This session showcases real-world applications of AI in stormwater, landfill and wastewater engineering. Attendees will experience the concept in action: live, AI-assisted engineering that promotes circular economies, enhances climate resilience and protects vital natural systems like wetlands.

Join veteran environmental engineer John O. Smith, P.E., BCEE, and AI strategist Davar Ardalan as they demonstrate the next frontier of innovation in waste and landfill management: human-AI collaboration. Smith will demo a dialogue with his own AI assistant, John Smith GPT, a beta-generative AI model designed by Ardalan to reflect Smith's 40+ years of civil and environmental engineering experience from Hong Kong to Maryland. Their collaboration reflects a practical, human-centered approach to leveraging AI by augmenting expertise, not replacing it.

Developed using generative AI tools, this session offers a hands-on look at how engineers can responsibly use AI to enhance decision-making, write proposals, calculate project feasibility, and manage compliance. The presenters will explain the key considerations in deploying trustworthy AI. These include ethical frameworks, data governance, the risks of proprietary data exposure, and the significant energy and resource footprint of AI systems.

Attendees will learn about the importance of transparency, user accountability, ethics and environmental awareness in AI-assisted workflows. Learning objectives include identifying use cases for AI in sustainable landfill and wastewater infrastructure planning; understanding best practices for trustworthy and ethical AI deployment like transparency and energy awareness; and observing live AI-assisted engineering scenarios that demonstrate workflow efficiencies and risk mitigation.