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Title: A multi-scale metrics approach to forest fragmentation for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment

Abstract

Forests are becoming severely fragmented as a result of land development. South Korea has responded to changing community concerns about environmental issues. The nation has developed and is extending a broad range of tools for use in environmental management. Although legally mandated environmental compliance requirements in South Korea have been implemented to predict and evaluate the impacts of land-development projects, these legal instruments are often insufficient to assess the subsequent impact of development on the surrounding forests. It is especially difficult to examine impacts on multiple (e.g., regional and local) scales in detail. Forest configuration and size, including forest fragmentation by land development, are considered on a regional scale. Moreover, forest structure and composition, including biodiversity, are considered on a local scale in the Environmental Impact Assessment process. Recently, the government amended the Environmental Impact Assessment Act, including the SEA, EIA, and small-scale EIA, to require an integrated approach. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to establish an impact assessment system that minimizes the impacts of land development using an approach that is integrated across multiple scales. This study focused on forest fragmentation due to residential development and road construction sites in selected Congestion Restraint Zones (CRZs) in themore » Greater Seoul Area of South Korea. Based on a review of multiple-scale impacts, this paper integrates models that assess the impacts of land development on forest ecosystems. The applicability of the integrated model for assessing impacts on forest ecosystems through the SEIA process is considered. On a regional scale, it is possible to evaluate the location and size of a land-development project by considering aspects of forest fragmentation, such as the stability of the forest structure and the degree of fragmentation. On a local scale, land-development projects should consider the distances at which impacts occur in the vicinity of the forest ecosystem, and these considerations should include the impacts on forest vegetation and bird species. Impacts can be mitigated by considering the distances at which these influences occur. In particular, this paper presents an integrated environmental impact assessment system to be applied in the SEIA process. The integrated assessment system permits the assessment of the cumulative impacts of land development on multiple scales. -- Highlights: • The model is to assess the impact of forest fragmentation across multiple scales. • The paper suggests the type of forest fragmentation on a regional scale. • The type can be used to evaluate the location and size of a land development. • The paper shows the influence distance of land development on a local scale. • The distance can be used to mitigate the impact at an EIA process.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [2];  [3]
  1. Korea Environment Institute, 215 Jinheungno, Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul 122-706 (Korea, Republic of)
  2. Suwon Research Institute, 145 Gwanggyo-ro, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do 443-270 (Korea, Republic of)
  3. Department of Landscape Architecture and Rural System Engineering, Seoul National University, 599 Gwanakro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151-921 (Korea, Republic of)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22246893
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Environmental Impact Assessment Review
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 42; Other Information: Copyright (c) 2013 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 0195-9255
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; BIRDS; COMPLIANCE; ECOLOGY; ECOSYSTEMS; ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS; FORESTS; FRAGMENTATION; LEGAL ASPECTS; LICENSES; METRICS; REVIEWS; SEAS; SPECIES DIVERSITY

Citation Formats

Kim, Eunyoung, Song, Wonkyong, Lee, Dongkun, and Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-921. A multi-scale metrics approach to forest fragmentation for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment. United States: N. p., 2013. Web. doi:10.1016/J.EIAR.2013.04.001.
Kim, Eunyoung, Song, Wonkyong, Lee, Dongkun, & Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-921. A multi-scale metrics approach to forest fragmentation for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EIAR.2013.04.001
Kim, Eunyoung, Song, Wonkyong, Lee, Dongkun, and Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-921. 2013. "A multi-scale metrics approach to forest fragmentation for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EIAR.2013.04.001.
@article{osti_22246893,
title = {A multi-scale metrics approach to forest fragmentation for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment},
author = {Kim, Eunyoung and Song, Wonkyong and Lee, Dongkun and Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-921},
abstractNote = {Forests are becoming severely fragmented as a result of land development. South Korea has responded to changing community concerns about environmental issues. The nation has developed and is extending a broad range of tools for use in environmental management. Although legally mandated environmental compliance requirements in South Korea have been implemented to predict and evaluate the impacts of land-development projects, these legal instruments are often insufficient to assess the subsequent impact of development on the surrounding forests. It is especially difficult to examine impacts on multiple (e.g., regional and local) scales in detail. Forest configuration and size, including forest fragmentation by land development, are considered on a regional scale. Moreover, forest structure and composition, including biodiversity, are considered on a local scale in the Environmental Impact Assessment process. Recently, the government amended the Environmental Impact Assessment Act, including the SEA, EIA, and small-scale EIA, to require an integrated approach. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to establish an impact assessment system that minimizes the impacts of land development using an approach that is integrated across multiple scales. This study focused on forest fragmentation due to residential development and road construction sites in selected Congestion Restraint Zones (CRZs) in the Greater Seoul Area of South Korea. Based on a review of multiple-scale impacts, this paper integrates models that assess the impacts of land development on forest ecosystems. The applicability of the integrated model for assessing impacts on forest ecosystems through the SEIA process is considered. On a regional scale, it is possible to evaluate the location and size of a land-development project by considering aspects of forest fragmentation, such as the stability of the forest structure and the degree of fragmentation. On a local scale, land-development projects should consider the distances at which impacts occur in the vicinity of the forest ecosystem, and these considerations should include the impacts on forest vegetation and bird species. Impacts can be mitigated by considering the distances at which these influences occur. In particular, this paper presents an integrated environmental impact assessment system to be applied in the SEIA process. The integrated assessment system permits the assessment of the cumulative impacts of land development on multiple scales. -- Highlights: • The model is to assess the impact of forest fragmentation across multiple scales. • The paper suggests the type of forest fragmentation on a regional scale. • The type can be used to evaluate the location and size of a land development. • The paper shows the influence distance of land development on a local scale. • The distance can be used to mitigate the impact at an EIA process.},
doi = {10.1016/J.EIAR.2013.04.001},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22246893}, journal = {Environmental Impact Assessment Review},
issn = {0195-9255},
number = ,
volume = 42,
place = {United States},
year = {Sun Sep 15 00:00:00 EDT 2013},
month = {Sun Sep 15 00:00:00 EDT 2013}
}