Sustainable Development with Environmental Issue
What social service is provided by a sewage treatment plant? What are the benefits of treating waste water?
The social services that are provided by a sewage treatment are numerous and valuable. The most primary service that it provides it helping replenishing the amount of fresh water available on the planet. It doesn’t actually increase net amount but restores what we are using at a high rate than letting the water purify naturally. With the dire straights of the amount of available fresh water on the planet and humans increasing their diminishment of the available sources the water treatment facilities are vital to helping delay the impending water crisis. Secondarily the treatment plant helps to lessen the rate of human pollution of the planet. By making serious effort to improve the state in which water is returned to the environment after human use it helps the environment by enabling biota to survive as opposed to dumping polluted water which harms the environment. The third benefit is purely ascetic in that it improves the look and smell of our waterways.
How can people be encouraged to reduce water consumption and therefore the amount of waste water generated? What should governments do to promote reduced water usage?
People can be encouraged to reduce waste water through government action and public education. Government has a central role to play as they set policies and are able to put financial incentives in place to encourage citizen behaviour. By giving monetary incentives for business and individuals to meet government environmental standards more of these groups are likely to take action to meet these goals. Education, government organized or not, is also vital. The government is ultimately responsible to the people and unpopular government policies will result in eviction of the government. Public education through NGOs and government is vital to encourage change but it will take a comprehensive effort from educators, innovators, government and business to effect any real change in the way people treat water.
Why are noise and odour important social considerations when planning a water treatment plant?
Noise and odour are important social considerations when planning a wastewater treatment plant, as it is important to limit disruption to the people living near the plant. Social acceptability comes into the picture when sewage treatment is involved the NIMBY syndrome is fully engaged when there are plans to put a noisy smelly anything in someone’s back yard. Dumps, sewage treatment plants and highways all cause disturbance and have the potential to lower the quality of life for the people near they are built. To minimize social opposition to the placement of a wastewater plant it is important to emphasize the benefits that the plant provides to the people of the area and making maximum effort to minimize the negative effects of such a plant. People don’t like a sewage plant they can hear and smell everyday, they prefer one they don’t even know is there.
People usually reject proposals for siting of a sewage treatment plant (or any other plant) in their neighbourhood. This is known as the NIMBY syndrome. What are your views as an engineer or scientist on such reactions by local communities? What strategies can be used to deal with the NIMBY syndrome?
The NIMBY is an unfortunate side effect of our liberal democratic society where the emphasis of on self, not the group as a whole. If the mentality were a group mentality people would accept that sewage plants have to be placed somewhere and sometimes it happens to be in their neighbourhood. However people are more intent on removing any nuisance from their own lives, often willingly ignorant of where it goes as long as it doesn’t go anywhere near them. As a scientist, and a person, this is understandable, as no one wants their ocean view to become a community dump. It is because of this that scientists and engineers can understand the wants of the public and aim to make wastewater plants as least intrusive as possible.
The best strategy for NIMBY is rationalization that the location was chosen because it was the best location for such a plant. It is also important to ensure that the least number of people are affected and that the people that are affected are done so in the most minimal way possible. No one will object to an odourless invisible sewage plant and engineers, planners and scientists should make their best effort.
Examine the technology rankings you made in question (L) and then make a decision on the most sustainable aeration technology, assuming that you are Head of Engineering Division in a company. Explain your choice.
As the Head of the Engineering Division I tend to choose the Vitox method for its aeration efficiency. Ideally with proper funds I would be able to set up a plant to produce the oxygen necessary on-site so transportation costs are lowered. It is the best for operating costs and capital costs so the plant would have a lower budget. The one thing I would be worried about would be the cost of energy as the Vitox method does use more energy than the Fine bubble diffusers but the possibly of reclaiming some of the energy back through utilization of waste products from the plant would be investigated.
Using the same results, assume that you are a local resident and make a choice of the most sustainable technology. Explain.
As a local resident I would likely choose a technology that would primarily minimize the effects on me and my community and secondarily one that would minimize cost, as my tax dollars will most likely be paying for the plant. Without adequate information on the environmental ramifications of each of the options it would be difficult to make a choice without outside information. Ideally I would like to ask a local academic, people in other towns to see which they have and what experiences they have had, as well as local business people to see their opinion. In short I would need much more information as aeration efficiency doesn’t matter to me I want information on the visible effects of the plants types. If the outside effect is the same for all then I would choose the cheapest and longest lasting.
Using the same results, assume that you are an environmental activist and make a choice of the most sustainable technology.
As an activist I may not choose any of those options. There are other solar bioremediation techniques that could be used with less energy. Construction of wetlands to further purify the water coming out of the plant would also increase environmental friendliness while costing little. However if I was forced to choose between all the systems I would choose the Fine Bubble Diffusers for their low energy costs as no extra processing of oxygen is necessary. It seems to be the most effective when it comes to use of air. Other than energy use there is nothing really separating the different treatment options for me. I would choose any except the Vitox as it requires too much energy, necessitates construction of roads and/or extra buildings. Overall I would go with a less mechanical and more natural method but with the above choices it’s Fine Bubble diffusion.
Tags: engineering, environment, government, sustainable development
