AMBEMAR-DSS: A Decision Support System for the Environmental Impact Assessment of Marine Renewable Energies

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xabier Guinda ◽  
Araceli Puente ◽  
José A. Juanes ◽  
Francisco Royano ◽  
Felipe Fernández ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Renewable Energies ◽  
Environmental Cost ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Modeling Tools

The high energy demand and the threat of climate change have led to a remarkable development of renewable energies, initially through technologies applied to the terrestrial environment and, recently, through the awakening of marine renewable energies. However, the development of these types of projects is often hampered by failure to pass the corresponding environmental impact assessment process. The complexity of working in the marine environment and the uncertainties associated with assessing the impacts of such projects make it difficult to carry out objective and precise environmental impact assessments. AMBEMAR-DSS seeks to establish a basis for understanding and agreement between the different stakeholders (project developers, public administrations, environmental organizations and the public in general), in order to find solutions that allow the development of marine renewable energies, minimizing their environmental cost. For this purpose, a DSS is proposed which, based on cartographic information and using objective and quantifiable criteria, allows comparative assessments and analyses between different project alternatives. The analytical procedures used by the system include, among others, hydrodynamic modeling tools and visual impact simulators. In addition, impacts on marine species are assessed taking into account intrinsic ecological and biological aspects. The magnitude of the impacts is quantified by means of fuzzy logic operations and the integration of all the elements is carried out by an interactive multi-criteria analysis. The results are shown in tables, graphs and figures of easy interpretation and can be also visualized geographically by means of a cartographic viewer. The system identifies the main impacts generated in the different phases of the project and allows establishing adequate mitigation measures in search of optimized solutions. The establishment of the assessment criteria has been based on the abundant, but dispersed, scientific literature on the various elements of the system and having the opinion of experts in the various fields. Nevertheless, the DSS developed constitutes a preliminary basis on which to build and improve a system with the input of researchers, promoters and experts from different disciplines.

IMPROVING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) PROCESS IN MALAYSIA

2015 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maisarah Makmor ◽  
Zulhabri Ismail
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Mixed Methods Approach ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Document Review

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a planning tool to identify, predict and evaluate potential environmental impacts and mitigation measures in the early stages of proposed projects. Although EIA has been implemented in Malaysia for over 25 years, the EIA practices have yet to achieve the parameters of effective environmental management and sustainable development. Hence, this research aims to improve the EIA process in Malaysia. Three objectives were utilised in this research which are to recognise the fundamentals of EIA process and procedures applied in Malaysia, to analyse the issues in relation to the EIA preparation and submission conducted in Malaysia and to propose a set of recommendations to further improve the current EIA process in Malaysia. Mixed methods approach was embarked composed of qualitative instruments via document review and semi-structured interviews and quantitative instrument utilising questionnaire survey. Key issues on the EIA process in Malaysia were gathered from qualitative data collected. Analysis of data collected resulted to recommendations on the key issues regarding EIA. 25 proposed recommendations to improve the EIA process were contextualised and validated via questionnaire survey. Ergo, this research established an improved EIA process in Malaysia towards sustainable development to ameliorate the EIA practices in Malaysia. 

Comparison of environmental impact and energy efficiency of desalination processes by LCA

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 246-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. M. Tarnacki ◽  
T. Melin ◽  
A. E. Jansen ◽  
J. van Medevoort
Keyword(s):  
Energy Source ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Waste Heat ◽  
Assessment Methods ◽  
Analysis Tool ◽  
Great Opportunity ◽  
The Impact

In this study two desalination technologies have been compared by means of LCA with the focus on energy supply with a variety of scenarios based on different assumptions. The studied technologies are reverse osmosis and the newly developed technology Memstill where electrical energy demand is reduced by using external thermal energy source and use of chemicals is reduced. The scenarios are chosen to simulate different locations of sea water desalination plants and to demonstrate the impact of energy demand and energy source, chemical use and longer components' life times on the environment. The results show the dominant impact of energy demand on the overall results for all applied environmental impact assessment methods; transports, material and even chemical use are of negligible impact on the total score. The use of waste heat in case of Memstill offers a great opportunity to reduce the negative environmental impacts related to energy use. As the LCA analysis tool the GaBi software has been applied with the Ecoindicator99, CML 2001 and Ecopoints environmental impact assessment methods.

LINKING ABORIGINAL HERITAGE ISSUES TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STUDY

1999 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 119
Author(s):  
K.N. Davie ◽  
T.A. Winters
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Impact Study ◽  
Environmental Impact Study ◽  
Clearance Process ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Western Australian

This paper discusses the relationship between the Aboriginal heritage clearance process and the environmental impact assessment process. The current Western Australian legislation and the Murrin Murrin nickel project and other Western Australian projects are used as a case study, although similar methods and issues are applicable to most states within Australia. The paper investigates areas where delays may occur and proposes a model which can be implemented to maximise the level of certainty for a project.

EIA Processes in the Radioactive Waste Management in Slovakia: Eight Years of Experience

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Salzer ◽  
Eva Sencˇa´kova´
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Public Involvement ◽  
Slovak Republic ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Nuclear Facilities ◽  
Legal Provisions

Environmental Impact Assessment Act has been in force in the Slovak Republic since 1994. Evaluation of potential environmental impact of nuclear facilities/activities was enforced in the cases of newly sited constructions containing nuclear facilities much earlier: the civil construction legislation required the preparation of initial safety report with the same purposes. The cardinal change constituted by the EIA Act was the legal requirement of the public involvement in the assessment process, such as participation of municipalities, civil initiatives or public hearings. Another aspect was the most complex evaluation of impact, i.e. not only inside the nuclear safety framework but including, for instance, also non-nuclear, social, and economical aspects. All nuclear activities judged by the environmental impact assessment processes in the last eight years have been related to radioactive waste and spent fuel management facilities or activities and to the decommissioning of nuclear power plants. The particular cases are briefly described and the positive and negative implications from particular environmental impact assessment processes are discussed and generalized. Special attention is given to the use of EIA approaches in the strategy decision-making processes on various levels. There are the main difficulties and drawbacks in application of the EIA legal provisions in Slovakia at the present time.

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