Environmental Technologies and Trends


Book Description

This manuscript was made possible by the exceptional support provided by INSA (Institut National des Sciences Appliquees) Toulouse, the University of New Mexico and the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering. The authors, as listed in this book, took the time to prepare excellent manuscripts focusing on scientific and technical areas relevant to emerging environmental issues. These manuscripts were rigorously reviewed and refereed by scientists and engineers before inclusion in this book. An introductory chapter was prepared to summarize and integrate technical issues covered and the last chapter was written to present policy perspectives. The editors are most grateful to the contributors, sponsor organizations, and many colleagues who were kind enough to assist us in making this manuscript possible. Background information about the editors, principal authors and other contributor:s to this manuscript follows. Editors Professor Dr. Ravi K. Jain Associate Dean for Research and International Engineering College of Engineering University of Cincinnati Mail Location 0018 Cincinnati OH 45221-0018 U.S.A.




Advances and New Trends in Environmental Informatics


Book Description

This book presents the latest findings and ongoing research in the field of green information systems as well as green information and communication technology (ICT). It provides insights into a whole range of cross-cutting concerns in ICT and environmental sciences and showcases how information and communication technologies allow environmental and energy efficiency issues to be handled effectively. Offering a selection of extended and reworked contributions to the 30th International Conference EnviroInfo 2016, it is essential reading for anyone wanting to extend their expertise in the area.




Advances and New Trends in Environmental Informatics


Book Description

This book is an outcome of the 34th International Conference EnviroInfo 2020, hosted virtually in Nicosia, Cyprus by the Research Centre on Interactive Media, Smart Systems and Emerging Technologies (RISE). It presents a selection of papers that describe innovative scientific approaches and ongoing research in environmental informatics and the emerging field of environmental sustainability, promoted and facilitated by the use of information and communication technologies (ICT). The respective articles cover a broad range of scientific aspects including advances in core environmental informatics-related technologies such as earth observation, environmental modelling, big data and machine learning, robotics, smart agriculture and food solutions, renewable energy-based solutions, optimization of infrastructures, sustainable industrial processes, and citizen science, as well as applications of ICT solutions intended to support societal transformation processes toward the more sustainable management of resource use, transportation and energy supplies. Given its scope, the book is essential reading for scientists, experts and students in these fields of research. Chapter “Developing a Configuration System for a Simulation Game in the Domain of Urban CO2 Emissions Reduction” is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.




Emerging Environmental Technologies, Volume II


Book Description

Within the span of last couple of years, the increasing human interference with v- ious natural ecosystems and higher discharge of pollutants has presented numerous challenges to the society related to preserving the nature for a better tomorrow. The challenges also mount pressure on the scienti?c community to invent technologies that would provide solutions to the problems that are man made and also decrease the negative consequences that we are facing because of our own actions. This edited book attempts to present eight technological innovations that have shown potential to provide answers to a few challenges. Like the previous collection, the described innovations in the current volume also cover a range of areas including water and soil pollution, bio-sensors and energy. However, it is to be realized that no combination of technology can be enough to make a sizeable difference. As I said in my last collection, technological advances have to be integrated with a change in social behavior. The philosophy of sustainable development has to be the principle of future planning and growth. In this collection, I am pleased to include an article on noise pollution. Noise is a pollutant of our own behavior and can only be solved by a behavioral change. The change that is either voluntary or enforced by laws. As an environmental scientist noise is not normally a pollutant that would come in mind as a leading pollutant.




Recent Trends and Advances in Environmental Health


Book Description

There is a growing global concern about rapidly changing environmental conditions, which is, in turn, linked closely with human health. This book focuses on environmental health issues, scientific understanding of causes, and promising future approaches to control the foremost environmental problems in developed and developing countries. This book emphasizes on the broad spectrum of information resources required in the field of environmental health and provides a detailed review of manenvironmenthealth interrelationships and a basic background for scientists working in the area of environmental health. It offers an overview of the methodology and paradigms of the inter-related, dynamic, evolving fields, ranging from ecology to epidemiology and from environmental health to toxicology. The main features of the book are an evaluation of environmental parameters (such as air quality, water quality, environmental emission) in the perspective of human health deterioration and an improvement of awareness on public health status as a component of human welfare. The chapters include the response of human body to environmental pollutants and also encompass the effects of different environmental factors: physical, chemical, and biological agents of environmental contamination; vectors for dissemination (air, water, soil); solid and hazardous waste, and susceptible populations; bio-markers and risk analysis; the scientific basis for policy decision; occupational health and safety issues; emerging global environmental problems like dissemination of antibiotics in environment and other important areas such as metagenomics application for environmental health. This book is a fundamental text for policy- makers requiring a scientific explanation, for the development of innovative environmental regulations and exposure reduction strategies, scientists researching public health and environmental contamination, and members of the community concerned in human health issues.




