Budny 10:00
L21
AFRICAN ASPHALT: AN ETHICAL DILEMMA
Bridget Moyer (bam150@pitt.edu)
Material and process advancements in asphalt production
are vital in reducing the impact that the United States and
other countries around the world have on the environment.
Asphalt can affect people from all walks of life and new
transformations and innovations could have a great
significance throughout the world. As a chemical and
materials engineer working for NatCivil Asphalt, it is my job
to be on the forefront of these innovations and new
technologies. However, having a job in an engineering field
does not only involve coming up with new technologies, but
also deciphering the different dilemmas and ethical situations
that accompany them.
AN IMPRESSIVE HISTORY
As what is now one of the largest asphalt production
companies in the United States, NatCivil Asphalt started out
as a small construction company, called Geo-Construct, that
specialized in road, highway, and parking lot construction.
After several years of manufacturing hot-mix asphalt, the
owner of Geo-Construct realized that there must be a more
environmentally and economically-friendly way to produce
asphalt. He came up with the idea to create specialized asphalt
specifically geared toward a client’s needs. This was a
breakthrough in asphalt technology and he decided to rebrand
his company and hire a team of civil, chemical, and materials
engineers to help him turn his idea into a reality. The new
company was called NatCivil, and ever since, it has been
looking for new ways to expand and introduce its innovative
ideas in modern and interesting ways. Luckily, while it was
first starting out, NatCivil was presented with several oncein-a-lifetime opportunities that helped it become one of the
most sought-after asphalt and construction companies in the
country.
Technology Aspects
Hot-mix asphalt had been the most used asphalt
production technique, but it was also one of the most
environmentally-unfriendly processes. A newer process that
is becoming increasingly popular, warm-mix asphalt was
introduced to the United States in 2004 and allows the
production, transportation, and implementation of hot-mix
asphalt to be done at much lower temperatures [1]. However,
many companies, such as NatCivil Asphalt, believe that
warm-mix asphalt is not as good as asphalt production can
get. Leading the charge to create a better asphalt, NatCivil
came up with the idea to use other recycled materials as the
base for the asphalt and combining that with environmentallyfriendly chemicals to manipulate it to suit the customer’s
requests.
University of Pittsburgh, Swanson School of Engineering 1
2015-11-03
National Parks
Putting their new process to good use, NatCivil wanted
their first client to be one that would prove that their hard
work and advanced technologies were worth it. In 2004,
Yosemite National Park needed new pathways, parking lots,
and trail barriers throughout its many attractions. NatCivil
was one of the many companies that pitched ideas as to how
to create asphalt, or another material, that would not affect
Yosemite’s ecosystem and would be cost effective.
Taking Yosemite’s unique and well-known sequoia trees
into consideration, NatCivil created a combination of asphalt,
eco-friendly chemicals, and different recycled materials that
would use Yosemite’s large amount of snowmelt to benefit
the magnificent trees. By creating a material that was both
sturdy, yet permeable, NatCivil’s asphalt would allow the
snowmelt to help provide water for the sequoias. NatCivil
impressed Yosemite’s board of directors and secured the
contract to put this new form of asphalt into the park.
After the Yosemite project, NatCivil was hired to carry
out similar projects in Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, and the
Grand Canyon- their most recent project. In fact, I was just
starting out whenever NatCivil was hired to put in new
walkways and horse trails in the Grand Canyon. It was quite
a challenge because the Grand Canyon has five different “life
zones”, or ecosystems, and going from higher elevation to
lower elevation, as many of the horse trails do, is similar to
travelling from Mexico to Canada [2]. I was able to learn a lot
from the head of materials and when he retired last year, I was
promoted to be his replacement, which is where I faced my
biggest ethical dilemma yet.
IMPLEMENTATION IN AFRICA
With such an impressive history with national parks in the
United States, it was not long before NatCivil was noticed by
companies world-wide. Also, because we were able to
manipulate the asphalt material to suit our customer’s needs,
which were often concerning the environment, rival
companies began to copy our technology and we needed to
score another large contract to prove that we were still on top.
The Serengeti
NatCivil was contacted by the Serengeti National Park
Service in Tanzania three years after I had taken the materials
engineering position. They were offering a contract to the
company who could create an asphalt to be used in a road to
run through the park that is environmentally-friendly, can be
installed with minimal wildlife disturbance, and will require
little to no maintenance. There are settlements to the east and
Bridget Moyer
west of the park, but no route that connects them, and the park
service felt that connecting them would bring more tourists to
the park, generating more revenue. My boss demanded that
NatCivil be the company to win this contract and gave my
team and I a week to create the material that they needed.
Under normal circumstances, it took my team and I
roughly one or two months to develop a new form of asphalt,
but by building on what we had created for the Grand Canyon
project and working overtime, we managed to come up with
the material within a week. We then sent a prototype of the
asphalt to the Serengeti Park Service and they were so
impressed that they offered NatCivil the contract and
demanded that a few representatives of the company fly to
Tanzania and help kick off production.
