Environment Major - Atmospheric Environment and Air Quality (B.Sc.) (60 credits)
Offered by: Bieler School of Environment
Degree: Bachelor of Science
Program credit weight: 60
Program Description
The rapid expansion of industrialization has been accompanied by a host of environmental problems, many, if not most, involving the atmosphere. Some problems are of a local nature, such as air pollution in large urban centres, while others are global, or at least reach areas far removed from industrial activities.
The emphasis in this domain is on the mechanisms of atmospheric flow and on atmospheric chemistry. Courses examine how the atmosphere transports pollution, lifting it to great heights into the stratosphere or keeping it trapped near the ground, moving it around the globe or imprisoning it locally, or how it simply cleanses itself of pollution through rainfall. The domain also gives students the training required to understand the important chemical reactions taking place within the atmosphere, as well as the know-how necessary to measure and analyze atmospheric constituents.
Degree Requirements — B.Sc.
This program is offered as part of a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) degree.
To graduate, students must satisfy both their program requirements and their degree requirements.
- The program requirements (i.e., the specific courses that make up this program) are listed under the Course Tab (above).
- The degree requirements—including the mandatory Foundation program, appropriate degree structure, and any additional components—are outlined on the Degree Requirements page.
Students are responsible for ensuring that this program fits within the overall structure of their degree and that all degree requirements are met. Consult the Degree Planning Guide on the SOUSA website for additional guidance.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Suggested First Year (U1) Courses
For suggestions on courses to take in your first year (U1), you can consult the "Bieler School of Environment Student Handbook" available on the website (http://www.mcgill.ca/environment).
Program Requirements
Note: Students are required to take a maximum of 31 credits at the 200 level and a minimum of 12 credits at the 400 level or higher in this program. This includes core and required courses.
Location Note: When planning your schedule and registering for courses, you should verify where each course is offered because courses for this program are taught at both McGill's Downtown campus and at the Macdonald campus in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue.
Core: Required Courses
Location Note: Core required courses for this program are taught at both McGill's Downtown campus and at the Macdonald campus in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue. You should register in Section 001 of an ENVR course that you plan to take on the Downtown campus, and in Section 051 of an ENVR course that you plan to take on the Macdonald campus.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ENVR 200 | The Global Environment. | 3 |
The Global Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A systems approach to study the different components of the environment involved in global climate change: the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. The interactions among these components. Their role in global climate change. The human dimension to global change. | ||
| ENVR 201 | Society, Environment and Sustainability. | 3 |
Society, Environment and Sustainability. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course deals with how scientific-technological, socio-economic, political-institutional and behavioural factors mediate society-environment interactions. Issues discussed include population and resources; consumption, impacts and institutions; integrating environmental values in societal decision-making; and the challenges associated with, and strategies for, promoting sustainability. Case studies in various sectors and contexts are used. | ||
| ENVR 202 | The Evolving Earth. | 3 |
The Evolving Earth. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Formation of the Earth and the evolution of life. How geological and biological change are the consequence of history, chance, and necessity acting over different scales of space and time. General principles governing the formation of modern landscapes and biotas. Effects of human activities on natural systems. | ||
| ENVR 203 | Knowledge, Ethics and Environment. | 3 |
Knowledge, Ethics and Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to cultural perspectives on the environment: the influence of culture and cognition on perceptions of the natural world; conflicts in orders of knowledge (models, taxonomies, paradigms, theories, cosmologies), ethics (moral values, frameworks, dilemmas), and law (formal and customary, rights and obligations) regarding political dimensions of critical environments, resource use, and technologies. | ||
| ENVR 301 | Environmental Research Design. | 3 |
