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Education practices for sustainability
The importance of sustainable developments in civil engineering
Education practices for sustainability
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INTRODUCTION:
Civil Engineering is evolving and its evolution needs to increase. This report endeavours to place the progression of technology and the addition of engineering into its archival background. With the increasing problems that tackle the world of civil Engineering and Structural designs, solutions need to be yielded to protect and maintain structural forms not just in our present age but in the future to come. The major setback is that our present approach to advancement is unsustainable. We are severely abusing resources, generating pollution and making species extinct. One cannot stress enough the need for development at a sustainable level. I also intend to explain the physical and material properties of steel, the process of its production and how sustainable it is in construction of structures.
SUSTAINABILITY AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT:
Sustainability or sustainable living is development that satisfies the demands of the present without compromising the competence of future generations to satisfy their own needs.
Sustainable development is generally conceptualized as having three amplitudes which are most times seen as overlying circles. They are: environmental, social and economic.
Sustainable development involves the taking in of all three amplitudes and minimizing the concession made between the factors.
Civil engineering plays a very significant influence on advancement toward sustainable development by applying intelligence and experience to develop projects that satisfy human demands and solve environmental issues. However, civil engineering needs to contribute more to sustainable development along the whole chain of production and consumption, including:
• Obtaining and refining natural resources
• Prepar...
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... making is energy and carbon intensive but significant progress has been made to reduce this (Sansom 2013). Low carbon buildings and structures with good BREEAM (Building research establishment’s environmental assessment method) rating are effortlessly attainable using steel in construction.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, a world full of sustainable structures are the ultimate goal for civil engineers and structural designers. With the rapid evolution of technology, achieving this goal should not be a difficult feat. However, I believe that there is plenty more needed to be done especially in the area of utilizing the right resources to make a cleaner, safer and more sustainable world. Production of the resources can also be made at a lower carbon emission rate, engineers and engineers in training also need to be more educated on the global trend that is sustainability.
Construction industry is one of the significant industries in Canada. The low interest rates in Canada fuelled the demand of housing, which brings the Canadian construction industry with a CAGR of 2% between 2008 and 2012 (Companies and Markets, 2013). The fact is that building construction has a considerable effect on the environment. It is a major consumer of raw materials, land and energy, as well as generates a mass of Greenhouse gas and other pollution (USA EPA, 2008). According to the data from Statistics Canada (2012), the construction sector produced 2.1% of total Canadian industrial sector’s GHG emissions in 2008. The purpose of this project is to convince the construction companies in Waterloo region to adapt feasible best practices for GHG emission reduction during construction process. Therefore, guidance for GHG emissions calculation and best practices should be determined firstly.
As society becomes increasingly more aware of the decline of the environment, it is the responsibility of the inhabitants of this Earth to both rid of further damage as well as improve the current standing of the land. More specifically, engineers must be mindful of the Earth and it’s condition as their job relates directly a great deal of the time to the environment. Civil engineers, in particular, are hands on with the environment as they are constantly dealing with the land and constructing structures that might have an affect on the surroundings. Engineers must consider a wide variety of factors while doing their job. For example, engineers cannot simply be concerned with the easiest design or a lower cost when they need to be aware of
Started in 2008, the construction of the skyscraper is expected to complete late this year, with it being open to public in 2015. The Shanghai tower is the second tallest building in the world; second only to the Burj Khalifa in Dubai (at 829.8m). China is no stranger to tall feats of engineering, possessing many of the top 20 tallest buildings in the world. This time round, however, the focus was on the design and sustainability. The big challenge of the current world is sustainability, and so too, was it a challenge for the civil and design engineers on this project. Many key points that the design team wanted to achieve included electricity generation, reducing wind loads, more efficient use of construction material as well as being economically viable to maintain and run. It also had to be an eye pleaser too!
My argument is how sustainable architecture can be used and how it can benefit the Earth and it’s residence in an environmental or cost-effective way. Thus, leading to exploration of the different forms, of technology and materials used. Further developing my research on how culture, or time, might have affected, what or why, the building might have been constructed in a certain way, and also how the location might have affected the designs, of the buildings.
Thus, we conclude, that civil engineering is considered as the first discipline of the various branches of engineering after military engineering, and includes the designing, planning, construction, and maintenance of the infrastructure. The works include numerous facilities that affect the life of human beings. It is intimately associated with the private and public sectors, including the individual homeowners and international enterprises. It is one of the oldest engineering professions, and ancient engineering achievements due to civil engineering include the pyramids of Egypt and road systems developed by the Romans.
