MCN 201 – SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERING

COURSE OBJECTIVE
• Objective of this course is

To inculcate in students an awareness of

environmental issues and the global initiatives
towards attaining sustainability.

• The student should realize the potential of

technology in bringing in sustainable practices.
Continuous Internal Evaluation Pattern:

• Attendance : 10 marks Continuous Assessment

• Test (2 numbers) : 25 marks

• Assignment/Quiz/Course project : 15 marks
End Semester Examination Pattern:
• There will be two parts; Part A and Part B.
• Part A contain 10 questions with 2 questions from
each module, having 3 marks for each question.
Students should answer all questions.
• Part B contains 2 questions from each module of
which student should answer any one. Each question
can have maximum 2 sub-divisions and carry 14
marks.
 Syllabus
• Module 1

• Sustainability: Introduction, concept, evolution of the concept;

Social, environmental and economic sustainability concepts;

Sustainable development, Nexus between Technology and

Sustainable development; Millennium Development Goals

(MDGs) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Clean

Development Mechanism (CDM).

 Syllabus
• Module 2

• Environmental Pollution: Air Pollution and its effects, Water

pollution and its sources, Zero waste concept and 3 R concepts

in solid waste management; Greenhouse effect, Global

warming, Climate change, Ozone layer depletion, Carbon

credits, carbon trading and carbon foot print, legal provisions

for environmental protection.

 Syllabus
• Module 3

• Environmental management standards: ISO 14001:2015 frame

work and benefits, Scope and goal of Life Cycle Analysis

(LCA), Circular economy, Bio-mimicking, Environment

Impact Assessment (EIA), Industrial ecology and industrial

symbiosis.
 Syllabus
• Module 4

• Resources and its utilisation: Basic concepts of Conventional

and non-conventional energy, General idea about solar energy,

Fuel cells, Wind energy, Small hydro plants, bio-fuels, Energy

derived from oceans and Geothermal energy.

 Syllabus
• Module 5

• Sustainability practices: Basic concept of sustainable habitat,

Methods for increasing energy efficiency in buildings, Green

Engineering, Sustainable Urbanisation, Sustainable cities,

Sustainable transport.
Reference Books
 Module 1

MCN 201 – SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERING

 What is sustainability?
[Link]
 What is sustainability?
• The dictionary meaning of sustainability says “the ability to

be maintained at a certain rate or level”.

• Technically, sustainability means “meeting our own needs

without compromising the ability of future generations

to meet their own needs”.

• In addition to natural resources, we also need social and

economic resources.

• Sustainability is a balancing act.

 What is sustainability?
• Sustainability is the ability to exist constantly.

• In the 21st century, it refers generally to the capacity for the

biosphere and human civilization to coexist.

• It is also defined as the process of people maintaining change

in a homeostasis balanced environment, in which the

exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the

orientation of technological development and institutional

change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future

potential to meet human needs and aspirations.

 What is sustainability?
• The goal is to maintain the equilibrium, available resources

must not be depleted faster than resources are naturally

generated.

• The views on sustainability seem to have a stronger focus on

the present moment because of its widespread impact.

• Sustainable development focuses more on a long-term vision.

 What is sustainability?
• Sustainable engineering is the process of designing
or operating systems such that they use energy and resources

sustainably.

• The concept of sustainability is composed of three pillars:

economic,

environmental, and

social—also known informally as profits, planet, and people.

 What is sustainability?
• Sustainability is concerned with assuming that nature and the
environment are not an inexhaustible resource and so, it is
necessary to protect them and use them rationally.

• Sustainability promotes social development, seeking

cohesion between communities and cultures to achieve
satisfactory levels in quality of life, health and education.