Environmental Research Design. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Techniques used in design and completion of environmental research projects. Problem definition, data sources and use of appropriate strategies and methodologies. Principles underlying research design are emphasized, including critical thinking, recognizing causal relationships, ideologies and bias in research, and when and where to seek expertise. | ||
| ENVR 400 | Environmental Thought. | 3 |
Environmental Thought. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Students work in interdisciplinary seminar groups on challenging philosophical, ethical, scientific and practical issues. They will explore cutting-edge ideas and grapple with the reconciliation of environmental imperatives and social, political and economic pragmatics. Activities include meeting practitioners, attending guest lectures, following directed readings, and organizing, leading and participating in seminars. | ||
Core: Complementary Course - Senior Research Project (3 credits)
Only 3 credits will be applied to the program; extra credits will count as electives.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ENVR 401 | Environmental Research. | 3 |
Environmental Research. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Students work in an interdisciplinary team on a real-world research project involving problem definition, methodology development, social, ethical and environmental impact assessment, execution of the study, and dissemination of results to the research community and to the people affected. Teams begin defining their projects during the preceding summer. | ||
| ENVR 451 | Research in Panama. | 6 |
Research in Panama. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Research projects will be developed by instructors in consultation with Panamanian universities, government agencies and non-governmental organizations. Project groups will consist of four to six students working with a Panamanian institution. Topics will be relevant to Panama: e.g., protection of the Canal watershed, economical alternatives to deforestation, etc. | ||
| FSCI 444 | Barbados Research Project. | 6 |
Barbados Research Project. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A research project that is supervised by McGill academic staff and is conducted in collaboration with local partners. The project topic must relate to the field of sustainability relating to the Caribbean or Barbados specifically. | ||
Domain: Required Courses (15 credits)
15 credits from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ATOC 214 | Introduction: Physics of the Atmosphere. | 3 |
Introduction: Physics of the Atmosphere. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to key physical processes operating in the atmosphere, designed for students in science and engineering. Topics typically include: composition of the atmosphere; vertical structure; heat transfer; solar and terrestrial radiation and Earth's energy balance; seasonal and daily temperature changes; humidity and the formation of clouds and precipitation; stability of tropospheric air layers; applications of adiabatic charts. | ||
| ATOC 215 | Oceans, Weather and Climate. | 3 |
Oceans, Weather and Climate. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to key physical and dynamical processes in the oceans and atmosphere. Topics typically include air-sea-ice interactions, laws of motion, the geostrophic and thermal wind relations, general circulation of the atmosphere and oceans, weather, radiative balance, climate sensitivity and variability, role of the atmosphere and oceans in climate. | ||
| ATOC 219 | Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry. 1 | 3 |
Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the basic topics in atmospheric chemistry. The fundamentals of the chemical composition of the atmosphere and its chemical reactions. Selected topics such as smog chamber, acid rain, and ozone hole will be examined. | ||
| ATOC 315 | Thermodynamics and Convection. | 3 |
Thermodynamics and Convection. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Buoyancy, stability, and vertical oscillations. Dry and moist adiabatic processes. Resulting dry and precipitating convective circulations from the small scale to the global scale. Mesoscale precipitation systems from the cell to convective complexes. Severe convection, downbursts, mesocyclones. | ||
| CHEM 219 | Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry. 1 | 3 |
Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the basic topics in atmospheric chemistry. The fundamentals of the chemical composition of the atmosphere and its chemical reactions. Selected topics such as; a smog chamber, acid rain, and the ozone hole, will be examined. | ||
| GEOG 308 | Remote Sensing for Earth Observation. | 3 |
Remote Sensing for Earth Observation. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A conceptual view of remote sensing and the underlying physical principles. Covers ground-based, aerial, satellite systems, and the electromagnetic spectrum, from visible to microwave. Emphasis on application of remotely sensed data in geography including land cover change and ecological processes. | ||
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Note: You may take ATOC 219 Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry. or CHEM 219 Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry., but not both.
