MCN 201 SUSTAINABLE

ENGINEERING
ER.MERIN ANTONY
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
EEE DEPT

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 SYLLUBUS
MODULE 1
Sustainability: Introduction, concept, evolution
of the concept; Social, environmental and
economic sustainability concepts; Sustainable
development, Nexus between Technology and
Sustainable development; Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) and Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs), Clean Development
Mechanism (CDM).
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 MODULE 2
Environmental Pollution: Air Pollution and its
effects, Water pollution and its sources, Zero
waste concept and 3 R concepts in solid waste
management; Greenhouse effect, Global
warming, Climate change, Ozone layer
depletion, Carbon credits, carbon trading and
carbon foot print, legal provisions for
environmental protection.

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 MODULE 3
• Environmental management standards: ISO
14001:2015 frame work and benefits, Scope
and goal of Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), Circular
economy, Bio-mimicking, Environment Impact
Assessment (EIA), Industrial ecology and
industrial symbiosis.

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 MODULE 4
• Resources and its utilisation: Basic concepts of
Conventional and non-conventional energy,
General idea about solar energy, Fuel cells,
Wind energy, Small hydro plants, bio-fuels,
Energy derived from oceans and Geothermal
energy.

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 MODULE 5
• Sustainability practices: Basic concept of
sustainable habitat, Methods for increasing
energy efficiency in buildings, Green
Engineering, Sustainable Urbanisation,
Sustainable cities, Sustainable transport.

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7
Goals of Sustainability

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Goals of Sustainability

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Goals of Sustainability

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 WHY SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERING?

Engineers of the future need to think differently

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 Traditional Engineering Design Criteria:
• Function
• Cost
• Safety

Sustainable Engineering Design Criteria:

The above plus:
• Impact on people (society)
• Impact on the planet (environment)

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 Questions for future engineers to ask about
their designs:

• Will it be made from recycled materials?

• How much energy will it use?

• Will it be powered by a battery or solar cells?

• Will it be able to be recycled at the end of its useful

life?

• Will it have parts that contain toxic metals that must be

disposed of?

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Syllabus -Mod 1

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 sustainability
• Meeting society’s present needs without
compromising the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs.
• (Brundtland Commission, UN,1987)

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 Sustainability……
• Sustain can mean “maintain", "support", or "endure
•  sustainability  is the capacity to endure or the
ability to maintain
• Sustainable engineering  is the process of
designing or operating systems such that they use
energy and resources sustainably,
• i.e., at a rate that does not compromise the natural
environment, or the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs
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 Need For Sustainability
•When the human economic system was small, problems
are with in self cleaning capacity of nature
•As the scale of human economy has exceeded the natural
self cleaning capacity of our environment, which has led
to the over exploitation of resources and accumulation of
waste.
•The population explosion in the developing world and
unsustainable consumption in the developed world pose
a great challenge to sustainability.
•The goal of sustainability is to raise the global standard
of living without increasing the use of resources beyond
global sustainable levels. 17
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 Sustainable Development
• “Earth provides enough to satisfy every mans
need, but not every man’s greed”
• Two decades ago economic status alone used as a
measure of human development
• Developed countries used the exploited their
natural resources rapidly and, but also used
natural resources of developing countries
• Rich countries got richer, poor got poorer

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 Sustainable Development
• This type of development did not add quality of
life, the environmental conditions begun to
deteriorate
• Development strategies aims only economic
advancement begun to suffer from serious
environmental problems
• (Air and water pollution, solid waste
accumulation, deforestation and a variety of
other ill effects )

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Concept of sustainability
• Meeting the needs of current and
future generations through
integrating environmental
protection ,social advancement and
economic prosperity

• The quality of life which is to be

achieved in a manner that does
not harm the quality of life of
future generations

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 Concept of sustainability
Principles of sustainability
• Protecting Nature
• Thinking long-term
• Understanding systems within which we live
• Recognizing limits
• Practicing fairness
• Embracing creativity

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 Concept of sustainability
Four principles to be sustainable
• Reduce dependence upon fossil fuel
• Reduce dependence upon synthetic
substances
• Reduce encroachment upon nature
• Meets human needs fairly and efficiently

Sustainability is an ongoing learning process

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21ST CENTURY-ENVIRONMENTAL
MANAGEMENT

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 Models for sustainable
development
• Three pillar(spheres) model
• Egg model of sustainability(IUCN)

