Introduction to

Environmental
Engineering
 Think about this:
Today, one individual can
manipulate an incredible amount of
resources thanks to technology!
Clean-up is necessary. Clean
technologies should be designed.
Limits must be discerned.

That’s where Environmental

Engineering comes in.
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.
 Who does it affect?
• Everyone & Everything!
– plants
– insects
– animals
– humans
– ecosystems
– our planet
What are
environmental issues?

• Three areas:
– air quality
– land quality
– water quality
 Air Quality

Why is air quality such a problem?

Poor air quality can lead to:

• smog
• respiratory & other illnesses
• acid rain
• global warming
From where do air pollutants come?

Air pollution in China

 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)
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.
 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

How do we reduce land pollution?
 Water Quality
Water quality problems have numerous
causes and various symptoms.
• These problems can be thermal,
nutrient, chemical, aquatic plants, or
organism related
 Water Quality
And some examples of water
pollutants are:
• human trash,
• chemicals dumped by hospitals & other
companies,
• runoff of chemical fertilizers and
pesticides from farm fields, etc.
 Water Quality
What Are the Solutions to Water
Pollution?
• Treatment of Waste.
One way to minimize and prevent water
contamination involves properly treating industrial
sewage and wastewater before releasing it into the
environment.
• Ozone. In ozone waster water treatment, an ozone
generator breaks down pollutants in a water source.
• Septic Tanks.
• Denitrification.
• Wetlands.
 Water Quality
• Reduce your plastic consumption and
reuse or recycle plastic when you can.
• Properly dispose of chemical cleaners,
oils, and non-biodegradable items to keep
them from ending up down the drain.
• Maintain your car so it doesn’t leak oil,
antifreeze, or coolant.
• If you have a yard, consider landscaping
that reduces runoff and avoid applying
pesticides and herbicides
Example of past local problems:

Cholera outbreak in London in 1854. John Snow, medical

doctor, tracked the infection to a single well on Broad
Street. Solution: He convinced the city officials to remove
the pump handle.
Pittsburg in 1906
Cuyahoga River
(Ohio) on fire in 1952
ENVIRONMENTAL
ENGINEERING
Environmental Engineering is a
discipline of engineering devoted to
the development and application of
scientific knowledge through
technology to eliminate or minimize
adverse effects associated with
human activities.
It operates at four different levels:
remediation of contaminated sites,
treatment of effluents, pollution
prevention, and care for future
generations.
Environmental engineering is
fundamentally object focused,
rather than tool based. It
therefore draws from all other
engineering disciplines that
are apt to bear on the desired
objectives. Pursuit of
pollution prevention and
sustainability further implicate
social, cultural and economic
considerations, bringing the
environmental engineer to
collaborate with policy makers
and other non-engineers.
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER

The environmental engineer is a professional trained in the art

of applying scientific principles and technological means to
avoid or reduce forms of pollution by human activities. This
includes possessing a knowledge of past and current
engineering practice and an ability to innovate.

Further, s/he is a professional, meaning that s/he is not only

applying knowledge but also bearing responsibility and using
judgment.
“THE ENVIRONMENT IS IN US, NOT
OUTSIDE OF US. THE TREES ARE
OUR LUNGS, THE RIVERS ARE OUR
BLOODSTREAM. WE ARE ALL
INTERCONNECTED AND WHAT YOU
DO TO THE ENVIRONMENT
ULTIMATELY YOU DO IN YOURSELF”
- Ian Somerhalder
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING 
GOD BLESS!!!