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Nurses have an established and expanding role in health promotion in support of public health strategies to reduce health inequalities, refocus health care on prevention, and rebalance responsibility for health toward individuals. However, evidence suggests that nurses may be unclear about the content and lack the skills to conduct health promotion. Education has been identified as an important vehicle to increase nurses' competence and confidence in health promotion, and health promotion is a required component of undergraduate nurse education in the United Kingdom. This article presents a pedagogical innovation that enabled undergraduate student nurses in Scotland to research and rehearse health promotion to raise adolescents' awareness of risk-taking behaviors. Student nurses completed a 2-week group-work project to develop a resource (e.g., mobile app, poster, lesson plan) targeted toward an adolescent risk behavior (e.g., self-harm, unsafe sex, alcohol misuse). The project culminated with a public "marketplace" event where students showcased their resource and obtained professional, peer, and public feedback. Opportunities afforded by the national curriculum for high school pupils enabled partnerships in adolescent health promotion to be established through involvement of pupils from a local secondary school with an interest in health care careers. School pupils participated in focus groups where students "pitched" their resource and appraised students' work at the marketplace. This article shares the design and delivery of this project to enable replication or adaptation by health educators elsewhere and offers reflections on perceived project outcomes from the perspective of student nurses, school pupils, and nursing faculty.

Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) has been shown to improve health behaviours and risk factors and the evidence suggests that home CR is as effective as hospital-based CR. Telemedicine offers the potential for more patients to engage in CR. We reviewed the evidence for patient focused Internet-based approaches to cardiovascular rehabilitation. Searches were performed in PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register (CCTR). In total, 9 studies involving 830patients with heart disease that compared Internet-based cardiac rehabilitation to usual care were identified. The quality of trials was assessed using the Jadad scale. Outcome data were pooled under four subheadings: compliance; physical activity outcomes; clinical outcomes; psychosocial outcomes. Compliance rates were high but dropped over time in all studies. Physical activity measures were generally improved, as were clinical outcomes. Changes in psychosocial measures were positive, with two studies noting no change. No interventions noted a negative effect on outcomes. Despite the relatively small number of trials and the limited outcome measures, the results appeared to be positive with regard to patient outcomes and patient feedback. However, none had progressed to a clinical service.

Cardiac rehabilitation has positive effects on mortality, morbidity, quality of life and many cardiac risk factors. Cardiac rehabilitation is usually delivered within a hospital or 'centre' setting, however, home-based programmes may offer greater accessibility and choice to patients. While there have been fewer studies of home-based cardiac rehabilitation, the available data suggest that it is acceptable, safe and effective and has comparable results to hospital-based programmes. Furthermore, home-based cardiac rehabilitation results in longer-lasting maintenance of physical activity levels in patients compared with hospital programmes. It has the potential to be more cost-effective for patients who cannot easily access their local hospital or centre. Home-based cardiac rehabilitation may be particularly useful in patients in a remote or rural setting. Despite the options available and the evidence based benefits, the uptake of cardiac rehabilitation remains low. It is the responsibility of all cardiac health-care workers to ensure that the uptake of cardiac rehabilitation improves.

One challenge for nurse educators is how best to enhance the integration of theory and practice elements in relation to critical care nursing. Practice should be evidence-based, i.e. the best available empirical evidence, including recent research findings, should be applied in practice in order to aid clinical decision-making. Barriers to the implementation of research exist at many levels including the individual practitioner, the clinical team, the practice setting and wider organizational factors. The authors propose that clinical guidelines can provide a vital link between theory and practice. At varying levels the use of care protocols, clinical pathways and algorithmic guidelines (provided they are rigorously reviewed and evidence-based) can help infuse research into practice, thereby promoting quality and standardization of care. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the value and use of these frameworks in promoting and raising awareness of the need for and use of evidence-based approaches to critical care education and practice. In this paper, we present outline information relating to an assessment method, adopted for continuing education courses in critical care within our department. This approach is designed to combine the best available evidence with reflective practice through the assessment process.