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Egg model of sustainability

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 Egg model of sustainability
•  The Egg of Sustainability It illustrates the relationship
between people and ecosystem as one circle inside
another, like the yolk of an egg.
• This implies that people are within the ecosystem, and
that ultimately one is entirely dependent upon the other
• Thus according to this model: sustainable development
= human well-being + ecosystem well-being
• Flows (stresses and benefits) from ecosystem to people
• Flows (stresses and benefits) from people to ecosystem
People

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 Sustainable Development
• Sustainable development can be defined as
(Brundland commision) “Development which
meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs”
• Pillars of sustainable development
– Social pillar
– Environment pillar
– Economic pillar

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 Sustainable Development
• Our goal is to finding long term development
solutions that combine economic growth with
environmental protection while enabling to meet
social needs
• The actions of government to implement sustainable
development in their policies may be considered as
the fourth pillar of sustainable development
• World Earth conference Rio-de-Jeniro (1992) put the
world on the path of sustainable development

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3 PILLARS OF SUSTAINABILITY

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Three Pillars of Sustainability

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 Three Pillars of Sustainability
• The three basic pillars of sustainable development are
given below.
• Social pillar –Community /societal development that
provides food, shelter, clothing, education and health for
human beings.
• Environment pillar- Environmental protection that
provides pollution-free air, clothing, education, and health
for human beings.
• Economic pillar – development such as provision of job,
industrial development, business policy change and so on
for improving the quality of life.
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Concept of sustainability

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 Concept of Social sustainability
• Future generation should have same or greater
access to the resources (Inter generational equity)
• Current generation should have equal access to
the resources ( Intra generational equity)
• Three values that forms social sustainability are
– Quality of life
– Growth
– Equality

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 Concept of Social sustainability
• Is least defined and least understood
• Weakest among all the spheres of
Sustainability
• Social sustainability also concerns about
maintaining access to basic resources without
compromising the quality of life

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 SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
1.Maintain residents quality of life
2.Enhance local economic vitality
3.Promote social and intergenerational equity
4.Maintain the quality of environment
5.Incorporate disaster resilience and mitigation
into its decision and action
6.Use a consensus building,participatory
process when making decision
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 Concept of Environmental Sustainability

• Is a hot topic with plenty of attention from

media and various departments
• This is due to the studies and researches on the
impact of human activities on the environment
• Environmental sustainability can be defined as
“Improving the quality of human life while living
within the carrying capacity of the supporting
ecosystem”

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 ENVIRONMENT SUSTAINABILITY

• It gives resources,raw material to economy for production

activities
1.Exhaustion of resources-Water,Petroleum,forests
2.Loss of bio diversity-Extinction of animal/plant species due to
water,oil,air pollution
3.Deforestation-conversion of forest land to farms
4.Ozone depletion
5.Acid deposition
6.Desertifiation
7.Eutrophication
8.Global warming
 DAMAGES TO HUMAN LIFE
1.Fresh water scarcity
2.Climate change
3.Exposure to toxics in food
4.Emerging diseases
5.Food insecurity resulting in poverty
6.Energy scarcity due to depletion of non-renewable
resources
7.Ecosystem damage and habitat loss
8.Sea level rise
 Concept of Environmental Sustainability
Consumption of State of Sustainability
Resources Environment

Less than nature’s Environmental Environmental

ability to replenish Renewal Sustainable

Equal to nature’s Environmental Steady- state

ability to replenish Equilibrium Economy

More than nature’s Environmental Not sustainable

ability to replenish Degradation

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 Concept of Environmental Sustainability

• Environmental sustainability involves making decisions

that
– Protect natural world
– Preserve capability of the environment to support human
life
– Reduce negative impacts on the environment
– Popularising public transport system to reduce air pollution
– Tapping more renewable energy resources
– Create awareness about environmental problems among
general public.

