ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ASSESSMENT
Basic Steps in EIA
ENE802
Dr. Muhammad Fahim Khokhar
The EIA Process
Identification of Need
Proposal Description
Screening
EIA Required Initial Environmental No EIA
Examination
Scoping Public Involvement
Assessing
Impact identification Impact analysis/
prediction, Impact significance
Mitigation Public involvement typically occurs
Redesign at these points.
Planning for impact management
Reporting
Within
90 Days Reviewing
Resubmit Document quality Public Involvement
Stakeholders input
Proposal acceptability
Redesign Within 45 Days
Decision-making
+ information from this process
contributes to effective future EIA
Not-Approved Approved
Monitoring + EIA audit and evaluation
Impact management
The EIA Process
1.Need Identification
• Need & economic feasibility
• a systematic process to identify,
predict and evaluate the
environmental effects of
proposed actions and projects
2.Proposal Development
The EIA Process
3. SCREENING
This section introduces the different procedures and
methods for identifying whether or not an EIA/IEE is
required for a proposal.
It examines their relative strengths and weaknesses, and
allows participants to gain initial familiarity with the
concept of impact ”significance” and its importance in
triggering the right level of EIA review.
Project lists with/without thresholds
Exclusion lists
Schedule-1,2,3, Sec-12 EP Act 1997
Thresholds versus case-by-case approach to
screening:
Advantages Disadvantages
Thresholds
Simple to use Place arbitrary, inflexible rules on a
variable environment (unless
tiered)
Quick to use; more certainty Less room for common sense or
good judgement
Consistent between locations May be or become inconsistent
with relevant neighbours
Consistent between decisions Difficult to set and, once set,
within locations difficult to change
Consistent between project types Lead to a proliferation of projects
lying just below the thresholds
Thresholds versus case-by-case approach to
screening:
Advantages Disadvantages
Case by Case
Allows common sense and Likely to be complex and
good judgment ambiguous
Flexible—can incorporate Likely to be slow and costly
variety in project and
environment
Can evolve (and improve) Open to abuse by decision-makers
easily because of political or financial
interests
Open to poor judgment of decision-
makers Likely to be swayed by
precedent and therefore lose
flexibility
An Initial Environmental
Examination (IEE)
Proposal description and identification of
potential environmental impacts
Resolution of community concerns, if any.
Defining mitigating measures against
potential adverse impacts and enhancing
potential benefits
Outlining environmental monitoring and
management plans
4. Scoping-
What is it?
Defining
- boundaries of the EIA study area and extent of
investigations
- significant effects and factors to be considered
Highlighting
- the necessary information for decision- making
- significant public and private concerns
Identifying and presenting
- the environmental concerns and alternatives to
facilitate decision making
SCOPING
Scoping should begin with the identification of
individuals, communities, local authorities and statutory
consultees likely to be affected by the project:
Other issues could include:
particularly valued environmental attributes;
those impacts considered of particular concern to the
affected parties;
the methodology that should be used to predict and
evaluate different impacts;
the scale at which those impacts should be
considered;1
broad alternatives that might be considered.
Reference should be made to relevant national,
regional and local development plans, subject plans
and government policies and guidelines,
Objectives of scoping
Establish consultation procedures with
potentially affected people
Identify the possible environmental and
socio-economic impacts
Incorporate local values into project design
Evaluate existing & potential concerns
Define the boundaries of the EIA study
Determine analysis and consultation
procedures
Establish the terms of reference
Consider reasonable and practical
alternatives.
5. Assessing
Identification and detailed analysis of
potential impacts and alternatives including
the alternative of ‘No activity’.
Defining short-term / long term benefits
and/or implications of the project
Determining significance of impacts or
acceptability.
Aims and Objectives of Assessment
General aim of assessment is to ensure that all
potentially significant environmental impacts
(adverse or favorable) are identified and taken
into account in the EIA process. Specific aims
may include:
• to ensure compliance with regulations;
• to provide a comprehensive coverage of a
full range of impacts, including social,
economic, physical and biological
• to distinguish between positive and
negative, large and small, long-term and
short-term, reversible and irreversible
impacts;
• to identify secondary, indirect and
cumulative impacts as well as direct
impacts;
Aims and Objectives of Assessment
• to distinguish between significant and
insignificant impacts;
• to allow a comparison of alternative
development proposals;
• to consider impacts within the
constraints of an area’s carrying capacity;
• to incorporate qualitative as well as
quantitative information;
• to be easy and economical to use;
• to be unbiased and to give consistent
results;
• to be of use in summarizing and
presenting impacts in the EIS.
Impact Dimensions
nature- Social, chemical, physical,
biological etc
magnitude- How much significant
extent – short term, long term
timing & likelihood – about when
and why?
reversibility
6. Alternatives & Mitigation
Finding better ways of doing things
Minimizing or eliminating adverse
impacts
Enhancing project benefits
Protecting public and individual rights
to compensation
Alternatives & Mitigation
the “no action” option,
alternative locations,
alternative scales of the project,
alternative processes or equipment,
alternative site layouts,
alternative operating conditions and
alternative ways of dealing with
environmental impacts
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Effective Mitigation
requires a clear understanding of:
what is the problem?
when the problem will occur and can it
be addressed before it is significant?
where the problem should be addressed
how the problem should be addressed
who stands to gain or lose
Mitigation Options
alternative ways of meeting
the need
changes in planning and design
improving monitoring and
management
monetary compensation
replacing, relocating,
rehabilitating
Making Mitigation & Monitoring effective
For mitigation and monitoring to be effective, it must be:
Targeted.
Realistic. Funded.
Mitigation
M&M must be Funding for M&M
measures &
achievable within must be adequate
indicators must
time, resources & over the life of the
correspond to
capabilities. activity
impacts.
Considered early. Considered early.
Preventive mitigation is If M&M budgets are not
usually cheapest and most programmed at the design
effective. Prevention must be stage, they are almost always
built in at the design stage. inadequate!
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Mitigation and Monitoring Plans
Mitigation and monitoring
requirements are set out in
Environmental Mitigation and
Monitoring Plans (EMMPs)
Also called Environmental Management Plans, or
Mitigation and Monitoring Plans
Effective mitigation and monitoring requires
IMPLEMENTING the Mitigation and Monitoring Plans
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7. Public involvement
keeping all stakeholders posted
Knowing and including public views,
concerns and values in the project design
maximizing project benefits
enhancing public confidence
adding transparency and accountability in
decision- making
reducing conflict
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8.Effective Reporting
assists in environmentally
friendly project planning
facilitates decision
making
helps the public to
understand
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9. Reviewing
• The step in the EIA
process that determines
whether the EIA report
is an adequate
assessment of the
environmental effects
• is of sufficient
relevance and quality
for decision- Making.
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10. Decisions
Unconditional approval
Conditional approval
Approval subject to satisfactory results
of ongoing investigation
Further investigation prior to re-
consideration
Request for a supplementary, a
new, EIA report
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rejection
11. MONITORING
Collection of analysis data on
critical variables
Repetitive observations,
measurements and recording of
date on sensitive environmental
variables and operational
parameters over a defined period
of time
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