Environmental impact assessment theory and practice. Government of pakistan environment section, planning commission. Progress in environmental assessment policy, and management. Designmethodologyapproach this approach has been adapted by the bill and melinda gates foundations global libraries initiative gl when providing impact planning and assessment support to. Chapter 4 environment impact assessment 67 the planning act does not require a preliminary assessment or public environment report for the environmental assessment of development proposals. The objective of environmental impact assessment is to offer information to decision makers concerning matters that may be brought about as a result of decisions relating to a new project, program, plan or policy. Environmental impact assessment what is environmental impact assessment eia. The paradigm shift of assessment of learning to assessment for learning has brought diversity to educational practice especially in the propagation of creativity and. Evaluation of significance are the impacts acceptable. Environmental impact assessment eia course curriculum for tertiary level institutions in pakistan national impact assessment programme niap pakistan thomas b fischer phd fiema and obaidullah nadeem phd fipp september 20. Theory and method in social impact assessment thomas dietz. This is part of the needs analysis and planning activity of the policy cycle. International association for impact assessment iaia is to act as a networking organization for the exchange of ideas, concepts and best practice in impact assessment. The best approach to environmental management is an integrated approach in which all the components of the environment are taken into consideration and its proper management, as a whole, is done.
To start addressing this guidance gap, the department. Organized into 15 chapters, the book provides engineers with the tools and methods. Obstacles and dilemmas already encountered and addressed in planning theory are still hampering eia theory building and practice. The limited and sporadic interaction between eia and planning theory has meant that eia has largely failed to benefit from planning theory insights and lessons. Planning theory application in kenya and policy implications. A major goal of environmental planning is to create sustainable communities, which aim to conserve and protect. Environmental impact assessment eia development projects in the past were undertaken without any consideration to their environmental consequences.
Environmental impact assessment eia has been a significant development in environmental management over the last two decades. Environmental impact assessment training manual about this initiative the eia learning platform and the accompanying manual seek to help build capacity for key aspects of environmental impact assessment eia at the project and initiative levels in the context of national legislation and policies. The recommendations do not necessarily carry the full support of all the sectors represented. Throughout the wide range of environmental assessment processes available, all recognise that policy responses are needed for effective environmental management and or sustainable use of the environment. Preparation of an environmental impact statement eis or report documentation of the proposal, impacts, impact mitigation and management options, level of significance and concerns. Due to the high demand for the programme we may not be able to offer places to all applicants who have the entry qualifications that we require. Importance of an eia in environmental protection sciencing.
These two documents focus on getting the eia process started well. Environmental and social impact assessment and planning. Environmental impact assessment eia process with practical guidance and a ready source of information about the process. Ella antonio earth council asiapacific, manila, the philippines. The preparation of the eia report guidance aims to help developers and consultants alike prepare good quality environmental impact assessment reports and to guide competent authorities and other. Hanley pdf a guide to theory and practice, cornelissen, j. Environmental and social impact assessment and planning wsp. The implications of learning theories to assessment and. Environmental impact assessment eia can broadly be defined as a study of the effects of a proposed project, plan or program on the environment. Environmental impact assessment and strategic environmental. Indeed most of the ndeveloped land around the site is owned by the project sponsor. Theory and practice describes the various pieces of knowledge necessary to speak the language of eia and carry out eias focusing on a variety of environmental issues, including impacts on environmental components, like air, water, soils, land, noise and biological environments.
The environmental impact assessment must identify, describe and assess the direct and indirect significant effects of the project on specified environmental factors8. In view of the colossal damage to the environment, governments and public are now concerned about the environmental impacts of developmental activities. Firstly, the environmental impact assessment for projects should have clear goals and purposes and should as such be set firmly within the law, policies, frameworks and procedures. Christine asare deputy director, environmental protection agency, accra, ghana.
Nov 14, 2014 planning and environmental impact assessment eia. The history of environmental impact assessment environmental sciences essay. Environmental impact assessments eia are documents that contain detailed analyses of proposed projects that may have environmental, social and economic impacts. The others offer various international and comparative perspectives on the development and implementation of environmental assessment ea and strategic environmental assessment sea. Download citation planning theories and environmental impact assessment the limited and sporadic interaction between eia and planning theory has meant. Cumulative effects assessment, social, economic, and ecological impact assessment, and more recent efforts to incorporate biodiversity, sustainability, social justice, human health, risk, and transboundary concerns and environmental principles such as the precautionary and pollution prevention principles have all furthered the integration of. Environmental impact assessment eia and environmental impact statement eis. Encourage the adoption of standard methods and key performance indicators in evaluation and impact assessment in order to facilitate valid comparisons, benchmarking, reliable forecasts, transparency and accountability. Impact assessment is, in more than one sense, a theorybased activity. Eia is a tool for decisionmakers to identify potential environmental impacts of proposed projects, to evaluate alternative approaches, and to design and incorporate appropriate prevention, mitigation, management and monitoring measures.
