ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL
HEALTH ENGINEERING
TECHNOLOGY
Mrs. Boyd
OSH 320
MR. GORE’S NEW OPTIMISM
• Investment in renewable energy sources like wind and solar
have sky rocketed
• Prices of the above have plummeted
• Experts in 2000 predicted 30 gigawatts of wind generated
power by 2010; actual was 200 gigawatts (370 in 2014)
• In Bangladesh, every minute two homes get roof top solar
panels
MR. GORE’S NEW OPTIMISM (CONT.)
• AT&T projected 900,000 cellphones to be sold
by 2000; actual 109 million
• As of 2015 there were more than 7 billion
• What does this tell us in relation to the
environment?
AIR QUALITY
• Clean Air Acts
• Congress designed to combat common air pollutants
• CO, Nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particles, ozone & lead
• Aggregate emissions dropped by 69% between 1970-2014
• Decrease in respiratory diseases and birth defects
• Pollution control devices installed in plants
• Heavy duty truck are 98% cleaner than 1970 models
TITLE V AIR PERMIT
• Application can take 45 days to get approved
• Will need to be renewed every 5 years
• Applies if you emit more than 50 tons of VOCs or Nitrogen Oxides
• If you emit 100 pounds or more of HAPs equal or above the Major
Source Threshold per year
• 10 pounds of any HAP or combo of 25 tons
NOISE CONTROL ACT
• Noise control Act 1972
• Quiet Communities Act of 1978
• Airports
• Transportation
• Construction
TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL ACT
• Developed in 1976
• Preventative medicine legislation
• Requires reporting, record keeping and testing of required
chemicals
• Doesn’t include food, drugs, cosmetics or pesticides
• Regulates disposal of PCB’s, asbestos, lead-based paint and
radon
RESOURCE CONSERVATION AND
RECOVERY ACT
• Developed in 1970
• “Cradle to the Grave”
• Must be labeled:
• “Hazardous Waste”
• Accumulation Time
• Lab information
NATIONAL ENERGY ACT
• Developed in 1978
• Developed in response to the “first oil shock” in 1973
• Oil barrels went from $3 to $12 a barrel globally
• 1974 mandated year around day-light savings
• “Last out, lights out” “Don’t be fuelish” campaigns
• 1974 stock market crash
• Alternative powers created
LAND USE ACTS
• National Coast Zone Management ~ 1972
• Forest Reserves Management Acts ~1974/1976
• Federal Land Policy Management ~ 1976
• National Forest Management Act ~ 1976
• Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act ~ 1977
• Endangered American Wilderness Act ~ 1978
FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL
ACT
• Developed in 1972
• “Clean Water Act”
• Regulates the discharge of pollutants into the waterways
• Water Permit-State specific usually
• National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)
• Monitors for example:
•
•
•
•
•
TSS
Opacity
Oil/grease
Phosphorus
PH
OCEAN DUMPING ACT
• Developed in 1972
• Marine, Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA)
• Prevents any dumping that could have an adverse affect on
human health, marine, etc.
• Permits required for dumping
SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT
• Developed in 1974
• Includes water that comes from Public Works
• Publically produces report annually on water testing
• Controlled by state in Kentucky
WILDLIFE ACTS
• Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Control Act
of 1972
• Endangered Species Act of 1973
• Threatened species 30-50% population decline
• Endangered species 50-70% decline
EXAMPLES OF RENEWABLE RESOURCES
• Fertile soil
• Products of the land:
• Agricultural Products
• Rangeland & Forestland
• Wild Animals
• Products of the lakes
• Groundwater and surface water
EXAMPLES OF RENEWABLE RESOURCES
(CONT.)
