Multi-criteria Decision-making Approach for Environmental Impact Assessment to Reduce the Adverse Effects Of Dams

The need to address the human health implications of northern development is well founded, and the role of health determinants in environmental impact assessment is increasingly recognised; however, there is limited understanding of the nature of health determinants and current practices in northern project assessment and decision making. This paper reports on a study of the nature and use of health determinants in Canadian northern environmental impact assessment, and discusses the key challenges to, and opportunities for, improved practice. Four themes emerged from this study. First, the consideration of health is limited to physical environments and the physical determinants of health, with limited attention to broader social and cultural health determinants. Second, when health is considered in northern project impact assessments such considerations rarely carry forward to post-project approval monitoring of health determinants and evaluation of health impact management programmes. Third, while there is general consensus that health determinants should be an integral part of northern impact assessment, there exist different expectations of the role of health determinants in project evaluation and decision making due in large part to different understandings and interpretations of health. Finally, a broader conceptualisation of health and health determinants in northern environmental impact assessment is required; one that takes into consideration northern cultures and knowledge systems, and is adaptive to local context, geography and life cycles.

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EIA SCREENING FOR CHANGES AND EXTENSIONS TO EXISTING PROJECTS: APPLYING AN EU PERSPECTIVE

Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management ◽

10.1142/s1464333204001651 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 06 (02) ◽

pp. 177-188 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

JOE WESTON

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Environmental Impact ◽

Adverse Effects ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Environmental Impact Assessment ◽

Wide Scope ◽

The European Union ◽

Local Planning ◽

Growth Area ◽

The Uk

Directive 97/11/EC, amending the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive (85/337/EEC), introduced a number of key changes to the procedures of EIA in the European Union (EU). One significant amendment was the introduction of a requirement for EIAs to be completed for "changes or extensions to Annex I or II projects that have already been authorised executed or are in the process of being executed and which are likely to have significant adverse effects on the environment (CEC, 1997). That requirement imposes a duty on competent authorities to screen all changes and extensions of Annex I and Annex II projects for the need for EIA. Applying legal and policy principles established in the European Union, the scope of what constitute relevant changes and extensions is very wide. Given this wide scope, it would be reasonable to assume that screening changes or extensions would have been a major growth area of EIA activity in the UK. However, evidence presented here indicates just the opposite and suggests that many local planning authorities are not fully aware of the full implications of this clause in the EIA Directive. Furthermore, for the full implications of the "changes and extensions" clause to be implemented in the UK may require further amendments to the EIA legislation.

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Integration of Environmental Impact Assessment into the Planning and Decision-Making Process

Environmental Impact Assessment ◽

10.1016/b978-0-08-024445-7.50023-2 ◽

1981 ◽

pp. 155-162

Author(s):

L.G. Schimmelpenninck

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Environmental Impact ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Environmental Impact Assessment ◽

Decision Making Process

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Mathematical-Modelling Simulation Applied to Help in the Decision-Making Process on Environmental Impact Assessment of Agriculture

Computational Methods for Agricultural Research ◽

10.4018/978-1-61692-871-1.ch011 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 199-233

Author(s):

Maria Pessoa ◽

Elizabeth Fernandes ◽

Sonia Nascimento de Queiroz ◽

Vera Ferracini ◽

Marco Gomes ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Environmental Impact ◽

Mathematical Modelling ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Environmental Impact Assessment ◽

Production Systems ◽

Decision Making Process ◽

Aquifer Recharge ◽

Guarani Aquifer

The present chapter provides a brief explanation on some aspects involved in the development of models and mathematical-modelling simulations, to show their benefits to the decision-making process in the environmental impact assessment of agriculture. Aspects concerning the agroecosystems were also presented toward the sustainability of Brazilian agricultural production systems. Some applications which have been developed in Brazil were pointed out, as well as a specific case study conducted at the Guarani aquifer recharge area located in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo state, in order to show the influence of input data on the results provided by CMLS94 simulator.

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