History of Environmental Engineering

 

Department of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering > About the Department > History > History of Environ menta mentall Engineering

History of Environmental Engineering Environmental Engineering "One of World's Oldest Professions" Presented by Charles A. Buescher Jr., PE, PE, DEE

"Everything seems new if you are ignorant of history" (1). With that as a preamble I would like to discuss with you our profession, the fields of sanitation and public health; the roots of today's field of Environmental Engineering. Our profession has had a long history and has long been associated with the medical fields. I want to share with you today how our profession developed and also the many contributions by the faculty and alumni of Washington University. Early Histor Histor y

In early Egyptian Civilizations (2) excavations have been found, showing arrangements were made f or the collection collection of rainfall as well as the use of copper pipe for the disposal of sewage. This dates f rom 3400-2450 B.C. Irrigation was also widely used later during the new Egyptian Empire 1580-1200 B.C. Aegean ean Sea on the Is le of Crete and flourished between 1850-1400 B.C. B.C. This island is now a part of  The Knossian (2) (3) (4) or the Minoan civilization was located in the Aeg devices for s anitation, ventilation, drainage and latrines. The Queen even had a bathtub. Greece. Excavations Excavations have revealed evidence of devices In early Greek history, (2) (3) there are many instances of sanitation and medicine being used. Temples located near springs and woodlands hills were us ed as Sanatoria Today this still remains a beautiful place and has one of the and health resorts. These can be s een today at Epidauros on the Peloponese peninsular in sout hern Greece. Today world's finest acoustical (non-electric) (non-electric) theatres theatres s till in use s eating 14,000 persons. For protection, protection, the Greek populace lived near fortif fortified ied heights. Thes e fortresses are referred to as Ac Acropolises, ropolises, and located throughout the Gre Greek ek Empire. The m ost famous is the Acropolis Acropolis in Athens, where the Parthenon is located. All of these areas required protected water supplies so that people could survive during long periods of siege. Water  and waste disposal were thus a signif icant aspect in choosing proper location. The Hindus (3) recorded in Sans krit about 2000 B.C., their collect collection ion of m edical lore, Ousruta Sanghita, the f ollowing concerning water. "It is good to keep water in copper  vess els, to expose it to sunlight and filter thr through ough charcoal." Additionally Additionally in the Susruta Samhita, dating back to 2000 B.C., it was s tated "impure water should be purif ied by being boiled over a fire, or being heated in the sun, or dipping a hot iron into it, or by filtration through sand and coarse gravel and then allowed to cool." The Hindu's in addition discuss ed the use of Gomedka, a ty type pe of rock, and vegetable substances, m ost notably tthe he seed of Strychnos Potatorum for treatment of drinking water. Today we would consider these to be coagulants or polymers. During the period of the great Roman Civilization, 900 B.C. to 476 AD, many of the Roman hygienic achievements were as sociated with military objectives. (3) Some examples were the great aqueducts, aqueducts, sewers , drains and public baths. Additionally the Romans reported the use of many natural chemicals to improve the taste and clarity of water such as: 1. Diophannes (1st Century B.C.) advised putting macerated laurel in rainwater. 2. Paxamus Paxamus (1st Century AD) proposed proposed that bruised coral or pounded barley, in a big and this bag be imm ersed in bad tasting waters to im prov prove e the taste. 3. Vitruvius(15 B.C.) recommended that cisterns be constructed with two or three, separate compartments and the water t ransferred from one another, thus thus allowing the m ud to settle and insure clarity. 4. Pliny (77 AD) Said that POLENTA, a kind of food, added to bitter waters would render it potable in two hours. He also stated that this could als o be achieved by the addition of chalk from RHODES and the argilla from ITALY. This is t he f irst mention of lime and aluminous earth as precipitant precipitants. s. 5. Socrat Socrates es (469-399 B.C.) The The use of wicks as siphons to transfer wat water er was well known. Additionally filtrat filtration ion through porous vessels was also known. filtration ation could be done through earthen vessels that were not thoroughly baked. 6. Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) It was common knowledge that filtr 7. Hippocra tes (460-354 B.C.) the father of med icine, wrote in Air, Air, Water and Places , the first treatise on public hygiene, that, "whoever investigate medicine, properly should "Qualities of water differ from one another in tas te and consider the seasons of the year, the winds and the waters in relation to health and dis ease." It was pointed out that "Qualities weight" as well as other qualit ies. One should "consider the waters which the inhabitants use, whether they be marshy and soft, or hard and running from elev elevated ated and rocky situations, and then if salty unfit f or cooking.....f cooking.....for or water contributes much to health." Hippocrates Hippocrates a lso as serted that rain wat er should be boiled and strained to prev prevent ent the water from having a bad sm ell. For the straining process a specific cloth bag was to be used, and this was referred to as the "Hippocrates Sleeve." In discuss ing the Roman Em pire we would be remis s if the aqueducts were not examined more thoroughly. (5) "The hills surrounding Rome provided exc excellent ellent locations for  As the population grew so did the outposts, prompting the shepard and farmers to build a walled city f or their protection and to use the fertile countryside for t heir subs istence." As Additionally their limited water supplies made Rom e more vulnerable to to their enemies. However, Typhoid and need f or additional water and means of dis posing of was tes. Additionally erved ed two purpos es, carry away the Malaria were even worse enemies. To cope with these problems the Romans designed and constructed a sewage system, which s erv wastes from the city as well as storm water. This required larger sewers along the roadway roadways. s. Surf ace water provided by rainfall was inadequate to carry away t he evernightfall occurred, tthousands housands of  increasing amounts of waste. Poison gass es constantly belched from the sewer openings and polluted kitchens and bathrooms. And when nightfall screeching rats leaped from the maze of sewers and took over the s treet treets. s. Additional water was required. inspection. The initial steps were to find springs that were v visibly isibly pure and clean, were sa fe from The Romans determined that any new source water had to pass a quality inspection. examination in which the eyes, bones and complexion were of main pollution and free from from m oss and reeds. Secondly the local users of these springs had to undergo an examination interest. Cloudy eyes, weak bone structures, and poor complexions were s ympt oms of bad water. If there there were no us ers of the water for local purposes the water t hen was tested for corrosion, corrosion, sus pended solids , boiling character characterist ist ics and clarity clarity.. Corrosion s tudies were m ade by filling a bronze container with the water sample, letting it stand for a given period of time and testing the water to determine any signs of discoloration. Via ia Callatina and the first aqueduct was  Aft  After er reviewing ma ny locations a s pring was found m eeting all re quirem ent s. The spring was located 5 miles eas t of Rome above the V completed in 312 B.C. To protect the water from their enemies the aqueduct was buried, additionally since they did not have modern day construct construction ion equipm ent they were forced to go around obstacles. The aqueduct ended up being 10.29 miles in length. This first aqueduct "A "Aqua qua Appia" provided 16 million gallons of water per day. Over the next 364 years eight more aqueducts were built providing Rome with m ore than adequate water f or drinking, flushing, fountains and fire fighting. This This was a remarkable feat. comm iss ioner and his dedication to his work permits him to be called an Engineer. His background background In 97 AD Sextus Julius Front ius (3) became curator aquarium or water comm was military; however he had served in m any important civil positions. His belief was that he had to learn thoroughly what he had undertaken. By 98 A AD D Frontinus had completed his s tudies and produced two books on the water supply of Rome. It is the first known detailed description of a water works system. This report (6) was s o detailed that it even gave the gallons per capita of water use of these early Romans of 38/gal/day 38/gal/day/person. This was very very high when you consider that PARIS PARIS in 1550 AD was only 0.25/gallons/day/person. Biblical References

