Custodians of the environment
Environmental engineering is the application of science and engineering principles for the protection and improvement of public health and the environment, including air, water and land resources. It involves water treatment, water and air pollution control, land protection and reclamation industrial and hazardous waste containment and treatment, and municipal solid waste management, including the recycling of materials and energy recovery. It also includes studies on the environmental impact of proposed infrastructure and resource development projects.
- The environmental engineering program is multidisciplinary, meaning training from other colleges and other fields of engineering is valuable and worthwhile for an environmental engineer. You may earn a Bachelor of Engineering degree and a degree from the College of Arts & Science at the same time. An additional year to 18 months of study is normally required. Some areas that students have combined with engineering include computer science, biology and biochemistry.
- ENVE 201: Principles of Environmental Engineering
Population, economic growth, industrialization, urbanization and energy-use, as causes of environmental pollution. Mass and energy balance for environmental engineering systems under steady state and unsteady state conditions. Contaminant partitioning and transport in air, water and solids. Application of environmental principles (technical and non-technical) to: water resource management, water and wastewater treatment, air pollution control, solid waste management, environmental impact assessment, and environmental ethics. Thermal pollution, noise pollution, greenhouse effect, acid precipitation, ozone depletion, air toxics, and ground-level ozone and fine particulates (photochemical smog). Sustainable development and life cycle analysis. Review of the principles of environmental quality objectives, standards and guidelines.
- CE 468: Geoenvironmental Engineering
Introduction to wastes, contaminants and contaminant transport processes in the subsurface. A review of the design elements of natural and engineered barriers and analytical tools for barrier systems and for remediation of subsurface contamination. Case studies of containment and remediation systems for municipal, mining and industrial wastes.
- CHE 454: Design of Industrial Waste Treatment Systems
Air pollution topics include causes and effects of air pollution, sampling and analysis of air and stack gas samples, stack gas dispersion models, and the design of industrial control measures for particulates. Water pollution topics include causes and effects of water pollution, biology of receiving waters and treatment systems, sampling and analysis of wastewaters, and industrial control measures including biological methods such as trickling filters, aeration basins and activated sludge systems.
With a degree in environmental engineering, your employment options are varied. Some possible careers include the following:
- working in the public or private sectors
- municipal (both urban and rural), provincial or federal governments
- working as an engineering consultant
- developing waste management and land reclamation methods
- overseeing project management
- developing resources (for example, mining)
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