Everything we do has an impact on the environment = whether land, air or water - and ourselves. Whether we click, clip, cut collect or converge, we have an effect - or impact on the environment. This impact may be positive - eg growing tea plants in Sri Lanka not only produces tea, it helps hold the hills safe from erosion.

AND COLLECTIVELY

We all have impacts on the world in how we work and live. Our society likes to produce "goods". By the very name, we believe these are good for us - televisions, mobiles, cars, computers all have impacts on the environment which can sometimes be bad. We have to work out the significance of these bads in order to make priorities for action (later). (Env Man Systems help determine significnt impacts)

The significance of environmental impacts may change over time. 20 years ago the main concernes were for toxic substances (eg pesticides, dioxins and PCBs). Now the main concern is carbon dioxide emissions, which 20 years ago would have been considered benign.