Sustainable buildings are becoming somewhat of a necessity in the world today. As the demand for green building develops, so does the demand for green building materials. Just as the old techniques and building materials seem to disappear in the assembly of things, they are now making a come back. Green building focuses on the efficiency of major resources like water and energy. As the cost for sustainable materials and products are on the decline, building green seems to be the most cost effective kind of design and construction. Looking specifically at green materials and their impact on the production of structures, it is evident that they are a prime choice for building material. The use of green materials should be promoted because they are better for the environment, more healthful for the consumer, and better for the economy.
Sustainability is a concept with a diverse array of meanings and definitions – a widely used glamorous, ambiguous, ambivalent and vague concept that is used by different stakeholder groups in various ways. Presumably to avoid noodling over a terminology or to avoid the confrontation with a definition, most widely the concept is broken down a planning process (c.f. e.g. Döring & Muraca, 2010). That is why most common sustainability is understood as sustainable development.1
Sustainable design seeks to reduce negative impacts on the environment, the health and comfort of building occupants, thereby improving building performance. The basic objects of sustainability are to reduce consumption of non-renewable resources, minimal waste, and create healthy, productive environments (“Sustainable Design”). Focusing primarily on the sustainable design principles, there are five, including: low-impact materials, energy efficiency, quality and durability, design for reuse and recycling, and renewability. As sustainability appears to become the necessary trend in architecture, the question concerning the cost versus outcome of “going green” really an investment or a waste of time and money comes to mind. With our research provided below, we believe the expenses may truly be with the investment in the end.
In conclusion, civil engineers have a responsibility to deal with current issues in a professional and ethical manner for the benefit of society. The topics discusses included: high energy consumption of buildings, the need for efficient water resources, transportation planning, poor infrastructures doomed to failure, the need to have higher standards to become a licensed professional engineer, how globalization has affected all engineers, and the need to have more professional use advance engineering informatics. All these subjects were pondered about how these challenges can be overcome are there effective methods that engineers can apply today. Unfortunately, not all problems are easy to handle.
“Sustainable Development: At its heart, sustainable development is the simple idea of ensuring a good quality of life for everyone, now and for generations to come. It is about living within the carrying capacity of the environment so that how we live, work and enjoy leisure activities, which do not harm or put undue pressures on the environment. It is about ensuring everyone has the opportunity to have a decent education, a quality environment that they take pride in, good health and a decent job (n.p, 2014)”
Today's problems are more complex and the needs of current and future societies have created challenges for engineering unparalleled in our history. The use of electronic data collection methods and the application of computers has revolutionized the practice of Civil Engineering. To interpret and satisfy these needs, Civil Engineers currently direct the spending of more than one tenth of Canada's gross national product, more than any other professional group. The Civil Engineer must deal with the human impact of engineering. Social, moral and legal issues concern us to a far greater degree than ever before.
Sustainable concrete materials and sustainable steel reinforcement have been introduced to civil engineers to get closer to the sustainable development. Sustainable buildings constructed with use of these materials have shown an increased service life and the final cost has been reduced due to them.
The first is to encourage economic growth and sustainable development. It emphasizes the need for economic growth, the need to improve the level of contemporary human welfare through economic growth, enhance national strength and social wealth. However, sustainable development should not only pay attention to the amount of economic growth, but also to the pursuit of quality of economic growth. That is economic development, including growth in the number and quality improvement in two parts. Growth in the number is limited, and rely on scientific and technological progress and improving the effectiveness of economic activity and quality, adopt a scientific mode of economic growth is sustainable. Flag of sustainable development is the sustainable use of resources and good ecological environment. Economic and social development can not exceed the carrying capacity of resources and the
In class we discussed what sustainable development meant to us; each group had its own definition. Our group’s definition was that sustainable development is for the long term for future generations, for the basic needs such as food, clothing, shelter, and job. The basic will increase over time and our resources will diminish, which why sustainable development is important. Sustainable development is important for future generations so that they end up with a world better than ours. Sustainable development is achievable if society works together to meet everyone’s basic needs and create a better world.
‘Development that meets the needs of the present with the ability for the future generation to meet their own needs.’ (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987) Sustainable development requires three key components: economy, society and environment, sustainable development can be success through striking balance in those factors. These three components are indispensible, they compel to depend on each other. On the other words, we can only gain a decent and energetic environment and society if the economy is strong with a healthy a stable growth rate.