University of Virginia Library

Engineering Prof. Identifies Man
As Source Of Pollution Problem

By ELIZABETH JOHNSON

"The biggest problem in air
and water pollution today is
man himself," said Dr. Daniel
F. Jackson, civil engineering
professor at Syracuse
University, in a seminar in
Thorton Hall yesterday
afternoon.

Speaking to a group of about
20 students and faculty
members, Mr. Jackson asserted
that in 1970 the world first
became aware of the pollution
problem.

"At that time there occured
the most significant change in
engineering since medieval
times," he said. "Engineers
began to realize that they must
take into account the
sensitivity of the environment
and the sensitivity of man."

Mr. Jackson, who was raised
in Pittsburg, lamented, "While
I was growing up, it was hard
to tell whether it was air that I
was breathing or not." Since
that time he has been
interested in showing the
relation between air and water
pollution.

Our lakes, he explained, are
being ruined through the
process of eutrophication.
"Eutrophication, the greening
of our waters, is a product of
both man and nature. My
concern is with what man has
done to encourage it."

Mr. Jackson cited
phosphorus, found in fertilizers
and many other factory
products, as eutrophication's
biggest "hastener."

"There are many ways to
remove phosphorus," he said
"The biggest problem for the
engineer is finding a design to
fit a particular lake. Each lake
has its own personality as odd
as the person sitting next to
you."

Mr. Jackson stated that the
U.S. is the number one air
polluter in the world. "In every
category we have excelled.
Russia is fast catching up, but I
can assure you that the United
States will remain number
one."

Inspired by a program in
Sweden Mr. Jackson and a
group at Syracuse University
conducted a test which linked
pollution in the water and in
the atmosphere. Under
laboratory conditions, the
group removed all sulfur from
a container of water except for
atmospheric sulfur
Eutrophication still occured.

"The one thing most
apparent," he concluded, "is
that we cannot solve the
problem from one approach.

"The biological scientist
and the engineers need each
other," he continued. "The
problem of pollution can only
be solved by the ingenuity of
all of us together."