Risk theory and the environmental assessment process. Deforestation environmental impact assessment eia is a sys. This could be important for urban planning and development policies because many of these policies are. The importance of an environmental impact assessment is to insure that impacts are evaluated in order to protect the environment. Department of environmental affairs, 2014, environmental impact assessment and management strategy for south africa draft. Since 1997 and lawrences 1997 call for theory building in environmental. Some canadian jurisdictions have made effort in the area especially alberta, british columbia, ontario and canada eia systems. Journal of environmental planning and management, 57, 9, 1285. In recent years, major projects have encountered serious difficulties because insufficient account has been.
Environmental impact assessment eia is a tool used in most environment based organisations to measure the impact of the environment through the assessment tool. The purpose of this article is to analyse the content and importance of social impact assessment sia in urban planning. Overview of the eia process environmental law alliance. Eia parallels to each planning theory and lessons for eia are identified. Recommend goals, methods and measures for planning, evaluation and impact assessment pertaining to events and tourism. By drawing on the expertise of a number of global experts, this comprehensive volume considers the challenges, successes and progress of easea policy and. The importance of environmental impact assessment eia. As a formal discipline, ecological impact assessment had its origins in the national environmental policy act nepa which became law in the united states in 1969.
The second edition developed many issues of growing importance in this fast. It involves doing a prospective analysis of what the impact of an intervention might be, so as to inform policymaking the policymakers equivalent of business planning. Due to heightened environmental awareness, public interest in sustainable development, and stringent environmental protection laws and regulations, projects often require environmental approvals prior to being launched. Learning theories, which provide a profound coherence and understanding in changing teaching practices and standards, are imperative to the choice and employment of assessment and instructional scaffolding techniques. A major goal of environmental planning is to create sustainable. First, inherently it involves establishing a otheory of change o, a oprogramme theory o or ointervention logic o in other words, a description of the cascade of cause and effect leading. If there could still be any lingering doubt about the need to take systematic account of environmental effects in planning and to do so in the widest, most inclusive manner possible it must surely have been dispelled by the latest february 2007 ipcc assessment of the science of climate. An eis is now the sole method of environmental assessment of a development proposal that is likely to have an impact on the environment part 8. Environmental social impact assessment during site preparation, construction activities may impact the land. There have been a large number of attempts to develop a theory or theories of environmental impact assessment in order to justify its use in environmental decisionmaking. It is important to note that the project area is benign from a geological perspective ith no known history of flooding, tornadoes, earthquakes or other climatic nor january 2011 6. In view of the fact that development is an evergrowing process, its impact on the environment is also ever increasing, leading to rapid deterioration in.
While doing so, the following aspects should be taken into account. Two kinds of assessment have evolved in recent years. An overview of the characteristics, strengths, and limitations of five major planning theoriesrationalism, pragmatism, socioecological idealism sei, politicaleconomic mobilization pem, and communications and collaboration cc is presented in an effort to ameliorate. The environmental impact assessment eia process is an interdisciplinary and multistep procedure to ensure that environmental considerations are included in decisions regarding projects that may impact the environment. Importance of environmental impact assessment and monitoring. Historical development of environmental assessment in scotland 7. One theory may, for example, broaden the conceptual foundation of another, offset key deficiencies, provide tools for grounding, and implementing that theory make it possible to address many problem and context types and. An environmental change is the measurable change in physical and biological systems and environmental quality resulting from a development activity. Creation of environmental impact assessment eia system is vital to conform socioeconomic development projects to environmental safety and thereby ensure sustainable economic development. These have developed along parallel paths, at times drawing procedures from each other, and sometimes being used in the same inquiry.
This study analysed 40 planning applications in the east of england to investigate the practice of translating paper recommendations in the environmental statement es into legal conditions and obligations. The finnish eia system included a comprehensive assessment procedure with wide participatory practices for the project level and also general aspirations. Environmental social impact assessment undeveloped for over 3 kilometers radius around the site. Environmental planning is the process of facilitating decision making to carry out land development with the consideration given to the natural environment, social, political, economic and governance factors and provides a holistic framework to achieve sustainable outcomes. This book was born from a nagging concern about how the environmental impact assessment eia process is commonly depicted in eia literature and applied in practice. The process of environmental impact assessment in the context of town and country planning in england is governed by the town and country planning environmental impact assessment. In this context, the term environmental impact assessment eia is usually used when applied to actual projects by individuals or companies and the term strategic environmental. Pdf impact mitigation in environmental impact assessment. Our environmental and social impact assessment esia and planning teams specialize in the process of gaining approvals, permitting, licensing, and planning support. It incorporates environmental assessment into the whole process of environmental policy planning, pulling together the impact of policies from different sectors over time and the existing opportunities to promote sustainable livelihoods and options. Environmental assessment iea, ecosystem assessment ea and environmental valuation assessments.
