Fanying Sun
L09
THE KEY OF HANDALING SEWAGE TREATMENT
Fanying Sun (fas24@pitt.edu)
the blowout preventer valves, but these attempts didn’t work.
Then, researchers tried to put a 125-ton containment dome
over the leak and pump the spill oil to a container on the
surface. However, these efforts were also unsuccessful. Thus,
setting a small complete sewage system is not the ends,
engineers should have continuous responsibility to enhance
the wastewater treatment and serve the society.
Introduction
Engineers are those people who have the duty to improve the
quality of people’s lives and bring more convenience to
society. Nowadays, engineers have had a huge success in
society. In order to treat the water pollution, engineers have
designed a complete sewage treatment. However, as
civilization develops, a complete wastewater treatment is not
enough. Engineers have to face more difficult challenges
than before. As water pollution becomes one of the most
serious problems in society, engineers should have a
continuous responsibility and an environmental awareness to
think in establishing a perfect sewage system to improve the
quality and quantity of water. Engineers who only have
competencies and ignore the importance of ethics will not
achieve success.
Nowadays, most water is used in agricultural irrigation. In
order to save water during irrigation, engineers now use drip
irrigation instead of surface irrigation. Simple irrigation
systems were used in the early 19th century. Water is
released drop by drop through tiny holes and delivered to
roots of plants. However, tiny holes are easily clogged by
small particles. After World War ll, drip irrigation improved
by using plastic emitters which released water through larger
holes. Due to the improvement of the drip irrigation system,
water is now irrigated efficiently now. Evaporation and
runoff of water are also reduced.
Sewage Treatment
The treatment of industrial wastewater is complicated. Most
industries use sedimentation techniques to remove the solids,
then Skimming devices are later used to remove the oil and
grease in the water. Some biodegradable organics in
wastewater can also be cleaned efficiently by using a sludge
process and a trickling filter process. Chemicals such as
acids and alkalis can normally be neutralized. Toxic
materials which are the most harmful pollutants are treated
by landfilling or recycling.
Although engineers have solved problems on how to use
water efficiently, new problems appear. In order to use
fertilizers more effectively, today’s irrigation normally
mixes fertilizer with water, but the irrigation causes damage
and pollution. As Christy Goodman said in the Washington
Post, “drip-irrigation sewage system would post risk” [1]
Nowadays, some irrigation systems are set near shopping
malls. Most wastewater which is produced during drip
irrigation is filtered through the field near the shopping malls.
If engineers don’t do upkeep on drip-irrigation systems in
this area, pipes will break in the drip field. As Klein says in
the Washington Post, “the community is worried about
poorly treated sewage coming to the surface grounds in
fields where kids could be playing”[2]. A drip-irrigation
sewage system does not seem as environmentally friendly as
engineers used to think. Since drip irrigation will post risk to
people, engineers should be environmentally conscious to
find a good position where it could occur.
It seems like engineers have already created a good sewage
system to treat the wastewater. However, when engineers
meet with industrial incidents, these wastewater treatments
are useless. The BP oil spill has been reported as one of the
worst disasters in the world. The well in the Gulf of Mexico
exploded on April 20th and began to spill over the ocean. It
is estimated that 162,000 barrels of oil leaked per day. The
government tried to prevent the oil by capping the wellhead,
but the spill flow rate decreased to 62,000 barrels of oil leak
per day. The large flow rate still has an effect on the natural
balance of the environment. The government attempted to
stop the oil spill, but efforts have failed. The scientific
researchers first attempted to use underwater robots to close
The Importance of Ethics
University of Pittsburgh
Swanson School of Engineering
Oct.28th 2010
1
Fanying Sun
The study of Engineering Ethics is valuable and important.
Although many freshmen go to the Engineering school, they
actually don’t know why they want to be engineers. May be,
engineering is just their random pick or their parents’
expectation. By studying ethics in the engineering, students
will understand how engineers impact the whole society.
After reading many articles and codes, I began to understand
the responsibility in bringing safety and protection of the
environment to the public. Also, I began to recognize the
existence of risk and harm to humans. As William M.
