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Sustainability: Playing the Long Game
Author(s) -
McGuire Michael J.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal ‐ american water works association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.466
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1551-8833
pISSN - 0003-150X
DOI - 10.5942/jawwa.2016.108.0111
Subject(s) - sustainability , environmental economics , renewable energy , business , capital (architecture) , natural resource economics , pipeline (software) , energy (signal processing) , environmental resource management , climate change , environmental planning , economics , engineering , environmental science , mechanical engineering , history , ecology , statistics , mathematics , archaeology , electrical engineering , biology
Engineers and utility managers have always thought about capital projects in terms of economic viability. Does it make economic sense to build that pipeline or replace that treatment plant? As a result of societal and environmental realities, we must now pay attention to how sustainable a new project might be. What are the environmental impacts in the supply chain? Is that new building having the least impact on water resources, heating requirements, and electrical energy demands? Are the materials used the best from a sustainable point of view? What are the energy requirements, and can they be met using renewable energy supplies? With the predicted impacts from climate change, sustainability has become a more urgent requirement for water projects.