As illustrated by figure 1, there are numerous overlaps, interconnections, and middleground concepts between pairs of planning theories. Mitigation and impact management how will the impacts be mitigated, reduced or managed. Iv roads department guideline planning and environmental impact assessment of road infrastructure foreword the guideline for planning and environmental impact assessment of road infrastructure has been produced at a time when government is calling more and more for sustainable development. Environmental assessment ea is the assessment of the environmental consequences positive negative of a plan, policy, program, or actual projects prior to the decision to move forward with the proposed action. The analysis and recommendations of this report do not necessarily reflect the views of the department of environmental affairs. It measures the environmental consequences of a particular plan or policy. The nearest january 2011 5 u residential area is located about 7 kilometers from the site. An impact can be described in terms of its magnitude and significance, terms to be dealt with more in detail in section 7. Environmental impact assessment must realize decisionmaking based on the inputted. Theory and practice pdf free download ebook, handbook, textbook, user guide pdf files on the internet quickly and easily.
Purposes, objectives, scope and effectiveness of eia are elaborated on and different legal, administrative and policy eia frameworks internationally are introduced. Dec 01, 2000 planning theories and environmental impact assessment planning theories and environmental impact assessment lawrence, david p. Advancing the theory and practice of impact assessment. Pdf what is impact assessment and why is it important. Thus, it is essential that developing countries should undertake environmental impact assessment at planning stages, and ensure that the results are incorporated firmly into the planning process tolba et al. The environmental planning and assessment act 1979 requires social impacts to be assessed and considered as part of the overall environmental impact assessment of all state significant projects. It aims to avoid, reduce, and offset any adverse impacts.
Theory and method in social impact assessment dietz. Planning theories and environmental impact assessment. Social impact assessment nsw department of planning. The theory and practice of strategic environmental assessment. In this guideline, social impact assessment sia is the process of identifying, predicting, evaluating and develop. Th e seia steps are similar to those used during the. Environmental impact assessment eia course curriculum for.
Also addressed are the application of planning theories to different context types, overlaps, interconnections and middle ground concepts among theories, the integration of values, ethics, and postmodern perspectives and the potential to construct composite theories. Environmental impact assessment eia has widely become an important and relatively successful tool to assess and evaluate the environmental consequences of development proposals before commitments are made wood, 2003. Environmental impact assessment eia is the process by which information about the environmental effects of a project is collected, assessed and taken into account by the department in reaching a decision about whether a proposed development should be approved. Social and ecological ideals are evident in life cycle assessment, in sea, in integrated impact assessment, and in ongoing efforts to link eia to urban and regional planning, to environmental and resource planning and management, to environmental quality control, and to threatened and endangered species, communities, and ecosystem protection initiatives. Planning and environmental impact assessment of road. Handbook of environmental impact assessment 2 volumes, blackwell, oxford wood c. The eiar includes a description of the impacts that remain after mitigation measures have been applied for the proposed project and its alternatives. Eia is viewed as both science and art, reflecting the concern both with technical aspects of. There are nine procedural theories of planning that remain the principal theories of planning procedure today. However, it does not provide guidance on how this social impact assessment should be conducted. The history of environmental impact assessment environmental. Environment wing, ministry of climate change, pakepa. The environmental impact assessment eia often has a central position in the planning of large development projects. Towards efficient and effective eias and how gis can help.
Several activities are required in the conducting of an environmental impact study, including impact identification, preparation of a description of the existing environment, impact prediction and assessment, and selection of the proposed action from a set of alternatives being evaluated to meet identified needs. Environmental impact assessment and strategic environmental assessment. Thus, to assess the environmental impacts, the mechanism of. Depending on the level of assessment required, this takes the form of either a basic assessment report or an environmental impact report.
Aug 18, 2010 theories for ruralenvironmental planning citations. An environmental impact is an estimate or judgement of the significance and value of environmental effects on physical, biological, social or economic environment. Planning theory is the body of scientific concepts, definitions, behavioral relationships, and assumptions that define the body of knowledge of urban planning. This audience assesses the environmental impact of policy, projects, processes and products and makes decisions based upon these assessments. Environmental impact assessment is quite new policy instrument in finnish environmental policy system 7.
Pdf click to increase image size click to decrease. If we are unable to consider you for an offer you may be placed on a. Thirdly, origin and development of eia are described before different types of impacts to be considered in eia are introduced. A critical planning approach too often in the past ad hoc development plans have iliken place which have been destnu. Simply defined, the eia process helps identify the possible environmental effects of a proposed activity and. A planning theory perspective on the eia nordregio. Impact assessment is, in more than one sense, a theory based activity. It also stems from a perception that eia practitioners need more help to cope with the many competing demands and recurrent problems encountered in their daytoday work. Seia answers these questions using a series of steps for identifying assessing mitigating and monitoring the potential impacts of a proposed development. We work with organizations focused on investing, developing, or expanding existing assets, seeking ongoing maintenance for their operations and infrastructure, or the closure of. Planning theories and environmental impact assessment obstacles and dilemmas already encountered and addressed in planning theory are still hampering eia theory building and practice.