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The Virginia Environmental Quality Index
The Virginia Environmental Quality Index (VEQI) is a tool for assessing change in fundamental elements of our environment. The VEQI is an objective, integrated and scientifically grounded mechanism for answering the question, "Is environmental quality improving or not?"




Virginia Environmental Quality Index, 1985-1999





Some highlights from the statistical analysis of indicator trends:

> The Virginia Environmental Quality Index is an important tool for measuring trends in environmental quality for the Commonwealth, and provides the public with the information to make meaningful comparisons among geographic regions and across years.

> Although certain indicators of environmental quality in Virginia have improved gradually since 1985, other indicators describe a lack of improvement or declining trends.

> Air quality in Virginia is improving, based on measurements of criteria pollutants including ozone, lead, carbon monoxide and particulates.
Blue Grosbeak - Photo by Marcus Martin courtesy VDGIF
> Surface water quality, based on the suitability of aquatic habitat for living resources, has not improved significantly since 1985.

> The VEQI trend that describes the input to surface waters of nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, has improved.

> The VEQI's integrated assessment of airborne and waterborne toxic chemical releases indicates a lack of improvement since 1987.

> Permitting data indicate that wetland losses observed in the late 1980s continue today, although the trend is not statistically significant; improvements in data quality and quantity would allow the VEQI to more accurately describe long-term temporal change for this natural resource.

> Virginia's population continues to increase, which suggests the potential for continued stress on the environment from human activities.

> Long-term monitoring of breeding birds in Virginia suggests an overall improving trend in this specific measure of biodiversity.

> The VEQI did not assess forest cover trends for statistical significance; more and better data will facilitate the analysis of changes in forest habitat and land use.

The VEQI uses data from local, state and federal sources to develop a picture of the trends in air quality, water quality, population growth, and toxic releases, to name a few. The VEQI is by no means a complete picture of all change in environmental quality in Virginia, but it is a solid step in developing a system for evaluating the effectiveness of of local, state and federal policies and regulations. The VEQI is not a policy analysis. It is based on raw data; air and water quality monitoring data and toxic release inventories form the backbone of the VEQI.

Before you explore further, please read the Understanding the VEQI information.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the VEQI project team at info@veqi.org.

Enjoy!

Andy Lacatell
Project Director and
Assistant Director,
Center for Environmental Studies
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Page updated: December 7, 2000 12:20 AM