there were to be a mention of  The early HEBREWS (3) had a very st rong code for sanitation and hygiene and it is described in detail in the Old Testament Book of Levictus. If there water supply one would think it would be there, but it isn't. T There here are three incidents describing the ques t for pure water. 1. Mo Moses ses is s aid to have have sweetened bitter waters waters by casting into them a tree shown to him by the Lord. (Exodus 15:22-27) Moses exactly exactly where water could be found such as Moses sm iting a rock and bringing f orth waters 2. During M Moses' oses' 40 years of wandering it is s aid that the Lord told Moses (Exodus 17:1-7). 3. Much later, Elis ha is sa id to hav have e "healed unto this day" the spring water of Jericho by casting s alt into it. (II Kings 2:19-22). In the Bible there are many instances of the us e of the word "water" (7). IIn n fact the word water is us ed 694 times in 620 verses. For an example, Hebrews 10:22 let us draw near with a true heart in full ass urance of f aith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed wit h pure water. There There is no com ment on how to make pure water. civilizations ions als o practicing sanitation such as Assyria, Babylonia, Babylonia, China, Japan and parts of Asia and Africa. Africa. So worldwide it appears sanitation was an There were m any other civilizat important part of creating and m aintaining a civilization.

 

The Dark Ages

With the the fall of the Roman Empire around 400 AD, began the Dark Ages (2). Instead of water being boiled to make water pure it was "the age of My Mysticism sticism " where witches were boiled in water. Consequently Consequently,, filth, pestilence, and plague cam e back and continued until the 18th century.  Age of Enlight enm ent

