Cumulative Impact Assessment Through the Lens of One-Environment-One-Health
On this page:
Background: Cumulative impacts and cumulative risk assessment approaches are inherent to the One-Environment-One-Health paradigm. Cumulative impacts is the totality of exposures to combinations of chemical and non-chemical stressors and their effects on health, well-being, and quality of life outcomes. Interrelationships among humans, animals, and the environment influence both exposures and outcomes due to these stressors. Our objectives are to 1) show the importance of cumulative impact assessment for understanding community-scale stressor interactions and 2) identify distinctive features of cumulative impact assessment compared to related approaches.
Methods: Understanding the approaches available to address cumulative impacts is important in the context of a One-Environment-One-Health paradigm because the approach dictates the data and methods. To better understand the appropriate use of cumulative impacts, including how it compares with both traditional and cumulative risk assessment approaches, we conducted a literature review to identify methods suitable for evaluating stressor interactions.
Results/Findings: Analysis showed that decision context, scope, and health and well-being outcomes influence the method considered. Risk assessment, as it is currently practiced, is used to inform risk management decisions, is a specific analytical approach, and addresses limited health and well-being outcomes. Cumulative impact assessment, on the other hand, is intended to characterize community conditions, incorporates both quantitative and qualitative data, considers both pathogenic and salutogenic factors, and includes multiple community-scale health and well-being outcomes.
Conclusions/Implications: Determining which approaches to use depends on factors such as statutory requirements, scope, data needs and availability, applicability for the evaluation, and needs of the decision-maker and community. More than one approach may be used in combination. Our analysis shows that cumulative impact assessment is distinctive compared to both traditional and cumulative risk assessment methodologies. The preference for a methodological approach should be informed by thoughtful consideration of the decision context, analytical scope, and health and well-being outcomes of interest.