• Thirdly, sustainability focuses on equal economic growth

that generates wealth for all without harming the
environment.
 What is sustainability?
• Nowadays, many of the challenges that humans face such as
climate change or water scarcity can only be tackled from a
global perspective and by promoting sustainable development.
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
• 1798 Malthus “Population principles” – In 1798, Malthus,
who was an economist published “An Essay on Principle of
Population”. He maintained that population growth is
potentially exponential (1, 2, 4, 8, 32, 64…) while the
growth of the food supply or other resources is linear (1, 2,
3, 4, 5, 6, 7…).
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
 The road to sustainability
• Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution) - Until the
industrialization of Europe in mid-eighteenth century, wood
was the primary material used for fuel, construction,
production etc. It was believed that wood was a renewable
resource. But people lost sight of the fact that the harvest of
trees was at a faster rate than was being planted. European
government observed that such a rate of consumption was
unsustainable.
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”
 The road to sustainability
• 1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring “- In 1962 Rachel
Carson published the “Silent Spring” which analysed the
devastating ecological impact that chemical pesticides,
particularly DDT, had on the American country side. Many
consider this book as the turning point in understanding the
interconnections among environment, economy and social
well-being. This launched the environmental movement.
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”
1968 Garret Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons”
 The road to sustainability
• 1968 Garret Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons” - In 1968
the ecologist and philosopher Garret Hardin wrote an essay
entitled the tragedy of the commons. He argued that if
individuals act independently, rationally and focused on
pursuing their individual interests, they would end up going
against the common interests of their communities and
exhaust the planet’s natural resources.
 The road to sustainability
• These concerns were intensified with the publication of a
single image, the lonely and luminous planet Earth, taken by
an astronaut from the Apollo 8 spacecraft in 1968, which
revealed the beauty and fragility of the world as never seen
before: Earthrise as seen from the moon. In 1969 National
Environment Policy was passed in U.S. Following this in
1970 first Earth Day was observed.
• [Link]
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”
1968 Garret Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons”
1972 Pivotal year
 The road to sustainability
• 1972 Pivotal year – A further image from the Apollo
Project, Blue Marble, quickly became the most published
image in history and an icon of, and for, the new
sustainability advocates and the wider environmental
movement.
• [Link]
 The road to sustainability
• Club of Rome published “Limits to Growth”. They ran a
computer simulation that aimed to predict the consequences
of what could happen in a planet with limited resources. The
strongest ending scenario was that an economic and social
collapse would happen by the end of the 21st century if man
imposes no limits to growth.
 The road to sustainability
• In 1972, the first UN conference on Human Environment
took place in Stockholm (also called Stockholm
Conference) – the first big world leaders meeting organized
by the UN to discuss the human impact on the environment
and how it was related to economic development. Major
issue included urbanisation, chemical pollution and A-bomb
testing. Notable outcomes included decision to establish the
UN Environment Programme.
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”
1968 Garret Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons”
1972 Pivotal year
1987 “Our Common Future”
 The road to sustainability
• 1987 “Our Common Future” - The United Nation’s 1987
Report of the World Commission on Environment and
Development known as “Our Common Future” (or The
Brundtland report), gave the most recognized and widely
accepted definition of the term “sustainable development”
in 1987. Following this report, “the human ability to ensure
that the current development meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs” was the first widely accepted
definition of sustainable development.
 The road to sustainability
• Following this various summits were held for reinforcing
the need of sustainable development. Rio De Janeiro
Conference, Johannesberg Summit, Earth Summit etc.
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”
1968 Garret Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons”
1972 Pivotal year
1987 “Our Common Future”
1988 Intergovernmental panel on Climate Change
 The road to sustainability
• 1988 Intergovernmental panel on Climate Change was
established by UN to provide policymakers with regular
scientific assessments on the current state of knowledge
about climate change.
 The road to sustainability
• The concept of sustainable development has been evolving
for more than 30 years.
1798 Malthus “Population principles”
Mid-Eighteenth Century (Industrial revolution)
1962 Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”
1968 Garret Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons”
1972 Pivotal year
1987 “Our Common Future”
1988 Intergovernmental panel on Climate Change
2015 SDGs - Sustainable Development Goals
2000 MDGs - Millennium Development Goals
 The road to sustainability
• 2000 MDGs – World summit to work on poverty, health,
education, gender equality through Millennium
Development Goals.
• 2015 SDGs – UN launched Sustainable Development Goals
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts

• Sustainable development rests on three conceptual pillars,

‘social sustainability’, ‘environmental sustainability’ and
‘economic sustainability’.
• They are also called as the triple bottom line.
Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• Social sustainability encompasses :
notions of equity,

empowerment,

accessibility,

participation,

sharing,

cultural identity, and

institutional stability.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts

• It seeks to preserve the environment through economic

growth and the alleviation of poverty.
❑ A socially sustainable society is

one in which all members have equal rights,

all share equitably in societal benefits, and

all participate equally in the decision-making process.

 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts

❑ It can foster
gender equality,

development of people,

communities and cultures to help achieve a reasonable and

fairly-distributed quality of life,
healthcare and

education across the Globe.

 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
❑ Environmental sustainability involves
ecosystem integrity,

carrying capacity and

biodiversity.