Sullivan said, “Engineering education cannot fully prepare
students to handle successfully the most difficult situations
in which their work seems to entail risks to the public, but
helping students to understand and deeply internalize the
core values of safety and environmental protection can
sensitize them to these issues and flag for them the kinds of
situation in which action of some kind may be
necessary.”[6]Therefore, I think the study of ethics is
essential and valuable.
It is important for engineers to have a good understanding of
the NSPE Code of Ethics. By reading through the canons,
engineers can know what they should or should not do in
their professional field. In order to serve the whole society,
engineers should not only have professional competencies
but also possess engineering ethics. It is said in the NSPE
Code of Ethics “Engineering has a direct and vital impact on
the quality of life for all people. Accordingly, the services
provided by engineers require honesty, impartiality, fairness,
and equity, and must be dedicated to the protection of the
public health, safety, and welfare. Engineers must perform
under a standard of professional behavior that requires
adherence to the highest principles of ethical conduct.”[3]
Thus, ethics and profession are inseparable.
According to the NSPE Code of Ethics, “Engineers shall
hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the
public.”[4] As water pollution becomes one of the most
serious problems in society, engineers are trying their best to
establish a perfect system to control water pollution.
Nowadays, sewage systems are widely used in industries,
agriculture and domestics. The reason why engineers are so
considered with the improvement of water treatment is
because they have the duty of bringing safety, health and
welfare to the civilization. It is the ethics that force engineers
to find the goal and the duty of serving the public. However,
when facing huge disasters, like the BP Oil Spill, engineers
are obliged to have continuous duty of preventing water
pollution. If engineers didn’t have a full recognition of ethic
codes, they would not know that sewage systems are still not
good enough to handle big contaminative accidents and
would not try their best to reduce the damage to the
ecosystems. Thus, ethics is crucial to the profession of
engineering.
Conclusion
Ethics and profession are inseparable. As the continuous
development of the civilization, engineers will face more
challenges in the future. Engineers should consider the
Ethics, holding the safety and health of the public first and
foremost. Also, while improving the efficiency of
wastewater treatment, engineers are ought to recognize the
potential risks to humans.
Reference
[1]Washington Post Staff Writer (2008) the Washington Post
“Development
Draws
Fire
in
Calvert”
[online]
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic/?csi=8075&sr=headline%
28Development+Draws+Fire+In+Calvert%3B+Sewage+Treatment+Would
+Pose+Risks%2C+Group+Says%29+and+date+is+August+24%2C+2008[2
]The Washington Post (2008) “Development Draws Fire in Calvert” [online]
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic/?csi=8075&sr=headline%
28Development+Draws+Fire+In+Calvert%3B+Sewage+Treatment+Would
+Pose+Risks%2C+Group+Says%29+and+date+is+August+24%2C+2008[3
]National Society of Professional Engineers “Code of Ethics for Engineers”
http://www.nspe.org/Ethics/CodeofEthics/index.html[4] National Society of
Professional
Engineers
“Code
of
Ethics
for
Engineers”
http://www.nspe.org/Ethics/CodeofEthics/index.html[5]National Society of
Professional
Engineers
“Code
of
Ethics
for
Engineers”
http://www.nspe.org/Ethics/CodeofEthics/index.html
[6] Journal of
Engineering Education “Ethics Teaching in Undergraduate Engineering
Education”
As water now is considered a limited resource, engineers
should know the importance of environmental sustainability.
It is said that “Engineers shall at all times strive to serve the
public interest. Engineers are encouraged to adhere to the
principles of sustainable development in order to protect the
environment for future generations.”[5]While engineers are
working on the treatment to the water, they should be aware
of some potential risks. It is reported that some irrigation
systems may post risks on environment. If engineers didn’t
think this ethic code as a part of their work, sewage
treatment would aggravate water pollution.
Acknowledgement
I would like to thank the writing instructor, Jame Spears,
who gave me good advice. I would also like to thank my
The Value of Ethics
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Fanying Sun
chemistry instructor, Len Kogut, who helped me collect
related information.
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