Master of Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus The quality of Environmental Impact Assessment Reports (EIARs) plays a critical role in a well-functioning Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) system as EIARs are the key tool used by decision makers. Several studies have been conducted locally and abroad regarding the quality of EIARs across various sectors. This research presents the results of a comparative analysis of the report quality of EIARs between 2011 and 2017, compiled for Solar PV projects in South Africa. The aim of the study was to determine whether report quality for such projects improved over the stipulated timeframe. In order to do so, the Lee & Colley review package was adapted to the South African context and used to evaluate seven EIARs. The outcome of the study suggests minor improvements in EIAR quality for Solar PV projects over time. In particular, it was found that the methodology used and quantification of information (magnitude/significance) improved over the years. The two main contributing factors identified were the experience of environmental assessment practitioners (EAPs) that conducted the studies, and the introduction of environmental legislation, such as Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) regulations and/or sectoral guidelines. Masters

This article reflects on the potential for impact assessment (IA) to be a major vehicle for implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While it is acknowledged that the SDGs are intended to deliver broader outcomes than IA currently does, we nevertheless argue there is significant convergence between IA and the SDGs, which we explore utilising the key dimensions of sustainability assessment: comprehensiveness, strategicness and integratedness. We conclude that ‘geared up’ IA might be used as a major vehicle to facilitate achievement of the SDGs. However, IA must become more comprehensive and integrated, such that the full suite of SDGs and their relationships, including trade-offs, can be dealt with in a transparent and inclusive way

M (Environmental Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus Sustainable development is defined as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" (Brundtland, 1987). In 2015 a suite of seventeen international Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were developed and agreed upon by 193 countries to form The Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development (Pedersen, 2018) and included 169 implementation targets and 231 indicators. The SDGs were born on the back of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which spanned a period of fifteen years from 2000 until 2015 in which global leaders came together to shape a broad vision of fighting poverty in its many dimensions (United Nations, 2015). The aim of this research was based on the perceived problem facing the successful adoption of the SDGs (in particular the implementation targets) by South African companies which lay in the strategic integration, alignment and effective reporting (PwC, 2019). Private sector companies are increasingly becoming a key player in the global achievement of the SDGs (Pedersen, 2018) and whom could capitalise on an estimated $12 trillion per annum market that is linked to the SDGs (Scott & McGill, 2018). Therefore, this dissertation set out to answer the following research question: “To what degree are South African companies adopting the SDG implementation targets, and what are some of the drivers and/or barriers they face?” To answer this research question, an in-depth literature review was conducted on the SDG implementation targets, their varying degrees of adoption and the role they play in achieving the SDGs within the private sector. This was followed by identifying and outlining the research methodology which considered, by way of documents analysis, the degree to which South Africa’s Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) Top 40 listed companies are reporting their adoption of the SDG implementation targets; and to understand through a qualitative survey, the drivers and/or barriers that these organizations face with regards to adopting and reporting on the SDG implementation targets. The results revealed a similar trend of adoption outcomes to that of PwC (2019) in that an impressive 80% of the JSE Top 40 companies mentioned the SDG goals in their Annual Reports; however a dramatic decline in the degree of SDG adoption was discovered thereafter with only 10% of the companies mentioning the SDG implementation targets; and a further 2.5% mentioning the SDG indicators in their annual reporting. Furthermore, the quality of the SDG implementation target adoption was evaluated with 7.5% of the companies mentioning the implementation targets with no ambition, and the remaining 2.5% with quantitative reporting against ambitions. The top three drivers (opportunities) facing these companies with regards to SDG adoption were meeting investor and/or stakeholder expectations (50%), environmental and social risk mitigation (40%), and achieving resilience and long-term success (40%); whilst the top three barriers (challenges) were that the companies were financially focused, in other words the cost of investing in environmental and social sustainability (such as the SDGs) was a key barrier (60%), lack of leadership understanding of the SDGs (40%), and a mis-aligned of the company’s corporate strategy with regards to the SDGs (30%). In light of the above, it can be concluded that the degree (and quality) of SDG implementation target adoption, by South African companies, namely in this case the JSE Top 40, is minimal, and leaves significant room for improvement over the next ten years. From the literature review, it is evident that many SDG adoption tools, frameworks and guidelines exist with which to support private sector companies in adopting, achieving and reporting on the SDGs, therefore in order for South African companies to significantly contribute to achieving the SDGs, it is paramount that they do more than just mention the SDGs in their annual reporting, and instead integrate the SDGs into their corporate strategy, include specific SDG implementation targets and indicators into their performance scorecards, implement the required actions and report against the SDG implementation targets and indicators (GRI, UN Global Compact and the WBCSD, 2015). Further research could be done to understand why South African companies are struggling to achieve the above components of SDG adoption and thereby contributing towards achieving the SDGs. Whilst global progress in achieving the SDGs was already lagging prior to COVID-19, the global pandemic over the course of 2020 has unfortunately halted much of the progress to date, even calling for a post COVID-19 review of the SDGs in their current form (Nature, 2020), however on a positive note, there is still time to achieve the SDGs as humanity is poised on what the United Nations (2020) describes as the start of a ‘Decade of Action’, and while this research primarily focused on the degree of SDG implementation target adoption, the majority of the JSE Top 40 companies have adopted other sustainability frameworks such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) in which they include and report on numerous targets and indicators under the auspices of environmental and social governance. Masters

