In recent times, the attention of humans have been drawn towards the immediate environment and how the activities are affecting the climate and Mother Nature. Potential dangers such as global warming, natural disasters and other negative occurrences have caused man to gear up and give cognizance of the effects of our activities on the environment.
Quite inevitably, everything that man uses is a product of engineering. The vehicles we drive, the machines we use to process our food, the houses we live in and a host of others.
One point to note is; if we want to keep our environment safe, we must produce or engineer things that are safe for the environment.
That aspect of engineering that recognizes the impact of man and his activities on his environment is known as sustainable engineering
Sustainable engineering is the aspect of engineering that encompass the process of designing systems and processes that utilize energy and resources in a way that it does not compromise the environment.
Sustainable engineering aims at designing for efficiency in energy consumption, mass, and to ensure low emissions into the environment. This aspect of engineering takes into consideration, the environmental engineering concepts in relation to the interactions between the technical solutions provided and the ecological conditions, the social systems and also the economic systems and also to avoid transferring the problems from one area to another.
In simple terms, the question that comes to the engineer’s mind is:
How can I make a machine or system that would not have a negative effect on the environment and yet, It would be utilizing all the energy it can for optimum performance
First off, let’s define sustainability:
According to oxford dictionary, sustainability is the avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance.
In simpler terms, sustainability is the aspect of life that is concerned with how the usage of natural resources and interacting with the environment ensures the continuity and preservation of such resources in order to avoid a shift in the balance of nature.
I for one, am someone that believes in balance and this is one thing that the study of sustainability is all about.
One simple truth is that, the subject of sustainability will not be relevant if all we want to do is to harness the earth’s resources and not think about the future generations. But as the case is, the future of our world is very important and is a point of concern and as a result; sustainability.
Just as Brundtland Commission report stated sustainability to be “meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their needs”
Ultimately, sustainability is a subject to be considered in all aspects of man’s endeavors and activities in order to make this world safe to live in for us and other generation after us.
As stated earlier, sustainable engineering seeks to provide designs and systems that allow for sustainable living.
A few of these points of focus are as follows:
Designing for good water supply: sustainable engineering recognizes the importance of water to the ecological
system and the negative effect that may occur in case of its absence, scarcity or pollution. The designing of bio degradable and recyclable materials are aimed at ensuring that water resources are sufficient wherever it is required.Designing for food production: as an essential need for humans, food production industry is dominant. In order to ensure hygiene and even distribution of food. Sustainable engineering focuses on how the food production industry can thrive without diminishing the resources available.
Sanitation and waste management: the issue of waste management is one of the pressing issues that our world is faced with today. Sustainable engineering focuses on the effective measures and processes that can be used to manage organic and inorganic waste while preserving the earth and her resources. Sustainable engineering also involves the processes employed to clean up polluted waste sites so as to ensure a safe environment.
Energy development: this is one of the aspects where sustainable engineering is thriving and making waves by the day. The invention of systems, processes and designs that harm=ness the earth’s natural resources without depleting them or polluting the environment. You would agree with me that introduction of renewable energy sources such as solar power, wind power, tidal waves and the likes have changed the face of energy consumption over the world as the world is gearing towards dependence on renewable forms of energy.
Improvement of industrial processes to eliminate waste and reduce consumption: Recycling and re use of materials are essential practices that are set to help improve the industrial processes and thus eliminate the waste generated in the industries. Sustainable engineering starts from the processes that initiate the production process all the way to the consumption of the materials produced and sometimes the possible return of the used products.
Restoration of natural environments: forests, lakes, streams and other natural environments are points of focus in sustainable engineering as it is ultimately important to ensure the continuity of theses natural sources even while harnessing them for energy or other applications. Prevention of pollution as stated earlier is also a point to note.
As stated in the points above, the world is moving towards sustainable living and the engineering field is moving with them. Sustainable engineering is sometimes called green engineering as it covers all the methods that are required to improve the products and processes so as to make them more efficient from an environmental and sustainable standpoint.
According to Wikipedia, green engineering involves four basic approaches which are;
- Waste reduction;
- Materials management;
- Pollution prevention; and,
- Product enhancement.
Take for instance a building project. The architect designs the aesthetic features of the building to fit the specifications of the user but the engineer proffers the best materials that are fit for not only the short term but also the long term effects. Things like the type of roofing materials, flooring and other materials that have a positive effect on the environment and the humans that would use the building are taken into consideration.
The necessary waste management method that is befitting for the type of material is also ensured.
CONCLUSION
The reaction of mother earth to activities of humans have recently been noticed and have been a point of concern. In order to curb the possible menace of disasters that can occur due to these activities, sustainable engineering is interested in designing of processes and systems that help preserve the ecology and environment.
It is therefore important for humans to also be cautious of their activities to ensure a safer earth for them and generations to come.
REFERENCES
WIKIPEDIA
INFORMIT
WIKI-GREEN ENGINEERING
UNSW