The term ‘holistic’ not only means ‘inclusiveness’ and ‘comprehensiveness’
but also implies ‘appropriate integration’ of and ‘linking’ between
these aspects and factors (Section 3.2) in an algorithmic, coherent, consistent,
and sequential manner so that these could logically and systematically
be referred to in the later stages of a risk assessment process. This
is in line with the general principle of ‘holism’ or ‘wholism’ as concisely
summarized by Aristotle in the Metaphysics: “The whole is more than
the sum of its parts” – where the word holistic or holism comes from
a Greek word ‘holos’ which means ‘all’, ‘entire’ or ‘total’ (Ask Define,
2013; Environment, 2013; Philosophy Basics, 2013; Sobel, 2010). The
idea is that all properties of (a baseline study) system cannot be determined
or explained by its component and sub-component parts alone
(Section 3.2). Instead, the system as a whole determines an important
way of how the parts behave and can be effectively and efficiently used
in the subsequent stages of a risk assessment exercise of landfill leachate.
This is the context in which the term holistic or holism has been deployed
in the paper. Furthermore, in order to establish what crucial parts a holistic
baseline study system (specifically for landfill leachate) is supposed to
be composed of, not only ‘holism’theme but the ‘reductionism’theme has
also been employed (Environment, 2013). In other words, ‘synthesis’ and
‘analysis’ have been used in the study