MSc (Environmental Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus Studies show that in developing countries the concentrations of pollutants discharged into water bodies are still very high; thus, several attempts have been made to address this phenomenon and eventually achieve compliance. South Africa made it mandatory for wastewater treatment plants to be licenced and thus achieve compliance in terms of the National Environment Management: Waste Act (Act no 59 of 2008). Compliance to regulations are spelt out under section 24(5) of the NEMA. This compliance is critical for wastewater entities to operate. Thus municipalities are mandated to comply with the waste management licence requirements. This study aimed to evaluate factors that influence compliance with waste management licenses in selected wastewater treatment plants in Chris Hani District Municipality. This was achieved through a combination of literature review, document analysis and semi-structured interviews with 19 municipal employees comprised of process controllers, environmental control officers, engineers, and managers. Data were analysed using thematic analysis, which is a qualitative data analysis procedure that identifies key themes in an attempt to answer research questions posed by the study. Results shows that factors affecting compliance with waste management licence by wastewater treatment plants are population growth, design capacity, discharge effluent flow, human resource factors (management, recruitment, and capacity building), site security, budget, infrastructure (ageing infrastructure, outsourcing of municipal service, lack of scheduled maintenance) and resources. Most respondents cited budget as one of the main factors impacting negatively on the ability to comply with waste management licences. This may impact on the effectiveness of the wastewater treatment plant operations. Masters

This research evaluates Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report quality for a selected sample of development projects in South African national parks. It applies an adapted version of an international EIA report quality review package to 24 developments within 10 national parks, across three EIA regimes. The results suggest good EIA report quality across all four quality review areas, with improvement over time, but also highlight particular weaknesses in terms of dealing with waste and, to a lesser extent, with significance and mitigation. To build on this research, the development of a sector-specific EIA report quality review package is recommended, with more emphasis on the strategic context, waste and water-related aspects. The conclusion is that EIA is well positioned to remain an important decision support instrument for developments within national parks. Conservation implications: The results show that EIA reports for developments in South African national parks are generally of sufficient quality for decision-making that benefits conservation. However, weaker performance regarding waste, significance determination, water-related impacts and a lack of consideration of strategic context requires a conservation-specific EIA report quality review package to improve report quality in the areas of weakness and thereby increase the value of EIA as an instrument for environmental governance and sustainable development in conservation areas.

M (Environmental Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus A complex web of regulatory processes from different government entities governs current photovoltaic (PV) solar power project authorisations. For a regulatory system to be suitable, it must include efficient institutional, regulatory and policy structures. There is great benefit in the seamless alignment of policies and programmes. A guiding principle for sound policy-making is to develop policies that are aligned and coherent to ensure feasibility and effectiveness. The objective of the study is to understand the project developers and regulators challenges inherent to multiple regulatory processes for PV solar power projects. This study followed a qualitative approach, using case studies and interviews to obtain research data about the multiple authorisations required for PV solar power projects. The research sample included eight case studies of authorised projects in the Northern Cape province between 2014 and 2016. Interviews were also conducted with regulators and project developers involved in the authorisation process of PV solar power projects. Some of the challenges identified include the fragmentation, alignment, non-integration of processes and lack of coordination among the three levels of government involved: national, provincial and local. The issuance of different required permits and licenses is separate for the different agencies/departments and some regulatory requirements are, in fact, contradictory to those of other State Entities. Although the study highlights a numbers of challenges for multiple regulatory processes, recommendations on addressing identified challenges are suggested. These recommendations include regulatory coherence, cooperation and coordination, which can assist the different agencies / departments to communicate and coordinate their processes in order to align multiple regulatory processes of PV solar power projects. Masters

