Work-Study Certificate Leading to Diploma in Applied Science (Environmental Services and Management)

Municipal Solid Waste Handling

This module provides students with an overview of the operations of handling, collection, storage and recycling of municipal solid waste. It covers the skills and knowledge needed to oversee the operations from the planning of the collection route to logistics and manpower deployment. Concepts on route optimisation, upcycling, sustainability and waste characterisation and segregation will be introduced.

Municipal Solid Waste Treatment and Disposal

Students will be introduced to the fundamental principles underlying different types of treatment and disposal techniques for municipal solid waste. The key issues in the operation and maintenance of treatment facilities and the benefits of the value products from the treatment will be discussed. Students will learn to appreciate the importance of proper management and disposal of municipal solid waste will help to prevent communicable diseases and sustainably safeguard the environment.

Recycling and Resource Recovery

This module provides an overview of the different recycling and resource recovery methods used in solid waste management. Concepts such as circular economy, material and energy flow management and analysis and waste-to-energy will be discussed. Besides understanding the challenges and limitations of recycling and resource recovery, students will learn to contextualise and review the effectiveness of some existing methods through selected case studies.

Urban Ecology and Biodiversity

This module is an interdisciplinary field of study that helps students recognise the natural processes that take place on Earth and the environmental challenges faced by humanity. The module covers fundamentals such as soil, water cycle, ecosystems, and biodiversity. Topics on resource utilisation, such as food, fisheries, and aquaculture, are discussed. The need for sustainable technologies and development through environmental impact assessment, environmental economics, legislation, and intergovernmental accords is also covered.

Environmental Operations Project / On-Job-Training

Students will embark on a project on waste management or cleaning services. Students will have an opportunity to work with companies or on in-house projects to examine and improve existing processes or practices in the environmental services sector.

Health and Hygiene

In this module, participants will learn about the principles and practices of hygiene with a focus on hygiene promotion. Participants will understand how hygiene education and promotion can be executed in order to help people change their behaviour to use better hygiene practices and prevent health risks.

Sanitation Standards and Practices

In this module, participants will learn about the principles, practices, and standards of sanitation in relation to the protection of public health. It covers the understanding of the science underlying the various cleaning techniques and their application to different surfaces and materials.

Sustainability Project / On-Job-Training

In this module, participants will be involved in a project on sustainability management, on how organisations manage financial, social, and environmental risks, ensuring that their business can continue to operate, regardless of obstacles such as resource shortages, environmental disasters, and social and political events.

Integrated Pest Management

In this module, students will learn about the morphology and biology of five main pests and vectors found in Singapore, namely mosquitoes, flies, rodents, cockroaches, and rat fleas. They will then examine existing regulations and approaches to controlling and managing these pests and vectors.

Environmental Communication and Outreach

This module helps participants understand and apply the theories and principles of communication as well as cultural considerations to ensure that the messages are effectively conveyed. Participants will learn to develop outreach plans and strategies and effectively communicate their ideas to raise public awareness in environmental conservation.

Environmental Statistical Methods

The module introduces participants to basic statistical analysis based on fundamental statistics concepts to describe characteristics of large datasets as well as graphical trends, regressions, and correlations between data variables.

Climate Change and the Environment

This module examines the impacts of anthropogenic climate change on the natural environment and considers how society and existing technologies might be employed to control the sources and responses to deal with the impacts.

Environmental Law and Policy

This module provides participants with knowledge and understanding of the main principles of environmental law and policies, as well as the values which underpin them. It covers environmental management system, auditing, risk assessment, and environmental policy and law, such as the Environment Protection and Management Act, and Energy Conservation Act, as well as their subsidiary legislations.

Essentials of Human Resource Management

This module introduces participants to the relationship between human resource management and the organisation’s business strategy. Participants will gain an appreciation of how the various HR functions are interlinked for the smooth operation of the business.

Conversion Technologies

In this module, students will learn about the main conversion technologies such as thermal, thermochemical, biochemical and chemical conversion. Each conversion technique can be applied to specific biomass waste streams and resulting in specific energy products. Students will learn to appreciate the biomass traits that play a critical role in the utilisation of biomass for energy production globally, and add to their understanding of how plants tailor their composition to their environment.

Hazardous Waste Management

This module provides students with the knowledge of hazardous waste treatment and disposal. The topics covered include hazardous waste identification, basic properties of hazardous waste, classification of hazardous waste, hazardous waste generation and characteristics, hazardous waste storage and transport, and hazardous waste treatment and disposal methods. Local regulations and international frameworks for hazardous wastes will be introduced in this module.

Environmental Assessment and Management System

This module provides an overview of managing and accessing the environment through the introduction of assessment tools and systems. It examines various assessments required to quantify environmental standards, such as life cycle assessment, environmental impact assessment, strategic environmental assessment, ecological valuation, and risk assessment. Various aspects of risk assessment, from fundamentals of risk assessment to environmental risk assessment, such as chemical and ecological risk assessment, will be examined.

Environmental Analytics

Students will learn about the importance of good data quality in data mining, and apply appropriate data cleansing and transformation techniques to organise and prepare data for analysis. Students will also learn to process the data using the business intelligence software, Tableau, and effectively use it to generate results on interactive graphics.

Project Management

This module will equip students with a clear understanding of the role played by a project manager and introduce the various components of managing a project. General management topics are covered, and these include Human Resource Management, Quality Management, Communication Management and Change Management. This will ensure that students are well-grounded to take on the role of a project manager.

Project Scheduling

Students will learn the different approaches to successfully map out and execute the essential components of a project management plan. Topics covered include several areas of specialisation, such as Work Breakdown Structure, project management software applications such as Microsoft Excel, Time & Resource Management, Progress Management, Project Evaluation and Project Closure.

Business Continuity Management

This module equips students with an overview of the requirements of ISO 22301:2012 BCM. Incidents can disrupt an organisation at any time, and applying ISO 22301 will ensure that organisations can respond and continue their operations.  Incidents take many forms, ranging from large-scale natural disasters and acts of terror to technology-related accidents and environmental incidents.  However, most incidents are small but can have a significant impact, and that makes business continuity management relevant at all times.  This has led to a global awareness that organisations in the public and private sectors must know how to prepare for and respond to unexpected and disruptive incidents.

Environment, Health and Safety Audit and Applications

This module equips students with the knowledge and skills to lead an organisation in developing a Workplace Safety and Health Management System implementation plan to meet the local safety requirements. It entails reviewing the organisation’s current Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) policy, risk management plan, objectives and programmes. It also includes establishing frameworks for WSH management programmes and emergency preparedness and response plans in accordance with organisational safety and health needs and legal requirements.

Capstone Environmental Services Project

Students will gain knowledge and skills through facilitated case studies and a capstone project, which helps to enhance occupational and personal competencies in the workplace.

Environment, Health and Safety Management

The module covers the examination of the environmental, health and safety challenges in the workplace. It introduces the different hazards, as well as their classifications, communications and the standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The hazards associated with different gases, solids and liquids, as well as hazards from fire, explosion, radiation, ergonomic, electrical, and biological origins, will be examined. The appropriate emergency responses and proper use of personal protection equipment will then be discussed. Finally, conducting risk assessment and communicating risks to persons involved in the workplace are discussed.