management II | 3 | |
RFW 281 | Techniques in Aquatics and Fisheries II | 3 | |
Total | 18 |
Course Descriptions
RFW 200: Field Trip Study is a course where second year Recreation, Fish and Wildlife students participate in field-based studies. Extended field trips provide students with opportunities to refine field technical skills within different settings. Students will be actively involved in the planning and preparation for these trips and will be presented with opportunities to develop team skills, leadership and professionalism throughout the course. Some of the data collected during this course may be used by students as part of the Applied Research Project course (RFW 271).
Prerequisites: Successful completion of first year courses and spring field-school or approval from School Chair. Students musthave either Level I Flatwater Canoe certification or a demonstrated competency in a canoe.
In this course, students integrate the knowledge and skills acquired in other program courses to identify, analyze, and manage areas of public and occupational risk within backcountry workplaces. Human, terrestrial, aquatic, and environmental hazards and risk are explored including an examination of leadership and decision-making skills, natural hazard analysis, land-use planning, risk management and mitigation, advanced navigation techniques, backcountry rescue, meteorology, and field weather forecasting.
This course is mainly taught in wilderness terrain. Students must be in good health and physical condition, as some instructional activities require participation for up to eight hours per day. Students must be able to hike, bicycle or snowshoe for four to eight hours at a time over rough, sometimes hazardous terrain in all weather conditions. In addition participants in this course must be able to swim at least one length of the pool.
Prerequisites: RFW 255 Spring Field School and RFW 200 Field Trip Study.This course provides learning opportunities for students in ecosystem based management. In the course the student will continue in their learning of ecosystem structure and function at the stand and landscape scale, learn about forest ecosystem health including identification and biology of prominent forest insects and diseases, learn about watershed, wetland and riparian conservation and management, and learn about ecosystem restoration
activities.
The course will place an emphasis on observation using standard field books, data collection and data analysis using standard procedures, and preparation of prescriptions that implement an ecological approach to land management. The student will gain employable skills related to forest health identification, wildlife tree assessment, ecosystem interpretation, ecosystem restoration, and adaptive management.
Prerequisites: Successful completion of all first year courses.RFW 263: Outdoor Recreation Operations and Management is designed to prepare the student for employment in the field of parks and outdoor recreation. The variety of employers offering outdoor recreation opportunities in B.C., and their roles in the province are examined. Practical field skills such as trail and campground design, construction, and maintenance as well as analytical skills such as monitoring and managing impacts, assessing public safety, developing site plans and incorporating multiple natural resource and social values in protected area management will be studied and practiced. Examples of real, contemporary recreational management issues are used to make the course current and relevant.
Prerequisites: Successful completion of first year ENVR courses (see dept. policy 1) and RFW 200. Students who have not completed RFW 200 but wish to take this course must discuss this with the instructor.This course prepares the student for immediate employment as a wildlife technician and park interpreter in British
Columbia through instruction in wildlife management theory and the application of techniques used in wildlife
management.
This course covers the ecology and management of freshwater fish and aquatic ecosystems, including standard field, laboratory, and office techniques used to sample in these ecosystems. The emphasis is on evaluating, assessing and managing freshwater ecosystems in B.C. The material in this course is continued in RFW 281.
Prerequisites: Successful completion of ENVR 162, 164, 170 (See School Policy).ENVR 290: Computer Applications in Resource Management (RFW). Land and Natural Resource Management is quite complex partly due to the need to understand and account for many different and often competing interests. The locations of those interests and the relationship between each creates the need to use systems like Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The content of ENVR 290 will cover software used for data gathering, exploration, assembly, display and presentation of land and natural resource information. One focus will be common geospatial analysis and preparing basic cartographic maps using ArcGIS software, particularly on integrated projects aligned with your other RFW classes. Another focus will be setting up for efficient mobile data collection, collecting accurate data, and importing mobile data into various applications.
Prerequisites: ENVR 158ENVR 250: Indigenous Peoples of Canada and Environmental Management. The focus of the course is to enable students graduating in the field of natural resource management to better understand and work effectively with Indigenous peoples. Students will develop a greater awareness of Indigenous peoples and the cultural diversity that exists within this group of Canadians. The course will examine various topics related to Indigenous cultures
and pre and post contact histories, including the Indian Act and the legacy of residential schools. The work of the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission will be discussed.
The course examines current issues connected to land management in BC, including the treaty process, consultation activities, capacity building and protection of traditional lands and rights. Landmark court cases that have helped define Indigenous land rights will be studied. Cultural Heritage Values are defined in the course and students will have the opportunity to review the Heritage Conservation Act as it relates to field observations and regulations.
Prerequisites: All courses in the First Year ENVR. Note: Pre-requisites(s) may be waived with the permission of the Instructor. Corequisites: NONE
RFW 251: Environment Legislation and Policy provides an introduction to foundational principles related to Canada's legal system, while covering the study of statutes, regulations, court cases and policy governing recreation and the environment, with reference to legal issues involving indigenous peoples where applicable. Emphasis is placed on interpreting and applying environmental, conservation and natural resource legislation, and its intersection with related policy, while developing practical legal research, writing and problem-solving skills.
Prerequisites: First Year SEG courses or admission to Year 2 of the Law and Justice Studies Program. Corequisites: NoneBackcountry Risk Analysis and Mitigation II extends the study of natural hazard assessment and land
management to winter backcountry environments. The course is delivered as a project-based analysis of a local
provincial park or recreation area, in which students learn winter skills and identify and analyze avalanche terrain
and site-specific snowpack characteristics for the risk of human and structural exposure to snow avalanches.
Topics include avalanche forecasting and public safety, land use planning, hazard mitigation, techniques in
snowpack assessment and monitoring, avalanche rescue, and hazard mapping. Successful students receive a
certificate in avalanche safety recognized by the Canadian Avalanche Centre.
This course is taught in wilderness terrain. Participants must be in good health and physical condition. Activities
will be taught that require participation for up to eight hours per day for up to three days in duration. Participants
must be able to hike, ski or snowshoe for four to eight hours at a time over rough, sometimes hazardous terrain in
all weather conditions.
RFW 265: In Commercial Recreation Management, students will be exposed to the elements of commercial recreation operations from the proposal stage to the delivery stage including the nature and demand for outdoor commercial recreation activities including eco- and adventure-tourism. Particular attention is paid to the current policies, regulations and legislation governing commercial recreation in the province. Because contracts are an integral part of commercial recreation, the skills and knowledge related to contract management and developing and evaluating contract proposals will be developed in the second half of the course.
Applied Research Project supports each student in completing an applied research project that has both a field-based data collection component, and a literature-based research component. Each student will select an approved research topic and complete a number of assignments, including writing a research proposal and producing final report. The research results and recommendations will be presented at the SEG student conference.
This course prepares the student for immediate employment as a wildlife technician and park interpreter in British
Columbia through instruction in wildlife management theory and the application of techniques used in wildlife
management.
This course covers the ecology and management of freshwater fish and aquatic ecosystems, including standard field, laboratory, and office techniques used to sample in these ecosystems. The emphasis is on evaluating, assessing and managing freshwater ecosystems in B.C. This material in this course is a continuation of the material in RFW 280.
Prerequisites: Successful completion of ENVR 150 162, 164, 170, 190, RFW 280 (See school policy).