Preface
The past 75 years have seen the emergence of a growing desire worldwide that
positive actions be taken to restore and protect the environment from the degrading
effects of all forms of pollution – air, water, soil, thermal, radioactive, and noise.
Since pollution is a direct or indirect consequence of waste, the seemingly idealistic
demand for “zero discharge” can be construed as an unrealistic demand for zero
waste. However, as long as waste continues to exist, we can only attempt to abate the
subsequent pollution by converting it to a less noxious form. Three major questions
usually arise when a particular type of pollution has been identified: (1) How serious
are the environmental pollution and water resources crisis? (2) Is the technology to
abate them available? and (3) Do the costs of abatement justify the degree of
abatement achieved for environmental protection and natural resources conservation? This book is one of the volumes of the Handbook of Environmental Engineering series. The principal intention of this series is to help readers formulate answers
to the above three questions.
The traditional approach of applying tried-and-true solutions to specific environmental and water resources problems has been a major contributing factor to the
success of environmental engineering and has accounted in large measure for the
establishment of a “methodology of pollution control.” However, the realization of
the ever-increasing complexity and interrelated nature of current environmental
problems renders it imperative that intelligent planning of pollution abatement
systems be undertaken. Prerequisite to such planning is an understanding of the
performance, potential, and limitations of the various methods of environmental
protection available for environmental scientists and engineers. In this series of
handbooks, we will review at a tutorial level a broad spectrum of engineering
systems (natural environment, processes, operations, and methods) currently being
utilized, or of potential utility, for pollution abatement, environmental protection,
and natural resources conservation. We believe that the unified interdisciplinary
approach presented in these handbooks is a logical step in the evolution of environmental engineering.
vii
The past 75 years have seen the emergence of a growing desire worldwide that
positive actions be taken to restore and protect the environment from the degrading
effects of all forms of pollution – air, water, soil, thermal, radioactive, and noise.
Since pollution is a direct or indirect consequence of waste, the seemingly idealistic
demand for “zero discharge” can be construed as an unrealistic demand for zero
waste. However, as long as waste continues to exist, we can only attempt to abate the
subsequent pollution by converting it to a less noxious form. Three major questions
usually arise when a particular type of pollution has been identified: (1) How serious
are the environmental pollution and water resources crisis? (2) Is the technology to
abate them available? and (3) Do the costs of abatement justify the degree of
abatement achieved for environmental protection and natural resources conservation? This book is one of the volumes of the Handbook of Environmental Engineering series. The principal intention of this series is to help readers formulate answers
to the above three questions.
The traditional approach of applying tried-and-true solutions to specific environmental and water resources problems has been a major contributing factor to the
success of environmental engineering and has accounted in large measure for the
establishment of a “methodology of pollution control.” However, the realization of
the ever-increasing complexity and interrelated nature of current environmental
problems renders it imperative that intelligent planning of pollution abatement
systems be undertaken. Prerequisite to such planning is an understanding of the
performance, potential, and limitations of the various methods of environmental
protection available for environmental scientists and engineers. In this series of
handbooks, we will review at a tutorial level a broad spectrum of engineering
systems (natural environment, processes, operations, and methods) currently being
utilized, or of potential utility, for pollution abatement, environmental protection,
and natural resources conservation. We believe that the unified interdisciplinary
approach presented in these handbooks is a logical step in the evolution of environmental engineering.
vii