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How Can Operations Research Help to Achieve Sustainability ?

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Title: How Can Operations Research Help to Achieve Sustainability ?


1
How Can Operations Research Help to Achieve
Sustainability ?
2
Operations Research I Tools
  • Linear Programming
  • Integer Programming
  • Goal Programming
  • Network Analysis
  • Dynamic Programming
  • Nonlinear Programming

3
Operations Research I Approach to Sustainability
  • For a given topic
  • What are the issues that impact sustainability?
  • What is currently known about these issues?
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Do we want to minimize, maximize, or meet a
    target?
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • What are practical issues and constraints for
    implementing these?
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?

4
ExampleGroundwater Sustainability
  • 50 of the U.S. depends on groundwater for daily
    drinking water.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Maintaining
  • groundwater levels
  • Keeping groundwater
  • free of contaminants
  • 3

5
Groundwater Sustainability
  • What is currently known about groundwater levels?
  • Climate change is primarily quantified by a rise
    in the Earths near-surface air temperature.
  • The rise in temperature will cause glaciers, ice
    sheets, and snowcaps to melt, causing added
    runoff into oceans.
  • The runoff into oceans will increase sea level.
  • The primary sources of fresh water (glaciers,
    etc.) will be reduced.
  • Fresh ground water supplies at coasts could be
    contaminated by salt water from oceans.

6
Groundwater Sustainability
  • What are sources of groundwater contamination?
  • Surface water contamination and runoff.
  • Combined sewer/stormwater systems that overflow
    during significant storm events.
  • Malfunctioning or leaking septic systems, lagoon
    systems, centralized wastewater treatment
    systems.
  • How does nature prevent contamination?
  • Native shrubs, perennials, flowers absorb water
    and filter out contaminants.
  • Trees, shrubs, and grasses can form buffers to
    protect clean water sources.

7
Groundwater Sustainability
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Minimize contaminants in groundwater.
  • Maintain the supply of fresh water.
  • Minimize runoff.
  • Minimize overflow from combined sewer/stormwater
    systems.
  • Maximize use of natural habitats and native
    plants.
  • Minimize life cycle economic cost.

8
Groundwater Sustainability
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To reduce contamination from malfunctioning
    systems, implement a maintenance program.
  • Issues Need regulation or economic incentives to
    implement such a program.
  • To reduce runoff, use porous pavements that mimic
    nature (e.g., Cowboys stadium) or rain gardens
    that use native plants.
  • Issues Need to study the choices relative to the
    situation and consider cost.

9
Groundwater Sustainability
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maintain the supply of fresh water under the
    effects of climate change, consider desalination.
  • Issues Desalination is currently not
    cost-effective.
  • To reduce the impact of sewer/stormwater
    overflow, keep fresh water supplies upstream or
    use trees and shrubs as buffers or re-design
    these systems.
  • Issues The appropriate choice depends on the
    location and incidence of overflows.

10
Groundwater Sustainability
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use dynamic programming to optimize a systems
    maintenance plan over time.
  • Use goal programming to design a cost-effective
    desalination process.
  • Use network analysis to study the network of
    groundwater sources and their potential for
    contamination.
  • Use integer programming to select among options
    for a combined sewer/storm water system.

11
Topic 1 Transportation Systems
  • Emissions from vehicles have been cited as major
    contributors to greenhouse gases and land use.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Air pollution
  • Land use
  • Telecommuting
  • 4

12
Transportation Systems
  • What is currently known?
  • Public transportation consumes less energy and
    uses land more efficiently than private
    transportation.
  • Public transportation is accessible to all
    members of society.
  • Public transportation encourages cities to grow
    more compactly.
  • Telecommuting replaces the daily work commute
    with telecommunication links.
  • Adding HOV lanes reduces vehicle traffic.

13
Transportation Systems
  • How do transportation systems impact pollution?
  • Vehicle emissions are one of the leading
    contributors to air pollution.
  • Adding HOV lanes reduces vehicle traffic.
  • Under-utilized public transportation systems fail
    to reduce vehicle traffic.
  • Idling, acceleration, and deceleration of
    vehicles contributes higher emissions per mile
    traveled.
  • Cars are most fuel efficient at 40-60 mph.
  • Disposal of old vehicles is not sustainable.

