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8 • Green Project Management

Chapter 4, “Types of Projects: A Rainbow of Green,” to understand that a
project does not have to be born this way or provide a green end product
to be responsible and green.

Every year, over 40 million acres of tropical rain forest are destroyed
through burning and logging.

environmental degradation
and loss oF Biodiversity
Environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity go hand in hand. When
people decide that the environment takes a backseat to something else, like
greed, environmental degradation occurs. Take the rain forest of Brazil
for instance. Every year, there is deforestation of approximately 77,000
square miles. That’s in the Amazon basin alone, but there are other South
American, African, and Indonesian forests being cut as well. Continuing
with that example, consider how many species are being lost because of
that deforestation and the resulting loss of flora and fauna habitat.
Pollution is another cause of environmental degradation. It includes
air pollution, smog and ozone depletion, and water pollution, including
improper or lack of sanitation facilities and industrial-waste dumping. It
also includes the by-product of natural disasters. An example of a natural
environmental disaster is Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath of flooded
sewage treatment plants and the destruction of oil storage facilities. There
are also disasters caused directly by the human hand. An example of that
is the Chernobyl nuclear power plant failure in 1986. Both of these (natu-
ral or human-made) have the potential to adversely and temporarily or
permanently negatively affect the biodiversity of an area.

government agenCies, mandates, and guidelines

The following information is intended to be a sample of the mandates
and guidelines available for review by project managers. In no way is it
intended to be exhaustive.