The park service had begun production of the asphalt, but
had not yet begun construction of the roadway, so it was not
too late to inform my boss, the Serengeti National Park, and
the Tanzanian government that my team and I had made a
crucial error and that the asphalt was not as it should be.
Before getting off of the plane, I had some decisions to make.
Should I tell everyone and risk my professional reputation and
my career, or should I say nothing and know that a few more
citizens in Tanzania may or may not get cancer and that
NatCivil will have to replace the roadway in ten-or-so years?
Legally- in Africa
The labor, safety, and environmental laws in Tanzania,
and in Africa for that matter, are far less stringent than those
in the United States. From a legal standpoint, there would be
no repercussions to leaving the formula alone and replacing
the road in ten years if it was needed. In fact, after road
construction was completed, there would be no way to know
if manufacturing the asphalt even affected the employees.
There would be no way to hold me or my team responsible
and I may even be working for a different company by the
time the roadway needs to be replaced.
Flying High
A few weeks later, certain members of my team, my boss,
and I were boarding a plane to fly to Africa. Not only did the
park service want us to see where our asphalt would be
produced, but they also wanted us to present our new material
to a few representatives of the Tanzanian government.
Wanting to ensure that there would be no mistakes, my boss
asked me to go over the presentation during the long flight. I
had created a slideshow to accompany my presentation, and
as I was reviewing it one last time, I could not help but study
the impressive and complicated string of chemicals and
processes that I had outlined for the representatives. Just
before I was ready to present the slideshow to my boss, I
noticed something in one of the chemical equations that stuck
out in my brain as incorrect. We had forgotten to account for
the excess of argon in Tanzania’s air and calcium in
Tanzania’s soil that would react slowly with some of the
chemicals in the asphalt. Without further inspection, there
was no telling what consequences this seemingly minor detail
could lead to in the end. It had worked when the prototype
was made, but I was unsure of how it would work when larger
quantities were produced in Africa. Unfortunately, the
formula and process had already been sent to the park service
so that they could begin production right away, NatCivil had
already been paid, and no one had reported any mishaps with
production. I decided to present it to my boss anyways,
hoping that he would not notice and figuring that I could go
back and check it again later.
After a closer examination, I realized that the
miscalculations would not have any immediately noticeable
effects. However, during the production process, it would
react and release trace amounts of radon into the air, which is
thought to be a major cause of cancer with prolonged
exposure. Also, NatCivil’s products were known to last for
twenty or twenty-five years, but after production, this type of
asphalt would be only last for about ten years.
The Code of Ethics
Although there may not be laws against my mistake in
Africa, there is a “law” that governs all engineers in the
United States that will always apply to me. The National
Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) and more
specifically, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
have developed a code of ethics which all practicing engineers
should use to avoid and analyze ethically-questionable
situations.
The first Canon in the ASCE Code of Ethics states that
engineers “shall hold paramount the safety, health, and
welfare of the public and shall strive to comply with the
principles of sustainable development”. This means that any
decision that I make as an engineer should always be guided
by whether or not the results will harm others or the
environment. It goes on to say that if any circumstances
endanger lives of others that an engineer should notify their
employer or client [3]. Therefore, as an engineer, it would be
my moral obligation to alert my boss, the Serengeti National
Park Service, and the Tanzanian government that the asphalt
mix that we created is unsafe for their employees and their
environment.
A Similar Situation
With several hours left on the plane ride, I decide to use
my time wisely and research if other engineers had been put
in a similar position. Using the plane’s Wi-Fi, I found a
situation very similar to mine in which a prominent structural
engineer received a call from a student to let him know that
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
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Bridget Moyer
they discovered a technical flaw in the design of his most
famous building [4].
Upon examination, the engineer came to agree with the
student and had to decide whether or not to alert someone and
fix the problem, or pretend that he never knew about the
problem. He discovered that, if unfixed, strong winds could
cause the building to crumble and kill innocent people. On the
other hand, if the engineer were to tell someone, their
reputation and career would have been ruined, much like in
my situation, and citizens such as the building’s occupants
could press charges [4].
government officials were very impressed and in the end, the
project was completed using the new formula and process.
My team and I only received minor pay cuts and it has
been ten years since the Serengeti road was completed; it
looks the same as it did when the asphalt was first placed.
Since that project, NatCivil Asphalt has had several more
offers to create specialized asphalt for national parks and
other major public works around the world.
IN THE FUTURE
As an engineer, no matter what discipline, it can be
difficult to interpret what is ethically correct and what is not.
Even if an engineer knows that there is an ethically sound
choice, it can be a complicated decision because there could
be more than one personal consequence that comes with doing
the right thing. In my decision to come clean about what I had
discovered, there was minimal damage because I came
forward so soon after the problem had arisen. Although there
could have been many more repercussions to me personally
and professionally, I decided that my job and reputation were
not worth the lives of the park’s employees and the negative
impact on the environment. As a relatively young engineer, I
do not have as much experience as others, but if another
engineer finds themselves in a similar position and is looking
for some advice, I would recommend doing what I did. Even
if you do lose your job, it is worth it to save the lives of others.
