The departments participating in this degree proposed program have over 50 teaching and research labs outfitted for general biology, general chemistry, general geoscience, advanced geology, geochemistry, hydrology, ecology, microbiology, molecular biology, marine and aquatic biology, organic chemistry, analytical chemistry, and biochemistry.  Specialized facilities include two greenhouses, a 36-seat PC-based geographic information systems (GIS) teaching lab, an Inductively Couple Plasma Atomic emissions Spectrometer (ICP-AES), a 3-D ground resistivity profiling device, a PC-based computer aided design (CAD) lab, a workstation-based GIS research lab, and laboratories for hydrogeology modeling, earth materials preparation, environmental geophysics, soil stratigraphy and geomorphology research. Specialized equipment available in the college to support the program include: a scanning electron microscope with environmental chamber and EDS detector, a transmission electron microscope, a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) lab, an inductively coupled plasma lab with both an optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) and mass spectrometer (ICP-MS)a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer (GC/MS), and  a digital X-ray powder diffractometer (XRD).  Each department maintains discipline-based computer labs and also has access to PC, Macintosh and Sun Microsystems workstation labs maintained within the College of Science and Mathematics building.  Field equipment relevant to the proposed program includes soil and water sampling and field-testing equipment, current and tide gauges, digital ground penetrating radar, standard field surveying equipment, surface and down-hole resistivity logging equipment, Trimble Navigation global positioning systems (GPS), hand-held GPS units, and digital shallow seismic exploration equipment.

The Department of Earth and Environmental Studies also maintains extensive collections of New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania rock and sediment samples for study and testing as well as complete topographic maps, geologic maps and aerial photographic collections covering the state of New Jersey as well as extensive digital data, including multi-spectral regional satellite images.  The Department of Biology and Molecular Biology also has a research-based collection of marine, estuarine and freshwater fauna; the result of numerous biodiversity studies, housed in the fully equipped Marine Biology research Laboratory.

Additional facilities and resources available to the proposed program include a 240-acre campus with dormitories and complete food service at the New Jersey School of Conservation.  This facility is used for residential K-12 environmental education and teacher education as well as a field station for research in environmental management and science.  Examples of current research, ongoing at the School of Conservation, includes air quality monitoring (the site houses all needed air quality monitoring equipment) and a study on potential environmental impacts on the reproductive ecology of aquatic gastropods.  The new Director of the School of Conservation, has plans to develop a fully equipped wet lab on-site and refine residence facilities to more fully accommodate visiting research scientists.  A proposal to the NSF field station infrastructure division is in development. Montclair State University also maintains a 40-acre ecology field site in Montville (Valhalla Glen).  The College of Science and Mathematics is a member of the N.J. Marine Sciences Consortium giving us access to research facilities, including a fully equipped research vessel, and other resources at the NJMSC Sandy Hook Field Station.   Dr. R. Prezant sits on the Board of Trustees of the NJMSC with additional representation to the Board from Dr. M. McCormick (Biology) and H. Feng and J. Lincoln (Earth and Environmental Studies).

Library Facilities
The newly expanded library on campus has extensive book and journal collections in biology, chemistry, geology, hydrology, geography and environmental studies.  The library is also a government document repository; recently the library has added hundreds of compact discs containing digital geologic, environmental, and topographic data.  Some additional resources will be needed to continue to maintain and build collections relevant to this program. However, as the library collections relevant to this program grow, students will not be deprived of access to research materials. As is currently the case, if a student cannot find the proper material in our own library, there is no shortage of academic and government libraries in the NY metropolitan region that students can access either as visitors or through on-line inter library loan. In addition, the campus library has recently started offering the FirstSearch electronic information system of online access to a large number of subject-specific databases and to WorldCat, the world’s largest computerized card catalog. FirstSearch can be used for locating and ordering research literature and, for some databases, can also be used to download full-text documents.  Most faculty can fully download Current Contents from their offices as well.

Computer Facilities
The College of Science and Mathematics, as part of a New Jersey state-sponsored equipment leasing fund (ELF) program for the College has, in the past several months, expended about $2 million in purchasing new equipment.  A particular emphasis was placed on our computer infrastructure.  To help coordinate this effort we  created the Center for Scientific Computing and Visualization.  The Center was designed to develop a master plan for development of computing technology across the College.  The physical structure of the Center includes a cluster of high-end SUN servers and workstations designed to foster increased computer application among College faculty and students and to foster an interdisciplinary nature to our programs.  As part of this effort, the Department of Earth and Environmental Studies developed the Environmental Modeling Laboratory (EML).  The EML includes cutting-edge SUN workstations, associated peripherals, and software in order to enable faculty and student researchers to develop and use mathematical models and computer simulations for the study and assessment of environmental and ecological systems.

Otherwise within CSAM, each department involved in this program maintains discipline-based computer labs for research, teaching and student use.  Each faculty member in the University currently has a PC, Macintosh, or Sun Workstation all connected to the University network.  The CSAM also has Macintosh Power PC, Pentium PC, Sun workstation computer labs available for student use and for teaching.  CSAM has a full-time network manager who assists faculty and supervises lab managers and student lab assistants.  This program will require that new computers be supplied for new faculty and that some current labs, especially the geographic information systems teaching lab continue to be upgraded.