1. Applications of Environmental Science

2. Recap  What is environmental Science?  Studying the physical and biological world to understand, make decisions about, and solve problems  Who influences it?  Scientists  Society (healthcare, legal system, public)  Government (policies, legislation and decisions)  Ecological Concepts Worksheet.

3. Learning Outcome:  list some applications of Environmental Science. Include:  Environmental Impact Assessments  Environmental Monitoring  Risk Assessment  Decision making and Policy development

4. 1) Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA)  an assessment of the possible impacts that a proposed project may have on the environment, consisting of the environmental, social and economic aspects.

6. 1) Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA)  Predict the possible positive and negative impacts on the environment that could result from a project. This is done before deciding to proceed.

8. 2) Environmental Monitoring  the processes and activities that need to take place to describe and monitor the quality of the environment.

9. 2) Environmental Monitoring  Environmental monitoring is used in the preparation of EIA’s, as well as in many circumstances in which human activities carry a risk of harmful effects on the natural environment.

10. 3) Risk Assessment  Compares the risks with the rewards to see if the project is worth the environmental cost.  Important part of EIA’s

11. 4) Decision Making/Policy Development  Environmental Science provides information used to create policies and laws to regulate our use of the environment.

12. Government Influence  Newfoundland Cod Fishery  Based on evidence from different sources, decision made to shut down the Cod Fishery (1992)

13. Government Influence  We now have a system in place to manage other fisheries. What kinds of regulations are in place? 1. Quotas 2. Seasons 3. Limited number of harvesters 4. Restrictions on type of fishing gear 5. Limiting predators (modifying quotas for other stocks)