204 Ecology and Applied Environmental Science
The distinction of environmental impacts into reversible or irreversible is
very significant. The first ones correspond to damages that can be restored
by nature or human technology to a satisfactory degree and in a time scale
of a few decades, maximum; the others, however, (e.g. decrease of biodiversity, soil erosion or desertification) constitute irreversible environmental
degradation, which greatly increases their severity.
Objectively examined, environmental problems whose impacts extend to
the whole planet, such as the greenhouse effect or ozone layer depletion,
are more important than regional ones that are manifested in large areas
(e.g. acid rain) or local ones that pertain to specific cities, industrial areas,
marine bays etc. Environmental problems that negatively affect a larger
number of people are also more important.
Dealing with environmental problems requires an appropriate environmental policy that interacts with policies applied in other sectors, like
agriculture, industry, transport, energy, tourism and, in general, all economic activities.
11.3 EnvironMEntal indicES and indicatorS
Assessment of the environmental state and its impacts can be performed on
the basis of data from measurement networks, observations, statistics or
inventories. A modern direct or indirect way of evaluation is, correspondingly, the use of proper indices or indicators that offer useful information
about the state of the environment; thus, time and effort are both saved.
They constitute representative assessments of parameters or values resulting
from parameters, which describe the environmental state and its impacts
on man, ecosystems and materials, or refer to the pressures exerted on the
environment, to the causes that bring them about or to society’s responses
in relation to the negative impacts. They are generated by an information
selection and collection process. They “condense” the information that
comes from various distinct and periodic measurements or assessments
thus forming a representative numerical value or qualitative evaluation.
Indices can be the average or highest values of pollutants’ concentrations
or numerical results of calculations or other kinds of statistical results that
provide direct information about the environmental state. Indicators are
used mainly to carry out indirect assessments, without analysing the complexity of the phenomena; warnings about oncoming dangers are given and
the measures that need to be taken are evaluated. The more and better
indirect information indicators provide, the better they are. Indicators of
atmospheric pollution correspond to air quality problems as well as to acid
rain, toxicity, influence on the ozone layer or the greenhouse effect etc.
The distinction of environmental impacts into reversible or irreversible is
very significant. The first ones correspond to damages that can be restored
by nature or human technology to a satisfactory degree and in a time scale
of a few decades, maximum; the others, however, (e.g. decrease of biodiversity, soil erosion or desertification) constitute irreversible environmental
degradation, which greatly increases their severity.
Objectively examined, environmental problems whose impacts extend to
the whole planet, such as the greenhouse effect or ozone layer depletion,
are more important than regional ones that are manifested in large areas
(e.g. acid rain) or local ones that pertain to specific cities, industrial areas,
marine bays etc. Environmental problems that negatively affect a larger
number of people are also more important.
Dealing with environmental problems requires an appropriate environmental policy that interacts with policies applied in other sectors, like
agriculture, industry, transport, energy, tourism and, in general, all economic activities.
11.3 EnvironMEntal indicES and indicatorS
Assessment of the environmental state and its impacts can be performed on
the basis of data from measurement networks, observations, statistics or
inventories. A modern direct or indirect way of evaluation is, correspondingly, the use of proper indices or indicators that offer useful information
about the state of the environment; thus, time and effort are both saved.
They constitute representative assessments of parameters or values resulting
from parameters, which describe the environmental state and its impacts
on man, ecosystems and materials, or refer to the pressures exerted on the
environment, to the causes that bring them about or to society’s responses
in relation to the negative impacts. They are generated by an information
selection and collection process. They “condense” the information that
comes from various distinct and periodic measurements or assessments
thus forming a representative numerical value or qualitative evaluation.
Indices can be the average or highest values of pollutants’ concentrations
or numerical results of calculations or other kinds of statistical results that
provide direct information about the environmental state. Indicators are
used mainly to carry out indirect assessments, without analysing the complexity of the phenomena; warnings about oncoming dangers are given and
the measures that need to be taken are evaluated. The more and better
indirect information indicators provide, the better they are. Indicators of
atmospheric pollution correspond to air quality problems as well as to acid
rain, toxicity, influence on the ozone layer or the greenhouse effect etc.