What does an environmental engineer do? - Careers in Science and Engineering

National Science Foundation News
1 Mar 201208:11
EducationalLearning
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TLDRTamar Losleben, an environmental engineer with Malcolm Pirnie in New York City, focuses on water engineering and treatment. She works on projects ranging from water storage to wastewater facilities, emphasizing sustainability. Tamar also volunteers with Engineers Without Borders, helping communities in developing countries build water systems, reflecting her passion for improving global water access.

Takeaways
  • 💧 The public often takes clean water for granted, but it's a resource that requires significant effort to maintain and ensure its safety.
  • 👩‍💼 Tamar Losleben is an environmental engineer at Malcolm Pirnie, working in New York City, focusing on areas where public health intersects with environmental needs.
  • 🌐 Environmental engineers are involved in preventing and cleaning up contamination of air, soil, and water, and they create solutions to mitigate environmental and health impacts.
  • 🚰 Tamar specializes in water engineering, particularly water treatment, and is currently testing for lead in old houses to ensure water safety.
  • 🏙️ At Malcolm Pirnie, Tamar works on diverse projects including water storage, disinfection, upgrading facilities, and master planning, with a focus on sustainability.
  • 🌊 Tamar is involved in a project at the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant in Nassau County, working to meet stricter regulations on chlorine and dissolved oxygen levels in wastewater.
  • 🌳 Tamar enjoys a mix of office and fieldwork, starting her day outdoors and often working a 40-hour week, reflecting the varied nature of an environmental engineer's job.
  • 🏞️ Tamar's work includes testing water for turbidity at locations like Meadow Lake in New York City, assessing the quality for recreational use.
  • 🌍 Tamar's international experience, growing up in India, Kenya, and Egypt, has shaped her understanding of the importance of balancing urban growth with environmental protection.
  • 🌐 Through organizations like Engineers Without Borders, Tamar has contributed to constructing water systems in developing countries, directly impacting communities and their access to clean water.
  • 🌊 Tamar's passion for environmental engineering is evident in her desire to work on international water projects, aiming to improve global access to clean and safe water.
Q & A

  • What is the main concern of the public regarding water that is often overlooked?

    -The public often takes for granted the availability of clean water to drink and the sufficient quantity of clean water, which is something that professionals work hard to ensure.

  • Who is Tamar Losleben and what is her profession?

    -Tamar Losleben is an environmental engineer with Malcolm Pirnie, working in New York City. Her specialty is water engineering, specifically water treatment.

  • What is the role of environmental engineers in relation to public health and the environment?

    -Environmental engineers work at the intersection of public health and environmental needs, focusing on cleaning up or preventing contamination of air, soil, and water, and creating solutions to mitigate environmental and health impacts.

  • What kind of projects does Tamar work on at Malcolm Pirnie?

    -Tamar works on various projects including determining water storage needs, disinfection needs, upgrading drinking water and wastewater facilities, and conducting overall master planning. She also considers the sustainability of projects.

  • What is the specific project Tamar is working on at the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant in Nassau County, Long Island?

    -Tamar is working with the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation to meet stricter regulations regarding the removal of chlorine and dissolved oxygen from the wastewater leaving the plant and entering water bodies.

  • How does Tamar's work environment vary?

    -Tamar's work environment is a mix of office work and fieldwork. She sometimes works in the office, while other days she heads to the field, and she enjoys the variety this brings to her work life.

  • What is the significance of testing for turbidity in the water?

    -Testing for turbidity helps understand the presence of suspended particles in the water. High turbidity is not ideal for drinking water but can be acceptable for recreational purposes like swimming.

  • What personal experiences has Tamar had that influenced her career choice?

    -Tamar grew up in India, Kenya, and Egypt, experiencing diverse cultures and environments. These experiences instilled in her a desire to balance urban growth with environmental preservation and protection.

  • How does Tamar contribute to international water projects through Engineers Without Borders?

    -As a project lead for Engineers Without Borders, Tamar has worked hands-on with teams and local communities in constructing water storage, distribution, and purification systems for small villages in developing countries.

  • What is the current global situation regarding access to improved sanitation and water sources?

    -About half of the population in developing countries lack access to proper sanitation, and one out of six people do not have access to an improved water source, leading to potential health risks.

  • What advice does Tamar give for someone interested in becoming an environmental engineer?

    -Tamar suggests that someone interested in environmental engineering should have an interest in people and science, be strong in math, and be prepared to use a lot of chemistry in their work.

Outlines
00:00
💧 Water Safety and Environmental Engineering

Tamar Losleben, an environmental engineer with Malcolm Pirnie in New York City, emphasizes the importance of clean water and the efforts made to ensure its safety. She discusses her role in environmental engineering, focusing on water treatment, and her work on projects ranging from water storage and disinfection to upgrading facilities. Tamar also highlights the significance of sustainability in her projects and her involvement in a project at the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant in Nassau County, Long Island, where she collaborates with the NY state department of environmental conservation to meet stricter regulations on chlorine and dissolved oxygen levels in wastewater.

05:06
🌊 Balancing Urban Growth with Environmental Protection

Tamar Losleben shares her passion for environmental engineering, particularly in the context of water. She describes her work and play involving water, such as surfing at Rockaway beach and biking around New York City, noting the marine life she encounters. Tamar underscores the optimism inherent in environmental engineering, where she and her colleagues continuously seek to mitigate environmental damage and improve public health. She outlines the areas of expertise for environmental engineers, including pollution control and water supply, and the typical educational path involving a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering and often a master's degree in environmental engineering. Tamar also expresses her dream of working on international water projects to improve access to clean water globally, reflecting on the changing demographics in the field with more women joining.

