1.3-b) Environmental assessment and monitoring

Question 1

• What is environmental monitoring?

Answer 1

• Environmental monitoring:
  ➞ describes the processes and activities that need to take place in order to characterise and assess the quality of an environment over time.

Question 2

• What are the specific reasons for carrying out environmental monitoring?

Answer 2

Environmental monitoring monitors abiotic factors and species to:
1. Detect changes in population size and health
2. Allow for planning of conservation and management strategies
3. Detect the impact of human activities
4. Assess the effectiveness of intervention methods

Question 3

• What is an EIA?

Answer 3

• An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA):
  ➞ ensures the local planning authority has full knowledge of:
  1. Any possible environmental effects of a proposed development
  2. How to minimise these
• This is taken into account in the decision-making process.

Question 4

• What is an SEA?

Answer 4

• A Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA):
  ➞ is mandatory for plans that relate to large-scale changes in land use:
  1. In Scotland, public bodies and private companies, such as utility companies, are required to monitor the environmental impact of their plans, programmes and strategies.

Question 5

• What is the difference between EIA and SEA?

Answer 5

• An EIA is an environmental assessment for an individual project.
• An SEA is an environmental assessment for large-scale public or government-led plans.

Question 6

• What are the roles of environmental agencies?

Answer 6

1. Enforcing legislation 📝
2. Advising government, local authority planners, land owners, land users and voluntary organisations 🏢
3. Shaping national policies 📢
4. Educating the public 🍎
5. Researching and monitoring 🧪

Question 7

• What is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)?

Answer 7

• Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSis):
  ➞ are areas of high conservation value in terms of their:
  1. Flora (plants) 🌿
  2. Fauna (animals) 🐸
  3. Geology (rocks) 🪨
  4. Geomorphology (landforms) ⛰️

Question 8

• What is the purpose of an SSSI?

Answer 8

• An area is designated as an SSSI to protect it.
  ➞ This means owners must manage the site appropriately to conserve its special features.
• There are over 1,400 SSSIs in Scotland, which cover 12% of the land and are controlled by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

Question 9

• What is an MPA?

Answer 9

• Marine Protected Areas (MPAs):
  ➞ protect a wide range of habitats, species, geology and undersea landforms in Scottish waters.
• Scotland’s network of MPAs consists of 244 sites which cover 37% of our seas.

Question 10

• What is a policy?

Answer 10

• Policy:
  ➞ is a plan of action that focuses on a specific target.

Question 11

• What is a strategy?

Answer 11

• Strategy:
  ➞ outlines the methods and principles needed to achieve the policy.

Question 12

• What is legislation?

Answer 12

• Legislation:
  ➞ are laws made by governments that outline procedures or standards that people and organisations must follow.

Question 13

• What are initiatives?

Answer 13

• Initiatives:
  ➞ are important acts or statements that are intended to solve a problem.

Question 14

• What is a hydrograph?

Answer 14

• A hydrograph is a graph showing how a waterbody reacts after a period of rainfall.

Question 15

• What are hydrographs used for?

Answer 15

Hydrographs are used to:
1. Show how a waterbody is affected by a storm ⛈️
2. Understand discharge patterns in a drainage basin 💧
3. Predict flooding 🌊
4. Plan flood prevention measures ⚠️

Question 16

• What factors affect base flow?

Answer 16

1. Geological conditions 🪨
2. Land cover 🌄
3. Precipitation 🌧️
4. Temperature 🌡️
5. Soil moisture and composition 🌱
6. Slope 🏔️