ABSTRACT
This introduction provides an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book aims to improve the practice of Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) by providing information about how ESIAs are, and should be, carried out. It discusses the process and current status of ESIA, and considers some trends in ESIA methods. The book also focuses on practical assessment methods and techniques used in the part of the ESIA process concerned with analysing a development's impacts on these environmental and social components. It deals with the basic environmental components: water, soil, air and the climate. It covers different dimensions of biodiversity, flora and fauna: terrestrial ecology, coastal ecology and geomorphology, and ecosystem services. The book further deals with noise and transport, and considers landscape and visual impacts. It covers different human-related impacts: cultural heritage, economic and social impacts, land acquisition and involuntary resettlement, and health.