Domain: Complementary Courses (24 credits)
24 credits of complementary courses are selected as follows:
6 credits - Analytical Chemistry/Calculus courses
3 credits - Statistics
9 credits - Math or Physical Science
6 credits - Social Science
Analytical Chemistry/Calculus
One of: (students will not receive credit for both):
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AEMA 202 | Intermediate Calculus. | 3 |
Intermediate Calculus. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Methods of differential and integral calculus forthe study of multivariable functions. Calculus of parametric and polar curves, vectors and geometry of space, vector functions, partial derivatives, multiple integrals, and their applications. | ||
| MATH 222 | Calculus 3. | 3 |
Calculus 3. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Taylor series, Taylor's theorem in one and several variables. Review of vector geometry. Partial differentiation, directional derivative. Extreme of functions of 2 or 3 variables. Parametric curves and arc length. Polar and spherical coordinates. Multiple integrals. | ||
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CHEM 267 | Introductory Chemical Analysis. 1 | 3 |
Introductory Chemical Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Qualitative and quantitative analysis. A survey of methods of analysis including theory and practice of semimicro qualitative analysis and representative gravimetric, volumetric and instrumental methods. The laboratory component includes introductory experiments in analytical chemistry emphasizing classical and instrumental methods of quantitative analysis. | ||
| FDSC 213 | Analytical Chemistry 1. 1 | 3 |
Analytical Chemistry 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Theoretical aspects of wet chemical techniques including gravimetric and volumetric analyses, redoximetry, and separation techniques. | ||
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Note: Students take either CHEM 267 Introductory Chemical Analysis. or FDSC 213 Analytical Chemistry 1..
Statistics
3 credits of Statistics courses or equivalent from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AEMA 310 | Statistical Methods 1. | 3 |
Statistical Methods 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Measures of central tendency and dispersion; binomial and Poisson distributions; normal, chi-square, Student's t and Fisher-Snedecor F distributions; estimation and hypothesis testing; simple linear regression and correlation; analysis of variance for simple experimental designs. | ||
| MATH 203 | Principles of Statistics 1. | 3 |
Principles of Statistics 1. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Examples of statistical data and the use of graphical means to summarize the data. Basic distributions arising in the natural and behavioural sciences. The logical meaning of a test of significance and a confidence interval. Tests of significance and confidence intervals in the one and two sample setting (means, variances and proportions). | ||
Math or Physical Science
9 credits of Math or Physical Science (at least 6 credits of which are at the 300 level or above):
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AEMA 305 | Differential Equations. 1 | 3 |
Differential Equations. Terms offered: Winter 2026 First and second order differential equations, Laplace transforms, numerical solutions, systems of differential equations, series solutions, applications to biological, chemical and engineering systems, use of computer-based mathematical tools. | ||
| ATOC 309 | Weather Radars and Satellites. | 3 |
Weather Radars and Satellites. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Basic notions of radiative transfer and applications of satellite and radar data to mesoscale and synoptic-scale systems are discussed. Emphasis will be put on the contribution of remote sensing to atmospheric and oceanic sciences. | ||
| ATOC 519 | Advances in Chemistry of Atmosphere. 1 | 3 |
Advances in Chemistry of Atmosphere. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploration of the field of atmospheric chemistry that is identified as the significant driver of climate change and the cause of millions of premature death every year. Discussion of cutting-edge novel technologies for observing and quantifying pollutants (from ground to satellite) using artificial intelligence, the fate of emerging contaminants (e.g., nano/microplastics, trace metals, persistent organic), and modelling of atmospheric and interfacial processes. Examination of topics like atmospheric gaseous and multiphase components like bioaerosols. Study of photochemical, photophysical, and aerosol nucleation processes that affect air quality, climate change, and ecosystem health. | ||
| ATOC 540 | Synoptic Meteorology 1. | 3 |
Synoptic Meteorology 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Analysis of current meteorological data. Description of a geostrophic, hydrostatic atmosphere. Ageostrophic circulations and hydrostatic instabilities. Kinematic and thermodynamic methods of computing vertical motions. Tropical and extratropical condensation rates. Barotropic and equivalent barotropic atmospheres. | ||
