Environmental impact assessment and strategic environmental assessment : towards an integrated approach

Foreword................................................................................................................................... ix Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ xi Abbreviations and Acronyms .............................................................................................. xiii Chapter 1: Introduction and Objectives.............................................................................. 1 1.1 Purpose of the document ............................................................................................ 1 1.2 Relationship to UNEP mandate and other initiatives .......................................... 1 1.3 Need and rationale for an integrated assessment.................................................. 3 1.4 EIA and SEA as steps towards integrated assessment.......................................... 6 1.5 Effectiveness of EIA .................................................................................................... 7 1.6 Effectiveness of SEA.................................................................................................... 8 1.7 Target audience for this document .......................................................................... 10 Government staff .......................................................................................................... 10 Staff of multi- and bilateral agencies.......................................................................... 10 Private sector personnel .............................................................................................. 11 References ...................................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 2: EIA Systems – Legal and Institutional Arrangements ................................ 15 2.1 Context and challenges for developing countries and countries in transition.... 15 2.2 Elements of EIA systems ............................................................................................ 17 EIA arrangements _ trends and status ...................................................................... 18 EIA implementation _ factors and capabilities ........................................................ 20 2.3 Approaches for making the EIA process effective ................................................ 24 Self-directed assessment .............................................................................................. 25 EIA process administration.......................................................................................... 25 Guidance on EIA implementation .............................................................................. 27 Public involvement and consultation ........................................................................ 28 2.4 Other institutional aspects and challenges ............................................................ 29 Avoiding overlap and duplication between national and international EIA procedures and requirements...................................................................................... 29 EIA implications of international environmental law and policy ........................ 31 Multilateral EIA transboundary and participatory regimes .................................. 32 Costs and benefits of EIA ............................................................................................ 33 References ...................................................................................................................... 34 Chapter 3: Principles and Elements of EIA Good Practice ............................................ 39 3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 39 3.2 Aims/objectives of EIA................................................................................................ 40 3.3 General and specific principles of EIA application .............................................. 41 3.4 EIA practice step by step ............................................................................................ 44 3.5 Screening and preliminary EIA studies .................................................................. 44 3.6 Scoping and preparation of terms of reference...................................................... 47 3.7 EIA work and impact studies .................................................................................... 49 Establishing an environmental baseline .................................................................... 50 Review of alternatives .................................................................................................. 51 Environment/project interactions .............................................................................. 51 Table of Contents v Social/environmental interactions ............................................................................ 52 Associated developments and secondary/cumulative effects .............................. 52 Coping with uncertainty and determining risk........................................................ 53 Evaluation of impact significance .............................................................................. 53 3.8 Mitigation and the environmental management plan.......................................... 55 3.9 The EIA report .............................................................................................................. 56 3.10 Review of EIA report .................................................................................................. 57 3.11 Impact management and monitoring ...................................................................... 59 Elements of impact management................................................................................ 59 Elements of monitoring ................................................................................................ 60 3.12 Final note on the importance of EIA follow-up and evaluation of performance 61 References ...................................................................................................................... 63 Chapter 4: Public Involvement and Consultation ............................................................ 65 4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 65 4.2 Background to use of public involvement and consultation in EIA/SEA........ 66 4.3 Aims and objectives of public involvement and consultation .......................... 66 4.4 Recent legal and institutional changes affecting role of public involvement and consultation .......................................................................................................... 66 4.5 Public involvement in SEA (differences from EIA).............................................. 67 4.6 Role of stakeholders in public involvement and consultation .......................... 69 4.7 Types of public involvement and consultation .................................................... 70 4.8 Improving practice in stakeholder involvement in EIA/SEA ............................ 71 Scoping........................................................................................................................... 77 Appraisal and EIA/SEA report preparation ............................................................ 77 Implementation.............................................................................................................. 77 Evaluation ...................................................................................................................... 78 4.9 Costs ............................................................................................................................... 78 4.10 Future trends ................................................................................................................ 79 Use of mediation in conflict resolution ...................................................................... 79 Traditional knowledge ................................................................................................ 81 References ...................................................................................................................... 83 Chapter 5: Strategic Environmental Assessment .............................................................. 85 5.1 Context and challenges .............................................................................................. 85 5.2 Background.................................................................................................................... 86 What is SEA?.................................................................................................................. 86 Why is SEA important? ................................................................................................ 86 How does SEA compare to or differ from EIA? ...................................................... 87 5.3 SEA trends and current “take-up” ............................................................................ 87 5.4 SEA arrangements and procedures .......................................................................... 88 5.5 SEA aims, principles and elements of approach .................................................. 92 5.6 Scope of applications and examples of SEA of policy, plans and programmes 94 SEA of policy.................................................................................................................. 95 SEA of sector plans and programmes........................................................................ 