Last Updated | S012019 |
MRI604
Unit Name | ENVIRONMENT, SAFETY AND STANDARDS |
Unit Code | MRI604 |
Unit Duration | 12 Weeks |
Award |
Master of Engineering (Civil: Railway Infrastructure) Duration: 2 years |
Year Level | Two |
Unit Creator / Reviewer | Mike Garrett |
Core/Elective: | Core |
Pre/Co-requisites | None |
Credit Points |
3
Masters total course credit points = 48 (3 credits x 12 (units) + 12 credits (Thesis)) |
Mode of Delivery | Online or on-campus. |
Unit Workload |
10 hours per week: Lecture - 1 hour Tutorial Lecture - 1 hours Assessments / Practical / Lab - 1 hour (where applicable) Personal Study recommended - 7 hours (guided and unguided) |
Unit Description and General Aims
Even in the best managed and operated railways, safety incidents/ events do unfortunately occur. These incidents/ events – which may include derailments of trains, rail-crossing episodes, near-misses, events affecting the track or other infrastructure (e.g. toxic spills, earthquakes, landslides, severe subsidence, washaways) – must be accurately identified, assessed, reported on, managed, and rectified.
Railway safety incidents/ events may lead to significant environmental hazards, however, even in normal operation, railways can produce serious impacts on the environment. These impacts can arise from: the cumulative effects of the on-going discharges of oil and grease during normal operational activities; diesel exhaust; significant noises from train operations or maintenance activities; disruption of water courses and wildlife pathways by new track installations; and, the deleterious effects of the combined railways activities on rural and urban properties.
This Unit thus provides students with an exploration of the many abovementioned environment safety issues, their causes, and mitigation. It assists students to further develop their knowledge and abilities in environmental safety and standards and is a companion to the previous Units allowing students to round out their professional skills in railway systems management.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this Unit, students are expected to be able to:
- Create Environmental Assessment Plans, develop guidelines on their implementation with respect to operations and construction within the rail corridor, and with due consideration to the social and ethical responsibilities of such plans and activities on the broader community.
- Bloom’s Level 6
- Produce and integrate the assessment and monitoring of the parameters associated with safe operation of the rail corridor and its interfaces with the rail track.
- Bloom’s Level 6
- Justify and adapt to the appropriate Australian and International Standards for both the environmental and safety aspects of operating a railway.
- Bloom’s Level 6
Student assessment
Assessment Type |
When assessed (eg Week 5) |
Weighting (% of total unit marks) | Learning Outcomes Assessed |
Assessment 1 Type: Case study, Group Discussion and Evaluation Word length: 2,000 Topic: Create an Environmental Management Plan for a Case Study in Railway as a group project. Develop guidelines on their implementation with respect to operations and construction within the rail corridor, and with due consideration to the social and ethical responsibilities of such plans and activities on the broader community. Students are required to undertake a group discussion of their case studies to evaluate the subject matter. |
Week 6 | 40% | 1 |
Assessment 2 Type: ‘Justification and Adaptation’ Report (Individual) Word length: 1000-2000 Topic: Produce a report which justifies and adapts to the appropriate Australian and International Environmental and Safety Standards for an operating railway. |
Week 8 | 20% | 3 |
Assessment 3 Type: Professional Plans (Group and individual), Peer-review and Presentations. Word Length : 2000 to 3000 Topic: Develop professional plans to investigate the derailment of a chosen case study railway and determine the impact of the incident on the asset management and environmental plans for the line. There is a peer-review to be carried out by students for their team members. The students are required to present their findings and answer any questions raised. |
Week 12 | 40% | 1 – 3 |
Attendance |
Continuous | 5% | 1 – 3 |
Prescribed and Recommended readings
Required Textbook(s)
- Environmental and Safety Plan Study Notes by Rail Innovation Australia (RIA) [existing materials] and other information and materials on their website: http://www.railinnovation.com.au/
Reference Materials
A number of books, peer-reviewed journals, and websites as advised below:
- Esveld, C., Modern Railway Track 2nd ed. MRT Productions, Netherlands. 2011, ISBN 90-800324-3-3. . Available at http://www.esveld.com/MRT.html and https://www.amazon.co.uk/Modern-Railway-Coenraad-Esveld/dp/9080032433.
- Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) – Queensland (derm.qld.gov.au) Guideline – Environmental Impact Assessment Preparing Environmental Management Plans, 2003
- Department of the Environment, Climate Change, Energy and Water (environment.act.gov.au/) Environmental Guidelines for Preparation of an Environmental Management Plan, May 2009
- Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) – UK (iema.net/)
- Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand (EIANZ) (eianz.org/)
- Bibel, G.D. 2012. Train wreck: the forensics of rail disasters. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore, Maryland.
- National Transport Safety Board USA incident reports. NTSB (http://www.ntsb.gov/Pages/default.aspx)
- Australian Transport Safety Bureau incident reports. ATSB (https://www.atsb.gov.au)
- AS 4292 Part 7 – Railway Safety Management
- AS 5022-2001 – Guidelines for Railway Safety Investigations
- AS/NZS 4360 – Risk Management
- Other materials as advised during the lectures
Unit Content
One topic is delivered per contact week, with the exception of part-time 24-week units, where one topic is delivered every two weeks.
Topic 1
Introduction to Environmental Management
- What is Environmental Management and what does it involve?
- Environmental Definitions
- Introduction to relevant Australian and International Environmental Standards
- Draft Environmental Management Plan template
Topic 2
Pre-Requisites for Environmental Management
- Environmental planning, stakeholders and organisational plans
- Expectations of regulators, stakeholders, operators, external parties such as public/ community
- Values/ pressures/ influences applied to Environmental Managers
Topic 3 and 4
The Contents of an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) and the Process of Creating an EMP
- Who compiles an Environment Management Plan?
- Who is the audience for the EMP?
- How is an EMP used and regulated?
- Sample EMPs
- Draft Table of Contents of an EMP
Topic 5
Environmental Management – Lessons
- Successful and unsuccessful Environmental Management – Case Studies
- Examples of workable EMPs and deficient EMPs
Topic 6 and 7
Train Safety Incidents
- Environmental and external causes, risk control measures and use of trackside technology for mitigation measures
- Train crash incidents
- Common causes – rollingstock, infrastructure, operations
- Safety standards internationally
Topic 8 and 9
Train Incident Response and Management
- What is an appropriate response?
- Initiating the response
- Organisational control
- Railway response management
Topic 10 and 11
Train Incident Investigation
- Incident investigation bodies
- Lines of authority during an incident
- Investigation process
- Reporting
Topic 12
Project and Unit Review
In the final week students will have an opportunity to review the contents covered so far. Opportunity will be provided for a review of student work and to clarify any outstanding issues. Instructors/facilitators may choose to cover a specialised topic if applicable to that cohort.
Engineers Australia
The Australian Engineering Stage 1 Competency Standards for the Professional Engineer, approved as of 2013. This table is referenced in the mapping of graduate attributes to learning outcomes and via the learning outcomes to student assessment.
Stage 1 Competencies and Elements Competency | |
1. | Knowledge and Skill Base |
1.1 | Comprehensive, theory based understanding of the underpinning natural and physical sciences and the engineering fundamentals applicable to the engineering discipline. |
1.2 | Conceptual understanding of the mathematics, numerical analysis, statistics, and computer and information sciences which underpin the engineering discipline. |
1.3 | In-depth understanding of specialist bodies of knowledge within the engineering discipline. |
1.4 | Discernment of knowledge development and research directions within the engineering discipline. |
1.5 | Knowledge of engineering design practice and contextual factors impacting the engineering discipline. |
1.6 | Understanding of the scope, principles, norms, accountabilities and bounds of sustainable engineering practice in the specific discipline. |
2. | Engineering Application Ability |
2.1 | Application of established engineering methods to complex engineering problem solving. |
2.2 | Fluent application of engineering techniques, tools and resources. |
2.3 | Application of systematic engineering synthesis and design processes. |
2.4 | Application of systematic approaches to the conduct and management of engineering projects. |
3. | Professional and Personal Attributes |
3.1 | Ethical conduct and professional accountability. |
3.2 | Effective oral and written communication in professional and lay domains. |
3.3 | Creative, innovative and pro-active demeanor. |
3.4 | Professional use and management of information. |
3.5 | Orderly management of self and professional conduct. |
3.6 | Effective team membership and team leadership. |
Software/Hardware Used
Software
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Hardware
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