By Dr. Don Pinchin, President, Pinchin Environmental Ltd.
Foreseeing the future of any industry is always fraught with peril. Forecasters of a 20,000 point Dow Jones index of a year ago are now silent in light of the dot.com and fibre optic meltdown. Rather than concentrate on the business issues involved in the engineering profession this article will concentrate on three specific growth areas of engineering: environmental building issues - primarily mould; odour and air emission from industrial sites and farm operations; and pollution prevention programs.
Mould and other building contaminants have replaced asbestos in newspaper headlines on environmental/health and safety issues. Whether this development is caused by improved sealing of buildings, or energy conservation measures, or an increasing sensitivity to indoor moulds (due to greater time spent indoors, changes in diet or an increasingly sensitive population) or whether this is an issue which has always been with us but now is more widely publicized, is unclear and largely irrelevant.
Originating in the US, concerns over indoor mould growth spread to Atlantic Canada and more recently in Ontario and Western Canada. Growth of a variety of moulds can occur in buildings whenever water leakage occurs. Detection, remediation and particularly building alteration to prevent future leakage are the major areas of work, which involves the engineering profession.
Much publicity initially centered on school portables. Large-scale mould remediation projects in high rise office and residential towers are occurring without fanfare and are a more interesting market.
The concern over mould is a double-edged sword. The underlying causes of water leakage or condensation, which are necessary for mould growth, often originate in the building design or construction. Lawsuits, which usually include architects and engineers, abound in the US and are starting in Canada. Most of these suits are in the early stage but some settlements have occurred. Whether or not readers are involved, defence costs and settlements will undoubtedly increase insurance rates (which were already hardening).
The sensitivity of the public to nuisance odours as well as airborne substances harmful to health is increasing at the same time that zoning changes are allowing intermixing of residential and industrial properties. Brownfield residential development and infilling as well as the construction of housing in farming areas contribute to the friction. Odours may or may not be indicative of health risks but certainly can cause extreme aggravation, can render some properties unliveable and affect resale value.
Engineering services to address this market include stack testing, predictive impact modelling, olfactometry, product reformulation, industrial ventilation and pollution abatement systems. With recent changes to provincial modelling standards (effects-based standards for odour, soiling and health) public complaints and the knowledge of compliance requirements are increasing. Over the next 5-10 years, a significant amount of engineering input will be needed to bring companies and agricultural operations into compliance and reduce complaints.
Over the past three years there has been a significant shift of government policy from pollution control to pollution prevention. In this context, pollution prevention means the maximum feasible reduction, preferably elimination, of all toxic wastes and National Pollution Release Inventory listed pollutants. The obvious benefits of liability reduction, public profile and health and environmental benefits can often be accompanied by reduced operating costs. Recent changes in federal regulation include incorporation of pollution prevention provisions in the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.
Pollution prevention plans are now being implemented at the municipal level in sewer use by-laws. The city of Toronto now requires all sectors to develop a Pollution Prevention (P2) Plan and Summary Plan. Across the country, the Region of Waterloo has adopted a Business Pollution Prevention (P2) Plan for small and medium size businesses and the Greater Vancouver Regional District is currently reviewing their sewer use by-law. It is anticipated that all major cities will move towards P2 plans as concerns over contaminants entering their sewage treatment plants increase. This will lead to a significant increase in the work of auditing professionals, and in the process, reformulation and pollutant removal processes.
In summary, specialized firms or firms with a wide client base should consider these as areas of future growth.
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