Understanding local community perceptions is an important first step in seeking ways to revitalize degraded urban streams. This research sought to understand community perceptions of the highly modified Parnamirim stream in the city of Recife, Brazil and to solicit perspectives on potential for revitalization of the stream before and after discussion of such possibilities using a photo-elicitation-based approach. Structured interviews were conducted with 167 residents situated close to the stream using three photographs of urban streams in various stages of modification and revitalization to prompt responses regarding preferences and opportunities for stream revitalization. While a majority of respondents overall indicated that the Parnamirim stream currently looks like a degraded stream (as depicted in one photograph), these perceptions generally matched the characteristics of the stream in their particular area of residence, indicating that people’s perceptions are influenced by the quality of their immediate environment. However, after the brief discussion of urban stream revitalization practices, there was overall positive response for Parnamirim stream to become like the photograph of the revitalized stream shown to participants. Our findings point to the power and utility of the photo-elicitation method in terms of provoking emotional and cognitive responses to local environmental conditions and in promoting changed community perceptions of possible Parnamirim stream revitalization and its future potential. The potential for social desirability bias to influence community perceptions is acknowledged regarding the post-discussion preferences and comments regarding the potential for revitalization of Parnamirim stream. Nevertheless, the research demonstrates the value of engagement in discussion and ideas sharing with community members through the use of photo-elicitation and such approaches may represent an important first step in realizing urban stream revitalization.

North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus MSc (Environmental Management), North-West University,Potchefstroom Campus The transparency of mine closure and financial provision disclosure aims to reflect the performance of a mining organisations’ ability to meet its environmental liabilities at the end of closure. Corporate entities discloses information annually in their corporate reports, each reflecting its mandatory and voluntary obligation duties. By applying a qualitative research approach which is based on the thematic content analysis methodology and social constructivist approach to textual analysis, the research aims to evaluate the change in mine closure and financial provision disclosure quality in the mining sector by using four publically listed gold or coal producers with major operations in South Africa. Through performing a qualitative review of disclosure between the periods 2016 to 2018, the research reflected that disclosures are primarily presented to meet the organisation’s disclosure obligations in terms of mine closure and financial provisions rather than presenting a holistic or transparent view of the performance. By using the argument from McHenry, Morrison-Saunders, Gorey, Rita Sequeira, Mtegha and Doepel (2015) the current disclosures only provide a pieces of information, presented in a series of financial reporting and management disclosure formats, resulting in a disorientation of information to provide a clear reflection the organisations true ability to achieve the desired mine closure outcomes. Due to the significant influence of disclosure guidance on the information reflected in corporate reports, it is recommended that there should be development in more robust guidance on the nature and extent of information being disclosures in order to address the apparent lack in quality disclosures with regards to mine closure and financial provisions. Masters

Tourists become emotionally, physically and socially attached to national parks as they become familiar with the park’s settings and endow it with value. Researchers have pointed out that place attachment leads to environmentally responsible behaviour and higher levels of visitor satisfaction. Therefore, increasing the level of attachment that visitors feel is vital for park and camp managers, and to do so a greater understanding of the various dimensions of it is needed. While attachment to parks has been evaluated previously, attachment to specific camps in parks has not been done. The main purpose of this research study was to measure the extent to which visitors to the Tamboti and Satara camps in the Kruger National Park feel attached to these camps. We also determined whether differences exist between visitors in terms of the level of attachment that they experience towards these camps. Finally, we established the variables that influence place attachment. A self-administered paper-based questionnaire was distributed to visitors to the Tamboti and Satara camps, with 201 questionnaires completed. The results show that visitors generally have a neutral feeling towards the camps. Furthermore, the differences in visitors’ levels of attachment could be attributed to their nationality, wild card membership and frequency of visits. Various managerial implications are drawn and recommendations made on how to increase place attachment to these camps. Conservation implications: This results indicate that visitors do not show particularly strong attachment towards Tamboti and Satara. Recommendations are given for camp managers to increase place attachment to the camps. If camp managers can succeed in fostering stronger levels of attachment to these camps, visitors are more likely to display environmentally responsible behaviour in the camps, with positive conservation implications.