Sir Francis Bacon, an English philos opher (3) began writing a reorganizat reorganization ion of all hum an knowledge including an "inductive method of modern experimental s cience." In Centuries." This com pendium of knowledge des cribed the thousand 1627, a year after his death, his last book was published Sylva Sylarum or a "Natural History in Ten Centuries." experiments exper iments that he had recorded, ten of which pertained to the treatment of water, including percolation or filtration, filtration, boiling, distillation and clarificat clarification ion by coagulation. He also dispelled a popular belief of the Romans that sea water could be desalinated by moving water through soil. Bacon proved that a well, placed near the s ea would get natural ground water from a high elevation rather than from from the s ea and that is why the water found in such wells were fresh water. During the next two centuries health matters and water treat treatment ment were still empirically done. By the late 1700s scientific experiments experiments began (3) (8), chemists began systematically to to weigh, to m easure and test. Henry Cavendish isolated hydrogen. Joseph Black discovered carbon dioxide. Antoine Lavoisier discovered the doctrine of  oxidation by proving that matter cannot be created or destroyed it changes form. He als o proved that water was a compound and not an element; as water was formed by combining two elemental gas es hydrogen and oxy oxygen. To prove this Lavoiser placed these two elements in to a proper vess el, and ignited this mixture with an electrical spark, the mixture exploded exploded and water was formed. Lavoisier, who was first to recognize the distinction between elements and compounds he also introduced quantitative chemical methods and has been referred to by many as the Father of Modern Chemistry. bacteriology.. (2) Leprosy became endemic about 1300; also between 1348 The biggest change to move sanitary engineering forward was the development of the science of bacteriology and 1350, the bubonic plague or Black Death caused the death of nearly one quarter of Europe's population, nearly 60 million persons died. It was unknown how to counteract these so-called "Acts of God." Finally in the 17th Century, scientific study was beginning. Names like Anto Anton n Van Leeuwenhoek, the inventor of the microscope Edward Jenner  and Louis Pasteur all did work in the development development of the s cience of bacteriology, but yet the science was not perfect perfected. ed. With the development of large cities, f urthered by the Industrial Revolution, people moved to urban areas an d lived more in crowded conditions and the frequency of epidemics increased. In 1854 (9), a localized outbreak of Asiatic Cholera broke out in London. Through careful examination by John Snow and John York, they demons trated, with with the science available to them, that the source of pollution had to be from the Broad Street Pump Station. It was later found that a nearby broken sewer was the s ource of the contamination into this drinking water source. Finally it was correlated to an English s oldier who had jus t returned fr from om India and carried the cholera bacter bacteria. ia. This incident was a m ilestone as it was the first proof that water could be a vehicle vehicle for disease s uch as Asiatic Cholera. It wasn't until the 1870s that Robert Koch (2) (3) (9), a German scientist, trained as a medical doctor, turned to the new field of bacteriology. He discovered and developed the methodology of the the use of s olid culture media to separate or is olate pure cultures from m ixed cult cultures. ures. He als o set forth criteria for establishing the etiology of disease. These axioms are referred to Kochs Kochs Pos tulates and are as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4.

A specific or organism ganism m ust always be ass ociated with a given disease. It must be able to be isolated in pure cult culture. ure. When inoculat inoculated ed into a healthy healthy,, susceptible animal it must always produce the same disease. It should then be able tto o again be isolated in pure culture.

Today, these pos tulates have been modified som ewhat and not all of the 4 criteria are needed to prove a causal relationship. Later Koch discovered that hypochlo Today, hypochlorous rous acid (HOCL) could could be used as a dis inf ectant. Today this compound is an integral part of nearly all water plants us ing disinfection as a part of their treat treatment ment scheme. For these very very important discoveries, Robert Koch has been designated as the Father of Bac Bacteriology teriology.. The 1880s were known as the "Golden Years of Bacteriology," during this time nearly all known communicable diseases were isolated; identified and the vector of disease determined. Now the World was ready to move forward to improve sanitation; as Sanitary Engineers now had the sciences of Chemistry and Bacteriology to add to their knowledge of Engineering. Environmental Improvements in the United States

hydraulic draulic engineering was envir environmental onmental engineering. As early communities grew they needed more water. In the United States in the early 1800s (10) it can be said that hy Each area was different where a good quality and abundant s upply of water could be found. For an example, the City of New York in 1832 retained Colonel De Witt Clinton, an  Army Engineer and so n of a former New York Governor, to develop the Water Resources Plan for the City. His plan was to dam the Croton River and water would be delivered to the City by a 40-mile aqueduct. By 1842, the City was receiving up to 95 million gallons per day of good quality water. City.. Ellis S. Ches eborough was This plan worked s o well that other cities s oon followed this approach. The City of Boston built a sim ilar aqueduct from Lake Cochituate to the City hired as Chief Engineer of the Western Division Division of the Bos ton Water W Works orks and res ponsible f or the construction of this new aqueduct. It was completed in 1848. Cheseborough later became the City City's 's Chief Engineer and res ponsible for the collection of sewage and storm water. It was decided that the most practical method to control these waste flows would be through the use of combined sewers. That is a s ewer large enough to carry the flow of liquid sanitary wastes and s torm flows and then transporting them to the ocean or to a nearby river. Most large cities favored this approach because of the lower costs of constructing two sewerage systems; treatment was not considered important at this time. Cheseborough, in 1855 resigned his position and m oved tto o Chicago where he developed Chicago's sewerage system. Mass achusetts State Board of Health  As the dema nds for water in creas ed througho ut the country, there became a concern for the quality of the water used for public use. The Mass (MIT), ), to ana lyze the water quality of the waters (10) in 1873 asked Professor Wm. Nichols, the head of Chem istry, at the then infant Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT within the state. To To do this Profess or Nichols in 1878 es tablished the f irst Sanitary Chemistry Laboratory in the United States. Next this new laboratory had to be staf fed and Professor Nichols hired a recent MIT MIT graduate Ellen Swallow (10) (11). She was the first coed at MIT and to graduate, however she was not allowed to earn her Doctorate there but her work at the Laboratory made her one of the foremos t sanitary chemists in the world. The state of Massachusetts in 1887 establish ed the Lawrence Exper Experiment iment Station as a research center for sanitary engineer engineering. ing. This combined the disciplines of  affecting ing public health. This center was professionally staffed and was als o augmented with the Engineering, Chemistry, and Biology for the solution of sanitation problems affect use of MIT MIT professors, s uch as Professor Wm. Sedgwick, a biologist. Professor Sedgwick, by 1900 was ins trumental in the development of was tewater treatment by using the recently developed bacteriological techniques by Dr. Robert Koch of the University of Berlin. MIT MIT was the first college in the United States to train students jointly in the fields of  Engineering, Chemis try and Biology. Thus, many of the early prof ess ionals in Sanitary Engineering received their training at MIT. St. Louis Environmental Challenges

