Environmental Assessment in a Changing World PDF Download

Author: Barry Sadler
Publisher: Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency c1996.
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 268

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Book Description
"This report comprises the framework, findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the International Study of the Effectiveness of Environmental Assessment. It presents, through highlight boxes and chapter folios, key points and issues related to the practice of environmental assessment."--Executive Summary.

Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309134412
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
Federal agencies have taken steps to include the public in a wide range of environmental decisions. Although some form of public participation is often required by law, agencies usually have broad discretion about the extent of that involvement. Approaches vary widely, from holding public information-gathering meetings to forming advisory groups to actively including citizens in making and implementing decisions. Proponents of public participation argue that those who must live with the outcome of an environmental decision should have some influence on it. Critics maintain that public participation slows decision making and can lower its quality by including people unfamiliar with the science involved. This book concludes that, when done correctly, public participation improves the quality of federal agencies' decisions about the environment. Well-managed public involvement also increases the legitimacy of decisions in the eyes of those affected by them, which makes it more likely that the decisions will be implemented effectively. This book recommends that agencies recognize public participation as valuable to their objectives, not just as a formality required by the law. It details principles and approaches agencies can use to successfully involve the public.

Author: International Institute for Environment and Development
Publisher: IIED
ISBN: 1899825118
Category : Environmental impact analysis
Languages : en
Pages : 221

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Book Description

Author: Barry Sadler
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317391233
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 362

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Book Description
This book brings together the latest thinking in Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and considers the key question of whether the processes are having a positive impact on strategic decision making, both in Europe and worldwide. As governments move to develop green agendas, the book explores the challenges of working within national systems, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of sector-specific SEA. The importance of stakeholder engagement is considered, as is the question of how to turn NIMBYs into WIMBYs – that is, creating positive reasons to encourage development and allow local stakeholders to profit. In assessing ways in which the practice of SEA can provide a new agenda for the 21st Century, the chapters explore current and emerging approaches, procedures and methods, along with ways in which SEA can be linked with other planning tools. The role of research and academia is considered, and the book looks beyond the current status of SEA to address the question of how practitioners can capitalise on the potential of SEA to become integrated into high-level policy as a key element of climate change mitigation strategies. Each chapter is written by internationally renowned authors and based on many years of experience in the field. The book will be essential reading for forward-thinking practitioners and students of SEA.

Author: Riki Therivel
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317236513
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 757

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Book Description
Environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) is an important and often obligatory part of proposing or launching any development project. Delivering a successful ESIA needs not only an understanding of the theory but also a detailed knowledge of the methods for carrying out the processes required. Riki Therivel and Graham Wood bring together the latest advice on best practice from experienced practitioners to ensure an ESIA is carried out effectively and efficiently. This new edition: • explains how an ESIA works and how it should be carried out • demonstrates the links between socio-economic, cultural, environmental and ecological systems and assessments • incorporates the World Bank’s IFC performance standards, and best practice examples from developing as well as developed countries • includes new chapters on emerging ESIA topics such as climate change, ecosystem services, cultural impacts, resource efficiency, land acquisition and involuntary resettlement. Invaluable to undergraduate and MSc students of ESIA on planning, ecology, geography and environment courses, this internationally oriented fourth edition of Methods of Environmental and Social Impact Assessment is also of great use to planners, ESIA practitioners and professionals seeking to update their skills.

Author: Angus Morrison-Saunders
Publisher: Earthscan
ISBN: 1849770506
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 360

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Book Description
Written and edited by an authoritative team of internationally known experts in environmental impact assessment (EIA), this is the first book to present in a coherent manner the theory and practice of EIA and strategic environmental assessment (SEA) follow-up. Without some form of follow-up, the consequences of impact assessments and the environmental outcomes of development projects will remain unknown. Assessing Impact examines both EIA follow-up and the emerging practice of SEA follow-up, and showcases follow-up procedures in various countries throughout Europe, North America and Australasia. Theoretical and legislative perspectives are examined in the light of detailed case study examples, and the authors present a micro-, macro- and meta scale analysis of EIA practice ranging from individual plan and project level through to the jurisdictional level, as well as an analysis of the concept of EIA. Full coverage is given to the roles of proponents, both private and governmental, EIA regulators and the affected public in designing and executing follow-up programmes. This book is the must-have tool for impact assessment professionals, academics, regulators and proponents working on projects of all scales in all jurisdictions.

Author: William R. Sheate
Publisher: World Scientific
ISBN: 9814289698
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 423

