The emergence and evolution of environmental risks increases the need of government organisations to prioritise their resources for efficient risk management in a manner that is transparent and auditable. Many different data sources (including expert opinion and published data) can be used to inform assessments. This work evaluates and compares the use of two different data sources for environmental strategic risk assessment (SRA). Here, a developed SRA framework (Prpich et al., 2012) was applied to 12 environmental risks within the UK to characterise the environmental, economic and social impacts of a risk on semi-qualitative scales and provide a descriptive narrative. A structured literature search of peer-reviewed and grey literature was assessed for relevance and quality and impact values were determined giving equal weighting to evidence. It was not possible to identify likelihood data from the literature evidence, therefore the expert assessment was used for all risks. Individual assessments for the different risks were compared to expert elicitation data (n ≥ 3) where it was found that they provided similar risk assessments and referred to similar evidence. Where the assessments differed, differences in evidence were noted possibly due to publication delays or method rigidity. Knowledge gaps were noted in the assessment of ‘economic services’ and ‘social cohesion’ sub-attributes for both data sources. These results suggest that the expert elicitation validated the use of literature evidence for SRAs impact assessment, but in order to provide a robust SRA, future assessments could combine both evidence sources.

This thesis investigates the mobilization of sustainability discourses in environmental impact assessment (EIA) by looking at two cases, in the United Kingdom (UK) and the Netherlands. EIA is a procedure used for predicting the sustainability impacts associated with project development. It is reasoned that, where adverse sustainability impacts are likely to occur, situated civil society stakeholders involved in deliberating these impacts will mobilize discourses on how the proposed development relates to achieving sustainability objectives. Yet a pertinent question is whether EIA accommodates sustainability discourse mobilization, not least when the mode of public engagement is taken into account. Premised on the differences in institutional design and political culture between the UK and the Netherlands, the thesis aims to investigate whether and how the external influence exerted by institutions and political culture on public engagement is manifested in the mobilization of sustainability discourses in EIA. By focusing on the largescale infrastructure development projects of High-Speed rail 2 (HS2) in the UK and the A4 motorway connection between Delft and Schiedam (A4DS) in the Netherlands, it is found that institutional design and political culture have influenced sustainability discourse mobilization only to a very limited extent. This finding has been consistent across the two cases, despite institutional and cultural variance. Furthermore, it is found that EIA did not accommodate the mobilization of sustainability discourses, reflecting the absence of meaningful spaces for civil society engagement particularly with the scientific justification of why the projects are necessary. The thesis concludes that institutional design and political culture do not significantly influence sustainability discourse mobilization in cases where the use of science and expertise mediates public engagement, further compounded by the strict procedural aspects of EIA. It recommends that further research on sustainability discourses in infrastructure development focuses on the complex relationship between EIA and project justification.

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Uncertainties can manifest within the different aspects of environmental risk assessments, affecting the validity of the risk estimate and, in turn, weakening the basis for risk management actions. This research investigated the issues associated with uncertainty characterisation and identification in environmental risk assessments. This led to the creation of a defensible typology of uncertainties, and the creation and validation of a novel uncertainty identification system (UnISERA), based on the elicited views of experts regarding the levels (i.e. magnitudes), natures (i.e. reason for existence) and locations (i.e. where manifest) of uncertainties present within different risk domains. The developed typology, drawn from an analysis of existing assessments, contained seven locations of uncertainty (data, language, system, extrapolation, variability, model and decision), with 20 related sub-types. The output from UnISERA, based on 19 aggregated elicitations across three risk domains (genetically modified higher plants, particulate matter and pesticides), showed that: the risk characterisation phase of assessments contained the highest magnitudes of uncertainty (the level dimension); uncertainties across all four phases of assessments existed primarily through a combination of lack of knowledge and randomness (the nature dimension); and data uncertainty was dominant in the first three phases, and extrapolation uncertainty in the final phase (the location dimension). In comparing the output from UnISERA to similarly produced results in the risk domain of engineered nanomaterials, the nature of uncertainty showed the highest degree of validation (90%), followed by the location (80%) and level (55%) dimensions. The novel approach to uncertainty characterisation and identification presented here will be of use during environmental risk assessments and uncertainty analyses, promoting an understanding of potential uncertainties, and allowing risk analysts to perform assessments with prioritised uncertainties in mind.