| CHEM 273 | Introductory Physical Chemistry 2: Kinetics and Methods. | 3 |
Introductory Physical Chemistry 2: Kinetics and Methods. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Kinetics: Transition State Theory, complex reactions, free-radical reactions, chain reactions, catalysis, reactions at surfaces, ionic effects of reactions in solution, photochemistry. Methods: physical chemistry laboratory, differential equations and linear algebra applied to physical chemistry, computation methods for data analysis and modeling | ||
| CHEM 377 | Instrumental Analysis 2. | 3 |
Instrumental Analysis 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Spectroscopic methods of analysis will be studied with respect to fundamentals, operational aspects and instrument design. Topics will range from UV-visible to x-ray spectrometry. Methodologies will be evaluated with respect to their application in spectrometric systems. Laboratory automation will be studied and applied in the laboratory. | ||
| CHEM 519 | Advances in Chemistry of Atmosphere. 1 | 3 |
Advances in Chemistry of Atmosphere. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploration of the field of atmospheric chemistry that is identified as the significant driver of climate change and the cause of millions of premature death every year. Discussion of cutting-edge novel technologies for observing and quantifying pollutants (from ground to satellite) using artificial intelligence, the fate of emerging contaminants (e.g., nano/microplastics, trace metals, persistent organic), and modelling of atmospheric and interfacial processes. Examination of topics like atmospheric gaseous and multiphase components like bioaerosols. Study of photochemical, photophysical, and aerosol nucleation processes that affect air quality, climate change, and ecosystem health. | ||
| CIVE 225 | Environmental Engineering. | 4 |
Environmental Engineering. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to environmental chemistry; mass balance analyses in engineered and natural systems; water, soil and air pollution characterization and control; water quality parameters; drinking water and wastewater treatment technologies; global climate change: possible causes and effects; risk assessment for pollutant exposure; solid- and hazardous-waste management. | ||
| CIVE 561 | Greenhouse Gas Emissions. | 3 |
Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Greenhouse gas inventories at various scales from national to institutional. Emission estimation methods including field measurements and engineering calculations for anthropogenic sources including fossil fuel combustion from transportation and energy production, cement production, hydroelectric reservoirs, oil and gas systems, landfills, wastewater treatment and sewer systems, and agriculture. Technical and policy options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Group project. | ||
| COMP 208 | Computer Programming for Physical Sciences and Engineering . | 3 |
Computer Programming for Physical Sciences and Engineering . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Programming and problem solving in a high level computer language: variables, expressions, types, functions, conditionals, loops, objects and classes. Introduction to algorithms such as searching and sorting. Modular software design, libraries, file input and output, debugging. Emphasis on applications in Physical Sciences and Engineering, such as root finding, numerical integration, diffusion, Monte Carlo methods. | ||
| GEOG 505 | Global Biogeochemistry. | 3 |
Global Biogeochemistry. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination of the storage, transfers and cycling of major elements and substances, with an emphasis on the global scale and the linkages between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere. | ||
| MATH 223 | Linear Algebra. | 3 |
Linear Algebra. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Review of matrix algebra, determinants and systems of linear equations. Vector spaces, linear operators and their matrix representations, orthogonality. Eigenvalues and eigenvectors, diagonalization of Hermitian matrices. Applications. | ||
| MATH 315 | Ordinary Differential Equations. 1 | 3 |
Ordinary Differential Equations. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. First order ordinary differential equations including elementary numerical methods. Linear differential equations. Laplace transforms. Series solutions. | ||
| NRSC 333 | Pollution and Bioremediation. | 3 |
Pollution and Bioremediation. Terms offered: Fall 2025 The environmental contaminants which cause pollution; sources, amounts and transport of pollutants in water, air and soil; waste management. | ||
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Note: You may take ATOC 519 Advances in Chemistry of Atmosphere. or CHEM 519 Advances in Chemistry of Atmosphere., but not both; you may take AEMA 305 Differential Equations. or MATH 315 Ordinary Differential Equations., but not both.
