MODULE 3:
Frameworks for Environmental
Assessment and Reporting
The DPSIR Framework
The UNEP Human-Environment
Interaction analytical approach is built
on:
the
Driving Forces-Pressure-State-ImpactResponse (DPSIR) framework,
the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA)
Conceptual Framework, and
vulnerability considerations.
It is multi-scalable and indicates
generic cause-and-effect relations.
Components of the GEO-4 Analytical
Framework
DRIVERS:
Sometimes referred to as indirect or
underlying drivers or driving forces and refer
to fundamental processes in society, which
drive activities having a direct impact on the
environment.
PRESSURES:
Sometimes referred to as direct drivers, as in
the MA framework. They include, in this case,
the social and economic sectors of society
(also sometimes considered as Drivers).
Human interventions may be directed towards
causing a desired environmental change and
may be subject to feedbacks in terms of
environmental change, or could be intentional
or unintentional by-products of other human
activities (i.e. pollution).
PRESSURES (cont’d):
increase stress on the environment, e.g.
rapidly increasing population, high per
capita consumption of resources, overuse of
forest resources, (negative) imbalance of
trade, overgrazing.
Are considered:
 from
a policy perspective as the starting
point for tackling environmental issues, and
 from an indicator viewpoint, where they are
the most readily available, since they are
derived from socioeconomic databases.
STATE:
the condition of the environment resulting
from the pressures outlined above, e.g.
polluted water resources, degraded land,
deforested areas.
Is important in affecting human health and
well-being, and socioeconomic activities
either directly or indirectly, e.g. degraded
land  reduced food production
increased food insecurity malnutrition
Knowledge about the “state” and
“pressures” is the staring point for planning
how the environment can be influenced to
improve human well-being.
STATE (cont’d):
Also includes trends, that may reveal
environmental change, which could be both
natural and human induced. One form of
change, such as climate change (referred to
as a direct driver in the MA framework), may
lead to other forms of change, such as
biodiversity loss (a secondary effect of
climate gas emissions).
IMPACTS:
These are functional changes resulting from
changes in the characteristics of the
environment.
 E.g. in deforestation: the “State” of the
forest may change to a forest with
reduced canopy cover. A rise in the price
of fuelwood resulting from this change
would be an “impact”.
IMPACTS (cont’d):
May be environmental, social or
economic, contributing to the
vulnerability of both people and the
environment.
 For people, the magnitude of impact
may depend on a society’s vulnerability.
Vulnerability to change varies among social
groups depending on their geographic,
economic and social location, exposure to
change and capacity to mitigate or adapt to
change.
RESPONSES:
Societal or individual actions taken to
overcome, reduce, correct or prevent
negative environmental impacts; correct
environmental damage; or conserve
natural resources.
May include regulatory action,
environmental or research expenditures,
public opinion and consumer preferences,
changes in management strategies, and
the provision of environmental information.
Satisfactory indicators of societal response
tend to be the most difficult to develop and
interpret.
RESPONSES (cont’d):
May be made as elements among the
drivers, pressures, or impacts which may be
used for managing society in order to alter the
human-environment interactions.
 May be made at different levels, for
example, environmental laws and institutions
at national level, and MEAs and institutions at
the regional and international levels
Local IEAR
Alemaya lakes in the Ethiopian Highlands
The Alemaya lakes in
the Ethiopian
Highlands originally
covered more than
175.14 ha but had
shrunk to 87.91 ha in
1985 and to a mere
58.60 in 2002. It is now
believed that the lakes
have all but completely
dried up.
Local IEAR
Alemaya lakes in the Ethiopian Highlands (cont’d)
The loss of the lakes,
which were a source
of drinking water and
were used for
irrigation and fisheries,
has affected the
livelihoods and wellbeing of more than
550 000 people in the
Ethiopian towns of
Alemaya and Harar.
Local IEAR
Alemaya lakes in the Ethiopian Highlands (cont’d)
Some pressures and impacts responsible
for the reduction of Alemaya Lakes:
A dramatic increase in both urban and rural
settlements has put tremendous pressure on
natural resources in the area, including water
resources
Engineering works, including the construction of
roads and other infrastructure, loosened topsoil,
leading to soil erosion and siltation of the lakes
DPSIR Model
Global
Regional
Local
HUMAN SOCIETY
D – DRIVERS:
I – IMPACTS
Material, Human and Social Capitals
Change in human well-being
broadly defined as human
freedoms of choice and actions, to
achieve, inter alia:
- security
- basic material needs
- good health
- good social relations
which may result in human
development or poverty, inequity
and human vulnerability.