Environmental problems were occurring throughout populated populated United States and St. Louis was no exception; exception; as it had similar problem s to other large cities. Water supply, wastewater disposal and storm water disposal were a common bond between all growing communities.  A. St. Louis P ublic Wat er Sup ply

developed d its first public water supply system. From its founding in 1734 until 1835 St. Louis depended for its wat er s upply upon springs and cisterns (12). In 1835 the city develope This plant consisted of a pump s tation to to lift M Missis issis sippi River water into a settling basin, which was the only form of treatment. After sett ling, the water was pumped through a exactly tly the same depth as of today. This cast iron distribution system to the public. It is interesting to note, that the pipe had to be ins talled at least 3 feet 6 inches deep: this is exac plant was located in downtown St. Louis in an area now popularly known as Laclede's Landing. From 1835 until after the the Civil War thi this s water supply was plagued with many operation problems including high silt loads from the river and too small of piping in its distribution syst em. In 1863 the state of Missouri pas sed legislation authorizing the City to build a new water facility on the Mississippi River but further upstream. On March 27t h, 1865, Mr. James Pugh Kirkwood was appointed to be the Chief Engineer of the City of St. Louis. As As Chief Engineer he was charged with the tas k of developing a new water supply f or the City of  St. Louis which was to be located upstream at Bissels Point . This plant was supposed to have a 40 million per day (MG) capacit y, without the use of filters. Mr. Kirkwood Kirkwood was a States es in 1832 and worked on m any large railroad bridges and tunnels in northeastern United States. Mr. Kirkwood Scottish born railway engineer who came to the United Stat moved to St. Louis in 1850 to becom e the Chief Engineer for the newly formed Pacific Railway. This This was a very very important position as the railway railways s were expanding to the west. New cities were formed along these new routes, to provide services to the railways. The first of these bears the name of Kirkwood, M Miss iss ouri. The City of St. Louis wanted to be s ure that their new water plant would be designed using the latest concepts. Kirkwood was s ent to Europe to visit visit and learn from other water  systems. In his 1866 report to the City Adminis tration, Kirkwood recom men ded that the plant should be located furt further her upstream, at a lo cation known as the Chain of Rocks, with four settling basins us ing the "fill and draw" method, tto o handle the silt load and 6 to 8 slow sand filters. Each slow sand filter was to be 260 feet by 150 feet and to have 30 inches of sand, 24 inches of gravel, and 24 inches of stone. Based upon his judgm ent this facilty was projected to require ten filters to produce twelve twelve million gallons per day (MGD). This system was to be designed using a per capita use of 30 gallons per day usage, which was less that water usage of the early Romans . This plan was rejected by the City Council in May of 1866. Once again the City  Adminis tration directed the Chi ef Engineer to des ign a water pla nt to be located at Biss els Po int without f iltration. Kirkwood

 

