规划环境影响评价项目实施有效性的评估

从管理程序、技术方法、内容设置、评价结论及规划实施的保障措施等方面,建立了评估规划环境影响评价实施有效性的指标体系,包括“早期介入、公众参与的有效性、评审制度的严格性、工作程序的合理性、评价方法的实用性、技术手段的先进性、指标体系的全面性和合理性、环境质量评价标准的有效性、累积影响评价、替代方案、评价结论的明确性、规划评价结论的有效采纳、缓解和跟踪措施”等13项指标,并在对9个规划环境影响评价案例实施有效性评估的基础上,分析了当前该领域普遍存在的问题,包括规划环境影响评价介入时机晚、替代方案较少、公众参与普遍流于形式和对累积影响考虑不够等.      

天津市湿地资源开发的累积环境影响评价初探

历史上天津市自然湿地资源十分丰富,几十年来湿地大面积萎缩和生态功能急剧退化。天津湿地生态系统存在的主要问题是湿地生态系统如何恢复、重建和功能修复。文章在对天津市湿地生态环境建设的现状与湿地景观变化发展主要问题进行分析的基础上,探讨了湿地生态建设的目标、任务和对策,论述了湿地资源开发利用过程中累积影响评价(CIA)在政策、规划、计划及项目的各个层次都应得到充分考虑,建议明确将累积影响评价纳入到资源开发利用的体系,推动环境影响评价实践的进一步深入开展。     

建设项目现状环境影响评价数据引用的探讨

对建设项目环境影响现状监测历史数据的所有权归属进行了分析,环境监测机构具有现状监测成果的所有权,委托方有使用权.应对环境现状监测数据进行知识产权保护,使监测数据得到更好利用.     

基于模糊数学理论的尾矿库环境质量综合评价

尾矿库的环境对其周边地区的环境有着重大的影响.建立了尾矿库的环境质量模糊综合评价指标体系,通过专家打分法确定了某尾矿库各层评价指标的权重以及第3层次的模糊关系综合矩阵,并对此尾矿库的环境质量进行了模糊综合评价.最后得出结论:该尾矿库的环境质量综合评价等级为"中".     

小型露天采石场爆破作业安全评价方法的探讨

应用安全检查表、事故树、作业条件危险性分析等方法对露天小型采石场爆破作业进行了分析评价,找出了导致爆破作业事故发生的可能因素及可采用的预防途径,为小型露天爆破作业事故的预防提供有益参考.     

Decommissioning of offshore oil and gas facilities: a comparative assessment of different scenarios

A material and energy flow analysis, with corresponding financial flows, was carried out for different decommissioning scenarios for the different elements of an offshore oil and gas structure. A comparative assessment was made of the non-financial (especially environmental) outcomes of the different scenarios, with the reference scenario being to leave all structures in situ, while other scenarios envisaged leaving them on the seabed or removing them to shore for recycling and disposal. The costs of each scenario, when compared with the reference scenario, give an implicit valuation of the non-financial outcomes (e.g. environmental improvements), should that scenario be adopted by society. The paper concludes that it is not clear that the removal of the topsides and jackets of large steel structures to shore, as currently required by regulations, is environmentally justified; that concrete structures should certainly be left in place; and that leaving footings, cuttings and pipelines in place, with subsequent monitoring, would also be justified unless very large values were placed by society on a clear seabed and trawling access.     

Integrated Risk Framework for Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems

Onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS) are becoming increasingly important for the treatment and dispersal of effluent in new urbanised developments that are not serviced by centralised wastewater collection and treatment systems. However, the current standards and guidelines adopted by many local authorities for assessing suitable site and soil conditions for OWTS are increasingly coming under scrutiny due to the public health and environmental impacts caused by poorly performing systems, in particular septic tank-soil adsorption systems. In order to achieve sustainable onsite wastewater treatment with minimal impacts on the environment and public health, more appropriate means of assessment are required. This paper highlights an integrated risk based approach for assessing the inherent hazards associated with OWTS in order to manage and mitigate the environmental and public health risks inherent with onsite wastewater treatment. In developing a sound and cohesive integrated risk framework for OWTS, several key issues must be recognised. These include the inclusion of relevant stakeholders throughout framework development, the integration of scientific knowledge, data and analysis with risk assessment and management ideals, and identification of the appropriate performance goals for successful management and mitigation of associated risks. These issues were addressed in the development of the risk framework to provide a generic approach to assessing risk from OWTS. The utilisation of the developed risk framework for achieving more appropriate assessment and management techniques for OWTS is presented in a case study for the Gold Coast region, Queensland State, Australia.     