Human development:
- Population demographics
- Economic processes (consumption,
production, markets and trade)
- Scientific and technological innovation
- Distribution pattern processes (inter- and
intra- generational)
- Cultural, social, political and institutional
(including production and service sectors)
processes
ENVIRONMENT
P – PRESSURES:
Human interventions in the
environment:
- Land-use
- Resource extraction
- External inputs (fertilizers,
chemicals, irrigation)
- Emissions (pollutants and
waste)
- Modification and movement
of organisms
R – RESPONSES
to environmental challenges:
formal and informal adaptation to,
and mitigation of, environmental
change (including restoration) by
altering human activity and
development patterns within and
between the D, P and I boxes
through inter alia: science and
technology, policy, law and
institutions.
S – STATE and trends:
Natural capital: atmosphere, land, water and biodiversity
Natural processes:
- Solar radiation
- Volcanoes
- Earthquakes
TIME:
Environmental impacts and change:
- Climate Change and Depletion of the Stratospheric Ozone Layer
- Biodiversity change
- Pollution, degradation and/or depletion of air, water, minerals and
land (including desertification)
1987
2007 - 2015(short term)
Demographic, social
(institutional) and material
factors determining human
well-being
Environmental factors
determining human well-being
- Ecological services such as
Provisioning services
(consumptive use), Cultural
services (non-consumptive use),
Regulating services and
Supporting services (indirect use)
- Non-ecosystem natural
resources i.e. hydrocarbons,
minerals and renewable energy
- Stress inter alia diseases, pests,
radiation and hazards
2050 (medium term)
(long term)
The Opportunities Framework
AEO-2 used an analytical model referred to
as the Opportunities Framework. It:
Starts by developing an inventory of existing
resources
Looks at these as offering opportunities for
developing policies and strategies for
sustainable development
Evaluates the effort required to improve
existing opportunities to reach sustainable
development
The Opportunities Framework (cont’d)
The opportunities framework methodology tries to
address the following questions:
 What resources are available at the regional and
sub-regional levels (resource state-and-trends)?
 What opportunities exist for using the resources to
promote poverty reduction and sustainable
development (value/opportunities and potential)?
 What are the main challenges that face Africa in
capitalizing on the opportunities to utilize the
resources (demands/pressures)?
The Opportunities Framework (cont’d)
 What policy and institutional actions should be
taken in order to capitalize on the opportunities?
What is the impact (including potential) of each
policy on the assets and the environment? (policy
actions)?
 What would be the consequences of Africa’s
success/failure to seize the opportunities? What
would be the consequences of Africa’s seizing the
opportunities (outlook)?
AEO-2 Opportunities Framework Model
GLOBAL
REGIONAL
SUB-REGIONAL
NATIONAL
Global
conditions
POLICY
ACTIONS
STATE
Demands
and
Pressures
OPPORTUNITIES
DE
GR
AD
ED
Option
s
CURRENT
TRENDS
IMPACTS/NEW
STATE:
Ecosystems,
human and
economic
vulnerability
Other analytical frameworks
The Issues Framework
Highlights priority issues such as land
degradation, loss of biodiversity, etc., in
its assessment
Lacks a systematic and comprehensive
basis for analysis
However, focus on priority issues may
easily increase public awareness and
receive political support for emerging
issues
Other analytical frameworks (cont’d)
The Resource Sector framework
 Uses a human activity classification (e.g.
agriculture, tourism, forestry) as a basis for
organizing environmental assessment.
 Takes advantage of the way national governments
and statistical systems are organized.
 Provides information on benefits and products
derived from the environment and the economic
consequences of environmental trends.
 However, it is narrow in focus and may neglect
broader ecosystems linkages and implications.
Other analytical frameworks (cont’d)
Environmental Media Framework
 Represents the traditional way of reporting on the
state of the environment.
 Reflects the way we commonly divide the environment
into components and the way environmental
monitoring is undertaken.
 Reflects legislative mandates and national goals.
 Facilitates comprehensive analysis within each
environmental component.
 However, it is weak at accommodating ecological
processes or problems affecting more than one
environmental medium.