The Practice of Ecological Industry in the Real World - What is industrial ecology?
Industrial Ecology (IE) focuses on combining perpetually desirable outcomes in environment, economy and technology sustainably. There is a whole discipline growing up out of this concept.
Here we apply IE as the practice of utilizing technology to economically effectuate environmentally sound industrial wastewater treatment. Not escaping us is the ironic fact that Integrated Engineers (IE) practices IE.
The central tenet of IE is the looking at technical systems analogously to natural systems, continuous perpetual systems (closed loops) rather than straight line linear start to finish thinking.
Isn't Industrial Ecology a Contradiction in Terms?
No. Industrial ecology seems sort of like a contradiction in terms in the old school paradigm of thought but is anything but today, it is not only a complementary process but beneficial to all sub-processes.. And industrial ecology truly is essentially carrying out industry in an ecologically sensitive manner usually based on standards established by governments but also on the shared values of shareholders, manufacturers and consumers.
This concept of "industrial ecology" is part of the green technology movement.
Industrial ecology is moving industrial processes from linear (open loop, start to finish) systems where you usually wind up with waste, to a closed loop (feedback) system where waste is converted to inputs for the same process (wastewater recovery) or new processes such as sludge being used on fields as fertilizer. This is theoretically a perpetual enterprise meaning "sustainable", can be sustained indefinitely.
"Sustainable" is one of the primary tenets of the "green technology" movement.
Why is Industrial Ecology Desirable?
Industrial ecology is desirable because as it approaches the unifying of environment, economy and ecology it benefits them all simultaneously, in a sense increasing "profits" for all three!
How do we keep an eye on Illegal environmental activities?
High Quality CCTV systems are the most widely used technology for monitoring and prosecuting illegal environmental activities. Despite the fact that new technologies have been proposed in recent years, CCTV remains the preferred option.