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Innovative engineering techniques are emerging in a host of
engineering practice areas. High-performance materials are being
researched or utilized in major construction projects. The manner
in which projects are planned and financed is changing rapidly.
At the same time, the needs of the modern world are becoming ever
more complex and challenging. When these needs and our new capabilities
intersect, tremendous engineering possibilities and movements are
created.
In this article I focus on one of these movements, “sustainable
design,” and address the following specific questions:
- What is sustainability?
- Where does Turkey stand in sustainable development?
- Why is sustainability relevant to the future of engineering?
What Is Sustainability?
Sustainability represents the best engineering approach of all—the
recognition that no project exists in a vacuum, but in a social
and natural context that affects the project and is affected by
it in turn. If we take this holistic view of engineering, which
involves respecting the natural and human environment in the design,
construction and operation of our projects, we find distinct benefits
in terms of quality, technical innovations, and long-term social,
economic and environmental returns.
Chronology of Sustainability
The sustainability movement has its beginnings in the environmental
movement of the 1960s when the seminal book, The Silent Spring
by Rachel Carson, sounded a warning about the negative impact
the modern industrial age was having on the natural environment1.
During the 1980s the U.N. commission headed by Dr. Gro Harlem
Brundtland gave serious attention to the links between development
and the state of the environment, and published its findings
in a widely read report entitled “Our Common Future.”
The 1992 Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro focused international
attention on the issue and created a forum for major nations,
including Turkey, to commit to preservation and enhancement
of the natural environment and the quality of human life.
Several major events have occurred since then to keep the
momentum going, including the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which outlines
steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally, and the
2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg. |
As engineers, we need to go one step further in defining sustainability.
What does it mean for our profession? How is it related to the practice
of civil engineering, whether we are designing ports and waterways,
bridges, highways, buildings, dams, or power plants? What, in short,
does sustainable design involve?
Full answers are still taking shape as engineers explore more ways
to design sustainable projects, but the outlines have come together.
Some of the ways in which sustainability is relevant to specific
engineering practice are listed below. They demonstrate that a sustainable
approach is an integral part of that practice, and not something
imposed from without.
Ports and Waterways. “Green” ports
and sustainability in the design of waterways often involve treatment
and beneficial re-use or confined disposal of dredged material;
protection of air and water quality, and protection or restoration
of estuaries and natural habitats. They also involve control or
elimination of pollutants and the use of high performance and recycled
construction materials.
Buildings. “Green” building design
involves energy and water efficiency through daylighting, thermal
efficiency, use of solar panels and water-saving fixtures, and landscaping
that captures rainwater and reduces maintenance needs. It also involves
conserving resources through the use of recycled and locally available
materials and the re-use of existing structures where it is safe
to do so. Green construction methods, such as waste reduction and
noise and pollution control, help to minimize environmental impact
(reducing materials sent to landfills) and community impact (preserving
the quality of life during construction). Indoor safety and air
quality are also features linked to sustainability. Around the world,
standards have been or are being developed to guide owners, designers
and builders in achieving green designs2.
Energy. In power generation, sustainability involves
the exploitation of renewable sources of energy—solar, wind,
hydroelectric, geothermal, tidal, and biomass—as clean, cost-effective
alternatives to fossil-fuel combustion. Clearly, systems based on
these sources will have to meet the supply standard that has been
set by fossil fuels, but committed efforts to tap green power sources,
including wind, hydroelectric and geothermal, are already yielding
significant results in various parts of the globe.
Water and Wastewater Management. Sustainability
may involve water conservation and reclamation, the application
of technologies such as desalination to secure long-term supplies
of potable water while reducing groundwater stress, and environmental
protection and wastewater treatment measures to clean up polluted
waterways or prevent environmental damage.
Highways. Sustainability is related to highway
development through the consideration of aesthetic and community
impacts, the preservation of important cultural and historic resources,
and wildlife protection.
Mass Transit. Sustainable design can be achieved
with energy efficiency in train operations, green design and construction
of transit facilities, and resource conservation (through the use
of rainwater and gray water for washing operations, for example).
In fact, the very existence of mass transit promotes sustainability
because it reduces traffic congestion and vehicle pollution, reducing
fuel consumption and improving air quality—major quality-of-life
issues in cities around the world.
Where Does Turkey Stand in Sustainable Development?
Turkey has been an active participant in this global movement.
Its commitment to sustainability is illustrated by, for example:
- Its signing of the Biodiversity Treaty following the 1992 Earth
Summit.
- Its commitment to regional human development in the GAP Project3.
- President Sezer’s address during the 2002 World Summit
reaffirming Turkey’s commitment to the principles of sustainability.
- The city of Bursa was awarded a European Public Transport Award
in 2003 for reorganizing and integrating its public transport
system in line with principles of sustainability4.