When mining affects natural or semi-natural ecosystems such as forests, rehabilitation often aims at restoring biodiversity. However, to what extent does rehabilitation also restore cultural ecosystem services? This paper investigates the perception of two groups of recreationists that use rehabilitated bauxite mine areas in southwest Australia, bushwalkers and mountain bikers. The area has been continuously mined and progressively rehabilitated for over 50 years. Research was developed through: (i) mapping the distribution of recreation trails, mined areas and rehabilitated areas; (ii) conducting in-depth interviews with recreationists regarding perceptions and usage of forest areas and; (iii) an online survey to gauge forest characteristic preferences for recreational use. The data was subjected to statistical and qualitative analysis. Results showed that bushwalkers usually avoid mined areas while mountain bikers do not and that the recreationists’ perception of rehabilitated areas is largely shaped by the absence of large and old trees and natural landforms. We found that meeting regulatory requirements for rehabilitation, as measured by ecological indicators, does not automatically correlate with acceptable social outcomes. Conclusions highlight the value of reframing mine rehabilitation practices to accommodate cultural services in post-mining land use planning considerations alongside the well-established ecological goals so as to explicitly demonstrate the social benefits of rehabilitation.

Strategic environmental assessment (SEA) was introduced in Thailand in 2005, aiming to direct decision making at the strategic level (policy, programme, plan) towards sustainable development (SD). Given reforms to the SEA requirements in 2018, it is timely to evaluate emerging SEA experience in the Thai context to inform future practice. The effectiveness of 14 SEAs was investigated based on a version of a recently published framework which substitutes ‘legitimacy’ for normative effectiveness and pluralism, modified through the addition of disaggregated sub-criteria associated with each dimension of effectiveness (procedural, substantive, transactive and legitimacy), to facilitate a richer understanding of the effectiveness of practice. This more detailed effectiveness framework enabled a comprehensive evaluation of practice, and should be transferable to other contexts. The findings suggest that SEA in Thailand currently partially achieves procedural, substantive, and transactive effectiveness. Achieving some elements of substantive effectiveness where practice is currently weak is considered to be particularly challenging, and also determinative in the achievement of legitimacy. Consequently, the majority of SEAs evaluated in this study failed to achieve legitimacy.

Environmental impact assessment (EIA) and responsible tourism both aspire to contribute to sustainable development. EIA is the process of identifying, assessing and managing the potential impacts of new developments and is legally mandated in most countries of the world. Tourism developments are subject to EIA under South African legislation, which requires consideration of the full range of sustainable development objectives. This paper highlights the parallels found in the discourses of EIA and responsible tourism, identified through a focused literature review, and develops a framework comprising five characteristics that EIA should embody to maximize its contribution to responsible tourism. It tests the framework by evaluating three EIAs conducted in the Kruger National Park since 2011, when South African National Parks (SANParks) formally committed to responsible tourism. The evaluation process confirmed the utility of the framework and highlighted areas in which responsible tourism principles could be more explicitly reflected in SANParks EIAs.

Impact assessment (IA) originated as, and continues to be, an instrument that contributes towards sustainable development. In response to the considerable sustainability challenges facing our planet this article argues for the acceleration of IA’s evolutionary approach through focusing on effective practice

Master of Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process have been criticised for being costly and time-delaying to the development of countries and service provisions. Internationally, various authors have researched how the efficiency of the process can be improved by refining and streamlining the process. To improve the procedural efficiency of the EIA process, knowledge needs to be gained on what factors challenge the efficiency of the process. This research aims to critically analyse the influencing factors and to determine the efficiency of the EIA process in the Western Cape, South Africa. To achieve the aim, three research objective were set: determining the efficiency of EIA processes in the Western Cape with respect to whether applications submitted where finalised within the timeframes stipulated in the NEMA, 2010 in comparison to the NEMA, 2014 regulations; identifying the factors which may influence the procedural efficiency of the EIA process, either positively or negatively; and identifying means for improving the EIA procedural efficiency. To achieve the research objectives, EIA applications submitted in the Western Cape were compared to the timeframes in the regulations. Thereafter, Environmental Assessment Practitioners and government officials were interviewed and the interviews were analysed to identify themes. This research indicated that 1285 applications were submitted from 2010 to 2014, in terms of the NEMA, 2010 Regulations. Of the approved applications, 31.1% were classed as efficient, 39.7% were mostly efficient and the remaining 29.2% were classed as inefficient. When comparing the applications submitted under the NEMA, 2014 Regulations, it is evident that stipulated timeframes for consultants, and not just for the competent authority as with the 2010 regulations, led to significant improvement in terms of finalising the applications within the stipulated timeframes. The results showed that 98% of the approved applications were efficient, 0% was mostly efficient and the remaining 2% were inefficient. During the interviews with government officials and consultants, communication and cooperation between all parties involved, experience and knowledge of consultants and case officers, stipulated timeframes and the flexibility thereof as well as updated, published interpretations of regulations lead to procedural inefficiencies. Possible improvements by interviewees emphasised combined pre-application meetings with involved authorities, updated guidelines, improved communication between authorities and the integration of application processes. Finally, the outcome of the research is summarised in relation to the three main factors for success, also known as the Efficiency Triangle. The findings are discussed by indicating how the shortcomings influence the different factors and the efficiency of the process, and how it can be improved. Masters

