Most modern scientists agree that the climate is changing due to the actions of humans. While that may be a controversial statement it speaks to the huge power and responsibility that we have over our planet. It’s vital that we realize that we can impact the environment negatively, be it the smog that chokes metropolitan areas, the steady acidification of the ocean, or the replacement of habitats with urban sprawl. Many articles pedal fear without solutions and leave the reader with a sense of disbelief or depression. Here I’d like to discuss some of the things that we are doing right, some of the new innovations that are making positive changes.
First off is the Sahara Forest Project. This group of people noticed that the Sahara Desert borders shrink and expand by several miles over the course of the year due to the changes in seasons. This means that the desert is not as empty as it may seem, all it needs is a chance to spring back into bloom. The Sahara Forest Project is here to give it the chance it needs. A pumping station is built near the ocean and pumps the salt water into greenhouses where the water will evaporate and water plants, leaving the salt behind. The water creates a humid breeze that causes plants to grow all around these green houses. Concentrated solar collectors are constructed to provide power to the pumps and support the local grid. While calling it the Sahara Forest Project might be a bit ambitious, this team provides power, produce, clean water, and jobs to the local area with the benefit of supporting more life in an arid climate.
Next lets take a look at middle America, a bit closer to home. Large agriculture has, for the most part abandoned crop rotation to focus on cash crops. This was all made possible by the invention of artificial fertilizers. These caused massive increases in the amount of product that farmers could produce; however these chemicals run off into the water supply and cause eutrophication,wreaking havoc in downstream ecosystem. Just across the street there are beef feedlots that eat much of the corn produced and create huge amounts of manure waste which in turn runs off into the ground water and creates similar problems. On a smaller scale there is a solution to both of these problems. A closed energy circuit can be created by combining the beef problem with the crop issue and adding some poultry into the equation. A basic circuit would look something like the following. In a field plants are cultivated and harvested, then cows are allowed to eat the stalks left behind, pooping all over the field. Bugs grow in the poop and break it down, then chickens are allowed onto the field. They eat the bugs and produce even more great fertilizer. Just like that the field is ready to be replanted. On a small scale a farmer can produce more product for less money and way less damage to the environment.
The future of the environment is in closed energy systems, where there are little to no waste products. The engineering mindset is ideal for this because of the innate understanding of energy principles drilled into every engineer’s head. While we may be hurting the environment, there are ways to help it grow back. Engineers and innovators are working to make the future a wonderful place.