Environmental Impact Statements

The tool which is commonly used to evaluate the environmental impact of a proposed action and its alternatives is an Environmental Impact Statement. 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

An EIS considers the relative values of relevant variables as well as the degree to which they might be affected.

Practice Example :  Selecting a new car.

• In your teams (of two) decide on a relative importance of each variable, such that the sum of all of the variables is 100. 
• Then, assign a value (out of your possible variable maximum) as to how each of the alternatives performs on each variable.

• What did you select? 

• Did you all apply similar relative weights to each of the variables? 

• How about to each of the alternatives? 

• Which was harder - deciding on the weighting scale or assigning weights to alternatives?  

• Are all of the variables which are important to you listed? 

• Are all of your possible alternatives listed?

Discuss the process and results as a class.

Assignment:

Consider the ongoing debate regarding oil exploration and development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In your groups of ~4, perform a rapid EIS, using the procedure practiced above.  You will need to search the Web for information and comments about the issues and alternatives suggested for this proposal.  Although a full EIS has not (to my knowledge) been compiled, they have been compiled for related development areas, e.g. the Northeast National Petroleum Reserve .  See also Alaska Audubon Society's response to that EIS .  For a regional overview with useful maps, see Inforain's site - especially the summary of Prudhoe Bay development!

• First, as a class , define the half-dozen most important variables. 
• Then, again as a class , define from three to five possible alternatives.
• Next, in your groups , define the appropriate relative weights for each of the variables. (Total = 100)
• Then, again in your groups , assess the approximate performance of each alternative relative to your possible maximum.
• Finally, total your group's results.
• Discuss your various outcomes as a class .