This paper is a call for more studies that explicitly demonstrate the benefits of impact assessment to proponents. While the community of impact assessment practitioners generally believe that impact assessment is beneficial (to all stakeholders), empirical demonstration of this, particularly to project proponents, is warranted, and especially in financial terms. While many impact assessment benefits are intangible in nature, learning from the business and management literature shows how such benefits can usefully be measured based upon perceptions of managers within proponent agencies in tandem with archival material. A framework of the nature of impact assessment benefits for proponents, and their relative tangibility, is presented along with a five-step methodology for determining benefits. We now call upon impact assessment researchers and practitioners alike to use this framework and methodology to structure investigations from practice that will contribute to an empirical database for demonstrating the benefits of impact assessment to proponents

Independent Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) follow-up verifiers such as monitoring agencies, checkers, supervisors and control officers are active on various construction sites across the world. There are, however, differing views on the value that these verifiers add and very limited learning in EIA has been drawn from independent verifiers. This paper aims to appraise how and to what extent independent EIA follow-up verifiers add value in major construction projects in the developing country context of South Africa. A framework for appraising the role of independent verifiers was established and four South African case studies were examined through a mixture of site visits, project document analysis, and interviews. Appraisal results were documented in the performance areas of: planning, doing, checking, acting, public participating and integration with other programs. The results indicate that independent verifiers add most value to major construction projects when involved with screening EIA requirements of new projects, allocation of financial and human resources, checking legal compliance, influencing implementation, reporting conformance results, community and stakeholder engagement, integration with self-responsibility programs such as environmental management systems (EMS), and controlling records. It was apparent that verifiers could be more creatively utilized in pre-construction preparation, providing feedback of knowledge into assessment of new projects, giving input to the planning and design phase of projects, and performance evaluation. The study confirms the benefits of proponent and regulator follow-up, specifically in having independent verifiers that disclose information, facilitate discussion among stakeholders, are adaptable and proactive, aid in the integration of EIA with other programs, and instill trust in EIA enforcement by conformance evaluation. Overall, the study provides insight on how to harness the learning opportunities arising from EIA follow-up through the appointment of independent verifiers.

This paper consolidates international responses to the argument that there is a need to strengthen impact assessment (IA) through greater integration and focus. It is based on invited reflections by various international authors in the field of IA. The main conclusions are that power and context are important underlying reasons for the diversity of IA types; that in certain instances IA legislation works against achieving integration and focus; and that there is a pressing need to be able to measure and demonstrate added value and effectiveness in practice. The paper concludes by setting a research agenda reflecting the need to better understand why diversity exists in IA, what stakeholders expect from the process and how to improve practice based on greater understanding of what the various types of IA deliver.

Magister in Environmental Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an important tool used globally to manage the impact of human activities on the environment, by identifying, predicting, evaluating and introducing mitigation measures for sustainable development. Therefore, EIA need inputs of expert specialist studies within the EIA reports. Despite EIA’ many benefits, many problems are experienced in EIA practice; these include EIA reports being inadequately detailed, thus resulting in reports which are poorly integrated. The aim of this study was to investigate South African Environmental Practitioners’ perspectives of the integration of specialist studies into EIA reports. Specific Objectives were to identify problems associated with the integration, investigate perspectives of practitioners on the integration and make recommendations on the integration of specialist studies into EIA reports in South Africa. A literature review, self-administered survey questionnaire, IAIAsa poster session as well as panel discussion were used for data collection. The key findings of the literature review were that lack of experience and regulatory bodies allows people from different fields without relevant experience to start practising as EAPs. Limited budget allocated to carry out the EIA process, unclear term of reference and insufficient time leaves room for omission of important assessment phases. The way inputs from different practitioners are managed and communicated in EIA reports makes it difficult to understand the contents of the report. Some of the key problems identified by specialists associated with the integration was lack of knowledge from practitioners, limited allocation of budget to carry out specialist studies, time, misinterpretation of specialist studies and specialists not having access to the final EIA report. However, EAPs were of the opinion that receiving specialist studies reports late and complex findings is one of the major problems. Specialists disagreed that their studies were successfully integrated into EIA reports. They also agreed that important information is often omitted from the EIA reports. However, EAPs were of the opinion that specialist studies were successfully integrated and information is accurately communicated into EIA reports. According to the practitioners, the most successful ways of integrating specialist studies into EIA reports are to have integration meetings which can be used to integrate specialist findings to the reports, the person carrying out this task should understand the work sharing of executive summaries and that specialists should be allowed to review their part in EIA reports prior to submission to Competent Authority. It can be concluded that despite the development of EIA in this country, there is still room for improvement in report writing to address these problems. Therefore, in order to achieve an effective integration of specialist studies into EIA reports, there needs to be clear communication between specialists and EAPs regarding relevant information which needs to be in the EIA report. Masters

