%0 Journal Article %A Weichun MA %A Haijun ZHAO %A Li LI %A Yude ZHOU %A Hui PAN %A Cunkuan BAO %T Spatial scale of regional plan environmental impact assessment: the Gaoqiao Town and Pudong New District cases in Shanghai, China %D 2015 %R 10.18306/dlkxjz.2015.06.009 %J PROGRESS IN GEOGRAPHY %P 739-748 %V 34 %N 6 %X

The spatial characteristics of Regional Plan Environmental Impact Assessment (RPEIA) determine its sensitivity to spatial scale. Spatial scale of RPEIA is not only a technical issue, but also related to the important questions that RPEIA needs to answer and elaborate. This article discusses the relationship between spatial scale and basic data, the screening of significant environmental factors, and evaluation indicators, as well as the relationship between spatial scale and prediction of atmospheric environmental impact. It then examines two cases: the RPEIA of Gaoqiao Town (2005) and the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment of the economic and social development plan of Pudong New District, Shanghai (2010) for further elaboration. This article concludes that data collection and integration is a very important step in RPEIA. Different types of basic data posses different spatial characteristics, their spatial scope and resolution should be determined according to the requirements of the RPEIA and regional conditions. The main environmental concerns vary considerably at different spatial scales and they affect the selection of significant environmental factors directly, which in turn affects the corresponding evaluation indicator system. This article also indicates that atmospheric environmental impact prediction and evaluation at large spatial scale focus on the macroscopic description, revealing the general spatial patterns and trends of the spread of air pollutants, while at the local scale is more conducive to explain localized pollution patterns. Emission inventory also emphasizes different spatial characteristics for prediction and evaluation at different scales.

%U https://www.progressingeography.com/EN/10.18306/dlkxjz.2015.06.009