Detailed Analysis of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Procedures

This report provides a comprehensive overview of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). It begins by exploring the origin of EIA, tracing its development from early industrial concerns to its formalization through international conventions and legislation. The report emphasizes the importance of EIA as a policy and management tool, highlighting its role in identifying, predicting, and evaluating environmental consequences. It delves into the objectives of EIA, both immediate and long-term, and outlines the various benefits, including improved project design, compliance with environmental standards, and cost savings. The report then outlines the core values and guiding principles of EIA, emphasizing integrity, utility, and sustainability. A detailed examination of the EIA process follows, including screening, scoping, initial environmental examination (IEE), detailed EIA, reporting, review, decision-making, and implementation with follow-up. Each step is explained, highlighting the key activities and outcomes. The report concludes by illustrating the generalized EIA process flowchart, providing a visual guide to the entire process. The report serves as a valuable resource for understanding and implementing EIA for sustainable development.

Environmental Impact Assessment
(EIA)

Environmental Impact Assessment
• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process of evaluating the likely
environmental impacts of a proposed project or development, taking into account
inter-related socio-economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial
and adverse.

Origin of EIA
• Before the First World War, rapid industrialization and urbanization in western
countries was causing rapid loss of natural resources.
• This continued to the period after the Second World War giving rise to concerns for
pollution, quality of life and environmental stress.
• In early 60s, investors and people realized that the projects they were under taking
were affecting the environment, resources, raw materials and people.
• As a result of this, pressure groups formed with the aim of getting a tool that can
be used to safeguard the environment in any development.
• The USA decided to respond to these issues and established a National
Environmental Policy Act in 1970 to consider its goal in terms of environmental
protection.

Origin of EIA (Cont……)
• The USA became the first country to enact legislation on EIA.
• This was the first time that EIA became the official tool to be used to protect the
environment.
• The United Nations Conference on the Environment in Stockholm in 1972 and
subsequent conventions formalized EIA.
• At present, all developed countries have environmental laws whereas most of the
developing countries are still adopting it (Lee, 1995).
• Multilateral and bilateral lenders included EIA requirements in their project
eligibility criteria (OECD, 1996).

Importance of EIA
• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a policy and management tool for both
planning and decision-making.
• It is a systematic process that assists to identify, predict and evaluate the
foreseeable environmental consequences of proposed development projects, plans
and policies.
• The process is applied prior to major decisions and commitments being done.
• The outcome of an EIA study assists the decision maker and the general public to
determine whether a project should be implemented and in what form.

Importance of EIA (Cont…..)
• EIA involves description and quantification of impacts of given policy options.
• However, it does not require full information about costs and benefits; impacts are
not expressed in monetary terms.
• EIA is a very important aid to CBA.
• EIA is not restricted to or biased to the examination and mitigation of negative
impacts alone.
• EIA can also look into the possible positive issues due to the developmental
projects and explore or suggest ways of enhancing them further by carrying out
modifications in the project.

Importance of EIA (Cont…..)
• The purpose of EIA is to:
• Provide information for decision making on the environmental consequences of
proposed actions; and
• Promote environmentally sound and sustainable development through the
identification of appropriate enhancement and mitigation measures

Objectives of EIA
Immediate objectives of EIA:
• improve the environmental design of the proposal
• ensure that resources are used appropriately and efficiently;
• identify appropriate measures for mitigating the potential impacts of the proposal;
• facilitate informed decision making including setting the environmental terms and
conditions for implementing the proposal.
Long term objectives of EIA:
• protect human health and safety
• avoid serious damage to the environment
• safeguard valued resources, natural areas and ecosystem components and
• enhance the social aspects of the proposal

Benefits of EIA
• The benefits of EIA can be direct, such as the improved design or location of a
project, or indirect such as better quality EIA work or raised environmental
awareness of the personnel involved in the project. Specific benefits may include:
• Better environmental planning and design of a proposal- carrying out an EIA
entails an analysis of alternatives in the design and location of projects. This can
result in the selection of an improved technology which lowers waste outputs or an
environmentally optimum location for a project. A well designed project can
minimize risks and impacts on the environment and people and thereby avoid
associated costs of remedial treatment or compensation for damage.
• Ensuring compliance with environmental standards – compliance with
environmental standards reduces damage to the environment and disruption to
communities. It also avoids the likelihood of penalties, fines and loss of trust and
credibility.

Benefits of EIA (Cont…….)
• Savings in capital and operating costs – EIA can avoid the undue costs of
unanticipated impacts. These can escalate if environmental problems have not
been considered from the start of proposal design and require rectification later.
• Reduced time and costs of approval of development applications: if all
environmental concerns have been taken into account properly before submission
for project approval, then it is unlikely that delays will occur as a result of decision
makers asking for additional information or alterations to mitigation measures.
• Increased project acceptance by the public – this is achieved by an open and
transparent EIA process with provision of opportunities for public involvement that
are most directly affected by and interested in the proposal.

EIA—Three core values
1. Integrity - the EIA process will conform to agreed standards
2. Utility - the EIA process will provide balanced, credible information for decision-
making
3. Sustainability - the EIA process will result in environmental safeguards

EIA — guiding principles
The EIA process should be:
1. purposive – meeting its aims and objectives
2. focused – concentrating on the effects that matter
3. adaptive – responding to issues and realities
4. participative – fully involving the public
5. transparent – clear and easily understood
6. rigorous – employing ‘best practicable’ methodology
7. practical – establishing mitigation measures that work
8. credible – carried out with objectivity and professionalism
9. efficient – imposing least cost burden on proponents
Source: Sadler, 1996; IAIA/IEMA 1999