14
Transportation Systems
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Maximize telecommuting.
  • Maximize carpooling.
  • Maximize the utilization of public
    transportation.
  • Minimize vehicle stops/starts and congestion.
  • Maintain constant speeds at 40-60 mph.
  • Maximize vehicle life length.
  • Maximize recycling of old vehicles.

15
Transportation Systems
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maximize telecommuting, create incentives for
    businesses to enable their employees to
    telecommute.
  • Issues Some activities require face-to-face
    meetings.
  • To maximize the carpooling, increase facilities
    for carpooling vehicles like HOV high speed
    lanes.
  • Issues Not possible in all areas.

16
Transportation Systems
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maximize the utilization of public
    transportation, design the system to be
    accessible and allow concessions (tax benefits)
    for riders.
  • Issues People often do not want to live near
    public transportation.
  • To reduce waste from disposed vehicles, identify
    ways to recycle vehicle materials.
  • Issues Harmful materials must be removed.

17
Transportation Systems
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use goal programming to identify cost-effective
    incentives for businesses to enable
    telecommuting.
  • Use linear programming to determine where to put
    HOV lanes to encourage carpooling.
  • Use network analysis to study the utilization of
    potential public transportation systems.
  • Use integer programming to locate facilities for
    recycling old vehicles.

18
Topic 2 Cleaner Energy
  • Alternative energy sources are critically
    important for curbing greenhouse gas emissions
    and creating a more independent energy economy.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Renewable energy
  • Electric vehicles
  • Biodiesel
  • 5

19
Cleaner Energy
  • What is currently known?
  • Our present fuel resources are mostly made up of
    fossil fuels, which are not considered renewable.
    (The worlds consumption of fossil fuels is
    100,000 times faster than their natural
    production.)
  • The combustion of fossil fuels releases air
    pollutants.
  • Renewable energy sources are naturally renewable,
    such as solar, wind, hydropower, and geothermal.
  • In 2010, only a small portion of electricity
    generation, about 18, was from renewables.
  • Renewables have high variation and higher cost.

20
Cleaner Energy
  • What are alternatives for vehicles?
  • Biodiesel is a mixture of diesel and biomass from
    plant oils, animal fats and even recycled grease,
    and can reduce vehicle emissions of greenhouse
    gases by 75, but the cost-effectiveness of
    biodiesel processes is still unclear.
  • Diesel vehicles can directly use biodiesel blends
    without any engine modifications.
  • Battery electric cars have zero tail pipe
    emissions, but their battery storage still needs
    improvement.
  • Hybrid gas-electric cars can improve
    fuel-efficiency, but require special engines.

21
Cleaner Energy
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Minimize emissions (CO2, NOx, others).
  • Maximize utilization of renewables or more
    sustainable alternatives.
  • Maintain electricity levels to avoid black-outs.
  • Maximize efficiency of alternative fuels.
  • Minimize life cycle economic cost.

22
Cleaner Energy
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To minimize emissions from coal power plants, use
    emission control technologies.
  • Issues New technologies are still needed.
  • To maximize the utilization of renewables and
    maintain electricity levels, generate power from
    renewables first, and utilize fossil fuels only
    when needed.
  • Issues Energy from renewables is highly
    variable, and better storage technologies are
    needed.

23
Cleaner Energy
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maximize efficiency of biodiesel fuels, study
    different types of biomass.
  • Issues Need to consider the economic impact of
    using specific types of biomass.
  • To minimize the life cycle cost of solar cells,
    consider costs of different types of solar cells
    from construction through disposal/recycling.
  • Issues Solar cells are not highly efficient (lt
    30).

24
Cleaner Energy
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use goal programming to select emission control
    technologies to meet emission reduction targets.
  • Use dynamic programming to maintain electricity
    levels, maximizing the use of renewables.
  • Use linear programming to optimize the efficiency
    of biodiesel mixtures using different biomass
    types.
  • Use integer programming to identify the solar
    cell structure that minimizes life cycle cost.

25
Topic 3 Logging
  • The U.S., with less than 5of the world's
    population, consumes 17 of the world's output of
    timber and is the third largest importer of
    tropical timber.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Deforestation
  • Forest biodiversity
  • Pulp/paper production
  • 6

26
Logging
  • What is currently known?
  • The forest products industry is a large part of
    the economies in developed and developing
    countries.
  • Wood is considered a renewable resource.
  • The primary material for making paper is wood
    pulp. Alternatives include recycled pulp and
    field crop fiber.
  • Wood is also used for construction and is hard to
    replace.