Master of Environmental Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2016 Sustainability assessment has become more prominent in recent years, in the wake of the general requirement to introduce sustainability thinking into environmental assessment (EA). Although sustainability assessment practice has expanded globally, there has been very little follow-up research on the outcomes of sustainability assessment. The aim of this research is therefore, to conduct sustainability assessment follow-up through the application of the eight sustainability assessment principles described by Gibson (2006). This was achieved by evaluating a particular EIA case study in the South African context, namely the EIA for the development of the Port of Ngqura. An evaluation matrix was developed based on the fundamentals of the eight sustainability assessment principles. The results suggest that sustainability thinking was reflected in the EIA and that six of the eight principles were addressed to some extent however, two of the principles were unacceptable. The best performing principles related to ‘1. socio-ecological system integrity’, ‘6. socio-ecological civility and democratic governance’ and ‘7. precaution and adaptation’. The weakest results related to ‘resource maintenance and efficiency’, ‘2. livelihood sufficiency and opportunity’ as well as ‘8. immediate and long-term integration’. This research succeeded in taking the first steps towards advancing sustainability assessment follow-up, especially within the South African context. The results suggest the following main contributions to knowledge in relation to the main research aim: 1. The research results seem to support those who have suggested that Environmental Assessments in South Africa is, due to our broad definition of the environment, similar to what is internationally understood to be sustainability assessment; 2. There seems to be a clear focus on the social impacts and implications of the particular development, with provided support to the notion that the brown agenda is, as least in the South African context, central to EIA; and 3. The research results suggest that longer term thinking and dealing with the uncertainties it raises remains a constant challenge for EIA. The research concludes by making recommendations for future research. Masters

PhD (Geography and Environmental Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015 An independent industry of Environmental Control Officers (ECOs) is active on various construction sites across South Africa. It forms part of a global network of verifiers, such as Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and EIA follow-up verifiers. This network authenticates statements about and the implementation of sustainability commitments made during the planning phase of major construction projects. International studies show that the construction industry is experiencing many challenges to deliver sustainability commitments, including inadequate collaboration between role players, ill defined roles and responsibilities, and insufficient use of environmental governance approaches. On-site verifiers like ECOs may aid in restraining these challenges by bridging ineffective governance approaches, such as classic EIA with new governance approaches, for instance self-responsibility (e.g. Environmental Management Systems (EMSs)) and involvement of third parties. Moreover, an “independent from all” verification function may be vital in developing countries such as South Africa, where trust between the government, market and public is particularly fragile due to historical injustices. Interestingly, limited learning has been drawn and shared from this function’s real-world experience. There are also differing views on the role, independence and value of ECOs, due to roles, frequent interaction with persons responsible for delivering sustainability commitments, and collaboration with third parties being ill-defined. The overarching purpose of this study is to advance understanding of independent ECOs in major South African construction projects. Three lines of inquiry are followed. The first is to define what the role is, or ideally should be, of an ECO in the South African compliance monitoring and enforcement effort. The second is to identify what factors might influence the independence of verifiers. The third is to appraise how and to what extent independent EIA follow-up verifiers add value in major construction projects in the developing country context of South Africa. This study’s research assumptions are based on the real world of ECOs and uses a mixed method research approach to draw knowledge from the industry. The strategies of inquiry include a survey, interviews, and multiple case study evaluations. The methods for data collection include literature review, a self-administered survey questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, video material, observations of practice at case studies, and the collection of project documentation. The methods used for data analysis are the categorisation and measuring of opinions and statements of survey participants, the analysis of video material and project documentation, and the nominal categorisation and ordinal scaling of case study results. Three journal articles capture the essence of the research results and form part of the thesis report, as prescribed by the North-West University’s rules for doctoral theses in article format. All three articles were peer-reviewed and published in journals aimed at international audiences. Article 1 of the thesis highlights that an industry of ECOs fulfills numerous roles at various construction sites across South Africa. The results identify the importance of ECOs functioning independently of all role-players, but warn that obsessing about independence may compromise the ability of ECOs to fulfill their roles. The results also show that industry is in need of competence and the regulation thereof, as well as support from all role players. By drawing from the research results, the thesis defines an ECO. Article 2 of the thesis reiterates that independence is central to internationally acclaimed verification fields and important to ensure the credibility of EIA. The study identifies 18 factors that might influence the independence of EIA follow-up verifiers and divides the factors into five categories: financial, commercial, professional, personal, and other. By identifying and sharing these factors, this thesis aids in anticipating and avoiding potential conflict of interest between environmental role players. Article 3 strengthens the continuum between environmental governance approaches by conceptualising a framework for appraising the value of independent EIA follow-up verifiers. The framework provides for inter-linking principles and objectives of sustainability to the performance areas of EIA, EIA follow-up and the EMS. The appraisal results indicate that independent verifiers add most value when they are involved in screening, checking compliance, influencing decisions, community engagement, and integrating environmental governance approaches. The study confirms the benefits of adaptable, proactive, experienced, and independent EIA follow-up verifiers, such as ECOs, on major South African construction projects. Doctoral

