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The Millenium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) - Greenorg Site
The Millenium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) - Greenorg Site
2021
United Nations project designed to assess the consequences of ecosystem changes for human well-being
establish a scientific basis for action to conserve the sustainable use of ecosystems and their contribution
to human well-being
· Over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in
any comparable period of time in human history, largely to meet rapidly growing demands for
food, fresh water, timber, fiber and fuel.
· This has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity of life on Earth.
The changes that have been made to ecosystems have contributed to substantial net gains in human
well-being and economic deelopment, but these gains have been acheived at growing costs in the form
of the degradation of many ecosystem services, increased risks of nonlinear changes, and the
exacerbation of poverty for some groups of people.
These problems, unless addressed, will substantially diminish the benefits that future generations obtain
from ecosystems.
The degradation of ecosystem services could grow significantly worse during the fisrt half of this century
and is a barrier to acheiving the Millenium Development Goals (8 of them, by UN, in 2000s [entering
the new millenium], the idea of acheivement till the year 2015, from year 2000) LOOK UP ONLINE
Overall, human actions are depleting Earth's natural capital at a faster rate than it is being the decision
longer be taken for granted.
ONZ in 2015 changed Millenium Development Goals to The Global Goals (For Sustainable Development)
went up from 8 to 17
2000--->2015--->2030
every country obligated itself to give 0.7% of their ODA (PKB) to pursue these goals (dac??)
· There is not necessarily a requirement to implement an EIA's proposals and many socio-
economin factors may influence the decision made
The first formal EIA process started in USA during a period of increased environmental awareness in the
1960s.
Example of large projects requiring an EIA mght be a Fracking project in the UK, development of new
Olympic facilities, building a new dam.
Stage 1: Screening
The screening process helps decide whether an EIA is necessary, what needs to be investigated and what
needs to be measured.
Stage 2: Scoping
Thisis the first stage where public consultation takes place. Baseline studies are undertaken. These
include both ecological baseline studies and socio-economic baseline studies.
Ecological baseline:
· Surveys will identify patterns in vegetation, special sites and unique habitats, important
(keystone) species, rare (red-listed) species.
· Identify the communities that will be impacted by the development, their viewpoints and the
economic impacts (both positive and negative) of the development.
EIAs are publically available documents and studies can be compared to increase the validy of the EIA.
disadvantages:
Evaluation
This process need time and expertise which may not always be valed by the developers (or decision
makers) who are paying for the EIA.
The survey may be biased if carried out by surveyors under the employment of the developer.
The survey may be done under the pressure of project deadlines and thus miss important information or
viewpoints.
To identify risks and suggest mitigation strategies for the project --> designed to limit the impact of the
project and protect the environment.
A cost-benefit analysis.
In developments where an area is to be flooded, the area should be designed to provide recreation areas
Evaluation
No matter how good the EIA is, if the project is very large, e.g. The Three Gorges Dam, it is inevitable
that there will be a lot of ecological destruction.
· There is not necessarily a requirement to implement an EIA's proposals, and many socio-
economic factors may influence the decisions made.
· Requirement for public involvement
Evaluation
The decision makers may choose to ignore the recommendations of the EIA or priritise short term
economic goals over environmental impacts.
Following the EIA process, the decision makers should choose the "right" decision based upon the voices
of local communities.
Once the development is approved then an important element of the EIA is for continued monitoring of
the site and the implementation of the mitigation strategies. This gives a chance to amend the strategies
if they are not working as expected.
This helps to ensure that developers are keeping to any recommended procedures and that any
problems are identified before any damage is irreversible.
Evaluation
This process can alert authorities to any unforeseen damage to environment but it continues to ad d to
the tim nd moneyy involved in the project
although concerns may be raised during construcction, they are not always acted upon to mitigate the
impact
EIA criticism
May be limited by the quality of the baseline study --> the lack of a clear definition of system boundaries
Environmental impact predicition is speculative = the predictions of an EIA may be inaccurate in the long
term