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Book Description
This unique volume brings together key writings from experts drawn from the first ten years of the Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management (JEAPM), launched in 1999 as a forum for encouraging better linkages between environmental assessment and management tools. The book is structured around four themes that focus on the characteristics of tools that influence their ability to link together effectively: The Nature of Tools; The Nature of Decision-Making and Institutional Context; The Nature of Engagement and The Nature of Sustainability. Edited and introduced by William Sheate, founding and present editor of JEAPM, the book provides an analysis of what makes for successful linking of assessment and management tools, supported by theoretical and practical examples. Key authors include Roland Clift, David Gadenne, Robert Gibson, Neils Faber, Thomas Fischer, David Lawrence, MNns Nilsson, Bronwyn Ridgway, and Frank Vanclay. Sample Chapter(s). Chapter 1: The Evolving Nature of Environmental Assessment and Management: Linking Tools to Help Deliver Sustainability (10,216 KB). Contents: The Evolving Nature of Environmental Assessment and Management: Linking Tools to Help Deliver Sustainability (W R Sheate); The Nature of Tools: Choices for EIA Process Design and Management (D P Lawrence); The Project Cycle and the Role of EIA and EMS (B Ridgway); A Framework for Tool Selection and Use in Integrated Assessment for Sustainable Development (W De Ridder et al.); The Nature of Decision-Making and Institutional Context: A Systemic Framework for Environmental Decision-Making (R Van Der Vorst et al.); Decision Making and Strategic Environmental Assessment (M Nilsson & H Dalkmann); The Nature of Engagement: In It Together: Organizational Learning Through Participation in Environmental Assessment (P Fitzpatrick); Social and Environmental NGOs as Users of Corporate Social Disclosure (L Danastas & D Gadenne); The Nature of Sustainability: Organisational Sustainability: A Case for Formulating a Tailor-Made Definition (D J Kiewiet & J F J Vos); Beyond the Pillars: Sustainability Assessment as a Framework for Effective Integration of Social, Economic and Ecological Considerations in Significant Decision-Making (R B Gibson); and other papers. Readership: Natural scientists, social scientists, engineers, businesses and consultants interested in sustainability."

Author: Alexander E. Farrell
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136524177
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
As environmental challenges grow larger in scale and implications, it is increasingly important to apply the best scientific knowledge in the decisionmaking process. Editors Farrell and Jäger present environmental assessments as the bridge between the expert knowledge of scientists and engineers on the one hand and decisionmakers on the other. When done well, assessments have a positive impact on public policy, the strategic decisions of private firms, and, ultimately, the quality of life for many people. This book is the result of an international, interdisciplinary research project to analyze past environmental assessments and understand how their design influenced their effectiveness in bringing scientific evidence and insight into the decisionmaking process. The case studies in the book feature a wide range of regional and global risks, including ozone depletion, transboundary air pollution, and climate change. Assessments of Regional and Global Environmental Risks offers several important contributions. It provides a clear account of the choices faced in the design of environmental assessments and a clear description of the lessons learned from past assessments. It illustrates why assessments are social processes, not simply reports. And, while they identify no universal, one-size-fits-all design, the authors find that, to be effective, environmental assessments must be viewed by those who produce and use them as being salient; credible in their scientific support; and legitimate, or fair in design and execution.

Author: Michael Short
Publisher: Earthscan
ISBN: 1849772649
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
'A wonderfully international and up-to-date perspective on strategic environmental assessment of land use plans by leading experts in the field. Strategic Environmental Assessment and Land Use Planning covers not only how much such SEAs are carried out and in what context, but whether they are effective and why. It provides invaluable insights for practitioners and researchers in this rapidy evolving field'Riki Therivel, author of Strategic Environmental Assessment in ActionStrategic Environmental Assessment and Land Use Planning provides an authoritative, international evaluation of the SEA of land use plans. The editors place the SEA of land use plans in context, and uniquely qualified contributors then evaluate systems in Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States and the World Bank. These chapters provide a description of the context in each country, a case study of the use of SEA in land use planning and an evaluation of each SEA system against a set of generic criteria specially designed to anlayse different aspects of SEA. The contributors critically review each SEA system, SEA process and SEA outcome, and conclude by summarizing their findings. The editors draw the various national perspectives together in a final chapter and derive widely applicable conclusions about SEA and land use planning.This book is a core text for all students in environmental assessment, land use planning, environmental science, environmental management, development studies, geography, landscape design and law and engineering. It is also essential reading for all governments and environmental regulators, academics, researchers and environmental and planning consultants worldwide who are involvedin SEA research, practice and training.

Author:
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 9780821339237
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 184

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Book Description
China is in the throes of two transitions: from a command economy to a market-based one and from a rural, agricultural society to an urban, industrial one. So far, both transitions have been spectacularly successful. China is the fastest-growing economy in the world, with per capita incomes more than quadrupling since 1978, achieving in two generations what took other countries centuries. Although swift growth and structural change have resolved many problems, they also have created new challenges: employment insecurity, growing inequality, stubborn poverty, mounting environmental pressures, rising costs of food self-sufficiency, and periods of macroeconomic instability stemming from incomplete reforms. Unmet, these challenges could undermine the sustainability of growth, and China's promise could fade. China 2020, a seven-volume set, examines China's recent history, where it is today, and the path it should follow during the first two decades of the 21st century. The volume in the set entitled, Old Age Security: Pension Reform in China highlights two severe difficulties with China's current pension system: the urgent and immediate problem of the pension burden placed on state-owned enterprises, and the longer-term predicament arising from a rapidly aging population. State enterprises inherited heavy pension obligations from the central planning era. With the transition to a market economy, employment in the state enterprise sector is declining, while the number of pensioners is rising rapidly. The study recommends a unified pension system that includes both mandatory funded individual accounts and a social insurance scheme. It also endorses a sustainable contribution rate that attaches considerable importance to long-term financial viability (more than 60 years) and examines the risks associated with low compliance rates and low interest rates.