• Energy sources
• Solar power
• Wind power
• Tidal power
• Hydropower
• Ecosystems
EXAMPLES OF NON RENEWABLE
RESOURCES
• Fossil Fuels
• Nonmetallic minerals
• Rock
• Glass
• Sand
• Metals
• Gold
• Platinum
• Copper
APPROACHES TO NATURAL RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
• Exploitation: A Human-Centered Approach
• Preservation: A Nature-Centered Approach
HUMAN CENTERED APPROACH
• Natural resources should be used intensely as possible to
provide greatest profit
• Slogan for logger in the 1800’s “Get in, log off the trees, get
out”
• Maximize human gain
A NATURE-CENTERED APPROACH
• Preservation approach
• John Muir-preservation of the wilderness
• Preserved for future generations
• Formed in response to the human centered approach results
UTILITARIAN APPROACH
• Manage reusable resources so they will never be exhausted
• When area is logged off-area should be replanted
• When fish are harvested from a lake or stream they should
be replaced
• Human centered approach
• “Protect a nation’s resources by harvesting them at rates that
can be sustained over the long run”
SUSTAINABLE APPROACH
• Understanding ecology
• Protect the entire ecosystem
• Soil
• Plants
• Animals
• Carrying capacity of the system
• Support periodic fires
• Harvest of certain fish to keep them from taking over
EFFECTS OF PROPOSED TIMBER
MANAGEMENT
• Will water runoff be accelerated?
• Will the resultant cause soil erosion destroy trout spawning?
• What will happen to the deer, grouse and other wildlife if their
breeding ground is element?
• Will the scar left after the stand has been logged off cause visual
pollution to motorists?
• What effect will this timber harvest have on the build of carbon
dioxide?
SUSTAINABLE APPROACH (CONT)
• Core reserve
• Region left exclusively for plants and animals
• Off limits to humans
• Buffer zones
• Areas of minimal human intrusion and impact
• Human activities are allowed in limited capacities
ENVIRONMENTAL SYNERGIES
• Potential for several problems to affect the environment
• Nemesis Effect- Worldwatch Institute
• Example:
• Acid rain + global warming= loss of a species
• We will begin to see this focus in the coming decades
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS
• Computer system used to assemble information
• Can help us analyze a trend, detect change and formulate a
policy
• For example:
• Rainfall and stream flow data
• Comparing air quality data vs hospital records
OVERLAY OPERATIONS
OVERLAY BENEFITS
• It can show how a hazardous chemical can flow through the
surface water and into the ground water
• Emergency service help
• Polar bears migration routes are tracked for 2 years
REMOTE SENSING
• Gathering data from a remote view
• Aerial view
• Satellite pictures
RISK ASSESSMENTS
• Technique that allows one to analyze existing or potential hazards
• Anthropogenic risk
• Air Pollution
• Water Pollution
• Natural
• Tornadoes
• Hurricanes
THREE STEPS IN RISK ASSESSMENT
• Hazard Identification
• Estimation of risk
• Risk acceptability
• Perceived harm
• Perceived benefit
• Seat belts & cars
• Chemical exposure and cancer
CHAPTER 1 REVIEW
GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS
• Large and rapidly growing population
• 6.67 Billion ~ 2008
• Estimate 8 Billion ~ 2025
• Depletion of natural resources
• Renewable Resources
• Non Renewable Resources
RESOURCE DEPLETION
• The higher the standard of living, use much more of the
worlds resource’s
• U.S. has less than 5% of the world’s population, but consumes
30% of the world’s resources
• Use of these resources create more pollution (example: oil
use and air pollution)
RESOURCE DEPLETION (CONT)
• Ecosystems play a large part in the well being and global
economy
• Conservation is defined as a state of harmony between humans
and land
• Three different view point regarding resource depletion
• Optimistic
• Pessimistic
• Moderate
20TH CENTURY HAD 4 WAVES
• Under the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt
• Presidency of Franklin Roosevelt (several programs post dust
bowl)
• Environmental decade
• UN conference development and Al Gore
ECONOMICS, ETHICS, AND
CRITICAL THINKING
Chapter 2
UNDERSTANDING ECONOMICS
Economics is the science that seeks to explain
production, distribution and consumption
