Screening
In this section you will learn methods of conducting a quick assessment of the planned projects and developments to
decide if their impacts on the environment and well-being are severe enough to develop a full EIA.
What is screening?
Screening is the first stage of the EIA process which results in a key EIA decision, namely to either conduct the assessment
(based on the likely significant impacts) or not conduct it (in the anticipated absence of such impacts). Screening needs to
follow specific procedures often described in the legislation so all the projects follow the same process. In some cases,
particularly if the possible impacts of a project are not known, a preliminary environmental assessment will be prepared to
determine whether the project warrants an EIA.
- Key contributions of screening to a good EIA:
• Facilitates informed decision making by providing clear, well-structured, factual analysis of the effects and
consequences of proposed actions.
• Influences both project selection and policy design by screening out environmentally and/or socially
unsound proposals, as well as modifying feasible action.
Why do we need to conduct a screening?
An essential aspect of conducting an EIA is to determine the level of impact of the proposed project, development or
initiative. When we look at major development projects—especially those involving natural resources, such
as mining, hydroelectric dams, oil extraction, or tourism—we can say for certain that they will require an environmental and
social impacts assessment. On the other hand, the development of a tourism project may seem a low-risk at first, but a
second look could reveal that the project requires the removal of endangered flora or fauna from the development site, large
amounts of drinking water, energy and extensive sewage production. It will also lead to increased road and air traffic to
deliver supplies, visitors and workers. Finally, the impacts of project can change over time—thus during screening and the
whole EIA impacts are considered over the lifetime of the project, from its construction through to operations and after
closing.
The threshold requirements for conducting or not conducting an EIA vary from country to country. In some countries
regulations and laws provide a list of the types of activities—i.e., certain types of significant environmental and social
impacts such as resettlements, large-scale deforestation, land-cover change and extensive water use or waste production or
projects above certain monetary values. Most proposals can be screened very quickly and often the majority of them may
have few impacts and will be screened out of the EIA process. Only a limited number
of proposals, usually major projects, will need a full EIA because they likely have major irreversible impacts on
environmental resources such as biodiversity, water, air, fragile ecosystems, on people through health impacts or their
livelihood, needs for resettlement and on cultural heritage sites. We can thus identify three types of projects:
1. For high-impact projects: Projects that are likely to have significant serious adverse environmental impacts (i.e.,
irreversible, affect vulnerable ethnic minorities, involve involuntary resettlement, or affect cultural heritage sites)
and thus likely a full EIA is required:
• Dams and reservoirs forestry and production projects.
• Industrial plants (large-scale).
• Irrigation, drainage, and flood control (large-scale).
• Mining and mineral development (including oil and gas).
• Port and harbour development.
• Reclamation, resettlement and new land development.
• Thermal and hydropower development; manufacture, transportation, and use of pesticides; and other
hazardous and/or toxic materials.
2. For projects likely to have adverse environmental impacts that are less significant than those of in the previous
category: These projects likely won’t have irreversible impacts, and mitigation measures can be designed more
readily than for high-impact projects. Normally, a limited EIA will be undertaken to identify suitable mitigation and
management measures, and incorporate them into the project.
• Agro-industries
• Electrical transmission; rural electrification
• Aquaculture, irrigation and drainage (small-scale)
• Renewable energy
• Tourism
• Rural water supply and sanitation
3. For projects that are likely to have minimal or no adverse environmental impacts: No EIA is required. These
categories are often numbered 1, 2, and 3, or indicated as A, B and C to distinguish between them.
What are the approaches to screening?
Screening is done by the project developers often using a set of criteria determined by the responsible agency. It is
important that screening be done as early as possible in the development of the proposal in order for the proponent and other
stakeholders to be aware of possible EIA obligations. It is also important that screening be applied systematically and
consistently, so that the same decision would be reached if others did the screening. There are some specific methods
applied to screening, which reflect prescriptive and/or discretionary approaches.
Overall, we can distinguish two different types of screening (United Nations University [UNU], UNEP, RMIT, 2007):
• Prescriptive or standardized approaches in which development proposals that either require or are exempt from
EIA are listed in legislation and regulations, and proponents can often decide based on these standardized
approaches; this could include:
° Legal (or policy) definition of proposals to which EIA does or does not apply.
° Inclusion list of projects (with or without thresholds) for which an EIA is automatically required.
° Exclusion list of activities which do not require EIA because they are insignificant or are exempt by law (e.g.
national security or emergency activities).
• Customized approaches in which proposals are screened on an individual or case-by-case base, using
indicative guidance with categories.
Different countries and international agencies combine these types of screening procedures. Most often, a simple
categorization (such as A – C or 1 – 3) is used. These categories help proponents and licensing agencies decide when a
whole EIA is needed. The need for an EIA can be estimated based on planned projects whose impacts
[Link] 8
extend beyond the project site, such those as using water that cannot be produced (or producing sewage and waste that
cannot be processed) the on the project site. Specifically, the European Union suggests a set of questions to quickly assess
project proposals. These questions are designed so that a “Yes” answer will generally point toward the need for EIA and a
“No” answer to one not being required (European Commission [EC], 2001).
1. Will there be a large change in environmental conditions?
2. Will new features be out-of-scale with the existing environment?
3. Will the effect be unusual in the area or particularly complex?
4. Will the effect extend over a large area?
5. Will there be any potential for transboundary impact?
6. Will many people be affected?
7. Will many receptors of other types (fauna and flora, businesses, facilities) be affected?
8. Will valuable or scarce features or resources be affected?
9. Is there a risk that environmental standards will be breached?
10. Is there a risk that protected sites, areas, and features will be affected?
11. Is there a high probability of the effect occurring?
12. Will the effect continue for a long time?
13. