From MSU News Service:

BOZEMAN—Montana State University will offer a 15-week non-credit online course beginning in January called wetland and riparian ecology and management. The course provides a thorough introduction to wetland and riparian ecology of the Rocky Mountains and Northern Great Plains, the regulations and public mandates that guide management and the human and global disturbances that continue to shape these systems.

The course is designed for both practitioners and educators, including tribal, state and local regulatory staff, agency professionals, consultants and teachers. The course may also be of interest to city, county and state government officials, particularly those in areas where population growth and land use changes put great pressure on wetland and riparian resources.

The course begins Jan. 9 and runs through April 26. Scheduling is flexible.  Assignments are required during each week and have a due date, but students are not required to be online at a specific time. The course is open to anyone across the country. Participants should have general background knowledge in biology and ecology.

The instructors are William Kleindl and Rebecca Diehl. Kleindl has 29 years of experience working as an aquatic ecology research scientist and consultant throughout the United States, assisting private and public clients with policy development, permit assistance, resource delineation and mapping, as well as with mitigation design, implementation and monitoring. Diehl has more than 10 years of experience researching, teaching and consulting on the physical processes that shape river systems and the characteristics of riparian upland/wetland complex.

The course is $500 and is offered by MSU Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, the Montana Water Center and MSU Academic Technology and Outreach. Continuing education units are available, as are Montana Office of Public Instruction renewal units for teachers.

For more information or to register, visit ato.montana.edu/pdcourses or email jhansen@montana.edu.

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