To balance the economic development with environmental safety and human health, China has released chemicals management legislation for which chemical prioritization and risk assessment are key issues. To support these ambitions two versions of an environmental fate and behaviour model SESAMe (Sino Evaluative Simplebox-MAMI models), have been developed with different resolutions and structures in this thesis. SESAMe is applied to hypothetical chemicals to investigate the influence of environmental parameters on chemical persistence and long-range transport potential. The environmental distribution of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) in the base year of 2007 and future scenario in 2030 in China has been predicted using SESAMe v3.0. The efficiency of different technical improvements on reducing emissions and environmental concentrations is discussed using the future scenario. Six organic chemicals, triclosan (TCS), triclocarban (TCC), climbazole, benzophenone-3(BP-3), octocrylene (OC) and octyl methoxycinnamate (OMC), have also been modelled by SESAMe v3.3 to account for the chemical ionisation and the effect of environmental pH to chemical partitioning. The emission inventories of the six chemicals were estimated for 2012. TCS is used as an example chemical to explore the pH dependent environmental risk assessment for ionisable chemicals. Only limited freshwater areas in China were found to be in exceedance of TCS threshold levels. The influence of projected population, infrastructure,and environmental conditions on the use, emission and environmental distribution of the same six chemicals in 2030 was investigated. Infrastructure development, such as wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) was shown to be the most important factor that will reduce the chemical emission and environmental concentrations into the future. SESAMe models have been successfully applied to a chemical released to air and other types of chemicals released to water that are subject to potential ionisation. Model estimation is demonstrated to be good by comparison with the monitoring data collected from the literature. The application of current and future scenarios demonstrates SESAMe models are potentially useful to support chemical management in China and to identify key gaps for chemical screening and risk assessment.

Global Environmental Assessments (GEAs) have become influential processes in environmental governance, with the objective to gather policy-relevant knowledge on environmental issues for decision-makers. This thesis offers the first ethnographic account of the nascent Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) which, in contrast to earlier GEAs, aims to implement an inclusive model of expertise. Underlying this move are concerns regarding both the effectiveness of GEAs and their democratization. GEAs have also faced numerous criticisms for being dominated by the global North and for failing to consider the diversity of ways of making sense of global environmental change. Drawing on Science and Technology Studies and on the emerging literature on geographies of science, I view science and policy as being mutually entangled, rather than as two separate domains, and conceptualise GEAs as sites of co-production. It is important therefore to study how categories such as ‘science’, ‘policy’, ‘local’ and ‘global’ are produced and to investigate the practices and places through which knowledge is constructed as policy-relevant. I argue that, despite the aspiration to be global institutions that transcend specific national and cultural contexts and interests, GEAs themselves are situated initiatives which produce a ‘view from somewhere’. Using qualitative methods, I examine three processes within IPBES: (1) the choice of location for its Secretariat; (2) the development of its conceptual framework; and (3) the constitution of the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel. Results confirm that IPBES presents a number of innovative features but also reveal significant ambiguities as to whether IPBES is actually ‘opening-up’ its frame of reference and embracing multiple forms of knowledges and expertise. While IPBES aspires to provide the inclusive ‘view from everywhere’, the narrative of science as providing the disinterested ‘view from nowhere’ and the interest-riven context in which it operates undermines its ambitions.

Ecological impact assessment (EcIA) has historically been poorly performed, resulting in poor quality EcIA chapters. No research has been conducted to identify whether poor quality EcIA chapters result in poor quality mitigation and therefore potential net loss of biodiversity. A review of 112 EcIA chapters was conducted to determine whether there have been improvements since the last review in 2000 and which factors are linked with EcIA chapter quality, such as the introduction of professional guidance in 2006. The link between EcIA chapter quality and mitigation on completed development sites was also examined. Both mitigation implementation (whether the mitigation was put in place) and implementation effectiveness (how well mitigation was implemented) were investigated on seven case study sites. Implementation effectiveness was limited to a subset of habitat mitigation measures; grassland and marginal habitat creation and management. The EcIA chapter review identified significant improvements since the last review. However, considerable scope for improvement remains due to the low baseline established by the earlier reviews. The introduction of professional guidance has significantly improved EcIA chapter quality. Calculation of an EcIA chapter quality index identified that, on average, EcIA chapters only include half of the EIA legislation’s information requirements. Investigation of the case study sites identified high rates of mitigation implementation (84.1% of auditable measures were at least partially implemented). However, implementation effectiveness was found to be poor (only three out of ten measures achieved the goals stated in their EcIA chapters or Ecological Management Plans). EcIA chapter quality was found to be significantly linked to mitigation implementation but not to implementation effectiveness. This investigation has identified aspects of the professional guidance that require amendment to help improve EcIA chapter content. Recommendations have also been made for practitioners when recommending ecological mitigation measures. In addition, the requirement for further research into mitigation success has been highlighted.

