Fundamentals of Environmental Assessment

ISBN-13: 9780367705923 / Angielski / Twarda / 2023 / 280 str.

Glenn W. Suter II

Opis

Based on the "go to" book in the field of ecological risk assessment, this shorter, principles-based, updated textbook is essential for students and new practitioners who want to understand the purposes of environmental assessments and how to achieve them. It includes environmental risks to humans as well as nonhuman populations and ecosystems, and most types of environmental assessments. Drawing upon the author’s extensive experience in the field, first as a senior research staff member in the Environmental Sciences Division at Oak Ridge Laboratory and then as science adviser in the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s National Center for Environmental Assessment, the book explains fundamental principles and basic techniques and illustrates them with example applications which carry through multiple chapters and make this book a practical and hands-on guide. Both the content and the style are inviting and approachable to different levels of students.

Features

1. Integrates human health and ecological assessments.

2. Includes epidemiological, risk, causal, impact, and outcome assessments.

3. Focuses on fundamental principles that are applicable in all nations and legal contexts.

4. Employs an engaging style and draws on the author’s practical experience.

5. Explains fundamental concepts in short chapters, making it perfect for beginners in the field.

6. Explains the challenges and rewards of a career in environmental assessment.

This book is a practical guide for senior and graduate students in environmental sciences and management, as well as new practitioners of assessment who want to understand the purposes of environmental assessments and how to achieve them.

Recenzje

“The topics in Suter's book have been covered in other textbooks. But this book stands out and is distinguished from all others by a plain‐spoken writing style. Reading the book, you get the distinct impression that Suter is communicating directly with you. He is sharing advice drawn from his many years of experience assessing a wide range of environmental situations, some quite controversial to the present day. The book is an excellent teaching tool for students at university. And it's a useful and practical reference guide for early‐and mid‐career environmental professionals who want to understand the challenges and purposes of environmental assessments and their application to environmental management and decision‐making.”

- Richard J. Wenning, Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, Vol 19, No 6, 2023: 1652–1658

Spis treści

Part I: Types and Components of Environmental Assessments  1. Types of Environmental Assessment  2. The Cast of Characters  3. Frameworks for Environmental Assessment  4. Planning and Problem Formulation  5. Analysis  6. Analysis of Exposure  7. Analysis of Effects  8. Characterization  9. Communication  10. Pollution Control and Risk Management  Part II: Concepts of Environmental Assessment  11. Causation  12. Hazard  13. Integration of Human Health and Ecological Assessments  14. Goals and Endpoints  15. Precaution and Protection  16. Levels of Organization  17. Uncertainty, Variability and Confidence  18. Probalistic Assessment  19. Complexity  20. Bias, Error, Fraud, and Credibility  Part III: Methods for Environmental Assessment  21. Sources of Information  22. Benchmark Derivation  23. Network Diagrams  24. Inference  25. A Weight of Evidence Process  26. Extrapolation  27. Species Sensitivity Distributions  28. Mixtures, Multiple Agents, and Cumulative Effects  29. Background and Reference  30. Assessors in the Court Room  31. The Future  Part IV: Supporting Materials        

O autorze

Glenn W. Suter II is a retired environmental assessor. During his 20 years at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, he served as the Science Advisor to the Director of the National Center for Environmental Assessment in Cincinnati and as Chairman of the Risk Assessment Forum’s Ecological Oversight Committee. Before that he worked for 23 years in the Environmental Sciences Division of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He has authored more than 300 publications including four authored books and four edited books. Among his recognitions, he received the SETAC Founder’s Award and the USEPA’s Level One Scientific Achievement Award, and gold medal for exceptional service. He is a Fellow of the AAAS and SETAC. He has worked on the development of toxicity test protocols; environmental impact assessment for nuclear, geothermal and coal energy technologies; the National Acid Precipitation Assessment; recovery of an endangered species; and ecological risk assessments of contaminated sites and of the mining of copper and coal. He participated in the development of guidance for ecological risk assessment, causal assessment, weight of evidence, field-based water quality criteria, assessment endpoints, ecosystem services, integrated risk assessment, and other topics. After this book, he intends to continue to serve as reviews editor for IEAM and spend more time clearing invasive species and otherwise restoring his bit of mixed deciduous forest.