Developed by Luna Leopold and others in 1971 for the US Geological Survey, it is a that links project actions (e.g., construction, drilling) with existing environmental conditions (e.g., water quality, fauna) to identify potential impacts.
| Action \ Condition | Surface water quality | Terrestrial flora | |--------------------|------------------------|--------------------| | | M=7, I=8 (sediment runoff) | M=6, I=7 (habitat removal) | | Operation noise | M=0, I=0 | M=4, I=5 (fauna disturbance) |
Lists about 88 environmental characteristics potentially affected, categorized into physical/chemical (soil, air, water), biological (flora, fauna), and socio-economic factors. How to Use the Matrix (Step-by-Step) Leopold Matrix in Environmental Assessment | PDF - Scribd matriz leopold
The matrix consists of a grid with two axes:
A diagonal line is drawn across any cell where a project action is likely to impact an environmental factor. Developed by Luna Leopold and others in 1971
| Tool | Advantage over Leopold | |------|------------------------| | | Show secondary/indirect impacts | | GIS-based matrices | Add spatial dimension | | Causal chains / DPSIR | Link causes, pressures, state, impacts, responses | | Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) | Weighs trade-offs quantitatively | | Software EIA tools (e.g., SimaPro, GaBi) | Integrates life-cycle & quantitative data |
This grid results in 8,800 possible interactions , though in practice, most projects focus on the 25 to 50 most significant ones. How to Use the Leopold Matrix 800 possible interactions
Here is an analysis of the Leopold Matrix, its methodology, applications, and limitations.
Since "Matriz Leopold" is the Spanish/Portuguese term, I have structured this response as an academic overview that could serve as the basis for a research paper or technical report.