27
Logging
  • What is known about deforestation?
  • Deforestation is one the major contributors to
    global warming.
  • Deforestation disturbs the water cycle (i.e.,
    rainfall) and increases soil erosion.
  • Reforestation replenishes forests, but can
    diminish biodiversity.
  • Tropical deforestation is still a problem. The
    restriction of trade in certain species is
    enabled by listing with CITES(the Convention on
    International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
    Flora and Fauna), but this is still controversial.

28
Logging
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Minimize the need for new wood.
  • Minimize soil erosion.
  • Maintain the water cycle.
  • Maintain biodiversity.
  • Maximize the use of land for both growing trees
    and crops.

29
Logging
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To reduce the need for new wood, identify ways to
    recycle wood scraps and used wood products.
  • Issues Creating new products out of scraps
    typically still requires some new raw material.
  • To minimize soil erosion, design new logging
    processes to maintain soil properties.
  • Issues Logging inherently impacts soil.

30
Logging
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maintain the water cycle and biodiversity,
    balance logging, wood demand, and reforestation.
  • Issues Need to separate wood demand that is
    necessary vs. demand that is extravagant.
  • To maximize land use, identify groups of trees
    and plants that grow well together.
  • Issues Need to study the properties of many
    trees and plants.

31
Logging
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use linear programming to identify formulas for
    recycled wood products.
  • Use network analysis on the network of trees
    being cut down, so as to study the impact on the
    soil.
  • Use dynamic programming to optimize reforestation
    over time to maintain balance.
  • Use integer programming to group trees and plants
    that grow well together.

32
Topic 4 Fisheries
  • The global fishing fleet is estimated to be 250
    larger than what the ocean can sustainably
    produce.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Overfishing
  • Ocean conservation
  • Food supply
  • 7

33
Fisheries
  • What is currently known?
  • Fish currently supply the greatest percentage of
    the world's protein consumed by humans.
  • Seafood guides help consumers make informed
    choices.
  • Fish farming, an alternative to sea fishing needs
    more development.
  • Management of ocean ecosystems as a whole is
    needed, including prohibiting fishing in certain
    zones.
  • Management requires communication between
    national governments and markets.

34
Fisheries
  • What is known about overfishing?
  • Depleted fish stocks can be restored only if the
    species' ecosystem remains intact.
  • Overfishing disturbs the life cycle (food web) of
    aquatic flora and fauna.
  • Overfishing and by-catches made during fishing
    may result in depletion of certain species,
    leading to possible extinction and a reduced food
    supply for predators.
  • Advanced technologies have contributed to
    overfishing.

35
Fisheries
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Maintain the food web.
  • Maximize breeding of overfished species.
  • Minimize by-catches.
  • Improve fish farming.
  • Maximize education of the public using seafood
    guides.

36
Fisheries
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maintain the food web, identify the
    appropriate quotas for different species.
  • Issues Difficult to monitor the actual
    populations.
  • To maximize breeding of overfished species,
    regulate fishing to minimize impact on the
    ecosystems of these species.
  • Issues Difficult to enforce regulations.

37
Fisheries
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To minimize by-catches, design mesh sizes
    depending on the sizes of the variety of fish.
  • Issues Costs more to create a variety of mesh
    sizes.
  • To improve fish farming, identify the best
    farming techniques for different species.
  • Issues Farmed fish may not be as nutritious as
    sea fish.

38
Fisheries
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use dynamic programming to optimize quotas for
    different species over time.
  • Use network analysis to study breeding habits in
    different regions.
  • Use linear programming to identify the best mesh
    size given the fish populations in the fishing
    area.
  • Use integer programming to select among fish
    farming technologies.

39
Topic 5 Waste Management
  • In 2006, U.S. residents, businesses, and
    institutions produced approximately 4.6 pounds of
    waste per person per day.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Landfills
  • Recycling
  • Bioreactors
  • 8

40
Waste Management
  • What is currently known?
  • Reuse, recycle, reduce, recover.
  • Landfill mining and reclamation (LFMR) is a
    process whereby solid wastes that have previously
    been landfilled are excavated and processed.
  • Landfills are monitored to minimize groundwater
    contamination.
  • Methane from landfills is a natural energy
    source.
  • The decomposition of plastics takes about 1000
    years.
  • Landfills occupy land that could be used for
    other purposes.

