CE195 – Civil Engineering Laws, Contracts, Specifications and Ethics

Name : Mary Elaine S. Dolojan

Student No./Program-Year : 2008104912/CE-4
Course/Section : CE195/E03
Date of Submission : June 29, 2021

1. You are an environmental engineer for one of the many local plants. That plant discharges effluents
into a lake in a flourishing tourist area. Although all the plants are marginally profitable, they compete
for the same customers. Your responsibilities are to monitor the water and air discharges at your
plant and the periodic reporting to Dept. of Anti-pollution. You have just prepared a report that
indicates that the level of pollution in the Plant’s water discharges slightly exceed the legal limits.
Your supervisor says you should regard the excess as a mere ‘technicality’, and he asks you to ‘adjust’
the data so that the data appears to be in compliance. He says that slight excess is not going to
endanger human or fish life any more than if the plant were actually in compliance. However, he says,
solving the problem would require a very heavy investment. He explains, “We cannot afford new
equipment. It might cost even a few jobs. It will set us behind our competitors. Besides, he says that
many of the competitors are doing the same and the bad publicity we would get might scare off some
of the tourist industry, making it worse for everybody.”

A. What are your basic responsibilities as an environmental engineer in this plant? How
should you respond to your supervisor’s requests?

As an environmental engineer in this plant your basic responsibilities are to monitor and assess if
the site/plant complies with environmental regulations, investigate, and identify the potential
contaminant source why the discharge exceeds the limit and make recommendations and solutions
based on the result of your investigation. Also, you have social responsibility to provide clean, safe,
and sustainable environment for the global community. Additionally, you should provide true,
correct, and transparent report to the public but also use your discretion, so it will not jeopardize the
company’s confidentiality and the welfare of the employees.

In response to your supervisor, you should weigh first all the pros and cons of the situation before
deciding because you have responsibilities both in your company and to the community. If based on
your engineer judgement that the slight increase of the discharge from the legal limits will not affect
the safety, health and welfare of the public and the environment you can allow it for the first time and
likewise you should recommend cheap and practical solutions, so the problem will not arise again.
You should also raise the situation as urgent to your supervisor for it to become a priority because it
might become worst and costly if neglected especially if the problem is not only on the discharge part
but on the whole system as well. Also, so that the company would allot a budget for the treatment of
the discharge.

B. What should you do, from “all things considered” perspective as environmental engineer?

With all things considered, using your engineering judgement that the effluent will not threaten the
safety and welfare of the public and applying your discretion to protect the company and its
employees, allow it for the first time but never let it happen again by:
1. Investigate the source of the problem. Check if the problem is just from basic housekeeping or the
personnel are not complying with the standard operating procedures or if it comes from the
equipment or process itself.

2. Based on the result of the investigation, provide solutions with different process, and cost so that
the company can have options on what is more practical and economical on their part.

3. Raise the problem and its worst effect especially for long term because it might be fine for short
period of time but in the long run it will cause bigger problems. Also, so that the company will treat
it as urgent.

4. Knowing all the consequences of the situation, imply allotting budget for the solution.

5. Apply the solution as soon as possible and always monitor if the standard operating procedure is
being applied

2. Jack Strong is seated between Tom Evans and Judy Hanson at a dinner meeting of a local industrial
engineering society. Jack and Judy have an extended discussion of a variety of concerns, many of
which are related to their common engineering interests. At the conclusion of the dinner, Jack turns
to Tom, smiles, and says, ‘‘I’m sorry not to have talked with you more tonight, Tom, but Judy’s better
looking than you.’’

Judy is taken aback by Jack’s comment. A recent graduate from a school in which more than 20
percent of her classmates were women, she had been led to believe that finally the stereotypical view
that women are not as well suited for engineering as men was finally going away. However, her first
job has raised some doubts about this. She was hired into a division in which she is the only woman
engineer. Now, even after nearly 1 year on the job, she must struggle to get others to take her ideas
seriously. She wants to be recognized first and foremost as a good engineer. So, she had enjoyed
‘‘talking shop’’ with Jack. But she was stunned by his remark to Tom, however innocently it might
have been intended. Suddenly, she saw the conversation in a very different light. Once again, she
sensed that she was not being taken seriously enough as an engineer.

How should Judy respond to Jack’s remark? Should she say anything? Assuming Tom
understands her perspective, what, if anything, should he say or do?
Even though Jack’s remark is innocent, Judy should express her concern to avoid misunderstanding.
She should explain calmly to Jack that she finds his comment offensive rather than complimenting
especially she experiences stereotyping frequently. She should also ask Jack in a friendly manner if
he really absorb their conversation or not. And if so, she should suggest Jack to use other adjectives
rather than basing on physical appearance so that he will not offend others next time, because women
can be both beautiful and smart at the same time.
For Tom, if he understands Judy’s perspective, he should say something to avoid stereotyping. He
should add that he acknowledges Judy’s skill and expertise on engineering matters.