defended his position on the use of slow s and filters. He said the turbid western waters had s ediment, "though trifling trifling in weight, renders the water very objectionable in appearance, very objectionable in its application to any of the Art s or manufacture, and no acquisition certainly as regards to health and cleanliness . " Kirkwood f urther stated that eh custom of using "western waters m ay reconcile reconcile persons to its presence." There is a s tory attribut attributed ed to Mark Twain (12) who s aid it was easy to recognize recognize a s tranger to the St. L Louis ouis a rea by offering offering him a glass of water. The stranger waits for the mud properties. ties. to settle while the native stirs it up and drinks it immediately to secure the full power of its life giving proper CITY'S demands and lost his position as Chief Engineer in 11867. He then m oved to New Y York ork City and later in 1867 was elected Mr. Kirkwood revised his report to meet the CITY'S to be the Pres ident of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). He died in 1877 at an age of 70. Mr. Kirkwood was vindicated in his recomm endation for the use of slow sand f ilters to treat Miss Miss iss ippi waters, as in 1871, s low sand filtration was selected as the treat treatment ment process for the cit city y of P Poughkeepsie, oughkeepsie, New York York.. Kirkwood's s uccessor  as Chief Engineer was Thomas Jef ferson Whitman, who was the brother of the famous poet Walt Whitman. Thomas Whitman oversaw the construction of the the Biss els Point water plant, the way the City wanted and this plant becam e operational in 1871. The City had adequate water, which which was s till muddy. In 1873, the City of St. Louis withdrew from St. Louis County and the City boundaries were locked in. Many other changes als o occurred including the shifting of the supervision of city water to a Water Comm iss ioner. In 1877, Mr. M Minard inard Holman, an 1874 graduate of Washington University joined Mr. Whit Whitman man as an as sistant. During the 1876 Centennial Exhibition Exhibition in Philadelphia, at a m eeting of Engineers (13), it was s uggested that there should be a meeting of Water Supply Professionals Professionals to share their knowledge of waterworks waterworks operations. After considerable planning this m eeting was finally held beginning March 29th 1881. This meeting was held at Washington University in St. Louis, this University was founded in 1853 and its Engineering school began in 1870 (14). Mr. Mr. Whit Whitman man and Mr. Mr. Holman from the City of S St. t. Louis were in attendance. This m eeting was the founding meeting of the American Wat attendance. Water er Works Association (AWW (AWWA). A). T This his 100 plus year old organiz organization ation today is the leading source for  his organiz organizat ation has over 50,000 members. Members came from all development standards, exchange of design a nd operational data for public water s uppliers, and today tthis over the world. In 1894 a new water plant was needed and this time it was to be built at the Chain of Rocks, under the s upervision upervision of Mr. Holman; filters however were still not in the treatment process and the public still had muddy water. With the occurrence of the upcoming World's Fair in 1904, the Mayor Mayor of St. Louis, Rolla Wells, in 1901 (15) proclaimed the City would have clear water for the Fair. This was a m ust to be able to invite world travelers to t he St. Louis World Fair or s it was off icially known the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, St. Louis, 1904. The City had tried many schemes over the years to improve the quality of the settled water; but none were found to be better than the "fill and draw" method originally recommended by Kirkwood. The City turned to a brilliant, but somewhat eccentric chemist, Mr. John F. Wixford, an 1886 graduate of Washington University . A new treatment process us ing lime and ferrous sulfate was being us ed in Illinois and Ohio, but it had not been able to perfor perform m in St. Louis. Wixf Wixford, ord, aft after er much experimentation demons trated trated that the use of "milk of lim e," that is calcium oxide, slaked at a temperature of 190 degrees F and applied to the water after the addition of ferrous ferrous s ulfate gave consistently good coagulation results. Using this new treatment process the problems with mud disappeared and the City had clear water. The City did not add until 1915 filt ers to this treatment process (12). When completed this was the largest filtration plant in the world; with 40 filters and ov over er 700 feet in length and des igned to produce 160 MGD. ItIt was and is impressive. In the earl y 1900s (16) the population of St. Louis County was als o beginning to grow including the need for public water supply. After several attempts to f orm a private facilities, s, including company to supply water, "The West St. Louis Water and Light Company" was formed. The Com pany succeeded in obtaining the needed financing and its facilitie filtration, filtrat ion, became operational on April 1, 1904, just 30 days prior to the opening of the World's Fair. This s ystem has grown over the years and becam e what we know today as the St. Louis County Water Company. The shareholders in 1946 elect ed Mr. W. Victor Weir as President of the Company. Mr. Weir was a Washington University Civil Engineering Graduate. Graduate. Since 1946 the Pres ident or the Chairm an of the Board of the Water Company, the the largest investor owned indiv individual idual water company in the United States, has been a Washington University graduate. Well, the the Fair was held and it was a monum ental success and the City had its world class water system thanks to Wixfords Wixfords process ; A process process which is s till in use today, at both the City and County Water Plant s. From 1904 until today the St. Louis Louis area has been supplied with s afe and adequate water supply so that growth could occur. Since the pass age of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA (SDWA)) in 1974 this bas ic treatment proc process ess is s till providing exceptional exceptional results . B. St. Louis Sewers

