Intro Flashcards
What is Ecotoxicology?
- Ecotoxicology is the study of how toxicants (usually man-made ones) harm living organisms in the receiving environment
What are EIA’s?
- Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process to evaluate and minimise the impact of human activities on the environment
Why are Ecotox and IA important?
- This knowledge is critical to ensure sustainable human development, and ultimately the future of mankind on Earth
What is the importance of considering the environment?
- The collapse of civilisations can be linked in part to environmental damage, for example:
» Mesopotamia: Large scale agricultural irrigation projects led to salting, flooding and eventual destruction of countryside
» Mayan: Prolonged drought, exacerbated by deforestation to clear land for agriculture led to inability to support high population densities in cities
What are two examples of how humans defined their relationship with the environment?
- Greek belief:
» Great respect for nature
» Humans are one with nature - Roman belief
» Humans are not part of nature, they are the stewards of the gods
» The world is there for human use (“natural resources”)
Give two examples of how humans have refined their relationship with the environment.
- In the Middle Ages, stewardship gave way to outright control:
» Man’s dominion over nature through an advancement of learning (magic, astrology, alchemy) - Industrial revolution
» “Man’s triumph over nature”
» Has made life easier and more convenient, but …
» Pollution and overuse of resources → unsustainable environmental damage
What is happening now that humans have damaged the environment?
- We are reforming our relationship with the environment
- The rise of the environmental movement in the West* (early 20th century)
» Questions about humanity’s treatment of nature
» Environmental policy, creation of protected areas
» Broad recognition (e.g., a book written in 1962 called Silent Spring is about the preservation of nature and what we must do)
What is our relationship with the environment today?
- The idea that nature is there to be exploited
regardless of the effects has now (mostly)
gone, but … - Environmental issues rarely receive top priority because other things like jobs and money have a higher focus
» Climate change
» Protection of biodiversity
» Air pollution
» Water resource management - With modern technology, we are far more able to impact the environment than we have ever been – for good, and for bad
Why do we need EIA?
- We need to assess the impact of human activity on the environment, so we can mitigate it
What are the main drivers for EIA?
- Regulate pollution and pollution sources
- Concern about public health (esp. air quality)
- Appreciation of nature
Give examples for the driver “Regulate pollution and pollution sources”
- 1810 Napoleonic law to divide noxious occupations into 3: to be removed from habitation, permitted on outskirts of town, and tolerated close to housing
- First pollution regulation in Aus* (≈1800): protection of Sydney’s water supply
Give examples for the driver “Concern about public health (esp. air quality)”
- Town planning laws (in Aus: Factory Acts 19th century, modern OHS legislation)
- Link b/w human health and env (National Environmental Health Strategy 2000)
Give examples for the driver “Appreciation of nature”
• First National Park in Aus created by Royal National Park (NSW) legislation 1879
How is EIA used?
- EIA is a formal framework to mitigate impact of mankind on the environment
» When applied beforehand, the objective of EIA is to identify possible risks to the environment that may result from a proposed action
» This can then be used to modify the proposed action and mitigate its negative impact
What factors are considered in EIA?
- EIA considers social, economic, cultural and environmental factors
- The EIA process is about organising these factors in order of priority
