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Being an academician, I was happy to
have been invited to speak on one of my areas of interest,
climate change, during the First Engineering Summit that was
held at the SMX Convention (Mall of Asia Complex) early this
year. The said summit, which was attended by 1000
participants, was organized by the Philippine Technological
Council, the umbrella organization of the 12 engineering
associations recognized by the Professional Regulatory
Commission.
The occurrence of almost daily rains at the
peak of summer in the Philippines has caught a lot of people
flat-footed. The cycles of agricultural crops (e.g., water
melon and tobacco) and the construction of infrastructure and
houses that are timed during the summer months have all been
adversely affected. And incredible as it seems, Emong, a
tropical typhoon hit the country only last week during what is
supposed to be the driest period of the year in the country.
The damage caused by Katrina, a very powerful hurricane that
hit New Orleans some years ago, haunted the administration of
former US President George Bush up to the end of his second
term. The frequent floods in mainland Asia and the droughts
that continue to bedevil African countries are some stark
reminders that climate change is real and is already causing
problems to our world today.
Engineers can play a very important role in
combating climate change because many of them are involved in
the design and construction of buildings, offices, factories
and other facilities; industrial plant operations; extraction
and utilization of fossil fuels and minerals; power generation
and distribution; selection and design of equipment and
processes to be used by industry; and many other activities
that are based on science and technology. The aim is to reduce
the amount of greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide,
methane, and nitrous oxide). Engineers, many of whom are
holding managerial or executive positions, can greatly
influence the extent of reducing the amount of greenhouse
gases emission by selecting energy-efficient equipment and
processes; upgrading old plants and equipment; and/or
modifying processes so that they become more energy-efficient;
and designing and constructing plants, equipment and
facilities in such a way that they are energy-efficient.
They can also make sure that the following
programs and/or systems are in place in their organizations: a
functioning environmental management system, an effective
energy conservation program, a benchmarking program to adopt
best practices related to the reduction of energy/ power use ,
and the inclusion of improvement targets in the annual
planning for reducing energy/ power use. The engineers can
also recommend to management the use of alternative
power/energy when it becomes available, the installation of
alternative power capacity that do not generate greenhouse
gases (like wind and solar power), and the avoidance of
activities that would entail the use of more power/energy such
as company outing to far-flung places that would require the
employees to travel great distances and involve the use of a
high amount of power. Moreover, the engineers can recommend a
massive tree-planting activity and for the organization to
spearhead in informing and training employees and people in
the community on how they can help in abating climate change.
The climate change crisis has come to a head
that it is highly necessary that we examine and reevaluate how
we do things to contribute to the abatement, if not
elimination, of harmful activities that degrade the
environment.
The author is a Doctor of Business
Administration student of the De La Salle University’s Ramon
V. Del Rosario Sr. Graduate School of Business. He is Dean of
the College of Business Administration of Baliuag University
at Baliuag, Bulacan. He welcomes comments at egechavez@yahoo.com. |
