Identifying and Evaluating Impacts - Mining and the Environment: From Ore to Metal - page 396

changes and their harmful (negative) and benei cial (positive) consequences, referred to as
the direction or nature of change. Change is sometimes benei cial to some people while at
the same time harmful to others. One approach is to refer to changes as 'effects', and conse-
quences as 'impacts'. Another convention is to use the term 'impacts' to denote only harm-
ful effects. In still other texts, the words 'effects' and 'impacts' are synonymous and harmful
effects are termed 'damage'. No matter how the words are dei ned, a change, effect, or
impact is usually described in terms of its nature and its signii cance. In this text the terms
'effect', 'impact', and 'change' are used synonymously, without any value judgement.
Table 9.1 identii es mining-induced environmental changes and human concerns, changes
that may be 'good' or 'bad' depending upon the point of view. These change processes
TABLE 9.1
Environmental Attributes for Projects, Environmental Changes and Areas of Human Concern
in Industrial Developments - Value judgements ('good' or 'bad') should be avoided at the early stage of an environmental
assessment, since the assessment of change signifi cance follows once changes and their interrelationships are identifi ed.
LAND
Soil stability; natural hazard; land use patterns; landscape changes
WATER
Aquifer safe yield; fl ow variations; change in runoff; oil; radioactivity; suspended solids; acid rock drainage; trace
metals; biochemical oxygen demand (BOD); dissolved oxygen (DO); dissolved solids; nutrients; toxic compounds;
aquatic life; fecal coliforms
AIR
Air quality - Particulates; sulphur oxides; hydrocarbons; nitrogen oxides; carbon monoxide; carbon dioxide;
photochemical oxidants; hazardous toxicants; diffusion
Noise - Physical effects; psychological effects; communication effects; performance effects; social behaviour effects;
effects on wildlife.
BIOTA
Abundance/scarcity of species or genetic resources; extent of crops, ecosystems, vegetation, and forests; diversity of
species; extent of provision of nesting grounds, etc., for migratory species; abundance/scarcity of pests and disease
organisms; large animals (wild and domestic); predatory birds; small game; fi sh, shellfi sh, and waterfowl; threatened
species; endemic species; natural habitat and vegetation; aquatic plants
PEOPLE
Economic and occupational status - Displacement of population; relocation of population in response to employ-
ment opportunities; services and distribution patterns; property values; regional economic stability; public sector
review; per capita consumption; disposable income; renewable resources; non-renewable resources; aesthetics
Social amenities and relationships
● Family life styles; schools; transportation; community feelings; participation vs alienation; local and national pride vs.
regret; stability; disruptions; language; hospitals; clubs; recreation; neighbourliness; community needs
● Physical amenities (intellectual, cultural, aesthetic, and sensual)
● National parks; wildlife; historic and archaeological monuments; beauty of landscape; wilderness; quiet; clean air
and water, visual physical changes; moral conduct; sentimental values
Religion and traditional belief/ Culture - Belief; symbols; taboos; values; leisure, new values; heritage; traditional
and religious rites
Social pattern or life style - Resettlement; rural depopulation; change in population density; food; housing;
material goods; nomadic; settled; pastoral agricultural; rural; urban
Psychological features - Involvement; expectations; stress; frustrations; commitment; challenges; work satisfaction;
national or community pride; freedom of choice; stability and continuity; self-expression; company or solitude;
mobility; physiological needs
(Continued)