Natural water technology systems have enabled Alcoa (NYSE:AA) to decrease water
usage and to return more clean water to the communities in which the company
operates, said Rajat Ghosh, Ph.D., a senior project leader in Alcoa's
Environmental Science and Sustainable Technology Division. Speaking at the China
America National Frontiers of Engineering (CAFOE) symposium held at Changsha
University, Hunan Province, Ghosh explained Alcoa's water technology strategy
during a poster session of invited speakers.
"The world's water usage is expected to increase by 40 percent in the next 20
years, which means that about two thirds of the world's population could be
under water stress conditions by 2025," Ghosh said. "Recognizing this global
mega trend, Alcoa has taken proactive steps to minimize our water usage and
implement natural systems for both water reduction and treatment. We see
engineered natural systems as practical, effective and sustainable solutions to
the water problems encountered by industries and communities."
For the past six years, Alcoa has focused on the development, evaluation, and
deployment of innovative and low-cost sustainable water management technologies
and approaches. Such approaches focus on eliminating conventional and more
costly end-of-pipe water treatment technologies.
In addition to looking at production process changes to reduce the need for
water, Alcoa is also focused on the use of significantly lower cost natural
systems for water reduction, beneficial use and treatment. Such approaches,
which can cost up to 75% less than conventional technologies, include green
roofs, rainwater harvesting, water irrigation onto fields of grass and trees,
engineered wetlands, and the use of various natural media for filtration of
water contaminants, known as enhanced natural media filtration. For more
information on Alcoa's water programs and actions, visit
http://www.alcoa.com/global/en/about_alcoa/sustainability/env_water_progs_actions.asp
Ghosh, who earned his doctorate in civil and environmental engineering from
Carnegie Mellon University of Pittsburgh, was invited to participate at the
CAFOE symposium and to present at the poster session of invited representatives
from industry, academia and consulting. The event is jointly sponsored by the
National Academy of Engineering in the United States and the Chinese Academy of
Engineering in China. Since 1995, the NAE has held an annual U.S. Frontiers of
Engineering symposium for outstanding engineers between the ages 30-45 in the
United States, but this is the inaugural year for the CAFOE program. Ghosh
served as an invited speaker at the U.S. Frontiers of Engineering symposium in
2007.
Ghosh joined Alcoa in 2005 and is involved in managing a wide range of
strategic environmental projects. Prior to Alcoa, he was a senior technical
consultant for The RETEC Group and a lecturer at CMU. Currently an inventor on
one patent with four additional patents pending, he has published 25 external
papers and has authored one book.