Mindmap
Keywords
💡Environmental Engineering
Environmental engineering is a discipline that focuses on the intersection of public health and environmental needs. It involves the development of solutions to mitigate environmental impacts on health and ecosystems. In the video, Tamar Losleben, an environmental engineer, works on projects that clean up or prevent contamination of air, soil, and water, emphasizing the importance of this field in maintaining clean water supplies and protecting public health.
💡Water Engineering
Water engineering is a specialized area within environmental engineering that deals with the treatment, distribution, and management of water resources. Tamar's area of specialty is water engineering, specifically water treatment. She is involved in testing water for contaminants like lead in old houses and working on projects that upgrade drinking water and wastewater facilities, highlighting the critical role of water engineering in ensuring clean and safe water for communities.
💡Contamination
Contamination refers to the presence of unwanted substances in the environment that can harm ecosystems or human health. In the video, Tamar and her colleagues work to prevent or clean up contamination of air, soil, and water. This is crucial for protecting natural resources and ensuring the safety of water supplies, as seen in the script where Tamar tests for lead in water at a friend's house.
💡Sustainability
Sustainability in the context of engineering refers to the practice of designing and implementing projects that meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Tamar mentions that she looks at the sustainability of projects, indicating that her work considers long-term environmental impacts and aims to create solutions that are environmentally friendly and economically viable.
💡Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant
The Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant is a specific project site mentioned in the video where Tamar is working. It is a sewage treatment facility in Nassau County, Long Island, where Tamar and her team are working to meet stricter regulations by removing the proper amounts of chlorine and dissolved oxygen from the wastewater. This example illustrates the practical application of environmental engineering in managing and treating wastewater to protect water bodies.
💡Dissolved Oxygen
Dissolved oxygen is a measure of the amount of oxygen present in water, which is crucial for aquatic life. In the video, Tamar is working on monitoring the levels of dissolved oxygen in the wastewater leaving the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant. Maintaining appropriate levels of dissolved oxygen is essential for preventing harm to aquatic ecosystems and ensuring water quality.
💡Turbidity
Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness or haziness in a fluid caused by individual particles that are generally invisible to the naked eye. Tamar takes a sample of lake water to test for turbidity, which is an important parameter in assessing water quality. High turbidity can indicate the presence of excessive particles, which can be harmful for drinking water but may be acceptable for recreational purposes like swimming.
💡Engineers Without Borders
Engineers Without Borders is an organization that Tamar is involved with, which focuses on providing engineering expertise to communities in need. In the video, Tamar shares her experiences working with this organization in El Salvador, helping to construct water storage, distribution, and purification systems for small villages in developing countries. This shows the global impact that environmental engineers can have through international collaboration.
💡Public Health
Public health is the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities, and individuals. Tamar's work as an environmental engineer is directly tied to public health, as she focuses on ensuring clean water supplies and mitigating environmental hazards that could impact health. The video emphasizes the importance of clean water for public health and how environmental engineers contribute to this goal.
💡Urban Growth
Urban growth refers to the increase in population and development in urban areas. Tamar discusses the importance of balancing urban growth with the preservation and protection of the environment. This is a key theme in the video, as it highlights the challenges faced by cities in managing development while maintaining environmental sustainability, which is a central concern for environmental engineers.
💡Environmental Impact
Environmental impact is the effect that human activities have on the natural environment. In the video, Tamar and her colleagues study where there could be an impact on the environment or people's health and create solutions to mitigate that impact. This concept is central to the work of environmental engineers, as they aim to minimize negative effects on ecosystems while promoting sustainable development.
Highlights

The public often takes clean water for granted, but it requires hard work to ensure its safety.

Tamar Losleben is an environmental engineer with Malcolm Pirnie, focusing on water engineering and treatment.

Environmental engineering combines public health and environmental needs to mitigate environmental and health impacts.

Tamar tests for lead in old houses to ensure water safety.

At Malcolm Pirnie, Tamar works on diverse projects including water storage, disinfection, and facility upgrades.

Sustainability is a key focus in Tamar's projects.

Tamar is involved in a project at the Bay Park Sewage Treatment plant in Nassau County, Long Island.

The project aims to meet stricter regulations on chlorine and dissolved oxygen in wastewater.

Tamar enjoys a mix of office and fieldwork, often starting her day outdoors.

Measuring turbidity in Meadow Lake to understand water quality for recreational purposes.

Tamar's love for diverse cultures is reflected in her appreciation for Jackson Heights, NYC.

Tamar's early life in India, Kenya, and Egypt influenced her passion for balancing urban growth with environmental protection.

Tamar volunteers with Engineers Without Borders, focusing on water storage and purification systems in developing countries.

Half of the population in developing countries lack access to proper sanitation, and one out of six lack access to improved water sources.

Tamar sees the direct impact of her work abroad, improving access to clean water and reducing sickness.

Environmental engineers are optimists, constantly working to improve environmental and health conditions.

Environmental engineers work in various sectors including engineering firms, universities, and government agencies.

A strong interest in science, people, and math is essential for aspiring environmental engineers.

Tamar dreams of working on international water projects to help people access clean, safe water.

Transcripts

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Environmental EngineeringClean WaterWater TreatmentPublic HealthSustainabilityUrban GrowthInternational ProjectsCommunity ImpactEducational OutreachNature Conservation