from the Missis sippi River; this flow is also augm ented from the flows of  St. Louis was des tined for growt growth h because of its location and with more than am ple supply of water from the Missouri, Illinois and Mer Meramec amec Rivers (17). The City is surrounded by water. Howev However er the geologic features of the area threatened to impede urban growth. The surface topography was m isleading. The watercourses did run downhill, however beneath the soil there was underlying limestone strata which rose and fell in ridges running roughly Additionally,, this limes tone was als o attacked by chemical weathering f rom rain parallel to the the Mississ ippi River; and any construction of drainage would require tunneling. Additionally water percolating through the soil with weak acids from carbon dioxide in the air and organic acids in the so il. Thus, the St St.. Louis lands cape was full of sinkholes . These sinkholes were us ed by the early populace to dispose of storm water as well as draining the effluents from local sewers, as there was no overall sewerage syst em to drain water away from the City (17). As population increased these sinkholes soon became open cess pools. During this period, the rapid increase in the population of the City was mostly German emigrants. In 1832 there was a major cholera outbreak in the City and nearly 4% of the Miss issippi River just a little south of where the present Jefferson population died. This epidemic was blamed on the em igrants. The City then built a hospital next to the Miss All pass engers were quarantined until there was proof of  Barracks Bridge crosses the river. river. This was done to intercept the packet boats, bringing the emigrants up the river. All their wellness. In 1849 there was another ver very y serious cholera outbreak and nearly 10% of the population (6,000 persons) died. Howev However, er, this time t he occurrence inf ormation indicated the cholera epidemic origin pointed to a particular sinkhole. Thus, Thus, the draining of sinkholes, s wamps and water catc catch h basins had to be done to improve the public health of the the City. Major trunk sewers had to be built. The City voted a tax increase to begin the sewerage syst em. A West Point Engineer, Samuel Curtis installed the first m ajor trunk sewer. This sewer was a 12-foot arch ttype ype structure and completed under budget. This was rem arkable because of the unknown costs of the tunneling required to get through a 40foot rocky bridge at Broadway (17). Curtis next devised an elaborate m aster plan to drain all of St. Louis, the north, the central and the south areas to prom ote public health. IIn n the mid 1850s , this plan was Through this area ran Mill Creek, which became a swamp y area approved. approv ed. The first area to receive receive trunk sewers was the central area, where the majority of the populace lived. Through watershed contained 6,400 acres. This construction of a new sewerage system was slow. In 1866 once again there was a ref erred to as Chouteau's Pond. The Mill Creek watershed cholera outbreak killing about 300 people. The people once again voted voted higher taxes. The City was growing very rapidly and it appeared that regardless whatev whatever er was bu ilt, it River Des Peres, which formed t he City's western border, and still was not enough. The City then built a relief sewer to take the waste water to a further western watershed, the River merged into the Miss Miss iss ippi River just sout h of the City. One of the major problems of that time was that lateral sewers could be added even though there was no trunk sewer available to safely carry away the wastes. The lateral between the trunk sewer and the hous e or building, was to be paid for by the individual user deriving the benefits. So laterals were built and their effluents were dum ped World's Fair. wherever. In 1891 more m onies becam e available to increase sewer construction due to the possibility of a future World's By 1894, 1894, the River River Des Peres (18) was described as nothing less than a mons ter open sewer, poisoning the air with the mos t dangerous corruption and a menace to public health. In 1901 more taxes again provided additional monies to construct a better sewerage s ystem for the central area; and by the time of the World's Fair in 1904, m any new previously iously noted. trunk sewers had been added. However, tthe he River Des Peres rem ained a relief sewer for the City with all of the problems prev August 1915 (18), a major  Mr. W.W. Horner, a 1905 (19) graduate from Washington Univ ersity in Civil Engineering, went to work for the City immediat ely upon graduation. In August rainstorm hit St. Louis; with 10.6 inches of rainfall occurring occurring in 17 hours. This deluge caus ed 11 deaths and over one million dollars in property damage. The City demanded Mr. Horner was s elected as Engineer in Charge to prepare this plan; and that a plan of action be prepared so that the City could be able to handle this type of natural disaster. Mr. Mr. Mr. Horner's plan which was completed in late 1916, outlined the plan to redo the River Des Peres. In 1918, Mr Mr.. Horner became the City's Chief Engineer and was responsible to oversee the work outlined in his report. IIn n a 1923 elect ion, the voters overwhelmingly passed a new bond iss ue including the River Des Peres work of 87.4 million dollars. This gave the City the the money needed to s olve the River Des Peres problems as well as other needed sewers. Mr. Hor Horner ner received much notoriety for the design and construction of the River Des Peres, through the use of innovative engineering concepts. The plan was basically to bury this river through the city and allow it to empty harmlessly into the Mississippi River. This project nearly 20 miles in length began construction in 1924 and was completed in 1933. On October 27, 1988 the River Des Peres was declared a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. In 1932 (19), with a change of adminis trations trations Mr. Horner and his Assistant were asked to leave their positions with the City. Shortly thereafter, in 1933 Mr. Horner along with his able as sis tant, M Mr. r. Hyman Hyman Shifrin st arted the consulting f irm of Horner and Shifrin. The City later asked Mr. Horner and Mr. Shifrin to return to their former positions with the

 

City, however they declined. In 1934, Horner began teaching municipal and s anitary engineering course s at Washington Univer University sity; in 1937 he was named as a Professor. The Horner and Shifrin consulting firm hired its first engineer in 1933 and it was a Washington Unive University rsity graduate in civil engineering; Mr. Stifel Jens who graduated in 1932 with a BS and in 1933 with a MS degree. Mr. Mr. Jens stated later in his lif e that he believed that Mr. Mr. Horner was perhaps one of the mos t outstanding storm-water drainage hydrologists in the country. Both Mr. Horner and Mr. Jens made many contributions to Urban Hydrology. In 1963 (20), Mr. Jens cofounded the Urban Water Resources Council Mr. Jens received a Presidential Comm endation for his of the American Society of Civil Engineers. His leadership of this program brought him international acclaim. In 1970, Mr. "many contribut contributions ions to environmental excel excellence lence through his work in urban hydrology and engineering." C. Air Air Pollution in St. Louis

