The course will explore all 4 sectors of the water business in the United States: The Drinking Water Industry, The Stormwater Utility, Water Resources (rivers, streams, reservoirs) Management and the Water Pollution Control Industry. The course will have 2 primary foci: 1. The influences on the industry from new technologies and infrastructure, acceptable levels of risk, public and private sector competition, climate change, the bottled water industry, resource recovery, rates and affordability and other influences will be investigated. 2. The management of a 21st century utility will be explored, including topics of organization and leadership, the role of environmentalism, infrastructure financing, water / wastewater treatment facility operations, public affairs and media, and designing a capital improvement program are examples of topic areas.

The Delaware River and Estuary offer an opportunity to examine efforts to protect the environment in a multi-state, economically and ecologically complex area. This case studey will review environmental protection efforts in and around the River, the stressors on the environment, and attempts to balance environmental protection with economic, employment, and other needs. Itwill address scientific issues, relationships between air and water quality transportation and sprawl issues, the balancing of water quality and water quantity. Students will learn about the institutions responsible for managing this complex system, and what goals and indicators of progress are used by these organizations. Students will be asked to research, in detail, one or more aspects of the environmental management systems. They will identify the key drivers in determining environmental quality, recommend inprovements to the system, and propose a vision for the future.

A detailed, comprehensive investigation of selected environmental problems. This is the first course taken by students entering the Master of Environmental Studies Program.