Cumulative effects assessment is a required component of developing large projects. In previous projects (e.g., Klappan, SRWCP, PMT) we have developed spatial models to project multiple industrial developments and their spatial effects through time. In this project we expanded these models and explored interactions between indicators that may influence how impacts on Valued Components (VCs) or key values are calculated.
Based on a case study involving Independent Power Projects (IPPs), and forestry in a coastal BC planning unit, we investigated the interacting contributions of 'pressure' (development footprint) and 'condition' (ecological status) indicators to estimate cumulative effects. We found that impact classification for VCs demands a clear understanding of the underlying ecological processes and scale-of-effect for each type of indicator. Our findings are strengthening methodologies to effectively do carbon effects analysis, especially in strategic assessments of development sources at regional, provincial and national scales.