How to preserve ecosystems?
How can engineers contribute to the preservation of biodiversity?
There are three possible levels of action :
understanding
preservation
restoration
Action can be taken before or after ecosystems are degraded.
Example : Improving building practices
Land use change is the main threat to ecosystems.
Land is mostly used for agriculture and construction, and here we focus on construction.
There are many levels at which action can be taken to limit the biodiversity footprint of construction.
Adding habitat by reusing pre-existing constructions and improving their ecological features is one of them. It requires landscape design, proper choice of materials and most of all a sober use of surface.
Soil quality in urban areas
Land degradation is observed in densely populated areas such as metropoles, with more than half of the total surface impervious to water in some cities.
Designing cities while maintaining soil quality is an engineering challenge.
Innovating to improve building and urban design practices comes at a cost.
Green building should also have the objective to create opportunities for inhabitants to interact with nature in a positive manner, so that they engage enthusiastically in environment preservation practices.
Biodiversity mitigation toolbox
Beyond construction, whether you are designing a product, a process or a service, you can adopt an eco-design approach by using tools such as Life Cycle Assessment.
In a LCA analysis, the materials and energy flowing in and out at each step of the life cycle of the product are listed and an elementary footprint is computed.
LCA is not limited to biodiversity: other indicators include for instance climate change, air and water quality.
The sketch looks simple but it relies on complex models and a library of impact factors.
The end users does not have to build the whole network themselves but they need to be aware of its complexity.