-
Istanbul’s Marmaray Immersed Tube Tunnel Crossing of the Bosphorus, was designed with important sustainable features (Figure
1. Because the crossing is part of a mass transit rail project,
it will significantly alleviate road congestion and vehicle pollution
in the highly developed urban areas it serves. This project was
designed to have no permanent effect on aquatic habitats for the
very rich marine life of the Bosphorus. Other sustainable features
include the confined disposal of contaminated dredged material
and the fact that the tunnel will have no effect on currents or
salinity of the strait and the Black Sea and will have no negative
visual impact on the area5.
Turkey’s commitment to sustainability is consistent with
the general sustainable development strategy of the European Union,
and embraces the same basic principles and goals. Also, conditions
are favorable for the practice of sustainable design in many areas.
For example, Turkey recognizes the need to reduce foreign energy
and exploit local resources more fully to satisfy its substantial
and growing demand for energy. While hydroelectricity is an important
means to help meet this demand, Turkey also has other extensive
sources of clean, renewable energy, such as abundant solar, wind
and geothermal energy. Current estimates suggest that Turkey has
the seventh largest geothermal capacity in the world.
Why is Sustainability Relevant to the Future
of Engineering?
Sustainability is relevant to Turkish engineering as it provides
the following benefits:
- Expanded participation in an international engineering community
that recognizes sustainable design as part of the professional
future
- Professional growth and development, especially for new engineers,
through addressing new technical challenges and developing innovative
solutions
- The continuing enhancement of engineering education in Turkey,
already of high quality
- Expanded business opportunities abroad through involvement
in sustainable projects planned and developed around the world
and financed by international lending institutions.
As civil engineers, we have chosen a profession that enhances the
quality of human life. Sustainable design is a way to fulfill that
mission, not only for today but also for future generations. Global
firms such as PB have embraced sustainability in both technical
and business practice, and other businesses in other industries
are recognizing its value and doing the same. Yet, as Sir Mark Moody-Stuart
observed at the 2002 UN World Summit on Sustainable Development
in Johannesburg: “Even those companies at the forefront of
sustainable development are close to the start of the journey. We
are very much on the first rung of the ladder.”
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Vahan Tanal has been with PB for a total of 29 years. During that
time he has gained renown as a specialist in marine geotechnical
engineering in the areas of contaminated sediment dredging, confined
disposal facilities and man-made islands, design and construction;
taught graduate courses in foundation engineering as adjunct professor
at Columbia University in New York; and taught professional engineering
licensing test review courses in Soils & Foundations for the
American Society of Civil Engineers. Vahan has been involved in
the development and engineering of the Bosphorus Immersed Tube Tunnel
project for almost 20 years. He is a strong proponent of sustainable
design and green ports.
Related Web Sites
• GAP Project: http://www.allaboutturkey.com/gap.htm
• Marmaray Immersed Tube Tunnel Project: http://www.tunnelbuilder.com/
1 Rachel Carson (1907 – 1964) was a biologist, ecologist
and writer. Silent Spring, which appeared in 1962, exposed the dangers
of the powerful pesticide DDT and the threat it posed to a wide
range of species and to the world food supply. More generally, it
revealed the devastating effect human activity could have on the
natural environment. Other relevant studies from the period are
Paul Ehrlich’s exploration of the dangers of overpopulation
and its relation to sustainability, and E.F. Schumacher’s
1973 book Small Is Beautiful, which proposed the use of earth-friendly
technology that is proportionate to the scale of the community using
it.
2 For information on many of these standards please see “Overview
of Sustainable Development Standards Used around the World,”
an article by Suzanne Johnson Crocker.
3 GAP (South Eastern Anatolian Project) is a multi-sectoral and
integrated regional development project based on the concept of
sustainable development. Its basic aim is to eliminate regional
development disparities by raising people's income level and living
standards; and to contribute to such national development targets
as social stability and economic growth by enhancing the productive
and employment generating capacity of the rural sector. The project
area covers nine provinces in the Euphrates-Tigris basins and Upper
Mesopotamia plains.
4 The Statement by His Excellency Ahmet Necdet Sezer, President
of the Republic of Turkey, was delivered at the World Summit on
Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa on September
2, 2002. He urged that participants should “take steps to
reconfirm our commitment to the principles of Rio and to strongly
establish the relation between economic and social development and
protection of the environment.”
5 The Bosphorus is a narrow, navigable strait between Europe and
Asia, and the only access from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea.
It has two opposing currents, and it provides a pathway for the
annual migration of fish between the two seas. The Marmaray Immersed
Tube Tunnel is one of the most ambitious and complex projects of
its kind. It features a 1.8-kilometer (1.1-mile) –long tunnel
in 50 m of water (the deepest immersed tube crossing in the world),
below one of the busiest and most narrow waterways in the region.
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