Landscape and Health

Addressing the effect of environmental quality on human health, and particularly assuring water purity and availability, are core components of UNC's environmental programs campus-wide. The Center for Landscape Change and Health and its many campus and external collaborators identifies solutions to the challenge of sustaining and improving human and ecosystem health through innovative designs in landscape use and the study of the natural processes that govern earth systems. Associated faculty, staff and students also study ways to increase water quality and availability through alternative environmental management techniques rather than traditional, and often expensive, water treatment systems. A key management issue studied by Center personnel is increasing the use of scientific and market-based approaches to restore ecosystems and reduce water pollution.