Identifying and Evaluating Impacts - Mining and the Environment: From Ore to Metal - page 405

TABLE 9.3
Describing Signifi cance Attributes - Signifi cance attributes help to provide the answer to the following question: 'Is the impact signifi cant?'

Nature/Direction
●

Positive: Benefi cial effect on environment

●

Neutral: No change in environment

●

Negative: Adverse effect on environment

Magnitude
● Low: Minimal or no impairment of environmental component's function or processes (e.g. for wildlife, a species' reproduction capacity, survival and
habitat suitability, or for human, the number of people affected)
● Moderate: Measurable change in environmental component's function or processes in the short or medium term; however, recovery is expected at
pre-project level

● Severe: Measurable change during project life or beyond (e.g. for wildlife, serious impairment of species reproduction or habitat suitability)

Reversibility
● Reversible: Environmental component recovers to pre-project level. The rate of recovery is important.
● Irreversible: Impact that causes a permanent change in the affected receptor or resource (e.g. the felling of old growth forest as a result of occupation
of a site, landscape changes caused by mining).

Duration
● Short-term: Impact predicted to last only for a limited period (such as during construction, seismic studies, drilling or decommissioning) but will cease on
completion of the activity, or as a result of mitigation/reinstatement measures and natural recovery. For species, impacts occur for less than one generation.
● Long-term: Impact that will continue over an extended period, (such as operation noise throughout project life or impact from operational emissions),
continuous, intermittent, or repeated (such as impacts caused by repeated explosions during mining). For species, impacts occur for more than one
generation.

Frequency
● Once: Occurs only once

● Continuous: Occurs on a regular basis and regular intervals

● Sporadic: Occurs rarely and at irregular intervals

Geographic extent
● Local: Impact that occurs in the vicinity of the project, and affects a locally important environmental resource (in contrast, an impact on a nearby
Orangutan Conservation Area, even restricted spatially, would constitute an international impact).
● Regional: Impact that affects regionally important environmental resources or is felt at a regional scale as determined by administrative boundaries,
habitat type.
● National: Impact that affects nationally important environmental resources or affects an area that is nationally important or protected.
● International: Impact that affects internationally important environmental resources such as areas protected by International Conventions.
● Trans-boundary: Impact that is experienced in one country as a result of activities in another (such as acid rain, greenhouse gases, or river pollution).

Likelihood
● Likely: high probability that impact will occur, or high certainty that impact will be signifi cant

● Unlikely: Low probability that impact will occur, or high uncertainty in signifi cance prediction

trigger or contribute to any cumulative effects. Often the impact of the mine is indirect
change, such as induced development, which is more difi cult to mitigate and which has
the potential for greater environmental consequences. Perception is also important when
discussing magnitude of impacts. Small positive actions and gestures, such as scholarships
provided to local students, while insignii cant in the larger picture of mine development,
can substantially contribute to positive community perceptions towards the mine and its

Perception is important when
discussing magnitude of impacts.