Environmental technology
Environmental technology, green technology or clean technology is the application of one or more of environmental science, green chemistry, environmental monitoring and electronic devices to monitor, model and conserve the natural environment and resources, and to curb the negative impacts of human involvement. The term is also used to describe sustainable energy generation technologies such as photovoltaics, wind turbines, bioreactors, etc. Sustainable development is the core of environmental technologies. The term environmental technologies is also used to describe a class of electronic devices that can promote sustainable management of resources.
The environmental technology (also known as environmental technology or green technology or Ecotechnie) is one application of environmental science to develop tools for:
biomonitoring (bioindication) and the measurement of levels of certain pollutants from different media (air, water, soil…) or a food web (bioconcentration…);
rehabilitation or remediation (eg bioremediation, phytoremediation, etc.) of contaminated sites (oil spill response, soil conservation, carbon sequestration, radiation protection);
waste management: recycling, incineration of household waste, water purification…;
the reasoned use of resources: eco-construction, saving energy, saving water;
the reinforcement of the use of renewable and clean energies (solar energy, geothermal energy…);
cleaning of the indoor air (ex: phyt’air program)
The ADEME considers the argument ” depolluting plants ” is not scientifically validated in terms of pollution levels typically found in homes and new scientific knowledge in the field.
These tools generally aim at more economical and efficient solutions, the reduction of our ecological footprint, for a more sustainable development.
The sustainable development is the core of environmental technologies. When applied to environmental problems, solutions must be socially equitable, economically viable and environmentally friendly.
Examples
Biofiltration
Bioreactor
Bioremediation
Desalination
Doubly fed electric machine
Energy conservation
Energy saving modules
Electric vehicles
Wave energy
Green computing
Hydroelectricity
Wind power
Wind turbine
Hydrogen fuel cell
Ocean thermal energy conversion
Solar power
Photovoltaic
Thermal depolymerization
Composting toilet
Pyrolysis
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is the energy that can be replenished easily. For years we have been using sources such as wood, sun, water, etc. for means for producing energy. Energy that can be produced by natural objects like wood, sun, wind, etc. is considered to be renewable.
Water purification
Water purification: The whole idea/concept of having dirt/germ/pollution free water flowing throughout the environment. Many other phenomena lead from this concept of purification of water. Water pollution is the main enemy of this concept, and various campaigns and activists have been organized around the world to help purify water.
Air purification
Air purification: Basic and common green plants can be grown indoors to keep air fresh because all plants remove CO2 and convert it into oxygen. The best examples are: Dypsis lutescens, Sansevieria trifasciata, and Epipremnum aureum. It should also be noted that besides using the plants themselves, some species of bacteria can also be added to the leaves of these plants to help remove toxic gases, such as toluene
Sewage treatment
Sewage treatment is conceptually similar to water purification. Sewage treatments are very important as they purify water per levels of its pollution. The most polluted water is not used for anything, and the least polluted water is supplied to places where water is used affluently. It may lead to various other concepts of environmental protection, sustainability etc.
Environmental remediation
Environmental remediation is the removal of pollutants or contaminants for the general protection of the environment. This is accomplished by various chemical, biological, and bulk methods.
Solid waste management
Solid waste management is the purification, consumption, reuse, disposal and treatment of solid waste that is undertaken by the government or the ruling bodies of a city/town.
eGain forecasting
Egain forecasting is a method using forecasting technology to predict the future weather’s impact on a building. By adjusting the heat based on the weather forecast, the system eliminates redundant use of heat, thus reducing the energy consumption and the emission of greenhouse gases.
Energy conservation
Energy conservation is the utilization of devices that require smaller amounts of energy in order to reduce the consumption of electricity. Reducing the use of electricity causes less fossil fuels to be burned to provide that electricity.
Alternative and clean power
Principles:
Green syndicalism
Sustainability
Sustainable design
Sustainable engineering
Concerns over pollution and greenhouse gases have spurred the search for sustainable alternatives to our current fuel use. For example, biogas from anaerobic digestion of plant waste can be stored to produce heat or electricity. The global reduction of greenhouse gases requires the adoption of energy conservation as well as sustainable generation. That environmental harm reduction involves global changes such as:
reducing air pollution and methane from biomass
virtually eliminating fossil fuels for vehicles, heat and electricity, left in the ground.
wide spread use of public transport, battery and fuel cell vehicles
more wind/solar/water generated electricity
reducing peak demands with carbon taxes and time of use pricing.
Since fuel used by industry and transportation account for the majority of world demand, by investing in conservation and efficiency (using less fuel), pollution and greenhouse gases from these two sectors can be reduced around the globe. Advanced energy efficient electric motor (and electric generator) technology that are cost effective to encourage their application, such as variable speed generators and efficient energy use, can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) that would otherwise be introduced to the atmosphere, if electricity were generated using fossil fuels. Greasestock is an event held yearly in Yorktown Heights, New York which is one of the largest showcases of environmental technology in the United States.
Education
Courses aimed at developing graduates with specific skills in environmental systems or environmental technology are becoming more common and fall into three broads classes:
Environmental Engineering or Environmental Systems courses oriented towards a civil engineering approach in which structures and the landscape are constructed to blend with or protect the environment;
Environmental chemistry, sustainable chemistry or environmental chemical engineering courses oriented towards understanding the effects (good and bad) of chemicals in the environment. Such awards can focus on mining processes, pollutants and commonly also cover biochemical processes;
Environmental technology courses oriented towards producing electronic, electrical or electrotechnology graduates capable of developing devices and artefacts able to monitor, measure, model and control environmental impact, including monitoring and managing energy generation from renewable sources, and developing novel energy generation technologies.
Information Processing (Computer science)
Environmental technologies provide solutions to reduce the influx of substances, reduce energy consumption and emissions, reuse by-products and minimize waste disposal problems. They improve eco-efficiency, that is, they can “do more with less”, support the application of environmental management systems and make production processes greener.
Environmental technologies are also used to collect information on the environment – monitoring and collecting data to identify the presence of pollutants, changes in soil occupation or to detect effects on human health through bio-monitoring.
Environmental technologies have the potential, over the next decade, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 25-80%, destruction of the ozone layer by up to 50% and acidification and eutrophication by up to 50%. The water sector faces the challenge of developing new and more economical technologies that include energy aspects and environmental externalities. Significant technological advances and market expansion are also foreseen for waste-to-energy solutions for small-scale energy production and the development of small-scale biomass energy systems.
In order to realize the potential of environmental technologies, it will be necessary to create greater market acceptance. Ignorance of the actual costs of obtaining, using and disposing of materials and energy continues to pose a major obstacle to the further implementation of eco-innovations.
Consumers and investors need to know more accurately the performance and environmental benefits of different technologies in order to be able to buy and trust products that are often new to the market. To support this objective, European policy makers are currently discussing how verification of these technologies should be handled.
Criticisms
Some large groups have criticized the concept of environmental technology. From their point of view, technology is seen as a system instead of a specific physical tool. It is debated that technology requires the exploitation of the environment through the creation and extraction of resources, and the exploitation of people through work, specialization, and the division of labor. There is no neutral form of technology, since things are always created in a specific context, with specific goals and functions. So green technology is rejected as an attempt to reform this system of exploitation, simply by changing it on the surface to make it look environmentally friendly despite the unsustainable levels of human and natural exploitation.
Source from Wikipedia