Reflections on impact assessment research scholarship are presented drawn from our experiences as journal editors and academics with respect to the nature of impact assessment research and the quality of impact assessment research writing. We support the call for more empirical impact assessment research studies, especially large and longer-term studies. While the international field of impact assessment research is healthy overall, we would like to see better international and multi-disciplinary collaboration. We also urge careful attention be given by impact assessment research writers to having clear aims, robust methods accounts and to write rigorously and insightfully for the international impact assessment journal readership.

MSc (Environmental Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015 Environmental Management Systems (EMS) and the International Cyanide Management Code (ICMC) also known as the Cyanide Code are both voluntary management systems to assist management in an organisation to control the impact that they may have on the environment. The focus of the research was to investigate the relationship between the characteristics of an EMS and that of the ICMC. In order to determine the relationship between the characteristics two research questions had to be answered. Research question 1: What are the key characteristics of an Environmental Management System? and Research question 2: How do the characteristics of an Environmental Management system relate to the characteristics of the International Cyanide Management Code? The information gathering for the first research question was done by studying different articles and websites obtained from the literature. From this information an EMS framework was developed. In order to answer the second research question a three-step process was followed. Firstly, Cyanide Code characteristics were obtained from the literature. From this information a Cyanide Code framework was developed. Secondly, this framework was then enriched from information gathered from participants’ in the research. For the purpose of enrichment, a qualitative approach was used with a questionnaire link that was sent to research participants’ via e-mail in order to collect the information. The participants’ were purposefully selected from a single gold mine in South Africa. Finally, the characters of the enriched frameworks were compared to that of the EMS framework to answer the second research question. The study established that the EMS and Cyanide Code show very similar characteristics across multiple themes. However, some unique characteristics were also highlighted. Firstly, Cyanide Code is a management system that has to comply with set standards and principles. Secondly, the Cyanide Code is designed to manage the impact that cyanide has on the environment, as well as to protect the workforce through safe handling and storage of cyanide. As a result the Cyanide Code can also be defined as an Occupational Health and Safety system for cyanide handling. Furthermore, the Cyanide Code has specific contractual requirements for the manufacturers, transporters and the mine. These contractual agreements are prerequisites for the compliance certification. Finally, the Cyanide Code has explicit requirements for the design of facilities that ensure the safe handling and storage of cyanide. The EMS is designed to manage the environmental impact of all types of organisations, while the Cyanide Code is limited to gold mines that use cyanide as an extractive method. In this context, the Cyanide Code is limited to the effect that cyanide has on people and the environment, and does not manage or comply with any other environmental or safety conditions that might exist on a mine. Although the Cyanide Code can be regarded as a more comprehensive system, it is limited to a specific application in the Gold mining industry and can be described as a sub-system of an EMS. Masters