Students are able to explain the basic relationships between water-driven material cycles in river basins and their budget in aquatic ecosystems. They are able to analyze the impact of anthropogenic activities on water condition and quality. Students gain knowledge regarding transport pathways of substances and biochemical and physical interactions in water bodies in order to formulate mathematical model approaches.
Using simulation models, they are able to quantify substance emissions; to predict the impact from external influences on the water quality relevant processes and; to perform different scenario analysis. Students are capable of evaluating model results in terms of their plausibility and uncertainty.

This module provides students with a broad-based understanding of the fundamentals of materials flows (N, P, pollutants) and their relevant transport pathways in river basins. Different modeling approaches for a quantitative description of the processes will be presented.
Students receive a single-user version of the simulation tool MoRE (Modeling of Regionalized Emissions). They have to develop and implement their own model in small groups and interpret simulation results.