ENVISAFE - (1) Introduction

Environmental
Engineering:
An Introduction
1
Environment: the total of

our surroundings
All the things around us with
which we interact:
Living things
Animals, plants, forests, fungi, etc.
Nonliving things
Continents, oceans, clouds, soil,
rocks
Our built environment

Buildings, human-created living
centers
Social relationships and
ENVIRONMENT
a general term referring to man's
surroundings - includes the air,
water, land and socio-economic
conditions in which man or society
lives.
sum of all external conditions and
influences affecting the life,
development and ultimately, the
survival of an organism, including
man himself.
3
Humans and the world

around
us
Humans change the environment in ways not fully
understood
We depend completely on the environment for
survival
Increased wealth, health, mobility, leisure time
Butnatural systems have been degraded
i.e., pollution, erosion and species extinction
Environmental changes threaten long-term
health and survival
Environmental science is the study of:
How the natural world works
How the environment affects humans and vice
versa
4
Global human population

growth
More than 7 billion
humans
Why so many humans?
Agricultural revolution
Stable food
supplies
Industrial revolution
Urbanized society
powered by fossil
fuels
Sanitation and
medicines
Thomas Malthus and human

population
Thomas Malthus
Population growth
must be restricted, or
it will outstrip food
production
Starvation, war,
disease
Neo-Malthusians
Population growth
has disastrous effects
Paul and Anne
Ehrlich, The
Population Bomb
(1968)
Garrett Hardins Tragedy of the

Commons
Unregulated exploitation leads to
resource depletion
Soil, air, water
Resource users are tempted to

increase use until the resource is
gone
Solution?
Private ownership?
Voluntary organization to enforce
responsible use?
Governmental regulations? 7
The ecological
footprint
The environmental
impact of a person
or population
Amount of
biologically
productive land +
water
for raw materials
and to
dispose/recycle
waste
are using 30% more of the planets resources than are available
We
Overshoot:
on a sustainable basis!
humans have
8
Environmental science: how

does the natural world work?
Environment impacts
Humans
It has an applied goal:
developing solutions to
environmental problems
An interdisciplinary field
Natural sciences: information
about the world
Environmental Science
programs
Social sciences: values and
human behavior
What is an environmental
problem?
The perception of what constitutes a
problem varies between individuals
and societies
10
Built environment refers to the

totality of all that humans have
changed or rearranged within the
natural environment. ( Bartuska
and Young, 1996)
Built environment refers to the

man-made surroundings that
provide the setting for human
activity, ranging from the largescale civic surroundings to the
personal places.
Environmental engineering involves

water and air pollution control,
recycling, waste disposal, and public
health issues as well as a knowledge
of environmental engineering law.
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING is
the application of science and
engineering principles to improve the
environment (air, water, and/or land
resources), to provide healthy water,
air, and land for human habitation
and for other organisms, and to
remediate polluted sites.
Environmental engineers conduct

hazardous-waste management
studies to evaluate the significance
of such hazards, advise on treatment
and containment, and develop
regulations to prevent mishaps.
Environmental engineers also design

municipal water supply and industrial
wastewater treatment systems as
well as address local and worldwide
environmental issues such as the
effects of acid rain, global warming,
ozone depletion, water pollution and
air pollution from automobile
(mobile) and industrial (stationary)
sources
Environmental "chemical" engineers,

on the other hand, focus on
environmental chemistry, advanced
air and water treatment technologies
and separation processes.
Environmental "civil" engineers focus

on hydrology, water resources
management, bioremediation, and
water treatment plant design.
Engineering takes things from this

real world, the environment of
engineering, and puts them back
with added value. Without this
addition of value, engineering has no
meaning . . . In this sense, all
engineering is about the
environment
(Brancher, 1980)
From Industrial Revolution to

Environmental Revolution
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
20
Industrial Revolution
Started in England in 18th century
Substituted machine power for human
labor
Industrial - where the central element
is technology or invention, as applied to
the manufacturing industry
transformation from agricultural to
industrial economy
primary concern was simply making
production more efficient
21
Environmental Revolution in
Industry
Three phases:
First phase: Up to the 1960s
voluntary effort to protect the
environment from degradation
22
Industry
Three phases:
Second phase: 1960s 1980s
characterized by the nearly exponential
increase in environmental laws and
regulations resulting in companies
addressing contamination problems but
not preventing the problems from
occurring
so-called end-of-pipe method
compliance with the law
23
Industry
Three phases:
Sustainable development phase
Sustainable manufacturing/production
via more proactive approaches instead
of end-of-pipe treatment
24
Brundtland Report
TheBrundtland Commission, formally
theWorld Commission on
Environment and
Development(WCED), known by the
name of its ChairGro Harlem
Brundtland, was convened by
theUnited Nationsin 1983.
25
Brundtland Report
The Report of the Brundtland
Commission,Our Common Future,
was published by Oxford University
Press in 1987. The Report was
welcomed by the General Assembly
in its resolution 42/187
26
Brundtland Report
The report deals with
sustainable developmentand the
change of politics needed for
achieving that. The definition of this
term in the report is quite well known
and often cited:
27
Brundtland Report
"Sustainable development is
development that meets the needs
of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs".
28
Brundtland Report
It contains within it two key
concepts:
the concept of 'needs', in particular the
essential needs of the world's poor, to
which overriding priority should be
given; and
the idea of limitations imposed by the
state of technology and social
organization on the environment's
ability to meet present and future
needs."
29
The biggest challenges faced at the