Choosing policy instruments for controlling ozone depleting substances in a developing context: the case of Chile

Chile ratified the Montreal Protocol in 1990 which sets out an agenda for the reduction and then elimination of ozone depleting substances (ODS); however, by 1998 the country had not yet defined a strategy to encourage greater compliance, so that in the same year the National Environmental Commission decided to examine the policy options available. This paper examines the process followed to develop this strategy. As a first step it was necessary to look at how far the implicit policy of "business as usual" could be stretched without jeopardizing Chile's compliance obligations. A second step included quantifying compliance costs and their impact on different policy instruments and so policy choice. Finally, the attitudes of decision-makers or participants were identified, by interviews with officials of the different public agents involved, in order to weigh their views about policy. A strategy was proposed, based on this information, which the Chilean regulator has used, although not in its entirety. The methodology developed could well be useful for developing-country Protocol signatories building their own appropriate compliance strategy.     

Scoring the Importance of Tropical Forest Landscapes with Local People: Patterns and Insights

Good natural resource management is scarce in many remote tropical regions. Improved management requires better local consultation, but accessing and understanding the preferences and concerns of stakeholders can be difficult. Scoring, where items are numerically rated in relation to each other, is simple and seems applicable even in situations where capacity and funds are limited, but managers rarely use such methods. Here we investigate scoring with seven indigenous communities threatened by forest loss in Kalimantan, Indonesia. We aimed to clarify the forest’s multifaceted importance, using replication, cross-check exercises, and interviews. Results are sometimes surprising, but generally explained by additional investigation that sometimes provides new insights. The consistency of scoring results increases in line with community literacy and wealth. Various benefits and pitfalls are identified and examined. Aside from revealing and clarifying local preferences, scoring has unexplored potential as a quantitative technique. Scoring is an underappreciated management tool with wide potential.     

TUGAI: An Integrated Simulation Tool for Ecological Assessment of Alternative Water Management Strategies in a Degraded River Delta

The development of ecologically sound water allocation strategies that account for the needs of riverine ecosystems is a pressing issue, especially in semiarid river basins. In the Aral Sea Basin, a search for strategies to mitigate ecological and socioeconomic deterioration has been in process since the early 1990s. The Geographic Information System–based simulation tool TUGAI has been developed to support the policy determination process by providing a simple, problem-oriented method to assess ecological effects of alternative water management strategies for the Amudarya River. It combines a multiobjective water allocation model with simple, spatially explicit statistical and rule-based models of landscape dynamics. Changes in environmental conditions are evaluated by a fuzzy habitat suitability index for Populus euphratica, which is the dominant species of the characteristic riverine Tugai forests. Water management scenarios can be developed by altering spatiotemporal water distribution in the delta area or the amount of water inflow into the delta. Outcomes of scenario analysis are qualitative comparisons of the ecological effects of different options for a time period of up to 28 years. The given approach utilizes different types of knowledge, from quantitative hydrological data to qualitative local expert knowledge. The main purpose of the tool is to integrate the knowledge in a comprehensive way to make it available for discussions on alternative policies in moderated workshops with stakeholders. In this article, the modules of the tool, their integration, and three hypothetical scenarios are presented. Based on the experience gained when developing the TUGAI tool, we propose that the general framework can be transferred to other areas where tradeoffs in water allocation between the environment and other water users are of major concern. The potential for a simulation tool to structure and inform a complex resource management situation by involving local experts and stakeholders in the development of possible future scenarios will become increasingly valuable for transparent and participatory resource management.