Ecosystem health: ecological sustainability target of strategic environment assessment

Abstract

Strategic environment assessment (SEA) and ecosystem health are two new ideas on environmental management. On the basis of reviewing some relevant literature, this paper made discussions on the ecological sustainability target of SEA, the content of ecosystem health as well as the interrelations between SEA and ecosystem health. For a good SEA, its ecological sustainability principles should be provided with distinct content and a general assessment system. A framework for ecosystem health assessment was established according to the content of ecosystem health, and combined into SEA as SEA’s ecological sustainability target, we can effectively guide decision-makers to make suitable indigenous means and local solutions. The basic principles and procedure of SEA for ecosystem health are also discussed in the paper.

Keywords

Environment impact assessment / Strategic environmental assessment / Ecosystem health / S718.55 / A