Rio Earth Summit (1992) involved
finance, consumption rates and
population growth.
30
The objectives of the conference

were to build upon the hopes and
achievements of the Brundtland
Report, in order to respond to
pressing global environmental
problems and to agree on major
treaties on biodiversity, climate
change and forest management.
31
The most prolific evidence of the

Industrial Revolutions impact on the
modern world can be seen in the
worldwide human population growth
32
The developed nations are

demanding environmental
sustainability while the developing
nations are arguing that they should
be given the chance to catch up
socially and economically with the
developed world.
33
Human prosperity and environmental

integrity are closely intertwined
because the fulfillment of basic
human needsfood, clothing,
materials, energyultimately
depends upon the availability of
natural resources.
34
Sustainability is measured by the use

or misuse of resources, both material
and energy
The central idea is that we should
use resources (anything that is useful
for creating wealth or improving
lives) in ways that do not diminish
them.
35
In the last fifty years, we gradually

rediscovered the importance of protecting
vital resources, such as soil, air, water,
trees, and other organisms.
What began as a fringe movement in the
1960s has evolved into a mainstream
concern, as economists and politicians
have gradually recognized that we are
depleting fossil fuel resources and
pumping greenhouse gases into the
atmosphere at an alarming rate.
36
The good news is that we are no

longer in denial, but the bad news is
that we cant seem to break our old
habits.
37
Early 2000s two authoritative reports

appeared, involving hundreds of scientists
around the world, which left little doubt
about the urgency of the situation.
The International Panel on Climate Change
confirmed the rapid increase in global
warming due to greenhouse gas emissions,
and Al Gore wisely used the cinematic
medium to sound a public alarm about the
inconvenient truth of climate change.
Less well publicized, but equally significant
was the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment,
which confirmed the rapid degradation in
ecosystems due to industrialization
38
The Millennium Ecosystem

Assessment
The most comprehensive scientific

assessment of the condition of the
worlds ecological systems
Major findings:
Humans have drastically altered

ecosystems
These changes have contributed to
human well-being and economic
development, but at a cost
Environmental degradation could get
much worse
39
CURRENT
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES:
40
Population & consumption

Human population growth exacerbates
all environmental problems
The growth rate has slowedbut we still
add more than 200,000 people to the
planet each day
Our consumption of resources has risen

even faster than our population growth.
Life has become more pleasant for us so far
However, rising consumption amplifies the
demands we make on our environment.
41
Ecological footprints are not

all equal
The ecological
footprints of
countries vary
greatly
The U.S. footprint is
almost 5 times
greater than the
worlds average
Developing countries
have much smaller
footprints than
42
We face challenges in
agriculture
Expanded food production led to
increased population and
consumption
Its one of humanitys greatest
achievements, but at an
enormous environmental cost
Nearly half of the planets land
surface is used for agriculture
Chemical fertilizers
Pesticides
Erosion
43
pollution
Waste products and artificial

chemicals used in farms, industries,
and households
Each year, millions of people die from

44
climate
Scientists have firmly concluded that

humans are changing the composition of
the atmosphere
The Earths surface is warming
Melting glaciers
Rising sea levels
Impacted wildlife and crops
Increasingly destructive weather
Since the Industrial Revolution,

atmospheric carbon dioxide
concentrations have risen by 37%, to
45
Global warming is only one of many

disturbing trends identified by the
scientific community
sea level is rising, fresh water growing
scarce, running out of arable land, our
disappearing forests, and loss of
biodiversity due to changes in natural
habitats.
Mean while, global population continues to
increase.
46
biodiversity
Human actions have driven many
species extinct, and biodiversity is
declining dramatically
Biodiversity loss may be our biggest environmental

problem; once a species is extinct, it is gone forever
47
PRINCIPLES OF
MATTER AND ENERGY
48
MATTER
Matter is the material of which things
are made. Matter exists in
interchangeable physical forms:
gases, liquid and solid
Matter is neither created nor
destroyed but recycled over and over
again (under ordinary circumstances)
but is recycled over and over again
49
The elements in the body have been

recycled through many other
organisms, over millions of years.
Matter is transformed and combined
in different ways but doesnt
disappear; everything goes
somewhere.
Law of Conservation of
Matter
50
Matter is recycled endlessly through

living things, but this recycling is
made possible by something that
cannot be recycled: ENERGY
ENERGY is reused but it is degraded
from higher quality to lower quality
forms as it moves through living
systems
51
ENERGY
Energy takes many different forms
(heat, light, electricity, chemical
energy, etc.)
Energy as the capacity to do work:
Kinetic Energy: energy contained in
moving objects
Potential Energy: energy stored that is
latent and available for use
52
Thermodynamic and Energy