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 ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY
• It ensure that the industry or business is
making profit without creating much damage
to ecology.
• It is expressed in gross domestic
Product(GDP)-Total amount of production
produced within nation,within one year.
 Concept of Economical sustainability
• Is presented in monetary terms
• Economic growth is become sustainable when it
improve environment and quality of life
simultaneously
• Ensures that the business is making profit without
creating much environmental harm
• Economic sustainability is the term used to identify
various strategies that make it possible to use the
available resources in such a way that it is both
efficient, responsible and provide long term benefits
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 Concept of Economical sustainability
Quality Economic Issues Social issues Environmental issues
of life Unsustaina Sustainable Unsustaina Sustainabl Unsustainab Sustainabl
concer ble ble e le e
ns

Water High cost Drinking Weaker All section High level ofConserva
of drinking water section not got water pollution in tion of
water available 24x7 get water lakes and existing
(affordable rivers water
cost) bodies
Food High cost Good food at Weaker All section Poor quality Quality
of food affordable section not got food of food and
cost get food nutritious
food
Energy High cost Energy Overuse by All section Fossil fuels Renewabl
and available 24x7 rich, got and e
intermitte (affordable Inadequate adequate pollution resources
nt supply cost) for poor

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 Helix of Sustainability
• Concept coined with manufacturing industry
• Sustainable use of materials
• Idea of converting linear path of materials

Raw
material Product use Disposal
extraction

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 Helix of Sustainability
Plants prepares
food from simple
raw materials

At end it is
converted to raw Human cultivates as
well as use plants to
materials by extract products
microbial action

After useful life it

is disposed
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Measures of Sustainable Development
• Promote environmental education and awareness
– From childhood onwards develop a feeling of
belongingness to our planet
– Include environment as a subject in education from
primary level

• Three “R” approach

– Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

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Measures of Sustainable Development
• Appropriate technology
– Use less resources, produce minimum waste
– Eco friendly

• Utilise resources as per carrying capacity of the

environment
– If carrying capacity exceeded environmental
degradation

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
• Science and technology is the most effective
means of enhance growth and socio economic
development
• Technology starts when commercial utilisation of
scientific discoveries are done
• Technological development can be considered as
a double edged sword with respect to sustainable
development

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development Contd..
• It is essential that research on the relations
between science, technology and society be
integrated into broader sustainability research
agenda
• Under the ongoing technological revolution
majority of the world population lives in extreme
poverty
• For large population in Asia and Africa and Latin
America the benefits of technology is not available

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development Contd..
• Technology can support sustainability by
– Reducing waste
– Raising efficiency standards
– Finding substitutes
• Out of all sustainability pillars technology is the
most explored one

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
• Some of the technological applications towards sustainable
development includes
– Agricultural technologies
– Energy technologies
– Environmental technologies
– Disease-related biomedical technologies
– Technologies for local development
– Technological underpinnings for sustainable development
• Sharing of information
• Education
• Communication and information technologies

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
Agricultural technologies
• Improve productivity, Soil and water conservation,
Improve nutrition, food quality.
• Pesticides contaminated fruits and vegetables has
adverse environmental issues, absence of Maximum
residue levels of pesticides used worsened the situation
• In developing countries the land available for farming is
marginally suitable for production

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
Agricultural technologies (Farmers need
technologies Which)
– Improve use of natural resources
– improve soil fertility
– Improve water availability and efficiency of use
– Genetic improvements of plants and animals in
accordance with the conditions

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
Energy technologies
– Energy efficiency in developing countries is much
lower that at developed world
– it can improve by using some proven technologies
• Efficient lights, cook stoves, refrigerators, cars and trucks,
boilers, electric motors
• New manufacturing process for energy

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
Energy technologies- Scope
– Efficient biomass stoves
– Reduce hazardous smoke emission
– Improve efficiency and productivity of small scale
industries
– Smaller scale technologies can bring high quality
energy source for rural areas

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
Environmental Technologies
– Reduce emissions to the environment
– Reduce worker exposure to the hazardous materials
– Reduce risk of technological disasters
– Electric power, chemical, petroleum refining, steel,
pulp and paper, food, textile and other process
industries are potential buyers of environmental
technologies

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
Environmental Technologies

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Disease related biomedical technologies
– Developing countries shown improvements in life
expectancy at birth, mortality of children age 5 and below
– Deaths due to infections and parasitic diseases still occur
in developing world
– Researches are happening
– Many developing countries are still at a stage where
increased investment in sanitation and clean water would
have tremendous benefits for disease control

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Disease related biomedical technologies

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Technologies for local development
– Resource efficient residential architecture, solar
green houses etc
– Resource recovery from municipal solid waste,
wastewater treatment

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Technologies for local development

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Technological underpinnings for sustainable
development
– Information education and communication technologies
are fundamental to sustainable development
– Sharing of information
• Researches are happening
• Intellectual property right
• Find funds for projects is tedious