By 1873 (17) St. St. Louis had become an in dustrial city and many of the business es caus ed considerable pollution and nuisance. One in particular was a rendering plan, which had a contract with the city t o collect dead animals from the streets. These dead animals were boiled to extra extract ct fat, gr grease, ease, and bone material. The adjacent community was outraged with these odors; the City's immediate solution, a compromis e between politics and local pressu re, required this this boiling to be done on a boat furnished by the city in the Miss Miss issip pi River River.. This problem eventually lead the way t oward a long-term solution and this was to develop a city-wide zoning plan. When When this was finally done in 1918 (17); St. St. Louis became the s econd city, next to New York City to have such a plan.  Another significant aspect of the air pollution pollution problem was sm oke. St. Louis had a dis tinct adv advant antage in the use of cheap energy f or businesses and home because the The bad news was that this bit uminous coal caus ed considerable sm oke and fly ash. By the 1920s (17), Engineers in St. Louis had availability of coal from Southern Illinois. The City's sm oke deposited about 900 tons of solids annually per square m ile and cost the City's populace annually approximately approximately $15,000,000; a staggering calculated that the City's sum . Aft After many attempts by the City to control smoke, the City in 1933 appointed a mechanical engineering professor from Washington University, Mr. Raymond R. Tucker, to control the smoke. It was s even years later in 1940 when the city finally acted by passing an ordinance changing how fuel was to be burned and the fuel to be used. This was done after the "Black Tuesday" event in 1939 when the City's air was so bad at noon it looked like m idnight. A After fter the the sm oke abated Mr. Tucker returned to Washington University and became the Department Chairman of Mechanical Engineering from 1942-1953 (14) (15). In 1953, Mr. Tucker was elected to become the Mayor of the City of St. Louis. Mr. Tucker's leaders hip and the models of engineering and legislat ion to remove the smoke and ash became a national m odel for industrial cities. The 1950s and Environm Environm ental Engineering

 Aft  After er World War II, the eme rgence of s ynthetic chemicals became common place in the marketplace. One prime example was the new synthetic det detergents. ergents. Shortly after the distribution of these new hom e use products m any of tthe he nation's waterways waterways began to foam. These new detergents were not biologically degradable and existing sewage treatment facilities could not break down these was tes (21). This foam thus became a visual indication of pollution and the public quickly became aware of pollution.  Additionally, Dr. Rachel Cars on in 1962 w rote in her book, "Silent Spring" (22), which foretold of the f uture in vivid vivid details if environmental controls were not developed. These incidents helped to pave the way f or "Earth Day" and the significant changes in environmental legislation which took place nationally. Environmental change was also taking place in St. Louis. In 1954, (15) the M Metropolitan etropolitan Sewer District (MSD) was formed. Thus wastewater and storm water in St. Louis, both City and County, were to be under the control of one organization and this organization was to be under the leadership of a Profess ional Engineer. Sewage treatment also was to begin, instead of relying on the Mississ ippi River to be the area's sewage treatment facility. In 1956, leading engineers in St. Louis saw the need for engineers to be better trained trained in the field of sanitation, public health and engineering. To fill this need Washington University created created a new Program to develop Sanitary Engineers (23). This program became to be referre referred d to as "The Envirsan Program." This program can best be described from a plaque dedicated in April April 1997 which s tates the f ollowing: "After "After World World War II, demand for indus trial and consum er goods caused increased production. Many Many new compounds, formulated with wartime research, began entering the environment. environment. To solve problems ass ociated with these new chemicals, as well as others that resulted from industrial and consumer growth required trained trained engineers and scientists who s pecialized in s olving env environmental ironmental problems . Visionaries Visionaries at Washington University, included Don Fisher, Dean of Engineering; Henry Reitz, Chairman, Department of Civil Engineering; Dr. Carl Tolman, Vice Chancellor: and alumni Stifel W. Jens and W. Victor  Weir, were instrumental in 1956, of recruiting, Dr. Devere W. Ryckman to be chairman of a new department of Environmental and Sanitary Engineering within the Sever Institute of Technology. The beginnings were hum ble; a laboratory in a kitchen in the basement of Liggett Hall. In the next few years Dr. Edward Edgerly, Jr. and Dr. Nathan C. Burbank  joined the s taff. By 1959 the program, referred to as the Envirsan Program, occupied s pacious laboratory facilities in the new Engineering Building which is now Urbauer Hall. Skrinde joined the program in the early 1960s, and Dr. Jim Buzzell joined the program in 1966. Between 1958 and 1975, the Envirsan Dr. Henry Tomlinson and Dr. Rolf T. Skrinde Program with its motto of "Restless Research" conferr conferred ed 115 graduate degrees to environmental engineering leaders who have gone on to make their mark in indus try, MIT. government, research and teaching." It is of interest that most of these professors had earned a graduate degree from MIT. In the mid 1950s (24) national leaders in environmental engineering saw the need to move the profession to a new level. It was agreed that what was needed was specialty organization ion embracing all certification, similar to that of the medical profess ion. Leaders of all m ajor environmental fields in 1955 decided that what was needed was a new organizat certification, fields of Environmental Engineering; The Academy of Sanitary Engineering Intersociety was founded. The founding organiz ations were the American Public Health Association (APHA), (APHA ), America n So ciety of Civil Engineers (ASCE), American Water Works Association (AWWA), and the Water Pollution Control Federation (WPCF). In 1966, the American Society of Sanitary Engineers changed their nam e to the American Academy Environmental Environmental Engineers (A (AAEE AEE). ). By 1986 additional s ponsors included the American Institute of  Chemical Engineers (AICHE), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE), American Public Works Association (APWA), and the Solid Waste Association of North America. The The mis sion of t he American Academy of Environmental Engineers (AAEE), is to enhance the prof ession and to provide a better quality of life for all. This philosophical view is the sam e one that has been shared by all, even back to the days of the early Egyptians. The Academy is doing Environmental Engineers are tested in their specialty, those who s ucceed are conferred as Diplomates , Environmental Environmental Engineering this through a certification program where Environmental (DEE). Today, there are approximately 2,400 Engineers worldwide who have been conferred as Diplom ates, Environmental Environmental Engineering. In my view there are s everal areas where I see that our field and you as future leaders will be challenged. affect.. 1st. The replacement of old infrastructure using modern technology; taking costs into affect And when cost is justified, taking into 2nd . Continued research and development of new measurement techniques to further study the impace of p ollutants in the Environment. And account the entire environment, to proceed with making changes. 3rd. Addressing Governmental laws, rules and regulations to ens ure clarity and reducing the conflicts between them. Presently, much of the control of the environment has type pe of pollution without looking for what is best overall for the environment. Money is als o a natural resource and it its s expenditure must be wisely been f ocused toward each ty done to obtain what is the best f or the environment, environment, at the least cos t. Dr. Murray Weidenbaum, Chairman of the Center for the Study of American American Busines s located at Washington University, University, is a national leader in attempting to develop these issues and discuss altern alternat ative ives s and options. Truly is a challenge! over 5 millennium s, ever since known civilizations began. Yet it was only 125 years ago that science became the basis f or our  Finally, our Profession has been around for over years ears ago that our profession Profession. Coincidentally this was about the same time when the Washington University School of Engineering was formed. Also it was only 40 y was properly named and became a profess ion of its own with the f ormation of the American Academy of Environmental Engineers. As we look back we can see the man y contributions contribut ions m ade by so many and we can also be proud of the contr contributions ibutions made by the graduates and faculty of Washington University. you ou as you leave here and go forth to be the I hope this history of Environmental Environmental Engineering gives you a "new" perspective on your profession. The bes t of luck to y environmental leaders of the future.  