97 SEA of spatial plans ...................................................................................................... 99 5.7 Guidance on SEA methodology and good practice .............................................. 101 References ...................................................................................................................... 109 Table of Contents vi Chapter 6 : Towards Integrative Approaches to Impact Assessment and Planning ............................................................................................................................ 113 6.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 113 6.2 Horizontal integration of impacts in EIA and EIA- type studies at the project level ............................................................................................................ 115 6.3 Integration of project sustainability and wider sustainability issues .............. 117 6.4 Integration of distribution impacts in comparison of options .......................... 118 6.5 Integrative methods and tools .................................................................................. 120 6.6 Links between EIA/SEA and sustainability analyses .......................................... 122 6.7 Integration and sustainability issues for Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) ........................................................................................................ 125 6.8 Vertical linking of EIA and Environmental Management Systems .................. 128 6.9 Integration of tools for application in poverty reduction strategies and programmes .................................................................................................................. 129 6.10 Merging assessment with planning for sustainable development.................... 131 6.11 Future directions .......................................................................................................... 131 6.12 Last words ...................................................................................................................... 132 References ...................................................................................................................... 134 Annex 1: Advice on Assessing Social, Health and Economic Impacts in EIAS.......... 137 Social impacts ................................................................................................................ 137 Health impacts .............................................................................................................. 140 Economic impacts.......................................................................................................... 141 Fiscal impacts ................................................................................................................ 144 Risk and uncertainty .................................................................................................... 145 Hazardous events.......................................................................................................... 145 Impact probabilities ...................................................................................................... 146 Annex 2: Tiering EIA and SEA ............................................................................................ 147 Boxes Box 1:1 UNEP's work on integrated assessment of trade liberalization policies ........ 2 Box 1:2 Links between socio-economic and environmental impacts ............................ 6 Box 1:3 Recent reviews of EIA/SEA effectiveness .......................................................... 9 Box 2:1 Some recent trends in EIA capacity development.............................................. 17 Box 2:2 Key elements in the design of EIA systems ........................................................ 18 Box 2:3 EIA legal developments in transitional countries .............................................. 20 Box 2:4 Development of the EIA system in Nepal .......................................................... 22 Box 2:5 Preparation of EIA regulations and guidelines in Swaziland and Zambia.... 22 Box 2:6 How public involvement can support better EIA implementation – an example from Mexico ........................................................................................ 23 Box 2:7 Guiding principles of due process and EIA administration ............................ 24 Box 2:8 Harmonization of EIA requirements and procedures between the World Bank and newly independent states of the former Soviet Union .................... 30 Box 2:9 International environmental agreements relevant to EIA ................................ 32 Box 3:1 Proposed EIA framework for Africa .................................................................... 40 Box 3:2 Some success factors for EIA good practice ........................................................ 45 Box 3:3 Guidance for carrying out scoping ...................................................................... 47 Box 3:4 A step-by-step approach to scoping .................................................................... 49 Table of Contents vii Box 3:5 Choice of EIA method ............................................................................................ 50 Box 3:6 Guidance on impact significance .......................................................................... 54 Box 3:7 The EIA report.......................................................................................................... 57 Box 3:8 Review of the EIA report........................................................................................ 58 Box 4:1 Reasons for increasing use of public involvement and consultation .............. 65 Box 4:2 Public involvement and consultation in EIA procedures in Moldova and Zimbabwe.......................................................................................................... 71 Box 4:3 Stakeholder involvement programme : Victoria Falls SEA and Master Plan 74 Box 5:1 Examples of institutional frameworks for SEA .................................................. 90 Box 5:2 SEA arrangements of selected transitional countries ........................................ 91 Box 5:3 Summary of information required under the European Commission SEA Directive .................................................................................................................... 91 Box 5:4 SEA performance criteria........................................................................................ 94 Box 5:5 Netherlands environmental test (E-test) of draft legislation ............................ 96 Box 5:6 Preliminary SEA for Trade and Industry Policy, South Africa ........................ 96 Box 5:7 SEA of National Energy Policy, Slovakia ............................................................ 96 Box 5:8 SEA of Gujerat State Highways Programme India ............................................ 98 Box 5:9 SEA elements in land use planning: Central and Eastern European experience 100 Box 5:10 Regional environmental assessment of Argentina flood protection: .............. 101 Box 5:11 A comparison of EIA-based and policy appraisal approaches to SEA .......... 103 Box 5:12 The environmental overview ................................................................................ 103 Box 5:13 Methods and their usage in SEA .......................................................................... 104 Box 5:14 Use of vulnerability mapping for SEA of transport component of the National Physical Plan, Slovenia................................................................ 105 Box 5:15 Use of scenarios for SEA of master plan for Victoria Falls area, 1996 ............ 105 Box 5:16 Step-by-step guidance on application and use of procedures and methods in SEA good practice .............................................................................................. 106 Box 6:1 Examples of “internal” and “external” sustainability issues for a proposed refugee camp ............................................................................................................ 118 Box 6:2 Stakeholders in the EIA of the Botswana tsetse eradication programme ...... 118 Box 6:3 Analysis of stakeholder impacts in the EIA of the tsetse control programme, Botswana ............................................................................................ 120 Box 6:4 Integration of EIA and a system for continuing environmental management for a hypothetical proposed refugee settlement ................................................ 129 Figures Figure 3.1 Four priorities for better EIA practice ............................................................ 45 Figure 6.1 Links between the two dimensions of sustainability .................................. 117 Figure 6.2 Livelihood stakeholder benefits/disbenefits ................................................ 119 Figure 6.3 Stakeholder benefits and disbenefits .............................................................. 119 Figure 6.4 Impact prediction symbols (adapted from ODPM, 2002)............................ 122 Tables Table 6.1 Application of impact assessment and management tools to developments in the energy sector.................................................................. 115 Table 6.2 Impact assessment (IA) for sustainability assurance.................................... 123 Table 6.3 Tools for integrated assessment or sustainability appraisal ...................... 123