CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY

College of Engineering and Architecture

Department of Civil Engineering

TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

Environmental engineering - the application of the principles of engineering to enhance and preserve the
environment in order to (1) protect human health, (2) protect the habitats of nature, and (3) improve the
quality of life associated with our environment. Initially, it was a specialized discipline of civil engineering
(called sanitary engineering) until the mid-1960s, when environmental engineering was the more precise
name. Environmental engineering today includes:
 Air, water, and noise pollution control;
 Drinking water treatment and distribution;
 Wastewater collection, care, and disposal;
 Control of urban solid-waste and dangerous-waste management;
 Hazardous-waste site clean-up; and
 Environmental evaluation planning, audits and impact studies
 Environmental chemistry, microbiology, impact assessment, hydrology, health and safety
• Environmental quality of modeling and monitoring.

Acids - A class of compounds which, when concentrated, can be corrosive. In foods, weak acids are popular,
such as vinegar and citric acid. Strong acids have many industrial applications, such as muriatic (or
hydrochloric), sulfuric and nitric acid, and can be toxic to anyone not used to treat them. Acids, in that they
can neutralize each other, are chemical 'opposites' of bases.

Acid Deposition or Acid Rain – It is a broad term that encompasses any forms of precipitation with
components of acid, such as sulfuric or nitric acid, falling from the atmosphere to the ground in wet or dries
forms. This can involve acidic rain, snow, fog, hail or even dust.

Afforestation - the establishment of a forest or stand of trees (forestation) in an area where there was no
previous tree cover.

Air pollution - The existence of pollutants in the environment that are harmful to the health of humans and
other living organisms, or that could cause damage to the ecosystem or materials.

Artificial upwelling - aims to artificially pump up cooler, nutrient-rich waters from deep in the oceans to the
surface to stimulate phytoplankton activity and draw down CO2.

Atmosphere - The gas layer across the Earth. The Earth's gravity locks it in place. Oxygen (20.9 percent) and
small quantities of argon (0.9 percent), carbon dioxide (~ 0.035 percent), water vapor, and other gases are also
abundant. The atmosphere, by absorbing (taking) ultraviolet rays from the sun, protects life on earth.

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE

 CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering and Architecture
Department of Civil Engineering

Bacteria - These are prokaryotic unicellular (single cell) (lack of cell/membrane) living microorganisms. Their
meaning is that (1) they alter the organism's structure and form. (2) Food channel bacteria that assist us in
digestion. (3) Medical bacteria assist us in producing medicine. (4) Industrial bacteria that is toxic to living
organisms.

Biochar - a charcoal-like substance that's made by burning organic material from agricultural and forestry
wastes (also called biomass) in a controlled process called pyrolysis.

Biodiversity - It is a term that we use to describe the diversity of life on earth, such as plants, animals, etc. It
applies to a wide range of ecosystems and living organisms and their habitats.

Biosphere - the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth (or analogous parts of other
planets) occupied by living organisms.

Cloud seeding - involves modifying a cloud's structure to increase the chance of precipitation.

Deforestation - The decline of forest areas worldwide that are lost to other uses, such as croplands,
urbanization, or mining operations.

Desertification - A type of land degradation in which an area of relatively dry land becomes more and more
arid, usually losing its water sources as well as vegetation and wildlife.

Direct injection - engines, fuel is squirted directly into the combustion chamber instead of hanging out in the
air intake manifold.

Ecology - It is the empirical research and study of living organisms' interactions and different relationships with
each other and with their environment.

Ecosystem - A population of organisms that communicate with each other and with their environment in such
a way that energy and system-level processes are shared.

Environment - The word environment comes from environ, meaning things appeared from environment,
meaning things surrounding that. This means all around us, including all physical and biological environments,
like all physical and biological environments, i.e. air, water, people, trees, plants, animals, i.e. air, water,
humans, trees, plants, animals, micro-organisms, highways, construction, etc.