MICROECONOMICS
• Economic behavior based on individuals
• Inputs
• Households, Individuals and business
• Outputs
• Goods
• Services
MACROECONOMICS
• Branch of economics that deals with the big picture
• National/regional economy
• Performance
• Structure
• Behavior
• Taxes, growth and inflation
PIZZA EXAMPLE
• Over a dozen pizza services in Murray (macro economics)
• Franchises have national advertising (macro economics)
• Unemployment insurance cost & inflation (macro economics)
• Inputs (micro economics)
• Commodities (Cheese, Meats, Various Ingredients)
• Outputs (micro economics)
• Delivery
• Pizza
COMMAND ECONOMY
• Planned economy
• Government manages all decisions for who gets what
• Cuba
• China
MARKET ECONOMIES
• Decisions on goods and services are made by individuals
• Based on customer interest
• Consumer determines what you produce
• Supply and demand
• Command and Market are polar opposites, but most
economies have both
UNITED STATES
• Market economy is highly influenced by public policy
• This alters the free market economy
• Oil Companies given tax breaks
• Further mineral exploration & development
• U.S. Military
• Protects oil tankers in the Persian Gulf ~ $50 Billion
• Refined oil is estimated to be worth $10 Billion
• If company paid, cost of oil would dramatically increase
COMMAND ECONOMY
• Government owned most businesses during the Communist
movement
• 10s of thousands of government owned businesses were sold
to individuals
• Communist party foundation now houses a shopping center
that has a Starbucks
SHORT-TERM PLANNING
• There is a disconnect between environmental planning and
the economy
• Short-term planning in business
• 1-5 years (example rancher/oil prices)
• Environmental planning is long-term in nature
• 100-200 years
• Replacement costs
FALSE MEASURES OF PROGRESS
• Gross National Product (GNP)
• Measures goods and services
• Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
• Total Progress
• Tobacco Purchase and Piano Lesson Purchase Example
GENUINE PROGRESS INDICATOR
• Relates to health and well being
• How has the country’s economic growth, resulting from
production and consumption of goods improved the health
and well being of people
RETHINKING AN OLD DEBATE
• Environmental protection is bad for the economy
• Design is important part of this process
• Prevention is key to the future
• Economy=is about survival=a necessity
• Environmental=is about quality of life=luxury
RETHINKING AN OLD DEBATE (CONT)
• Environmental is less important than manufacturing because
it produces jobs and income
• Most people spend money on food, clothing, shelter and
lastly improve the quality of their lives
HOW THIS PROVES WRONG
• 1950-1970’s
• Arizona
• # of jobs was 5.5 times higher than the U.S. average
• The per capita income was only 2% above the national average
• California
• # of jobs was 2.3 times higher than the U.S. average
• The per capita income was 13% lower than the national average
SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY
Produces goods and services that does not foreclose
on future generations
ECONOMIC RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
• Time Preference
• Opportunity Costs
• Discounting
TIME PREFERENCE
• Return on Investment (ROI)
• Invest in training at the cost of $800
• My average class will bring in $900
• How quickly do I earn that money back?
• What is my ROI?
OPPORTUNITY COSTS
• Narrow view when it comes to profits
• Farming makes $10,000 profit
• 7% per year by investing it into mutual funds
• 3% per year by investing it into soil preservation efforts
DISCOUNTING
• Solar wind turbine investment “x” amount
• Cost of the system
• Maintenance costs
• Look at 30 years prediction of electrical cost
• Inflation
• Electrical cost increases
COSTING:
COST OF THE DEVICE VS SAVINGS
• New LED bulbs 6-7.5 watts vs. a traditional bulb 60 watts
• 10 LED lights installed in our house=wattage of one bulb
• Three times the cost per bulb1/10 the energy use
• Prevention vs. Pollution Control
• Green tipped fluorescent bulbs
• Traditional fluorescent bulbs
ALTERNATIVE MEASURES OF PROGRESS
• National Inventory
• Green Taxes
• More common in Europe (More than 50 taxable items)
• U.S. taxes companies that emit ozone depleting
items/processes