New Technologies and Environmental Innovation


Book Description

'Joseph Huber's book contains a wealth of information on technological environmental innovations. The scrutiny of this material leads to powerful conclusions, with which scholars should concern themselves. Highly recommended.' - René Kemp, Maastricht University, The Netherlands 'This timely and impressive volume brings technology back into the centre of discussions and debates on environmental reform. In articulating an ecological modernisation perspective, Joseph Huber presents an inspiring, optimistic and at times provocative assessment of the potential and future role of radical technological innovations in greening production-consumption cycles.' - Arthur P.J. Mol, Wageningen University, The Netherlands In this insightful book, Joseph Huber investigates the life cycle analysis of technological and environmental innovations (TEIs). TEIs are new technologies, products and practices which have benign environmental effects and which can increase eco-efficiency. More importantly, they can also improve 'metabolic consistency', thus laying the foundations for a sustainable industrial ecology.




Green Technologies in Food Production and Processing


Book Description

This book will review the current status of the agriculture and agri-food sector in regard to green processing and provide strategies that can be used by the sector to enhance the use of environmentally-friendly technologies for production, processing. The book will look at the full spectrum from farm to fork beginning with chapters on life cycle analysis and environmental impact assessment of different agri-food sectors. This will be followed by reviews of current and novel on-farm practices that are more environmentally-friendly, technologies for food processing that reduce chemical and energy use and emissions as well as novel analytical techniques for R&D and QA which reduce solvent, chemical and energy consumption. Technologies for waste treatment, "reducing, reusing, recycling", and better water and energy stewardship will be reviewed. In addition, the last section of the book will attempt to look at technologies and processes that reduce the generation of process-induced toxins (e.g., trans fats, acrylamide, D-amino acids) and will address consumer perceptions about current and emerging technologies available to tackle these processing and environmental issues.




Green and Ecological Technologies for Urban Planning: Creating Smart Cities


Book Description

Ecological and technological (eco-tech) planning provides a possible response to the essential issues of sustainability and rehabilitation in rapidly growing urban spaces. Green and Ecological Technologies for Urban Planning: Creating Smart Cities addresses the ecological, technological, and social challenges faced in the smart urban planning and design of settlements when using eco-technologies – from sustainable land use to transportation, and from green areas to municipal applications – with a focus on resilience. Containing research from leading international experts, this book provides comprehensive coverage and definitions of the most important issues, concepts, trends, and technologies within the planning field.




Our Common Journey


Book Description

World human population is expected to reach upwards of 9 billion by 2050 and then level off over the next half-century. How can the transition to a stabilizing population also be a transition to sustainability? How can science and technology help to ensure that human needs are met while the planet's environment is nurtured and restored? Our Common Journey examines these momentous questions to draw strategic connections between scientific research, technological development, and societies' efforts to achieve environmentally sustainable improvements in human well being. The book argues that societies should approach sustainable development not as a destination but as an ongoing, adaptive learning process. Speaking to the next two generations, it proposes a strategy for using scientific and technical knowledge to better inform future action in the areas of fertility reduction, urban systems, agricultural production, energy and materials use, ecosystem restoration and biodiversity conservation, and suggests an approach for building a new research agenda for sustainability science. Our Common Journey documents large-scale historical currents of social and environmental change and reviews methods for "what if" analysis of possible future development pathways and their implications for sustainability. The book also identifies the greatest threats to sustainabilityâ€"in areas such as human settlements, agriculture, industry, and energyâ€"and explores the most promising opportunities for circumventing or mitigating these threats. It goes on to discuss what indicators of change, from children's birth-weights to atmosphere chemistry, will be most useful in monitoring a transition to sustainability.




Technological Change and the Environment


Book Description

Much is written in the popular literature about the current pace of technological change. But do we have enough scientific knowledge about the sources and management of innovation to properly inform policymaking in technology dependent domains such as energy and the environment? While it is agreed that technological change does not 'fall from heaven like autumn leaves,' the theory, data, and models are deficient. The specific mechanisms that govern the rate and direction of inventive activity, the drivers and scope for incremental improvements that occur during technology diffusion, and the spillover effects that cross-fertilize technological innovations remain poorly understood. In a work that will interest serious readers of history, policy, and economics, the editors and their distinguished contributors offer a unique, single volume overview of the theoretical and empirical work on technological change. Beginning with a survey of existing research, they provide analysis and case studies in contexts such as medicine, agriculture, and power generation, paying particular attention to what technological change means for efficiency, productivity, and reduced environmental impacts. The book includes a historical analysis of technological change, an examination of the overall direction of technological change, and general theories about the sources of change. The contributors empirically test hypotheses of induced innovation and theories of institutional innovation. They propose ways to model induced technological change and evaluate its impact, and they consider issues such as uncertainty in technology returns, technology crossover effects, and clustering. A copublication o Resources for the Future (RFF) and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA).