MATSEC SEC Environmental Studies case studies
MATSEC SEC Environmental Studies · Put your knowledge to work in context.
SEC Environmental Studies is a secondary-level certification subject examined by the MATSEC Examinations Board, the examinations body of L-Università ta' Malta, based at Msida. Candidates are typically students completing their secondary schooling in Malta and sitting for SEC-level certification, though private candidates and mature learners may also present themselves for the subject. The MATSEC SEC Environmental Studies case studies are 5 cases and about 3,215 words.
1Water supply for a coastal hotel facing a salinity cap
A 220-room coastal hotel in Malta uses 32,000 m³ of water a year. Supply comes from a private borehole in a perched aquifer, but chloride has risen from 180 to 420 mg/L over five years and the water utility has warned that abstraction may be capped at 20,000 m³/year.
706 words, about 4 min2Siting a composting facility with odour and flood constraints
A council of 18,000 residents must site a composting facility for separately collected organic waste. Generation is 0.55 kg per person per day, of which 34% is organic.
614 words, about 3 min3A garrigue site, 60 villas and an offset 5 km away
A 4.2-hectare garrigue site on the edge of a village is proposed for 60 villas, a pool and an access road. Surveys record 14 species of orchid, a population of the endemic Maltese rock-centaury nearby, and a stone wall used by lizards.
667 words, about 3 min4Solar farm on terraced farmland versus rooftop PV
A rural council wants to meet a renewable-energy target. A developer offers a 1.2 MWp solar farm on 2.4 ha of abandoned terraced farmland, currently used for occasional grazing.
611 words, about 3 min5Street-canyon air quality and a single funded measure
An air-quality monitor on a 25 m-wide street canyon records annual mean NO2 of 46 µg/m³ (EU limit 40) and PM10 of 38 µg/m³ (limit 40). Traffic is 12,000 vehicles/day, 18% diesel cars, and buses stop every 200 m.
617 words, about 3 min