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Technological underpinnings for sustainable
development
– Education
• Mechanism through which sustainable development
objectives might be realized
• Education is effective in teaching interrelationships
among poverty, population growth, unsustainable
production and consumption patterns and environmental
degradation

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Nexus between technology and sustainable
development
 Technological underpinnings for sustainable
development
– Communication and information technologies
• United nations SDN (Sustainable development network) is
example
• SDN aim- global access to data on development activities
• Knowledge base can be improved

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 Challenges in the path of sustainable
development
• Misconception about sustainable development
(Population perception that sustainable
development hinders developmental activities,
fact is the both development process and
environmental protection must go hand in hand)
• Population explosion in the developing countries
• Poverty (For sustainable development Eradication
of poverty is essential)

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 Challenges in the path of sustainable
development contd…
• Absence of adequate political and industrial will
for moving towards a sustainable future
• Over exploitation of natural resources in
developed countries
• Corruption and misuse of sustainable
development assistance fund
• Poor solid waste management
• High cost of appropriate technology

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 Challenges in the path of sustainable
development contd…
• Lack of coordination between three pillars of
sustainable development
• Unsustainable urbanisation results in slums
• Fresh water scarcity
• Loss of biodiversity
• Over dependence on fossil fuels
• Absence of strict environment laws and legislations
• Lack of broad based public awareness

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Challenges in the path of sustainable
development contd…

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 challenges
• Misconception about sustainable development
• Population explosion
• Poverty
• Absence of adequate political will
• Overexploitation of natural resources in developed countries
• Correption and misuse of sustainable assistant funds
• Poor solid waste management
• High cost of appropriate technology
• Lack of co-ordination between 3 pillars of sustainable development
• Fresh water scarcity
• Loss in biodiversity
• Over dependence on fossil fuel
• Absence of strict environment laws
• Lack of public awareness 74
Multilateral Environmental agreements and
protocols
• Agreement b/w two or more nations which contains commitments to
meet specific environmental aims
• First international enlightment-June 1972 Stockholm (Sweden) UN
conference on Human Environment
• Led to the establishment of UNEP (United Nations Environmental
Programme )
• UNEP Concerned about climatic changes and global warming
• 1979 First world climatic conference- held on 12-23 February 1979 in
Geneva, Recognized climatic change as a serious problem
• WCP-World climatic programme
• WMO –World meteorological organisation

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Multilateral Environmental agreements and
protocols contd…
• Global Actions (Meeting addressed both scientific
and policy issues )
– Villiach conference – Oct 1986
– Toronto conference- June 1988
– Ottava conference- Feb 1989
– Tata Conference- Feb 1989
– Hague conference and declaration –Mar 1989
– Cairo Conference- Dec 1989

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Multilateral Environmental agreements and
protocols contd…
• UNCED- United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development (Rio- de - Janeiro 3rd -14th June 1992
– Discussed about alternative sources of energy, Public transportation system,
– Led to the Kyoto protocol 1997
• UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climatic Change)
• Kyoto Conference 1997 Japan -Obligation to the developed countries
to reduce GHG Emission
• Kyoto Protocol signed 11th Dec 1997 (25 % reduction in emissions by
2050)

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 Kyoto Protocol
• The Kyoto Protocol is seen as an important first step towards a
truly global emission reduction regime that will stabilize GHG
emissions, and can provide the architecture for the future
international agreement on climate change.
• The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11
December 1997 and entered into force on 16 February 2005.
• Its first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in
2012.

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 Kyoto Protocol
• During the first commitment period, 37 industrialized
countries and the European Community committed to reduce
GHG emissions to an average of five percent against 1990
levels.
• During the second commitment period, Parties committed to
reduce GHG emissions by at least 18 percent below 1990
levels in the eight-year period from 2013 to 2020.

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 Green house gases

•Carbon dioxide (CO2)

•Methane (CH4)
•Nitrous oxide (N2O)
•Hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs)
•Per fluorocarbons (PFCs)
•Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)
•Nitrogen trifluoride (NF3)
Applies only from the beginning of the second commitment period (2013).
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Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)

• Key Component of Kyoto Protocol Global agreement by 192

countries
• Kyoto protocol follows the principle that “ Common but
differentiated responsibility”
• Highly industrialized countries have responsibility to reduce
GHG emission
• CDM is a market based mechanism
• Private companies fund GHG reducing projects in
developing countries
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 Purpose of CDM
• Help developing countries to achieve sustainable
development assist industrialized countries to reduce
emissions
• Private companies fund for emission reduction in
developing countries to meet sustainability requirements
and addittionality requirements
• Addittionality means the excess reduction than the
emission before CDM
• Later the developed countries buy the technology
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Purpose of CDM

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 Purpose of CDM
• Additionality: A CDM project is additional if
emissions of greenhouse gases are reduced
below those that would have occurred in the
absence of the CDM project.
• Baseline: The baseline for a CDM project is the
scenario that reasonably represents the
emissions by sources of greenhouse gases that
would occur in the absence of the proposed
project.
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 Purpose of CDM
• In effect, the CDM allows countries to
continue emitting greenhouse gases, so long
as they pay for reductions made elsewhere
• Developing countries would gain sustainable
development benefits from the entry of
“clean” and more energy efficient
technologies

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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OALS

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 Environmental Legislations in India
• The problems of environmental pollution has acquired international
dimension, India is no exception to that
• Industrialisation, over- exploitation of resources, disruption of natural
ecological balance etc contributes to environmental deterioration
• It is high time to preserve environment
• Laws that regulates human interaction with environment are termed
environmental laws
• Concept of environmental protection is not new for India, conservation
and protection of environment has been an inseparable part of Indian
heritage and culture

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Panchabhootas Earth, Water, Air, Fire and Space the five natural
elements were treated with veneration
• Industrialisation, over- exploitation of resources, disruption of
natural ecological balance etc contributes to environmental
deterioration
• Fifth pillar edict of Ashoka regulations forbidding slaughter of
certain species of animals and measures of preserving the forests
• 1856- Lord Delhousie emphasized the need of a definite forest
policy

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Constitutional Provisions
• 1949 Nov. 26-adopted Indian constitution
• Fifth 1950 Jan. 26 constitution came into action
• No of provisions are there in the constitution for
environmental protection
• 1976 the 42nd amendment was incorporated to
constitution by two articles
– Article 48 A
– Article 51 A(g)

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• 48-A Comes under directive principles of state policy, states

that it is the responsibility of the states to protect and
improve environment and to safeguard forests and wildlife of
the country
• 51 A (g) comes under fundamental duties of the citizens,
states that it is the fundamental duty of every citizens to
protect and improve environment including forests, lakes,
rivers, wild life etc
• Article 21 Life (Fundamental right) states that No person shall
be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to
procedure established by law
• Article 32 guarantees to move to court for the
enforcement of fundamental rights 97
Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Some of the legislation which has implications on

environment

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Some of the prime environmental laws

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• 1984-Bhopal tragedy, gas leakage- methane

isocyanate
• 1985- after Bhopal tragedy MoEF (Ministry of
Environment and Forest) had formed

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Water (Prevention and control of pollution)

Act 1974
– Known as water act
– Prohibits disposal of any poisonous, polluting mater to the
proper flow of water streams
– Act also provides for severe punishments including
imprisonment against violation

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Water Act- Salient features

– Establishment of boards/ authorities at central and state
level (ie central and state pollution control board)
– Mandates prior approval of PCB for operating, establishing
and expanding industrial activities leading to discharge of
effluents
– Empower PCBs to enter into industrial plants factories etc
– Empowers PCBs to take samples of industrial effluents
– Provide criminal liabilities

102
Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Air (Prevention and control of pollution) Act

1981
– Known as Air act
– Air pollution can be defined as “ Presence of any liquid or
gaseous substance in the atmosphere in such
concentration as may or tend to be injurious to human
beings or other living creatures or plant “

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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Air Act- Salient features

– Empowers PCBs to take appropriate measures for
prevention and control of air pollution
– Mandates prior approval of PCB for operating, establishing
and expanding industrial activities leading to discharge of
emissions and air pollutants
– Empower PCBs to enter into industrial plans factories
plants etc
– Empowers PCBs to take samples of ambient air, chimney
emissions
– Empowers PCBs to closure of any industries
– Provide criminal liabilities
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Environmental Legislations in India Contd…

• Environmental Protection Act-1986

– Enacted as per the spirit of Stockholm
– Single focus in the country for the protection of
environment and to plug the loopholes in the earlier laws
– It empowers central governments to
1, Closure, Prohibition of any industry operation and
process
2, Stoppage or regulation of supply of water, power or
any other service

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Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer  (1985)

9/7/21 106