41
Waste Management
  • What are bioreactors?
  • Bioreactors recirculate moisture to enhance the
    waste degradation process, but more research is
    needed to design safe bioreactor landfills.
  • Different biological processes are performed to
    decompose different types of waste.
  • Different types of waste (e.g., recyclables,
    food, textiles, drugs, e-waste) can be treated
    more efficiently if separated, but this is a
    difficult to achieve in practice.

42
Waste Management
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Maximize recycling.
  • Maximize the speed of waste decomposition.
  • Maximize the conversion of waste into useful
    products.
  • Minimize the disposal of plastics and other
    non-biodegradable items.
  • Minimize the use of harmful elements in
    electronics.

43
Waste Management
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maximize recycling, implement recycling
    incentives.
  • Issues Need to balance the benefits of recycling
    with the cost of incentives.
  • To maximize the speed of decomposition, implement
    the appropriate use of bioreactors.
  • Issues Not all types of waste can be decomposed
    using bioreactors.

44
Waste Management
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To maximize the conversion of waste into useful
    products, study waste compositions in landfills
    to identify potential products (e.g., fuel,
    fertilizer).
  • Issues Much research is needed.
  • To minimize the disposal of non-biodegradable
    materials, use them for more long-term products
    (e.g., recycled plastic park benches).
  • Issues Not all can be substituted or recycled.

45
Waste Management
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use integer programming to select a
    cost-effective recycling program.
  • Use nonlinear programming to identify bioreactor
    settings that maximize waste decomposition.
  • Use linear programming to study different waste
    compositions and the potential of converting them
    into useful products.
  • Use goal programming to achieve long-term targets
    for reducing disposal of plastics.

46
Topic 6 Green Building
  • Buildings account for a large amount of land use,
    energy and water consumption, and air and
    atmosphere alteration.
  • Sustainability Issues
  • Environmental Impact
  • Life Cycle Cost
  • Sustainable Design
  • 9

47
Green Building
  • What is currently known?
  • Green building typically costs more to implement,
    but costs less to maintain, and is more
    economical over the entire life cycle
    (cradle-to-grave).
  • There are already many green building guides
    (e.g., LEED in U.S., BREEAM in U.K., Green Star
    in Australia).
  • Green building uses non-toxic recycled materials
    and rapidly renewable plants (like bamboo), and
    seeks to reduce waste during construction.

48
Green Building
  • What are the impacts of green building?
  • Reduced energy usage via solar energy,
    insulation, high-efficiency windows, natural
    lighting/shading.
  • Reduced water usage via on-site water treatment
    or a greywater system for irrigation.
  • Better indoor air quality improves human health.
  • Reduced waste generation.

49
Green Building
  • What are relevant objectives for sustainability?
  • Minimize energy usage.
  • Minimize fresh water usage.
  • Minimize waste generation.
  • Maximize use of renewable, recycled, and local
    materials for building construction.
  • Minimize life cycle economic cost.

50
Green Building
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To reduce energy usage in summer, study glass
    compositions or glazings that reduce heat from
    sunlight and still allow natural lighting.
  • Issues These are conflicting objectives.
  • To minimize water usage, utilize greywater
    systems and balance the flow of fresh water and
    greywater.
  • Issues There are regulations on the use of
    greywater.

51
Green Building
  • What are possible actions to achieve
    sustainability?
  • Practical issues? Constraints?
  • To minimize waste during building construction,
    select renewable and recyclable materials.
  • Issues Renewable and recyclable materials often
    have higher cost.
  • To minimize the life cycle building cost, include
    construction, operation, and demolition/renovation
    .
  • Issues Depends on usage and building lifelength.

52
Green Building
  • How can operations research tools be used to
    guide more sustainable decisions?
  • Use linear programming to optimize glass
    compositions and glazings.
  • Use network analysis to study the flow of fresh
    water and greywater throughout the building.
  • Use goal programming to meet targets for
    renewable and recycled materials.
  • Use integer programming to identify building
    technologies that minimize life cycle cost.

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