ABSTRACT
The workforce involved in the construction and operation of any major project is likely to be drawn partly from within daily commuting distance of the project site and partly from further afield. Major projects may also have other types of population impacts, including on health and on population displacement and resettlement. Socio-economic impacts can be summarised as the "people impacts" of development actions, and socio-economic impact assessments/social impact assessments (SIA) focus on the human dimension of environments. The chapter considers a number of key concepts of particular relevance to social impacts. These include participation and Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), human rights, and environmental justice. The issue of differential power in decision-making links very much into issues surrounding the relationship between major projects, Indigenous peoples, and FPIC. There have been various examples of project developments which have generated severe human rights issues.
