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Environmental Impact Assessment
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Comments: NOAA draft environmental impact...NOAA seeks comment on draft environmental impact statement on Arctic oil and gas exploration NOAA is seeking public comment on a draft environmental impact statement... More »
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Accidental release source terms Last Updated on 2013-12-18 14:53:28 Accidental release source terms are the mathematical equations that quantify the flow rate at which accidental releases of air pollutants into the ambient environment can occur at industrial facilities such as petroleum refineries, natural gas processing plants, petrochemical and chemical plants, oil and gas transportation pipelines, and many other industrial facilities. Accidental releases in such facilities may occur through acts of nature (e.g., floods, hurricanes or earthquakes), operational errors, faulty design or inadequate maintenance. Governmental regulations in a many countries require that the probability of such accidental releases be analyzed and their quantitative impact upon the environment and human health be determined so that mitigating steps can be planned and implemented. There are a number of mathematical calculation methods for determining the flow rate... More » Anthropocene (Environmental Impact Assessment) Last Updated on 2013-09-03 12:23:40 The Anthropocene defines Earth's most recent geologic time period as being human-influenced, or anthropogenic, based on overwhelming global evidence that atmospheric, geologic, hydrologic, biospheric and other earth system processes are now altered by humans. The word combines the root "anthropo", meaning "human" with the root "-cene", the standard suffix for "epoch" in geologic time. The Anthropocene is distinguished as a new period either after or within the Holocene, the current epoch, which began approximately 10,000 years ago (about 8000 BC) with the end of the last glacial period. Anthropocene is a new term, proposed in 2000 by Nobel Prize winning scientist Paul Crutzen. A similar term, Anthrocene, was coined by Andrew Revkin in his 1992 book Global Warming: Understanding the Forecast, but was not adopted by scientists.... More » 
Melanoma in wild marine fish Last Updated on 2012-08-02 00:00:00 Increasingly, the prevalence and occurrence of novel diseases are being observed and reported in a wide spectrum of organisms worldwide. Understanding the origins of these diseases, the host organisms that are affected and the potential causes and consequences are a vital first step in the development of control and management strategies. This research article, written by Michael Sweet, Nigel Kirkham, Mark Bendall, Leanne Currey, John Bythell, and Michelle Heupel*, appeared first in PLOS ONE—an international, peer-reviewed, open-access, online publication. The article is a verbatim version of the original and is not available for edits or additions by Encyclopedia of Earth editors or authors. Companion articles on the same topic that are editable may exist within the Encyclopedia of Earth. Evidence of Melanoma in Wild Marine Fish... More » 
Fracking: Air Emissions for Cleaner Natural Gas Production Last Updated on 2012-07-02 00:00:00 Oil and natural gas production is the United States’ largest industrial source of VOCs, although a smaller source than the nation’s leading overall contributor, gasoline-powered vehicles. This article, written by Bob Weinhold* appeared first in Environmental Health Perspectives—the peer-reviewed, open access journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The article is a verbatim version of the original and is not available for edits or additions by Encyclopedia of Earth editors or authors. Companion articles on the same topic that are editable may exist within the Encyclopedia of Earth. The Future of Fracking: New Rules Target Air Emissions for Cleaner Natural Gas Production Natural gas is lauded as a cleaner-burning fuel than either coal or oil, but getting the fuel out of the ground can be a dirty process, especially given... More » Comments: NOAA draft environmental impact statement on Arctic oil and gas exploration Last Updated on 2011-12-28 00:00:00 NOAA seeks comment on draft environmental impact statement on Arctic oil and gas exploration NOAA is seeking public comment on a draft environmental impact statement describing how offshore oil and gas activities in the U.S. Beaufort and Chukchi seas could affect marine mammals and the Alaska Native communities that depend on them for subsistence. The document also examines measures to lessen potential effects. The draft EIS, released today, looks at measures NOAA could adopt over the next five years as it issues incidental take authorizations under the Marine Mammal Protection Act in the area. The EIS will also contribute to decisions made by the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on issuing permits for seismic surveys. The Marine Mammal Protection Act directs the Secretary of Commerce to allow the incidental and unintentional take of... More » 