Fauna - The defined area or time of the animal.

Flora - The plant of specified region or time.

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE

 CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering and Architecture
Department of Civil Engineering

Global Warming - In general, the steady rise in the average temperature of the earth's atmosphere is due to
the greenhouse effect of elevated levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons and other contaminants.

Greenhouse Effect - The trapping of the warmth of the sun in the lower atmosphere of a planet, due to the
greater transparency of the atmosphere to the sun's visible radiation than to the infrared radiation emitted
from the surface of the planet.

Habitat - The type of ecosystem in which a specific organism or population resides is and is inhabited by its
habitat.

Hydrosphere - The surface of the earth's watery layer; it contains water vapor, etc. It consists of ocean, sea
river, etc. It occupies 71 percent of the total earth of which saline water is 97 percent.

Iron fertilization - the intentional introduction of iron to iron-poor areas of the ocean surface to stimulate
phytoplankton production.

Lithosphere - This layer comprises of mountainous hard layers such as rock, the solid portion of the earth
consisting of the crust and outer mantle.it. It's very similar to living things, this layer. In this layer, rocks like
granite, blast, etc. occur.

Mesosphere - the region of the earth's atmosphere above the stratosphere and below the thermosphere,
between about 30 and 50 miles (50 and 80 km) in altitude.

Noise pollution - Unnecessary or excessive noise, which can have adverse effects on human health, wildlife
and the quality of the atmosphere

Ozone - A colorless, unstable toxic gas with a strong odor and strong oxidizing properties, created by electric
discharges or ultraviolet light from oxygen. It varies from standard oxygen (O2) in that the molecule contains
three atoms (O3).

Ozone Layer - At an altitude of around 6.2 miles (10 km), a layer in the earth's stratosphere produces a high
concentration of ozone that absorbs most of the ultraviolet radiation from the sun that enters the earth.

Population - In ecological terms, the community of related individual species that live together in the same
environment at the same time forms the population.

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE

 CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering and Architecture
Department of Civil Engineering

Reflective Aerosols - to release reflective particles (aerosols) in the upper layers of the atmosphere – the
stratosphere (15 to 50 kilo- metres altitude) – to reflect short-wave solar radiation back into space. Less solar
radiation then reaches the Earth's surface, thus reducing global warming.

Resource Recovery – It is to produce useful goods as new outputs, the use of waste as an input material. The
goal is to minimize the amount of waste produced, thereby reducing the need for landfill space and
maximizing the value of the waste generated.

Space mirrors - man-made satellites that are designed to change the amount of solar radiation that impacts
the Earth as a form of climate engineering.

Species - A community of living organisms composed of identical individuals capable of interbreeding and
possessing similar characteristics. An endangered species is in danger of extinction.

Stratosphere - the layer of the earth's atmosphere above the troposphere, extending to about 32 miles (50
km) above the earth's surface (the lower boundary of the mesosphere).

Troposphere - the lowest region of the atmosphere, extending from the earth's surface to a height of about
3.7–6.2 miles (6–10 km), which is the lower boundary of the stratosphere.

Viruses - These are very minute, non-cellular plant and animal parasites or pathogenic agents.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/environmental-engineering
https://www.slideshare.net/mirzafarullah/important-terms-related-to-environmental-engineering
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/earthscience/chapter/desertification/

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE

 CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering and Architecture
Department of Civil Engineering

BASIC ENVIRONMENTAL PRINICPLE AND CONCEPTS

Principle 1 - People Depend on Natural Systems

The continuation and health of individual human lives and of human communities and societies depend on the
health of the natural systems that provide essential goods and ecosystem services.

Concept A. The goods produced by natural systems are essential to human life and to the functioning of our
economies and cultures.
Concept B. The ecosystem services provided by natural systems are essential to human life and to the
functioning of our economies and cultures.
Concept C. That the quality, quantity, and reliability of the goods and ecosystem services provided by natural
systems are directly affected by the health of those systems.

