Sustainability in Engineering
Sustainability in Engineering
ABSTRACT
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. In ecology the word describes how biological systems
remain diverse and productive over time. For humans it is the potential for long-term
maintenance of wellbeing, which in turn depends on the wellbeing of the natural world and the
responsible use of natural resources. As the earth’s human population has increased, natural
ecosystems have declined and changes in the balance of natural cycles has had a negative impact
on both humans and other living systems. There is now abundant scientific evidence that
humanity is living unsustainably. Returning human use of natural resources to within sustainable
limits will require a major collective effort, and using science to develop new technologies
(green technologies, renewable energy), and to make adjustments in individual lifestyles that
conserve natural resources.
The best possible solution to overcome all the threats of end of our Earth is to make aware all the
people, mainly students of making a pollution free environment, and to develop such an
educational trend that each student should be capable of deciding how a sustainable approach is
better than conventional approach to him and his surroundings.
INTRODUCTION
Engineering is the way of implementation of new ideas with the help of knowledge of science and
general experiences, and to produce something with physical reality that helps mankind to perform
the desired work. The era is being progressed from a long time, James Watt invented steam engine,
Henry Ford invented motor car, Wright brothers invented aero plane etc. and the progress is still
continuing. We are getting better and better with ease and comfort in living. Industrial progress has
enhanced the production, its rate as well as the quality of the product.
We are totally dependent upon our planet Earth for the materials, and for energy we are
conventionally dependent on the substances that contain some form of energy. These substances
can be anything for example it can be fossil fuels, it can be water flowing in a river etc. As the
Sustainability in Engineering 2010
population increased, people demanded more and more comfort. To fulfill their demands engineers
designed and invented more and more efficient and economic products as a result of this production
is boosted.
Engineers provided people the things what they demanded. But among our comforts and
demands we forgot one thing our planet “The EARTH.” The Earth is at a critical crossroads. While
revolutionary advances in science and technology have lifted humanity to new heights of prosperity
and longevity in many parts of the world, hundreds of millions of people are vulnerable to the
impacts of hazards and natural disasters, extreme poverty, infectious disease and a host of other
challenges. At the same time, human activity, especially in the last 100 years, is threatening the
health of the environment and potentially posing risks of unprecedented magnitude to our shared
future. It is expected to increase to 9 billion by year 2050, further straining Earth’s resources and
humanity’s ability to
thrive. Boost in production causes reduction in hydrocarbons present in Earth, It increased CO2 %
in our atmosphere, main effect of this we have seen as the “Global Warming” world’s biggest
threat.
As responsible engineers our main requirement is to design products which are sustainable and
which can be recycled. We need to reduce pollution as much as possible.
If the present condition of the world remains the same and the use of materials is more rapid than
that in present so some day we will reach to the condition when we will have no resources to make
any comfort in our life.
PRESENT
SCENARIO
Present ly we are using
conventional sources of
energy such as coal, to produce
electricity to make energy
available for our
industrial production, and
also for general home appliances,
fossil fuels such as petrol and
diesel to run our transports and
2
Sustainability in Engineering 2010
vehicles which are the main driver of Greenhouse gases’ emission, and also responsible for air
pollution.
GLOBAL WARMING:
The 21st century might see temperatures rise of about 3 to 8 degrees, climate patterns
piercingly shift, ice sheets contract and seas rise several feet. With the probable exemption of one
more world war, a huge asteroid, or a fatal plague, global warming may be the only most danger
to our planet earth.
“Global warming, or climate change, is a subject that shows no sign of cooling down.” And, it is
very likely that humans are causing the global warming. (The arctic ice is melting; glaciers are
melting, coral reefs dies, extreme weather events). China 2007: Industry waste water dumping
kills about 40 000 kg of fish. Sudan 2004: Hundreds of people dies of starvation due to war and
lack of food.
3
Sustainability in Engineering 2010
WHAT IS SUSTAINABILITY?
REGION OF SUSTAINABILITY:
4
Sustainability in Engineering 2010
Environmental sustainability refers to the environmental actions or impacts of what we do. In
moving towards sustainability, we are attempting to reduce our ecological footprint or to tread
more lightly on the Earth. This equates to reducing the amount of resources we use (and buy), the
waste we produce and the emissions we produce.
With every action impacting on the planets ecosystems, from the local to the global, the world is
changing and it is not just the climate.
5
Sustainability in Engineering 2010
CONCLUSION
As a human being we have responsibility to make our environment free from pollution. All
threats that are being increasing by unawareness of human being are not only the threat for earth
6
Sustainability in Engineering 2010
but also for the life of us. We have forgotten that we are living on earth that’s why our
continuous unawareness is continuously destroying the all resources found in earth, and it is not
only the destruction of resources, it is the destruction of our life. So at that condition each person
living on the earth should be conscious about the environment.
The Earth Institute is confronting the 21st century’s most pressing problems by taking a bold and
innovative approach to achieve sustainable development. This approach prioritizes the protection
of Earth’s ecosystems, oceans and atmosphere as well as the spread of social and economic
opportunities for all people.