Transfers
Thermodynamics - the study of how

energy is transferred, its rates of flow
and transformation from one form or
quality to another
53
FIRST LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS:

Energy is conserved: it is neither
created nor destroyed under normal
conditions. It may be transferred or
transformed, but the total amount of
energy remains the same.
Law of Conservation of
Energy
54
SECOND LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS

- The tendency of all natural
systems to go from a state of order
toward a state of increasing disorder
Law of Entropy
55
There is no loss of total energy, but

there is a loss of useful energy.
Example: coal burned in a power plant
to produce electrical energy; however,
large amounts of useless heat energy
are also produced (combustion)
56
All organisms including humans are

in the process of converting high
quality energy into low-quality
energy
Waste heat is produced when
chemical bond energy in food is
converted into energy needed to
move, grow, or respond.
PROCESS IS CALLED RESPIRATION
(CELLULAR RESPIRATION)
57
An unfortunate consequence of
energy conversion is pollution
The heat from energy conversion is a
pollutant, the emissions from power
plants pollute
Therefore, if we use less energy,
there would be less waste (heat)
energy, hence less pollution
58
Our energy choices will

affect our future
The lives we live today are due to

fossil fuels
Machines
Chemicals
Transportation
Products
Fossil fuels are a one-time bonanza;

supplies will certainly decline
We have used up of the worlds oil
supplies; how will we handle this
imminent fossil fuel shortage? 59
Natural resources: vital to human

survival
Natural resources = substances and energy sources needed
for survival
Renewable resources:
Available: sunlight, wind, wave energy
Renew themselves over short periods: timber, water, soil
These can be destroyed
Nonrenewable resources: can be depleted
Oil, coal, minerals
60
Resources and natural amenities,

including wildlife and natural beauty
and open space, should be preserved
so that future generations can still
enjoy them.
61
Types of Resources
Inexhaustible resources are found in
infinite quantity
Nonrenewable resources exist in finite
amounts: minerals, iron, fossil fuels,
and also groundwater that recharges
extremely slowly are all fixed at least
on a human time scale
Renewable resources are naturally
replenished and recycled at a fairly
steady rate: fresh water, living
organisms, air, food resources are all
62
Nonrenewable resources can be

extended through more efficient use
(cars use less steel now, precious
metals like gold are mixed with other
metals to form alloys to extend their
use).
Substitution of materials (renewable
in place of the nonrenewable) also
reduces the demand for certain
resources
63
Recycling also extends supplies of

nonrenewable resources
The only limit to recycling is the
relative costs of extracting new
resources compared with collecting
used materials
New technology or methods also
expand the sources of nonrenewable
resources
64
Renewable resources can

become exhausted if
managed badly.
65
Will we develop in a
sustainable way?
The triple bottom line: sustainable

solutions that meet
Environmental goals
Economic goals
Social goals
Requires that humans apply

knowledge from the sciences to
Limit environmental impacts

Maintain functioning ecological systems
67
Assignment
Search and watch the video of Severn
Suzukis speech during the Rio Earth
Summit in 1992.
Compare it to her speech in University
of British Columbia after 20 years.
Write a reaction paper:
Problems/Issues presented
Any solutions at the present time?
68
69

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Environmental

Environment: the total of

Our built environment

Social relationships and

Humans and the world

Global human population

Thomas Malthus and human

Garrett Hardins Tragedy of the

Resource users are tempted to

Environmental science: how

Built environment refers to the

Built environment refers to the

Environmental engineering involves

Environmental engineers conduct

Environmental engineers also design

Environmental "chemical" engineers,

Environmental "civil" engineers focus

Engineering takes things from this

From Industrial Revolution to

The biggest challenges faced at the

The objectives of the conference

The most prolific evidence of the

The developed nations are

Human prosperity and environmental

Sustainability is measured by the use

In the last fifty years, we gradually

The good news is that we are no

Early 2000s two authoritative reports

The Millennium Ecosystem

The most comprehensive scientific

Humans have drastically altered

Population & consumption

Our consumption of resources has risen

Ecological footprints are not

Waste products and artificial

Each year, millions of people die from

Scientists have firmly concluded that

Since the Industrial Revolution,

Global warming is only one of many

Biodiversity loss may be our biggest environmental

The elements in the body have been

Matter is recycled endlessly through

Thermodynamic and Energy

Thermodynamics - the study of how

FIRST LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS:

SECOND LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS

There is no loss of total energy, but

All organisms including humans are

Our energy choices will

The lives we live today are due to

Fossil fuels are a one-time bonanza;

Natural resources: vital to human

Resources and natural amenities,

Nonrenewable resources can be

Recycling also extends supplies of

Renewable resources can

The triple bottom line: sustainable

Requires that humans apply

Limit environmental impacts

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