ENGINEERING a sustainable future

The need for engineering solutions to environmental problems has never been more apparent. For this reason, the environment represents a great business opportunity and offers many career prospects for process engineers. In a recent engineering journal over 20 per cent of the jobs advertised carried environmental responsibilities of some form. And in the UK, £14billion (or about 2 per cent of GDP) is spent each year on environmental improvement(1).

In recent times process engineers have been called upon to design and operate systems which reduced emissions to the environment. These systems were typically introduced as `bolt-on' solutions in response to changing regulatory requirements, but such responsive measures are no longer sufficient.

Many commentators argue that even if all the companies in the developed world were, in the near future, to achieve zero emissions then the planet would still be stressed beyond its carrying capacity. There are two primary reasons for this: firstly, at the behest of the developed world, we are witnessing a shift of heavy industry and its associated environmental impact to developing countries; secondly, we continue to deplete the earth's natural resources as population and economic growth continue at an unrelenting pace.

It is becoming increasingly difficult for individual governments to regulate the typical transnational corporation. Who can effectively regulate a chemical company active in 100 countries? The emergence of the concept of `sustainable development' is due, in part, to the need for organisations to take a lead and willingly improve performance.

There are many definitions of sustainable development. However, the essence is that environmental and social values be considered in equal measure with economic growth. The key to achieving sustainable development is to take a balanced approach. If an effective balance is struck then good performance in one area will reinforce performance in others. To illustrate this, and the part process engineers will need to play, consider the link between environment and economic performance.

The total environmental burden (EB) created by human activity is said to be a function of three factors(2). They are population (P); affluence (A), which is a proxy for consumption; and technology (T), which is how wealth is created. The product of these three factors determines the total environmental burden. It can be expressed as:

EB = f(P,A,T)

Achieving sustainability will require stabilising or reducing the environmental burden. A reversal in economic growth would not be desirable, and while a reduction in population may be desirable it is unlikely to be practicable. The environmental burden must therefore be addressed primarily through technology. Effective technological responses will reduce the environmental burden but also present an opportunity to capitalise on the market for such technologies.

The challenge for engineers, therefore, will be to develop processes that have inherently lower environmental impact and are economically attractive. There are three concepts to guide engineers in this:

Clean Production (also commonly referred to as pollution prevention or waste minimisation) programmes focus on reducing pollution from existing manufacturing processes through process optimisation. The principles lie firmly within the total quality management (TQM) philosophy. The tenet of pollution prevention is that waste equals process loss and therefore equals material and financial loss. In the words of 3M `pollution prevention pays'. 3M has been running its `3P' programme since the 1970s. In this time the company has saved hundreds of millions of dollars(3) through reformulating products, modifying processes, redesigning equipment and recovering waste material for re-use. At one DuPont site, toxic emissions were reduced by 99 per cent through closed loop recycling and substitution of raw materials, saving $2.5million in capital and $3million in operating costs.

When to use clean production techniques? In process design and process operation.

Clean Technology is the name given to new technologies that are inherently clean or cleaner than existing technology. The technology is the result of `breakthrough' thinking on new ways of meeting demand for particular goods and services. Clean technology is less resource intensive and less polluting than existing technologies. However, the opportunity to adopt clean technology usually arises only when building new facilities or when existing plant becomes obsolete.

When to use clean technology? At the conceptual design stage.

Design for the Environment. Whereas clean technology and clean production are primarily process-focused, design for the environment is focused on product design. The aim is to design a product which has the lowest overall impact on the environment during manufacturing, product use and at the end of the product's life. This may mean reducing energy consumption during product use or avoiding use of raw materials that will cause disposal difficulties. Many companies now design products in such a way that the product and many of its components can be recycled. In 1995 Rank Zerox saved $12million through recycling of photocopiers; in that year the company recovered 80,000 of the 120,000 copiers discarded each year in Europe(3).

When should you use design for the environment? Primarily, at the product identification, product design and process design stages.

Process engineers must become familiar with all the above concepts and apply them. However, the efforts of engineers will only be rewarded if their sustainability activities are an integral part of a formal business management system. Admirable management standards, such as ISO 9000 and ISO14001, encourage good practice and force organisations to consider discrete business issues, namely quality and environmental impact. Sustainability must command a higher order of recognition within the business.

Companies such as BP Amoco and ABB are implementing business strategies based on the principles of sustainable development. At DNV we are helping them assess their performance against corporate commitments. Other organisations need to follow this lead if they are to survive the demands, and reap the benefits, of sustainable development. PE

Stephen McKay is a senior consultant with Det Norske Veritas (DNV).

References

(1) Indicators of Sustainable Development for the United Kingdom, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, 1997

(2) Hart, S.L. Strategies for a Sustainable World Harvard Business Rev, Jan, 1997

(3) Elkington, J. Cannibals with Forks Capstone Publishing, 1997