The “low” countries of Belgium and the Netherlands are among the leaders in the world in the recycling of wastes and the development of alter-native waste treatment methods as well as air quality engineering. In this 5-week program, students will learn about wastewater treatment technologies and engineering methods to protect air quality. Students will compare U.S. and European environmental practices and policies.
*Limited to BSE students*
Course Dates: July-August 2024
Application Deadline: April 15, 2024
Course: BSE 481, 3 credits & ESS 499, 3 credits & BSET 474, 3 credits
Location
The Belgium Environmental Science and Engineering program is held at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven which is located approximately 30 km east of Brussels in the city of Leuven. K.U. Leuven was established in 1425 and it is now a modern, world-class university with excellent facilities. Leuven is a student-oriented city with a cosmopolitan atmosphere and many cafe’s and restaurants. The city is compact and very conducive to travel by foot or bicycle.
Activities
Field trips and seminar speaker series will allow students to leave about European environmental practices and policies and compare them to U.S. practices. Field trip sites include:
- Innovate systems of sea gates installed by Netherlands to protect coastal areas from flooding
- Plants for municipal wastewater treatment, household or organic-waste composting, and treatment of drinking water
- Air quality research laboratories for controlling air emissions at animal housing facilities
- Air quality treatment systems at municipal waste incinerators
- Air quality systems at facilities that utilize poultry manure for the production of bioenergy
- Various methods for processing animal manure to produce value-added products and meet EU requirements for reducing environmental impact
In addition to course activities, students will have four-day weekends to explore Europe on their own.
Academic Credit
Students who successfully complete the program will receive six Texas A&M credits, which will be transferred back to UTK in place of the following courses:
Biosystems Engineering students:
- 3 UTK credits of BSE 480: Special Topics (Texas A&M’s course BAEN 477: Air Pollution Engineering)
- 3 UTK credits of BSE 480: Special Topics (Texas A&M’s course BAEN 465: Design of Biological Waste Treatment Systems)
Environmental and Soil Sciences students:
- 3 UTK credits of ESS 499: Research Problem in Environmental and Soil Science (Texas A&M’s course AGSM 477: Air Pollution Control and Regulatory Compliance)
- 3 UTK credits of BSET 474: Environmental Instrumentation and Monitoring (Texas A&M’s course AGSM 337: Technology for Environmental & Natural Resource Engineering)
Students take the two courses that align best with their academic path. Students must discuss their selection and receive approval from their UT department in advance of participating on the program.
- Majoring in Biosystems Engineering
- Approval by Department Head of Biosystems Engineering & Soil Science (Dr. Julie Carrier)
- Junior or Senior classificaiton
- Good Academic Standing
- Approval of TAMU Study Abroad Leaders
2024 program costs are still being determined and subject to change. An estimated program fee based on 2023 program costs is provided at this time.
| Summer 2 Budget | ||
|---|---|---|
| Budget item | Estimated Costs | |
| Program Fee | $2700.00 | |
| Global Programs Admin Fee | $400.00 | |
| Billable subtotal: | $3,100.00 | |
| Estimated Roundtrip Transportation from Knoxville | $1,500.00 | |
| Passport | $165.00 | |
| Estimated Additional Meals | $625.00 | |
| Estimated Personal Expenses | varies | |
| Non-billable subtotal: | $2,290.00 | |
| Total: | $5,170.00 | |
