Environmental
Engineering
Unit 1:Introduction
• What is Environmental
Engineering?
• Environmental Ethics
• Engineering Dimensions and Units
• Environmental Systems Overview
1. What is Environmental
Engineering?
Definition: The application of science and engineering knowledge and
concepts to care for and/or restore our natural environment and/or solve
environmental problems.
These include the provision of safe, palatable, and ample public
water supplies; the proper disposal of or recycle of wastewater and
solid wastes; the adequate drainage of urban and rural areas for
proper sanitation; and the control of water, soil, and atmospheric
pollution, and the social and environmental impact of these
solutions.
It is concerned with engineering problems in the field of public
health, such as control of arthropod-borne diseases, the elimination
of industrial health hazards, and the provision of adequate
sanitation in urban, rural, and recreational areas, and the effect of
technological advances on the environment.
Historically, environmental engineering has been a new specialty
area of civil engineering, which started in the year 1960. It was
previously known as sanitary engineering or public health
engineering to emphasize its relation to human health.
2. Environmental Ethics
Engineers engaged in pollution control, or in any activity that impinges on the natural
environment, interface with environmental ethics.
An environmental ethic concerns itself with the attitude of people toward other living things
and toward the natural environment, as well as with their attitudes toward each other.
Today, the environmental impact of any activity or development is of primary concern in
environmental engineering. Moreover, risk assessment and life cycle assessment (LCA) are
becoming an integral part of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIS).
Since the first Earth Day in 1970 environmental and ecological
awareness has been incorporated into public attitudes and is now an
integral part of engineering processes and designs.
Environmental awareness and concern became an essentially
permanent part of the U.S. public discourse with the passage of the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1970 and stablishing the U.S
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Similarly, many countries
formulated their environmental policies. The United Nations
established its environmental program (UNEP). In Kuwait, the
Environmental Public Authority (EPA) was founded in 1995 to deal with
all the Environmental issues in the State of Kuwait.
Who3. Who is affected? does it
affect?
Everyone & Everything!
plants
insects
animals
humans
ecosystems
our planet
What are the
environmental issues?
Three main areas:
air quality
land quality
water quality
Air Quality
• Air pollutant: A known
substance in the air that
can cause harm to
humans and the
environment. Effects of acid rain on plants
– nitrogen oxides (NOx)
– sulfur oxides (SOx)
– carbon monoxide (CO)
– carbon dioxide (CO2)
From where do air pollutants come?
Air pollution in China
How do we reduce air pollutants?
• carpool
• hybrid cars
• EPA government
regulation
• NEW: geologic carbon
sequestration
• alternative fuels
• walk, bike or use
public transportation
Land Quality
• Land pollution: Destruction of the Earth’s surface
caused by human activities and the misuse of
natural resources.
• Natural resources: Land and raw materials that
exist naturally in the environment undisturbed by
humans.
• Renewable resource: A natural resource that can
be replaced by a natural process.
• Non-renewable resource: A natural resource that
cannot be produced or re-grown or reused.
Examples
Renewable Resources Non-Renewable Resources
What problems arise from land pollution?
Acid mine drainage Pesticides and herbicides Landfills
Why is it so important for Environmental Engieers to get involved immediately in the
design process?
• It is at the design stage where there is the most power and potential to influence
the ultimate “greenness” or sustainability of a design.
• It is at this stage that there is an ability to specify inherently benign materials, to
design for end of life handling, and consider the entire life cycle.
• At the design stage there is an opportunity to impart new performance and
capabilities.
• This is also the most economical place to focus due to the fact that costs are
committed at this point although they are not incurred until much later in the
process.
Why is it so important for Environmental Engieers to get involved immediately in the
design process?
• It is at the design stage where there is the most power and potential to influence
the ultimate “greenness” or sustainability of a design.
• It is at this stage that there is an ability to specify inherently benign materials, to
design for end - of - life handling, and consider the entire life cycle.
• At the design stage there is an opportunity to impart new performance and
capabilities.
• This is also the most economical place to focus due to the fact that costs are
committed at this point although they are not incurred until much later in the
process.
