PREVENTION THROUGH DESIGN: AN IMPORTANT ASPECT OF SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITYGabrielle Carpenter

T. Michael TooleCivil & Environmental Engineering

Bucknell University

First International Conference on Sustainable Design and Construction

March 24, 2011

Introduction to Social Sustainability

Brundtland Report (1987): more about Social than Environmental Sustainability

Elkington’s Triple Bottom Line Environmental Economic Social

Related Literature to Social Sustainability

Vesilind and Gunn (1998): Engineer’s ethical obligations to: Deprived people Distant people Future people

WBCSD’s Corporate Social Responsibilities include: “Commitment by business to behave ethically and

contribute to economic development; “Improve quality of life of the workforce and their

families; “Improve quality of life of the local community and

society at large.”

Social Sustainability in Projects Effect on the surrounding community:

Noise Traffic Aesthetics Risk

Fair wages Safe work environment

Introduction to Prevention through Design

Process of addressing construction site safety and health in design of project

aka Design for Safety, Safety by Design Design-Builders: URS, Jacobs, Parsons,

Bechtel Owners: Intel, Southern Co., BHP Billiton,

ExxonMobil Required in UK since 1995 and currently

required in Australia, Singapore, South Africa

PtD Examples: Roofs and Perimeters

Skylights

Upper story windows

Parapet Walls

PtD Examples: Prefabrication

Steel Stairs

Concrete Wall Panels

Concrete Segmented Bridge

Ethical Reasons for PtD

Typical Annual Construction Accidents in U.S. Nearly 200,000 serious injuries 1,000+ deaths

National Society of Professional Engineers Code of Ethics Engineers shall hold paramount the safety,

health, and welfare of the public American Society of Civil Engineers’ Code of

Ethics Engineers shall recognize that the lives, safety,

health and welfare of the general public are dependent upon engineering decisions

PtD and Social Equity

Do not our duties include minimizing all risks that we have control over?

Do not we have the same duties for construction workers as for the “public”?

Is it ethical to create designs that are not as safe as they could (practically) be?