Environmental indicators are simple sizes that tell us what's happening in the environment. Because the environment is so complex, indicators provide a more practical and economical way to track environmental circumstances than if we tried to record every possible variable in the environment. For example, the concentration of ozone-depleting substances in the atmosphere, tracked over time, is a good indicator of the environmental problem of stratospheric ozone depletion.
Environmental indicators have been defined in different ways but there is a common theme.
"Environmental indicators are numerical values ​​that help provide insight into the state of the environment or human health Indicators are developed based on quantitative measurements or statistics of environmental conditions traced over time Environmental indicators can be developed and used across a wide range of geographic scales, from local to regional to National level. "
"A parameter or value derived from a parameter that describes the state of the environment and its effects on humans, ecosystems and materials, the pressure on the environment, the driving forces and the response that directs the system.It has been through selection and/or aggregation process to enable it to direct action. "
Video Environmental indicator
Discussion
Criteria and framework of environmental indicators have been used to assist in their selection and presentation.
It can be considered, for example, that there is a major subset of environmental indicators in line with the OECD-developed Pressure-Country-Response model. One part of the environmental indicator is a collection of ecological indicators that can include physical, biological and chemical actions such as atmospheric temperature, ozone concentration in the stratosphere or number of breeding pairs in a region. This is also referred to as the "country" indicator because the focus is on environmental circumstances or conditions in the environment. The second part is a set of indicators that measure human activity or anthropogenic pressure, such as greenhouse gas emissions. This is also called a "pressure" indicator. Finally, there are indicators, such as the number of people served by sewage treatment, which track the community's response to environmental issues.
Environmental indicators, in turn, should be considered as part of a sustainable development indicator intended to track the overall sustainability of the community with respect to environmental, social and economic integrity and health.
The general framework pioneered by the European Environment Agency is the "DPSIR" or "driver, pressure, country, impact, response" framework. Drivers and pressures are indicators of human activity and the stresses produced on the environment in the form of pollution or land use change, for example. State and impact indicators are conditions generated in the environment and their implications for ecosystem and human health. Response indicators measure human society's reaction to environmental problems. Criteria tend to focus on three main areas - scientific credibility, social policy/relevance and practical monitoring and data requirements.
Environmental indicators are used by governments, non-governmental organizations, community groups and research institutions to see if environmental goals are being met, to communicate environmental conditions to the general public and decision makers and as a diagnostic tool through detecting trends in the environment.
Environmental indicators can be measured and reported on different scales. For example, a city can track air quality along with water quality and count the number of rare bird species to estimate environmental health in their area. Indicators are developed for certain ecosystems, such as Great-Lakes in North America. National governments use environmental indicators to show status and trends with respect to important environmental issues for their citizens.
Maps Environmental indicator
Use in rating
Some have tried to monitor and assess the state of the planet using indicators.
Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute, has said: -
- By environment, the world is in overshoot mode. If we use environmental indicators to evaluate our situation, then the global decline of the natural support system of the economy - the environmental decline that will lead to economic downturn and social collapse - is going well.
Environmental indicators are also used by companies within the framework of environmental management systems. The EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme provides core indicators or Performance Indicators (KPIs) with which registered organizations can measure their environmental performance and monitor their continuous improvement of the environment against established targets.
Audience
The types of indicators selected or developed should be based partly on who will use the information from the indicator. There are usually three possible viewers to consider, each with different information needs. These audiences are: 1) technical experts and science advisors, 2) policy makers, decision makers and resource managers, and 3) the general public and the media.
Technical experts and scientists will be interested in detailed and complex indicators. These indicators should have scientific validity, sensitivity, responsiveness and have data available in the past. Viewers who include policymakers and resource managers will be concerned with using indicators that directly relate to policy evaluation and objectives. They need their indicators to be sensitive, responsive and have available historical data such as technical audiences, but they are also looking for cost-effective and meaningful indicators for public awareness. Finally, the general public responds to indicators that have clear and simple and meaningful messages for them, such as the UV index and air quality index.
Indicator system and communicate it
Individual indicators are designed to translate complex information in a concise and easily understood way to represent a particular phenomenon (eg ambient air quality). In contrast, the indicator system (or set of indicators), when viewed as a whole is intended to provide an assessment of the complete or most of the environment domain (eg forest).
Some indicator systems have evolved to include many indicators and require a certain level of knowledge and expertise in various disciplines to be fully understood. A number of methods have been designed in the past to summarize this information and allow for quick consumption by those who do not have the time or expertise to analyze a full set of indicators. In general, this method can be categorized as numerical aggregation (eg index), short indicator option (eg core set or main indicator), short visual assessment i> (eg arrows, traffic signals), and interesting presentations (e.g., map or dashboard of sustainability). Many prominent environmental indicators have adjusted their indicator systems to include or report only on limited "indicator sets" (eg the OECD "Main Environmental Indicator" and "Canada Environmental Sustainability Indicator")
See also
- Environment (system)
- Canada Environmental Sustainability Indicator
- The Hydro Power Sustainability Assessment
- Environmental state
- Environmental accounting
- Sustainability measurement
- Ecological indicators
- Environmental Management and Audit Schemes
- Performance indicators
References
External links
- US. EPA's Environmental Report
- Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
- Canada Environmental Sustainability Indicator
- Canadian Sustainability Indicators Network (CSIN)
- The European Commission DG Environment indicator page
- Indicators on the European Environment
- Environmental Indicators Fraser Institute (6th Edition) - has academic articles devoted to its shortcomings: McKenzie and Rees (2007), "Analysis of brownlash reports", Ecological Economics 61 (2-3), pp505 -515
- Lake Country Ecosystem Conference
- International Conference on Environmental Indicators
- Earth Trend
- Online water quality biomonitoring with 24/7 diaries on the behavior and physiology of bivalve molluscs worldwide (biological rhythm, growth rate, spawning, daily behavior): MolluSCAN project eye
- List of Global Development and Ranking Indexes (including environmental indicators)
Source of the article : Wikipedia
0 Comments