Topic 6 Environmental Impact Assessments

EIA – Introduction The start Effectiveness?

EIA Prepare environmental impact statement (EIS) Review of EIS by public and government Produce an assessment report EIA = EIS + assessment report

So…why do it???

Issues for EIA Forces environment into the policy process Often considered an impediment to development Can be use as a ploy Lot of uncertainty surrounding Bias Timing EIS typically dominates EIA process

What It Should and Should Not Be

Public Participation

Standard Steps in EIA Determining need for Scoping key issues Describing alternatives Describing baseline Identifying key impacts Evaluating their significance Proposing mitigation measures Obtaining public input Submitting for review Making final decisions Monitoring and auditing final decisions

Standard Content of an EIS Summary Justification or rationale for proposed action Alternatives to the proposed action Description of the environment that is likely to be affected Predicted environmental consequences of the proposed action List of authors of the report

Things to Remember with EIAs Need a central, conceptual or analytical theme or recognizable investigative design to guide the collection and interpretation of data Need concrete predictions of value to project decision-making Include significance levels and probabilities Coordinate with/relate to the broader process of environmental decision-making