2. 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.
3. Who does it affect?
•Everyone &
Everything!
•plants
•insects
•animals
•humans
•ecosystems
•our planet
5. Air Quality
Poor air quality can lead to:
•smog
•respiratory & other illnesses
•acid rain
•global warming
Why is air quality such a problem?
6. From where do air pollutants come?
Air pollution in China
7. Air Quality
•Air pollutant: A known
substance in the air that
can cause harm to
humans and the
environment.
•nitrogen oxides (NOx)
•sulfur oxides (SOx)
•carbon monoxide (CO)
•carbon dioxide (CO2)
Effects of acid rain on plants
8. Greenhouse Gases & Global Warming
•Global warming: An increase in the average air
temperature of the Earth.
•Greenhouse effect: Heat from the sun gets trapped inside
the glass of a greenhouse and heats up its air.
•More carbon dioxide (CO2) being released in the
atmosphere traps more heat.
9. How do we reduce air pollutants?
•carpool
•hybrid cars
•EPA government
regulation
•NEW: geologic carbon
sequestration
•alternative fuels
•walk, bike or use
public transportation
10. 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.
PowerPoint presentation for Introduction to Environmental Engineering lesson, TeachEngineering.org
Image sources:
Earth: Visible Earth Gallery, NASA, http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view.php?id=57723
Plant: National Science Foundation, http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/science_nation/popup/leafsensor/plant.jsp
Polar Bears: US Fish & Wildlife Service, http://www.fws.gov/phmay2012.html
Image sources:
Sky: California Environmental Protection Agency, http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/research.htm
Meadow: National Park Service, http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/paradise.htm
River: National Park Service, http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/elwha-faq.htm
Image sources (clockwise from top left):
Smoke stacks: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory http://www.lbl.gov/Education/ELSI/pollution-main.html
Pollution particles form smog around construction of Beijing’s National Stadium: US Dept. of Energy, http://climatemodeling.science.energy.gov/research-highlights/cutting-air-pollution-got-boost-weather-scientists-compared-emission-controls
Exhaust pipe smoke: State of Oklahoma, http://www.ok.gov/DCS/Fleet_Management/Sustainability.html
Black truck exhaust: County of Los Angeles, http://ridley-thomas.lacounty.gov/index.php/2011/08/page/3/
NO2 is one of the most prominent air pollutants, released from vehicle exhaust
SO2 (sulphur dioxide) is produced by volcanoes and in industrial processes. A lot of coal and petroleum contain sulfur products so when these are burned (combustion) they produce sulfur dioxide. When in the presence of NO2, it mixes to form sulfuric acid, which makes acid rain!
CO is a poisonous gas and forms from incomplete combustion
CO2 is a greenhouse gas emitted from combustion.
Image sources:
Acid rain damage to coffee plantation leaves downwind of a volcano in Costa Rica: US Geological Survey, http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/ash/agric/index.html
http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/ash/agric/index.html
Effects of acid rain on a forest in the Czech Republic: Nipik, Wikimedia Commons, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Acid_rain_woods1.JPG
Melting Arctic Circle ice drives polar bears closer to extinction. The Arctic is the hot-seat of global warming, with rapidly melting ice a threat to polar bears, native Arctic culture, and the world’s coastal population living in warmer climates (affected by rising ocean levels and global climate change).
Image sources:
Global warming graphic: 2005, Mike Edwards, Wikimedia Commons, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Global_warming_graphic.png
Polar bears: The Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, http://globalwarming.markey.house.gov/impactzones/arctic
Image sources:
Hybrid electric car: Argonne National Laboratory, http://www.transportation.anl.gov/publications/transforum/v7/v7n1/plug-in_technology.html
Solar panels providing shade and electricity to recharge the batteries of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, http://www.ornl.gov/info/ornlreview/v41_1_08/article11.shtml
Using public transportation, like buses: National Park Service, http://www.nps.gov/cabr/planyourvisit/publictransportation.htm
To determine whether an item is renewable or non-renewable, look at our consumption of it. For example, wood is a natural resource because we can re-grow trees, but if we are cutting down forests at a faster rate than we are planting them, then wood becomes a non-renewable resource.
Image sources:
Solar panels: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, http://newscenter.lbl.gov/feature-stories/2010/02/26/renewable-energy-target/
Hydropower: US Dept. of Energy, http://www.eere.energy.gov/basics/renewable_energy/hydropower.html
Timber (biomass): Town of Stratham, NH, http://www.strathamnh.gov/Pages/StrathamNH_Assessing/timber
Oil rig: California Environmental Protection Agency, http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/oil-gas/oil-gas.htm
Turtle in oil spill in Louisiana: Lee Celano, REUTERS via State of Louisiana, http://coastal.louisiana.gov/index.cfm?md=pagebuilder&tmp=home&pid=157
Coal train: Energy Information Administration via Tribal Energy and Environmental Information Clearinghouse, http://teeic.anl.gov/er/coal/restech/tech/index.cfm
Acid mine drainage is the outflow of acidic water from abandoned coal mines. This water is so acidic that it kills plant and animal life it encounters.
The herbicides and pesticides used to kill weeds or insects while growing crops destroy the soil and pollute water sources and can cause birth defects and other diseases in humans.
Land fills exist all over the world. Their decaying materials release methane gas. which is another greenhouse gas (much worse than carbon dioxide) and decaying materials destroy the landfill soil.
Image sources:
WV stream affected by acid mine drainage: US Geological Survey, http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs-050-99/
Piles of trash in a landfill: St. Louis County, MN, http://www.stlouiscountymn.gov/LANDPROPERTY/GarbageRecycling.aspx
Man pouring pesticides: US Environmental Protection Agency, http://www.epa.gov/oecaagct/ag101/croppestmgt.html
Buy bio-degradable items, which are made from natural resources that break down over time and do not cause any environmental damage or release any greenhouse gases. An easy way to do this is to always choose paper over plastic grocery bags, or better yet—reuse an old bag many, many times.
Buy organic foods instead of processed foods because they are better for you and our environment! People are considering taxing processed foods as a disincentive to their use, and to obtain some funding to restore the environmental damage they cause.
Always recycle so that non-biodegradable items, such as plastic, do not add to landfills or pollute the land and oceans of our planet.
Image sources:
Recycle logo and globe: Howard County, MD, http://cc.howardcountymd.gov/displayprimary.aspx?id=6442459560
Go Organic (green pepper): Natural Resources Conservation Service in Iowa, http://www.ia.nrcs.usda.gov/news/brochures/publications.html
USDA logo: US Dept. of Agriculture, http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=6607
Biodegradable spoon: Amanda Wills, Earth911.com via California State Senate, http://sd07.senate.ca.gov/news/2011-05-15-clarifying-biodegradable-vs-compostable-california
One less bag challenge: King County, WA, http://your.kingcounty.gov/solidwaste/garbage-recycling/biodegradable-bags.asp
