Committee on Sustainability

Elizabeth Clark, PE, ENV SP, SITES AP, Stormwater Coordinator, MassDEP and Committee on Sustainability Chair

The Committee on Sustainability advocates for sustainable development and infrastructure to ensure protection of the “triple bottom line:” environmental, economic, and social conditions in Massachusetts. The committee brings awareness to the public and the civil engineering community on the importance of sustainable planning, design, and construction through events and newsletter articles. The committee also promotes tools, certifications, and awards related to sustainable development in the built environment.

Our mission is to increase awareness of and provide guidance in the areas of sustainability, resilience, and “green” design.

Specific objectives include:

• Become a civil engineering “sustainability and resilience” resource to BSCES members.
• Increase public awareness of sustainable engineering and green energy initiatives.
• Take on a leadership role in developing a BSCES policy sustainable design in Massachusetts.
• Work with BSCES institute chapters and technical groups to present sustainability workshops and to interface on sustainability issues.
• Establish and maintain a local outreach and liaison effort with outside professional organizations influencing sustainable design (e.g., Zofnass, Northeast CSC, MIIC, MassCEC).
• Award two annual BSCES Sustainable Design awards for Massachusetts civil engineering projects.
• Provide feedback to ASCE and provide a BSCES knowledge base for the Envision project rating tool.

Recent Activities:
This past June, the Committee on Sustainability awarded Beals and Thomas, Inc. the 2023 Sustainability in Civil Engineering Award for their Cambridge Crossing and Infrastructure Project. In conjunction with the Structural Engineering Institute Boston Chapter, in May of 2023, the committee co-organized an in-person seminar that focused on embodied carbon and assessment methodologies being pioneered by Institution of Structural Engineers, with a roundtable discussion highlighting local initiatives.  

The Committee on Sustainability is an active group and looking for new members to volunteer. Please write an email to Sustain.Comm@BSCES.org if you are interested in joining our committee. The committee meets for monthly Zoom calls on the first Tuesday of every month.