Future employers will appreciate your ethics, know that you
will learn from your mistake and not make the same mistake
again, and realize that you put others before yourself. After
all, engineers exist to solve problems and make the world a
better place for others to live.
THE FINAL OUTCOME
With a lot on my mind, I exited the plane with the rest of
my team and had a five-hour bus ride to determine whether or
not I should tell them about my findings and in turn, whether
or not we should inform our boss, the park service, and the
Tanzanian government. I looked over a few more similar case
studies and reviewed both the NSPE and ASCE Codes of
Ethics one more time. In the case study with the structural
engineer, the engineer ended up coming forward and telling
the proper authorities. They were able to minimize the
professional and legal damages and the building was fixed
before any catastrophe happened [4].
Based on this case study and the codes of ethics, I
determined that the right, and ethical, thing to do would be to
inform everyone so that we could decide what to tell the
clients and our boss.
Spilling the Beans
By telling the rest of my team near the beginning of the
bus ride, being careful not to place blame on myself or any
one person, we were able to quickly work together and come
up with an improved formula and process that took into
account some of the calcium and argon. Although we were
unable to make a prototype until we returned home or got to
the factory, we felt that the new formula would help lessen the
ramifications of our mistake.
After telling our boss, he became furious and immediately
threatened all of our jobs. However, after some time to weigh
the consequences and think about what to do next, he agreed
that we had made the right decision and told us that he would
help us break the news to the parks service and the Tanzanian
government.
When we arrived, we broke the news to the park
representative. They immediately called the asphalt plant and
stopped production. Although they were very angry and
demanded that our fee for the contract was reduced, they
appreciated our honesty and integrity and were thankful that
we had already prepared a solution. They recommended that
I give the presentation to the government officials, even with
the incorrect formula, and told me that they would not know
the difference and that the mistake would be kept a secret. The
REFERENCES
[1] T. Kuennen. (2015, Sept 21). “Reclaimed and Recycled
Asphalt: Where is the Payoff?” Equipment World Magazine.
(Online article). http://www.equipmentworld.com/reclaimedand-recycled-asphalt-where-is-the-payoff/
[2] “Grand Canyon: Nature.” National Park Service.
(Website). http://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/nature/index.htm
[3] “Code of Ethics.” American Society of Civil Engineers.
(Website). http://www.asce.org/code-of-ethics/
[4] “The Cost of Integrity.” webGURU. (Online Article).
http://www.webguru.neu.edu/professionalism/casestudies/cost-integrity
ADDITIONAL SOURCES
(2015, June 29). “Asphalt Additives Market Analysis- Size,
Share, Growth, Trends and Forecasts, 2015 to 2022: Grand
View Research.” M2PressWIRE. (Online Article).
http://web.b.ebscohost.com/pov/detail/detail?sid=38676737c1e7-47cc-856e0aa08cc122d1%40sessionmgr120&vid=0&hid=128&bdata=
3
Bridget Moyer
JnNpdGU9cG92LWxpdmU%3d#AN=16PU960431450&db
=pwh
Campbell Robertson, John Schwartz. (2015, May 23).
“Decade After Katrina, Pointing Finger More Firmly at Amry
Corps”. The New York Times. (Online Article).
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/24/us/decade-afterkatrina-pointing-finger-more-firmly-at-armycorps.html?_r=3
NSPE Board of Ethical Review. (2014, April 30). “Public
Health and Safety- Delay in Addressing Fire Code
Violations.” National Society of Professional Engineers.
(Website).
http://www.nspe.org/sites/default/files/BER%20Case%20No
%2013-11-FINAL.pdf
“NSPE Code of Ethics for Engineers.” National Society of
Professional
Engineers.
(Website).
http://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code-ethics
“Serengeti National Park.” Tanzania National Parks.
(Website). http://www.tanzaniaparks.com/serengeti.html
Tara Hoke. (2013, March). “Maintaining Zero Tolerance for
Bribery, Fraud, and Corruption.” (Online Article).
http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=c
60ad3e9-4e9c-47fd-965e699fc476b46b%40sessionmgr4001&hid=4204&bdata=JnNp
dGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=88181538&db=aph
“Yosemite: Nature.” National Park Service. (Website).
http://www.nps.gov/yose/learn/nature/index.htm
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to thank my roommate, Caroline, for pushing me
to not procrastinate and to get this writing assignment done.
My Writing Instructor, Ms. Koerbel, deserves thanks for
taking the time out of her day to explain the writing
assignments to our class and for answering the many, many
questions that we had. I would like to thank my boyfriend,
Tim, for going to the library with me, bringing me snacks, and
helping me think of words when my brain wants to stop
writing. I would like to thank my parents and grandparents for
sending me care packages, calling me to make sure I am doing
well, and making sure that I know I am missed. Finally, I
would like to thank Spotify, iTunes, and Imagine Dragons for
providing me with the music I needed to stay upbeat and
continue writing.
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