Engineering Ethics

In my previous post I chatted about a touchy issue, not only in the field of Civil Engineering but also in society in general. As I sat down to research that topic the information I was looking at all seemed to contradict one another, it always seemed that one believed this and that another believed that. And as I thought about all this contradicting information the idea of ethics came to mind. Are Civil Engineers ethical? What kinds of qualifications or oversights are in place to ensure the ethical nature of not only Civil Engineers but Engineers in general?

First what is required of a Civil Engineer in order to be a Civil Engineer, and what kind of education do they receive? Civil Engineering, like many other professions people go to college for, has a course on ethics as part of the curriculum. As Engineers we are taught to maintain a certain amount of integrity and morals. To do the things that are right, to protect the safety of humanity and the environment which we live in. On top of this, any engineering who wishes to receive licensure and the ability to sign off on projects or start their own business is required to receive endorsement from the State Board of Professional Engineers. A portion of what the board looks at in prospective candidates includes ethics and has the candidate expressed ethics in the work they have already done in the field.

As I said earlier a Civil Engineer takes on the responsibility to design, implement, and oversee projects that are beneficial to human welfare and the environment.  But where does the Civil Engineer draw the line when it comes to either humanity (by which I mean a simpler life) or the environment? Civil Engineers in almost every area of the field have expressed different opinions on whether or not hydrofracking is safe. Talk to a Civil Engineer who is working for Halliburton, they will tell you that there is nothing wrong with drilling and hydrofracking. That it is a completely safe and efficient method of drilling oil wells and that there are no side effects in doing so. Talk to a Civil Engineer working for the EPA and they would say they were unsure of the safety of current drilling practices and that they are currently doing additional research as to the effects on the environment. Which brings us back to the point that drilling techniques need to be tested and approved before wide scale use is implemented. Finally, talk to an engineering firm who has no business or profit to gain from the oil fields would likely say that the effects are harmful to the environment.

Everything I have said can be pretty much summed up with one idea, opinion follows money, especially when it comes to choosing between the environment and energy. If you or your company is going to benefit from the work taking place you are more than likely going to agree with what is going to make you the most money. I would say this is true for almost all fields of engineering, because it would be fairly bold to say it is not. Regardless of how much ethics are stressed in our education and by society, the companies we work for have more of an impact than we would dare to admit. This is not to say that all engineers are unethical or that everybody in the world is unethical, but rather to say that we need to maintain a high standard of ethics in our workplace. Continually striving for better, because sometimes better starts with an ethical issue.