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Climate, Energy, and Resource Sustainability

Description:

Environmental engineers and scientists are poised to lead the development of technologies to address the interconnected causes and effects of climate change. This session convenes diverse approaches for solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change, including presentations describing research on environmental engineering solutions to climate change and a panel discussion on our role in leading climate change solutions. Topics include mitigation and adaptation to climate change through: carbon capture, storage, and utilization; mitigation of emissions of other greenhouse gases; geoengineering and engineering of natural ecosystems; engineering the built environment; and technologies that provide alternatives to difficult-to-decarbonize sectors.

Organizers:

Lea Winter, Bill Cooper, Mim Rahimi, Joshua Jack, Fateme Rezaei, Greeshma Gadikota

Description:

This session aims to engage the AEESP community on the critical issue of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and decarbonization in wastewater management. While sectors like energy and transportation are advancing in decarbonization, the wastewater sector is emerging as a priority due to its significant methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. As the 5th largest CH4 and 2nd largest N2O emitter, decarbonizing this sector presents unique challenges. Wastewater management involves emissions across all three scopes, making quantification difficult and standardization complex. Existing frameworks like the IPCC/EPA emission factor oversimplify the issue, leading to inaccurate estimations and impeding technological progress. Decarbonization of wastewater systems offers opportunities beyond reducing emissions. It also enhances energy efficiency, resource recovery, and the removal of emerging contaminants, making this an increasingly prominent research area. This session will showcase the latest developments in wastewater decarbonization, positioning environmental engineers to lead efforts beyond pollutant removal, contributing to industrial decarbonization and climate change mitigation.

Organizers:

Jason Ren, Jeseth Delgado Vela, Adam Smith

Description:

Climate change is predicted to lower yields for many food crops despite growing demand for food. Agriculture is resource intensive and unsustainable, accounting for 70% of all freshwater use and 14% to 28% of global greenhouse emissions. Agricultural innovations are also too slow to manage the increasing prevalence of both biotic (e.g. fungus) and abiotic stresses (heat and drought) resulting from a rapidly changing climate. We need to radically transform current practices to make agriculture sustainable and climate change resilient, and ensure future food security. This session will explore novel materials, methods, and approaches for making agriculture more sustainable as well as technoeconomic and lifecycle impacts analysis of agriculture systems to quantify the impacts of technological advances.

Organizers:

Gregory Lowry, Sai Pamuru, Leanne Gilbertson

Description:

This session focuses on the intersection of air pollution modeling, energy systems analysis, and justice. Local air pollution and an evolving energy system both impact our efforts toward achieving equity. This session will feature cutting-edge research and educational innovations aimed at addressing disparities in pollution exposure and access to clean energy. Key topics will include air quality modeling to identify pollution hotspots in disadvantaged communities, the integration of energy and pollution models for equitable energy transitions, and policy frameworks that incorporate environmental justice in decision-making.

Organizers:

Jeremiah Johnson, Fernando Garcia Menendez

Description:

Hydrogen has garnered increasing attention in energy transitions, with the ability to serve as a low-carbon energy carrier or source. The prospective benefits of hydrogen to climate and health are contingent on developing safe and sustainable production and storage pathways at commercial scale. Research in hydrogen production and storage options is rapidly evolving, and environmental engineers can play critical roles, particularly with respect to defining environmental impacts of large-scale, hydrogen-based energy systems. This session intends to establish the roles of environmental engineers in shaping hydrogen economies and welcomes contributions to all aspects of research related to hydrogen production, transport, and storage pathways. In particular, we welcome abstracts related, but not limited, to:
  1. Environmental impacts of hydrogen economies, particularly relative to alternative decarbonization measures
  2. Hydrogen production from various sources
  3. Innovative materials to improve energy efficiency
  4. Advanced methods for hydrogen production
  5. Environmental impacts of underground hydrogen storage
  6. Biogeochemical processes in underground hydrogen storage
  7. Transport phenomena related to hydrogen retention and transport in porous media

Organizers:

Anne Menefee, Meng Wang

Description:

Phosphorus and nitrogen are two key nutrients that play crucial roles in many aspects of daily life but have a legacy of negative environmental impacts resulting from linear, rather than circular, management. This session will be hosted by the National Science Foundation’s Science and Technologies for Phosphorus Sustainability (STEPS) Center and the Center for Advancing Sustainable and Distributed Fertilizer Production Centers (CASFER). Both centers are focused on reducing the harmful environmental impacts of these nutrients and developing circular flows and economies. This session will highlight research on these nutrients and will span molecular-level understanding of nitrogen and phosphorus, new recovery and production technologies, watershed-scale modeling of nutrient flows, regional to global economics, and the involvement of stakeholders in nutrient management and technology adoption. Experiences forming and running the Centers will be shared by the Centers’ directors.

Organizers:

Doug Call, Marta Hatzell, Judy Zhang, Becca Muenich

Description:

There is increasing pressure to manage the financial risks of environmental threats (e.g., floods, extreme temps). This session will focus on translating these events into financial risk for different sectors and the development of new solutions. Extreme environmental events are increasing in both frequency and severity, imposing global financial losses of more than $500 billion per year. In the quest to find more effective means of combatting the adverse financial impacts of these intermittent and unpredictable events many public- and private sector actors are seeking a better understanding of these risks and more sophisticated strategies for managing them.

Organizers:

Gregory W. Characklis

Description:

As we transition from fossil fuel-based energy production and distribution systems to “clean” energy infrastructure, important questions arise concerning use and release of environmental contaminants through the life cycle of these technologies (e.g., lithium ion batteries, semiconductors, wind turbines, and solar cells). Renewable energy technologies may represent new routes for familiar pollutants to enter the environment as well as a mechanism for release of novel pollutants used in new technologies. This session will serve as a forum for presentation of new research focused on environmental impacts associated with renewable energy, including technology manufacturing, use, recycling, and disposal.

Organizers:

Lee Ferguson, Jennifer Guelfo, Leanne Gilbertson