Social Science
6 credits from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 206 | Environment and Culture. | 3 |
Environment and Culture. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to ecological anthropology, focusing on social and cultural adaptations to different environments, human impact on the environment, cultural constructions of the environment, management of common resources, and conflict over the use of resources. | ||
| ANTH 418 | Environment and Development. | 3 |
Environment and Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Advanced study of the environmental crisis in developing and advanced industrial nations, with emphasis on the social and cultural dimensions of natural resource management and environmental change. Each year, the seminar will focus on a particular set of issues, delineated by type of resource, geographic region, or analytical problem. | ||
| ECON 225 | Economics of the Environment. | 3 |
Economics of the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of the application of economic theory to questions of environmental policy. Particular attention will be given to the measurement and regulation of pollution, congestion and waste and other environmental aspects of specific economies. | ||
| ECON 347 | Economics of Climate Change. | 3 |
Economics of Climate Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course focuses on the economic implications of, and problems posed by, predictions of global warming due to anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. Attention is given to economic policies such as carbon taxes and tradeable emission permits and to the problems of displacing fossil fuels with new energy technologies. | ||
| ENVR 422 | Montreal Urban Sustainability Analysis. | 3 |
Montreal Urban Sustainability Analysis. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Applied and experience-based learning opportunities are employed to critically assess Montreal as a sustainable city through research, discussion, and field trips. The urban environment is considered through various specific dimensions, ranging from: waste, energy, urban agriculture, green spaces and design, or transportation. | ||
| GEOG 221 | Environment and Health. | 3 |
Environment and Health. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course introduced physical and social environments as factors in human health, with emphasis on the physical properties of the atmospheric environment as they interact with diverse human populations in urban settings. | ||
| GEOG 302 | Environmental Management 1. | 3 |
Environmental Management 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An ecological analysis of the physical and biotic components of natural resource systems. Emphasis on scientific, technological and institutional aspects of environmental management. Study of the use of biological resources and of the impact of individual processes. | ||
| GEOG 303 | Health Geography. | 3 |
Health Geography. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Discussion of the research questions and methods of health geography. Particular emphasis on health inequalities at multiple geographic scales and the theoretical links between characteristics of places and the health of people. | ||
| GEOG 340 | Sustainability in the Caribbean. | 3 |
Sustainability in the Caribbean. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The local environmental, social, historical, political and economic context of Barbados and the Caribbean. The small island developing States (SIDS), and why those nations are more vulnerable to global environmental challenges. The 17 Sustainability Development Goals of the United Nations, with a focus on the leadership role played by Barbados for the entire Caribbean region. | ||
| GEOG 403 | Global Health and Environmental Change. | 3 |
Global Health and Environmental Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Major themes and contemporary case studies in global health and environmental change. Focus on understanding global trends in emerging infectious disease from social, biophysical, and geographical perspectives, and critically assessing the health implications of environmental change in different international contexts. | ||
| GEOG 404 | Environmental Management 2. | 3 |
Environmental Management 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Practical application of environmental planning, analysis and management techniques with reference to the needs and problems of developing areas. Special challenges posed by cultural differences and traditional resource systems are discussed. This course involves practical field work in a developing area (Kenya or Panama). | ||
| GEOG 498 | Humans in Tropical Environments. | 3 |
Humans in Tropical Environments. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Focus on understanding of inter-relations between humans and neotropical environments represented in Panama. Study of contemporary rural landscapes, their origins, development and change. Impacts of economic growth and inequality, social organization, and politics on natural resource use and environmental degradation. Site visits and field exercises in peasant/colonist, Amerindian, and plantation communities. | ||
| RELG 270 | Religious Ethics and the Environment. | 3 |
Religious Ethics and the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Environmental potential of various religious traditions and secular perspectives, including animal rights, ecofeminism, and deep ecology. | ||