As a member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, David
Newland has also contributed to matters involving the management of domestic
waste, environmental planning and the release of genetically engineered
organisms into the environment. Helping to eradicate the practice of stubble
burning was one of his past environmentally friendly achievements, and
such issues continue to attract his interest and vision. A current bugbear
is the proliferation of telecommunication masts. A solution to that eyesore
would indeed be welcome.
Since his return to Cambridge in 1976, David Newland
has been instrumental in establishing the Manufacturing Engineering
Tripos, in setting up the Engineering Design Centre and in planning
the transition to the four-year undergraduate engineering course.