: To keep us alive and safe, we rely on biodiversity (the sheer variety of life found on Earth) every day. Many of
the by-products of a safe world are the air we breathe, the water we drink, the foods we consume and the
drugs we take.

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE

 CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering and Architecture
Department of Civil Engineering

Principle 2 - People Influence Natural Systems

The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced
by their relationships with human societies.

Concept A. Direct and indirect changes to natural systems due to the growth of human populations and their
consumption rates influence the geographic extent, composition, biological diversity, and viability of natural
systems.
Concept B. Methods used to extract, harvest, transport, and consume natural resources influence the
geographic extent, composition, biological diversity, and viability of natural systems.
Concept C. The expansion and operation of human communities influences the geographic extent,
composition, biological diversity, and viability of natural systems.
Concept D. The legal, economic, and political systems that govern the use and management of natural systems
directly influence the geographic extent, composition, biological diversity, and viability of natural systems.

: We rely and depend on our natural system; however, our planet is under attack, and the richness of life it
supports. Species and toxic habitats are being wiped out at alarming rates by deforestation, pollution,
greenhouse gas emissions, wetland runoff, climate change, globalisation and other causes of modern life.

Principle 3 - Natural Systems Change in Ways that People Benefit From and Can Influence
Natural systems proceed through cycles that humans depend upon, benefit from, and can alter.

Concept A. Natural systems proceed through cycles and processes that are required for their functioning.
Concept B. Human practices depend upon and benefit from the cycles and processes that operate within
natural systems.
Concept C. Human practices can alter the cycles and processes that operate within natural systems.

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE

 CEBU INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY – UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering and Architecture
Department of Civil Engineering

: When we damage the Earth, we damage our own health. Human beings are as susceptible as any other
species. Every breath we take depends on another life, another species. Many of the global health challenges
that we face today, including infectious diseases, malnutrition and noncommunicable diseases, are all linked
to the decline of biodiversity and ecosystems.

Principle 4 - There are no Permanent or Impermeable Boundaries that Prevent Matter from Flowing
Between Systems
The exchange of matter between natural systems and human societies affects the long-term functioning of
both.

Concept A. The effects of human activities on natural systems are directly related to the quantities of
resources consumed and to the quantity and characteristics of the resulting by-products.
Concept B. The byproducts of human activity are not readily prevented from entering natural systems and
may be beneficial, neutral, or detrimental in their effect.
Concept C. The capacity of natural systems to adjust to human-caused alterations depends on the nature of
the system as well as the scope, scale, and duration of the activity and the nature of its by-products.

: As the world’s population continues to grow, competition for land and water resources to produce food,
energy and housing is fierce.
For proper human system, we need a wide range of animal and plant life, so that populations are neither
malnourished nor obese. Rich biodiversity provides natural control for habitats and soils with the nutrients
required for safe crops. However, the natural system and human system don’t seem to balance of and can’t
prevent disadvantages to flow.

Principle 5 - Decisions Affecting Resources and Natural Systems are Complex and Involve Many Factors
Decisions affecting resources and natural systems are based on a wide range of considerations and decision-
making processes.

Concept A. There is a spectrum of what is considered in making decisions about resources and natural systems
and how those factors influence decisions.
Concept B. The process of making decisions about resources and natural systems, and how the assessment of
social, economic, political, and environmental factors has changed over time.

: I have learned on the early years about the programs the professionals have done to keep the human system
and natural system to work together. The world has been moving towards the Millennium Development Goals
since 2000. It has taken people out of poverty, expanded access to clean water, and decreased the spread of
HIV and malaria. However, the environmental health issues facing us in the coming years will stem from how
well we handle and adapt to changes in the climate that result in the loss of biodiversity.
https://www.californiaeei.org/epc/
https://www.who.int/mediacentre/commentaries/healthy-planet/en/

CE354- ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING FOR CE