• Resources must be harvested no faster than they can be

regenerated.
• Wastes must be emitted no faster than they can be
assimilated by the environment.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• Our most basic requirements:
unpolluted air,

clean water and fresh food,

all come from our environment,

as does the energy and raw materials we need for

construction and transportation.
• Environmental sustainability is essential if we wish to have
and continue to have the resources to meet our needs.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• It prevents nature from being used as an inexhaustible
source of resources and ensures its protection and rational
use.
• Aspects such as environmental conservation, investment
in renewable energy, saving water, supporting
sustainable mobility, and innovation in sustainable
construction and architecture, contribute to achieving
environmental sustainability on several fronts.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
❑ Economic sustainability, by way of growth, development,
and productivity, has guided conventional development
science in the past.
• Economic sustainability is about much more than the
sustained growth of resources and profit margins.
• Economic sustainability takes into account the social and
ecological consequences of economic activity.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• We need to carefully consider the full life-cycle of our
goods, from extraction of raw materials, through processing,
manufacture, distribution, use, maintenance, repair, and
eventual recycling or disposal.
• The economic sustainability ensures that the industry or
business is making profit without creating much damage
to environment/ecology.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• Economic growth is expressed in terms of Gross Domestic
Product (GDP).
• This is the total amount of production produced within a
nation, within one year.
• Economic growth has to be sustainable, if it improves
quality of human life.
• Thus population factor must be included to ensure fair
resource consumption.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
Focuses on equal economic growth that generates wealth
for all, without harming the environment.
Investment and equal distribution of economic
resources.
Eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• Taking these three pillars of sustainability further if we only
achieve two out of three pillars then we end up with:
Social + Economic Sustainability = Equitable
Social + Environmental Sustainability = Bearable
Economic + Environmental Sustainability = Viable
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• Economic, social and environmental ‘sustainability’ must be
‘integrated’ and ‘interlinked’.
• They must be coordinated in a comprehensive manner.

• When we think about which of the three pillars is important,

it is definitely environmental and social which is more
important than economic factors.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• So the society exists within the environment and the
economy is a by-product of the society.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• In order that a society achieves integrated sustainability
meeting social, economic and environmental
sustainability, it can adopt the following policies :
• 1. Maintain and enhance citizens quality of life

• 2. Enhance local economic vitality

• 3. Promote social and intergenerational equity

• 4. Maintain and, if possible, enhance, the quality of the

environment.
 Social, environmental and economic
sustainability concepts
• In order that a society achieves integrated sustainability
meeting social, economic and environmental
sustainability, it can adopt the following policies :
• 5. Incorporate disaster resilience and mitigation into its
decisions and actions.
• 6. Use a consensus-building, participatory process when
making decisions.
 Sustainable development
• The definition of sustainable development was first written
in the Brundtland Report.
• "Sustainable development is development that meets the
needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs."
 Sustainable development
• Why sustainable development is important?
• 1. Rapidly growing population

• 2. Overexploitation of resources

• 3. Scarcity of resources

• 4. Climate change
 Sustainable development
• How to achieve sustainable development?
• 1. Technology

• 2. Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle Approach

• 3. Promoting Environmental Education and Awareness

• 4. Resource Utilization as Per Carrying Capacity

• 5. Improving Quality of Life Including Social, Cultural

and Economic Dimensions
 Sustainable development
• Challenges related to sustainable development
1. Lack of sufficient data

2. Difficulty in picking up targets

3. Lack of finance

4. Lack of capacity to plan

5. Differing views and conflicts among major players

 Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs)
• The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were eight
international development goals for the year 2015 that had
been established following the Millennium Summit of the
United Nations in 2000, following the adoption of the
United Nations Millennium Declaration.
• All 191 UN member states had agreed to try to achieve the
goals by the year 2015.
• The MDGs have specific targets and indicators.
Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs)
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
• The final MDG Report found that the 15-year effort has
produced the most successful anti-poverty movement in
history:
• Since 1990, the number of people living in extreme
poverty has declined by more than half.
• The proportion of undernourished people in the
developing regions has fallen by almost half.
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
• The final MDG Report found that the 15-year effort has
produced the most successful anti-poverty movement in
history:
• The primary school enrolment rate in the developing
regions has reached 91 percent, and many more girls are
now in school compared to 15 years ago.
• Remarkable gains have also been made in the fight against
HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
• The final MDG Report found that the 15-year effort has
produced the most successful anti-poverty movement in
history:
• The under-five mortality rate has declined by more than
half, and maternal mortality is down 45 percent
worldwide.
• The target of halving the proportion of people who lack
access to improved sources of water was also met.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• 193 member countries, including India, got committed to
the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that require efforts
to end all forms of poverty, fight inequalities and tackle
climate change while ensuring that no one was left behind.
• To bring sustainable development in the mainstream United
Nations (UN) launched the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development and SDGs.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• This universal, integrated and transformative agenda aims
to spur actions that will end poverty and build a more
sustainable world over the next 15 years.
• There are 17 goals and 169 targets specific targets to be
achieved by 2030.
• Reaching the goals requires action on all fronts –
governments, businesses, civil society and people
everywhere all have a role to play.
• SDGs are not legally binding.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• The new agenda integrates all three dimensions of
sustainable development – economic, social and
environmental
• SDG’s are based on 6 main elements – 5 P’s (people,
planet, partnership, prosperity, peace and justice) and
Dignity
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• The Clean Development Mechanism is regarded as one of
the most important internationally implemented market
based mechanisms to reduce carbon emissions.
• Created under the Kyoto Protocol, the CDM was
designed to help developed nations meet domestic
greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction commitments by
investing in low-cost emission reduction projects in
developing countries.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• The Kyoto Protocol, a legally binding global agreement by
192 countries, was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11
December 1997 and entered into force on 16 February 2005.
• The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to
the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change, which commits its Parties by setting internationally
binding emission reduction targets.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• The Protocol places a heavier burden on developed nations
– Australia, USA, European Countries, under the principle
of "common but differentiated responsibilities”,
recognizing that developed countries are principally
responsible for the current high levels of GHG emissions in
the atmosphere as a result of more than 150 years of
industrial activity.
Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), established
under the Kyoto Protocol, is the primary international
offset program in existence today.
• It generates offset through investments in GHG
reduction, and avoidance projects in developing countries.
• These offset credits called Certified Emission Reduction
credits (CERs), represent a reduction in one metric ton
of carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted to the atmosphere.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Developed countries can use CERs to more cost effectively
achieve their Kyoto Protocol GHG emission reduction
targets.
• The stated purpose of the Clean Development Mechanism is
to help developing countries achieve sustainable
development, and assist industrialized countries in
complying with their emission reduction commitments.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Purpose of CDM
• Private companies fund projects in developing countries that
reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• They must also meet sustainable development criteria
and the “additionality” requirement, which means the
emission reductions made, must be “additional” to what
would have been possible without CDM funding.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Purpose of CDM
• Upon verification, the CDM awards these projects certified
emission reductions (CERs), each equivalent to one ton of
carbon dioxide.
• CERs are then sold to developed countries, which use
them to meet a part of their reduction commitments under
the Kyoto Protocol.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Purpose of CDM
• CERs are also called “offset credits” because they “offset”
the developed countries’ emissions with reductions in
developing countries.
• CDM allows countries to continue emitting green house
gases, so long as they pay for reductions made elsewhere.
 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Purpose of CDM
• The justification for this is based on the premise that it
would be far more expensive to implement emission
reduction in industrialized countries than in developing
countries.
• It would help developing countries to gain sustainable
development benefits from the entry of “clean” and
more energy efficient technologies.
Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Purpose of CDM
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Nexus refers to the connection between two things.
• Technology plays a big role in achieving social
sustainability, economic sustainability and environmental
sustainability.
• In fact the SDGs Report 2019 acknowledges technology
and innovation through digital transformation ‘can drive
progress across all 17 SDGs’ and therefore contribute to the
realization of the 2030 Agenda.
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• 2030 Agenda
• [Link]
s/21252030%20Agenda%20for%20Sustainable%20Develop
ment%[Link]
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Given the diverse, multidimensional, ambitious and
absolute nature of the Sustainable Development Goals, it
will be practically impossible to achieve all of them by 2030
without the development and appropriate application of
science, technology and innovation.
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Some of the areas of application of technology in
sustainable development are:
• 1. Technological innovations can achieve sustainable
development by improving incomes through increased
productivity and cost of goods and services, offering
solutions to economic, social and environmental
obstacles , replacing environmentally costly modes of
production with more sustainable ones etc
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Some of the areas of application of technology in
sustainable development are:
• 2. New, existing and emerging technologies can address the
four dimensions of food security, namely: food
availability; access; use; and stability.
• 3. The development of decentralized renewable energy
systems could provide electricity in rural areas far from any
grid system.
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Some of the areas of application of technology in
sustainable development are:
• 4. Technology promotes new sources of employment and
income and enables access to new markets and
opportunities.
• 5. Technology provides for financial inclusion. The
technology combining biometric and demographic data,
Aadhaar, enabled financial inclusion in India.
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Some of the areas of application of technology in
sustainable development are:
• 6. Technology helps in confronting disease and improving
health.
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Role of Technology in Environmental Sustainability
• Green technology

• Renewable energy

• Green building techniques

• eGain forecasting

• Technological advances in health, business, and

environment
• Businesses and industries that utilize green technology
 Nexus between technology and
sustainable development
• Role of Technology in Environmental Sustainability
• Small businesses that use local produce, take part in
recycling, and utilize green energy
• Participating in sustainable agriculture and fisheries
 Assignment Question:
• Is Sustainable Development Still Relevant?