Definition

The total impact arising from the project (under the control of the developer), other activities (that may be under the control of others, including other developers, local communities, government) and other background pressures and trends which may be unregulated. The project’s impact is therefore one part of the total cumulative impact on the environment. The analysis of a project’s incremental impacts combined with the effects of other projects can often give a more accurate understanding of the likely results of the project’s presence than just considering its impacts in isolation.

Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) 2012 ¹