Assessment of the human impact on the abiotic environment Indicators for a sustainable development

Environmental protection against the dangers arising from ionizing radiation, radioactive materials and other harmful substances is more than to avoid acute dangers or risks for humans or for non-human living organisms. To allow for a sustainable development the abiotic part of the environment must not be neglected in concepts of environmental protection. To this end, indicators are needed for the assessment of the human impact on the abiotic environment which allows to compare different human actions with respect to sustainability and to choose appropriate measures in the competition for a sustainable development. In this paper, the needs for an assessment of the abiotic environment are exemplified and some considerations for suitable indicators are presented. (author)