REFERENCES

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

"The Purpose Driven Church," Rick Warren, Zondervan Publishing Com pany pany,, 1995. Bryan, Barnes Barnes and Noble - 5th Edition, 1956. "Bacteriologica l, Principles and Practice," Arthur Bryan and Charles G. Bryan, "The Quest for Pure Water," Water," M M.N. .N. Baker, Ameri Ameri can Water Works A Ass ss ociation, 1948. "Knossos -The Minoan Civilzation," Sosso Logiaduo, Archelogist, Athens, Greece, 1997. "The Aqueducts Aqueducts of Rome," Vol. 1 of "Man and Water" Water" publis hed by the Waste Managem ent Division of Calgon Corporation, July 1970. "Urban Wat Water er Demand-Management and Planning," Donald D. Bauman et al, McGraw McGraw Hill, 1998. Perso nal comm uniqué from Pas tor A. A. Mark Friz Friz,, A April pril 1998. "Age of Enlightenme nt," Peter Gay, Time - Life Books, 1966.

 

9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24.

"Handbook of Chlorination, Chlorination,"" George S. White, White, V Van an Nostrand, Reinhold Publishing Company 1971. "Environmental Engineering - PE Exam," American Academy of Environmental Engineers, 1996. "Ellen Swallow Richards ," "Profiles in history," American Academy of Environmental Engineers, 1996. "History of St. Louis Area W Wat ater Supply," William Schworm, unpublished history of the City Water Division, April 1996. "AWWA "AWWA Centenni al Issu e," Ameri Ameri can Water Works Associa tion, Spring 1981. "School of Enginee ring & Applied Applied Science," Washing ton University 25th Anniversary, 1995. "Lion of the V Valleyalley-St. St. Louis," James Neal Primm, Pruett Publishing Com pany, 1981. "St. Louis Cou nty Water Company - The First Century," Charles A. Buescher, Jr., Jr., unpublished company history, September 1996. "Common Fields : An Env Environmental ironmental History of St. Louis," Published by the Missouri Historical Society Press, 1998. "The River Des Peres - A St. Louis Landmark," American Society of Civil Engineers Program publis hed by the Metropolitan Metropolitan Sewer Dis trict, 1988. "Persona l Inquiry in to to My Horner Fam ily," Wesley Horner, from a famil y biography, date unknown. "School of Engineering M Mourns ourns Loss of a Friend, Stifel W. Jens," Washington University Alumni New s, 1995. "Reduction of Foaming of A Alkyl lkyl Benzene Sulfonate by Ozonation," C.A. C.A. Buescher, Jr., Masters Thesis (unpublished), 1961. "Silent Spring," Dr. Rachel Cars on, Houghton Mifflin Mifflin Compa ny, 1962. "Dedication of Plaque, Honoring Washing ton University ENVIRSA ENVIRSAN N Program, A April pril 1997. "Who's Who in Environmental Engine ering," A Ameri meri can A Academ cadem y of Environmental Engineering, 1997.