Impact assessment (IA) has attracted considerable attention in the worlds of research and practice. IA is discussed extensively and promoted widely as a means to enhance the rationalisation, control and coordination of policy-making. However, at the same time, there has also been disagreement based on whether IL is seen to reflect one single, or multiple rationales. This has, in turn, led to debates about whether particular IA experiences reflect one or a mixture of motives. This thesis therefore explores whether the different ambitions or logics that IA intends to promote can be seen as complementary, whether one dominates, or whether they are contradictory. By looking at the European Union’s IA system — through an in-depth study of five IAS — this thesis finds that while the logic of enhanced control plays a dominant role throughout the policy-making process — particularly during the later policy-making stages — the ambitions or logics of enhanced rationalisation and coordination also play distinct roles. This thesis thereby contributes to the debates about the use of 'meta-instruments' to address the three policy challenges of how to choose the 'best' policy option; how to steer public administrations; and how to coordinate policies across institutional sub-units. In doing so, the thesis departs from earlier studies on IA two significant ways. First, it examines IA as a set of procedural rules, therefore moving away from a focus on the role of the IA report in advancing (or failing to advance) the ambitions of enhanced control, rationalisation or coordination. Second, instead of examining each IA ambition or logic in isolation, this thesis acknowledges a multiplicity of ambitions. This multiplicity is not an aspect of diffusion across jurisdictions or because of policy 'context'; rather, it is a feature of the motives and ambitions of actors interacting and changing at different stages in the policy-making process.

This dissertation presents a new approach to addressing environmental degradation based on transdisciplinary ecological art. Transdisciplinarity is defined here as merging art and science to discover new insights. Ecological art is defined as an aesthetic practice that promotes environmental resilience. This writing will describe why those approaches are essential to restoring resilient bioregionalism. It introduces the author’s own heuristic perspectives and methodologies and demonstrates how they may be integrated with technology and science. The problems of accelerated loss of coastal (littoral) zone biodiversity, degraded water quality, and habitat fragmentation need critical attention. The author’s research goal was to present a replicable set of guidelines for identifying small points of restoration for wetland littoral zones (the coastal region between terrestrial and marine life) based on a case study called Ghost Nets, scaled to a second case study, Fish Story. Her novel approach included establishing relevant parallels from quantum physics and acupuncture to energetic systems. Additional specific analogies were explored from visual arts, theatre, music, dance, and performance art, to discover a holistic and integrated point of view. Parallels and analogies were drawn by interrogating the two case studies. An important aim of the study was to examine how certain restoration practices could be scaled up to the bioregional level and integrated with a special theory, Trigger Point Theory, to reinforce healthy ecosystems. This included an analysis of how restored upland ecotones and a different relationship to other species could contribute to restoration in the littoral zone. The analysis critiqued how anthropocentric considerations often fail to protect vulnerable water systems. The role of environmental justice for vulnerable human populations and ethical concerns for other animal species was included in that analysis. The author also claims that when artists work with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping, that may propel a new transdiscourse and eventually make heuristic information scientifically useful. Insight from the Ghost Nets case study informed data collections and GIS mapping for the Southern Gulf of Maine. Those insights and the mapping were used to analyze relationships between finfish abundance, eelgrass, and invasive, predatory green crabs. Conclusions were drawn that are relevant to coastal and fisheries management practices. The author used performative approaches to contribute expert witnessing to her conclusions. Questionnaires were used to determine how much community awareness was accomplished with the case studies, and assess effects on future behavior. By combining art and science methodologies, the author revealed insights that could help small restored sites act as trigger points towards restoration of healthy bioregional systems more efficiently than would be possible through restoration science alone. In scaling up (applying small models to larger systems) and applying these practices for landscape ecology, the author assembled a set of recommendations for other researchers to implement these ideas in the future. Those recommendations included the formal engagement of ecological artists as equal partners on environmental restoration teams.

This research addresses the dual challenge faced by Burkina Faso engineers to design sustainable low-energy cost public buildings and domestic dwellings while still providing the required thermal comfort under warmer temperature conditions caused by climate change. Past and potential climate induced future energy demand for air conditioning has been investigated. It was found based on climate change SRES scenario A2 that predicted mean temperature in Burkina Faso will increase by 2°C between 2010 and 2050. Therefore, in order to maintain a thermally comfortable 25°C inside public buildings, the projected annual energy consumption for cooling load will increase by 15%, 36% and 100% respectively for the period between 2020 to 2039, 2040 to 2059 and 2070 to 2089 when compared to the control case. It has also been found that a 1% increase in population growth will result in a 1.38% and 2.03% increase in carbon emission from primary energy consumption and future electricity consumption respectively. Furthermore, this research has investigated possible solutions for adaptation to the severe climate change and population growth impact on energy demand in Burkina Faso. It has been found that shading devices could potentially reduce the cooling load by up to 40%. Computer simulation programming of building energy consumption and a field study has shown that adobe houses have the potential of significantly reducing energy demand for cooling and offer a formidable method for climate change adaptation. Finally this research has shown, based on the Net Present Cost that hybrid photovoltaic (PV) and Diesel generator energy production configuration is the most cost effective local electricity supply system, for areas without electricity at present, with a payback time of 8 years when compared to the business as usual diesel generator stand-alone configuration. It is therefore a viable solution to increase electricity access to the majority of the population.