Environmental Engineering in Orlando will continue to play a larger role in real estate development as population densities increase and water resources become more limited. Environmental Engineering as a discipline was born in the early 1970s—so it is a relatively new field. One that spans the engineering, chemical and biological sciences. Environmental Engineering seeks to accomplish the needs of society in a manner compatible with the physical environment with long-term sustainability.
Although environmental engineering is a relatively new discipline, we adapt the tried and proven methods of great civil engineering works to make your land development project successful. In order to achieve a successful project, teamwork is extended with the local, state and federal regulatory agencies that have jurisdiction in the project. We strategically communicate the vision, goals and objectives of the project to the regulatory agencies. This allows permits to be obtained with greater ease and speed. We treat each project as a mission to be accomplished and the prize a satisfied client.
Environmental engineering as it pertains to the development of communities includes:
Environmental master planning, wetland studies, storm water management, erosion control, provision of potable water and treatment of sanitary sewage. Provision of potable water includes development of a water supply, treatment of the water and its distribution. Sanitary sewage systems include sewage collection, transmission, treatment of the wastewater and its ultimate disposal back into the environment.
Environmental engineering took off with the passing of the Clean Water Act of 1972. This certainly changed the ways we did things in engineering real estate developments. For instance, before 1972 there was no treatment of storm water from a land development site. The site was drained off-site with little thought to flooding of downstream property owners, or the pollutants in the runoff. The Clean Water Act little by little, changed all of that. This was a totally new concept. Additionally, it spurred a whole new science which did not exist before that time. After more than 30 years, site development has become a complex and sometimes cumbersome process. The process to get permits to start construction sometimes takes months to even years.
Environmental regulations also had marked changes to the way water and sewage systems are designed and constructed. Increasingly more and more research into the cause and effect of various waste products lead to changes in environmental regulations. As the ability to detect lower and lower concentrations of chemical constituents in water and wastewater became available, the regulations responded. Water and wastewater treatment has become significantly more complicated than it was 30 years ago. The treatment technologies are more complex and sophisticated to take on the new challenges.
In part, the increased regulation and sophistication required to meet the environmental standards has made provision of water and sewer service more costly. Additionally, the increases in population have required vast investments in infrastructure to provide water and sewer service to the expanding population and associated urban sprawl. Water sources have been strained because of increased demand on the water sources like streams and aquifers.
