Environmental Engineering is a branch of civil and chemical engineering that is concerned with natural resource management, the use of water, environmental pollution and human health. It is the study of problems associated with soil, air and water pollution. Environmental engineering is the development of processes and infrastructure for the supply of water, the disposal of waste and the control of pollution of all kinds. The aim is to protect public health by preventing disease transmission and to preserve the quality of the environment by averting the contamination and degradation of air, water and land resources. It was traditionally a specialized field within civil engineering and was called sanitary engineering until the mid-1960s and then the more accurate name Environmental Engineering was adopted.
As per ASCE, Environmental engineering is a profession that applies mathematics and science to utilize the properties of matter and sources of energy in the solution of problems of environmental sanitation. 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. Furthermore 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.
Projects in environmental engineering involve the treatment and distribution of drinking water, the collection, treatment and disposal of wastewater, the control of air pollution and noise pollution, municipal solid-waste management and hazardous-waste management, the cleanup of hazardous-waste sites and the preparation of environmental assessments, audits and impact studies. Mathematical modeling and computer analysis are widely used to evaluate and design the systems required for such tasks. Chemical and mechanical engineers may also be involved in the process.
Environmental engineering applies scientific and engineering principles to improve and maintain the environment to protect human health, protect nature's beneficial ecosystems and improve environmental related enhancement of the quality of human life. Environmental engineers devise solutions for wastewater management, water and air pollution control, recycling, waste disposal and public health. This will design municipal water supply and industrial wastewater treatment systems and design plans to prevent waterborne diseases and improve sanitation in urban, rural and recreational areas.
Environmental engineers study the effect of technological advances on the environment, addressing local and worldwide environmental issues such as acid rain, global warming, ozone depletion, water pollution and air pollution from automobile exhausts and industrial sources. An environmental engineer is responsible for improving the quality of the environment and public health and developing solutions to minimize the degradation of natural resources. They devise ways to control pollution, treat wastewater, distribute safe drinking water, manage hazardous waste, etc.
History
The earliest examples of environmental engineering date back thousands of years to when people moved away from a nomadic lifestyle and began living in semi-permanent settlements. This change required people to access clean water supplies and dispose of waste including sewage. As settlements grew and large-scale agriculture took hold, people also began to tackle challenges around air quality and soil contamination.
Evidence of environmental engineering can be seen from many different ancient civilizations around the world, including the Indus Valley Civilization, Mesopotamian Empire, Mohenjo Daro, Crete, Rome, Egypt and the Orkney Islands in Scotland. These civilizations included aqueducts, sewer systems, drinking water systems, irrigation systems and even public baths.
Despite these earliest examples of environmental engineering, nothing much changed in the field until the middle of the 19th Century, when Joseph Bazalgette was tasked with overseeing the construction of London’s first large-scale municipal sanitary sewer system following a series of cholera epidemics and the ‘great stink’ that was caused by the discharge of raw sewage into the river Thames. This "great stink," which was so noxious that it caused Parliament to evacuate Westminster, gave then-Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli grounds to ask for 3.5 million pounds to improve the city's sewage disposal system.
Growing concerns over environmental degradation as well as air and water pollution in the middle of the 20th Century led to environmental engineering becoming its own academic discipline. These concerns were accentuated by new technologies such as pesticides like DDT that had detrimental effects on the environment.
The goal of environmental engineering is to ensure that societal development and the use of water, land and air resources are sustainable. This goal is achieved by managing these resources so that environmental pollution and degradation is minimized. Environmental engineers study water, soil and air pollution problems and develop technical solutions needed to solve, attenuate or control these problems in a manner that is compatible with legislative, economic, social and political concerns. Civil engineers are particularly involved in such activities as water supply and sewerage, management of surface water and groundwater quality, remediation of contaminated sites and solid waste management.
The activities of such engineers include, but are not limited to, the planning, design, construction and operation of water and wastewater treatment facilities in municipalities and industries, modeling and analysis of surface water and groundwater quality, design of soil and remediation systems, planning for the disposal and reuse of wastewaters and sludges and the collection, transport, processing, recovery and disposal of solid wastes according to accepted engineering practices.
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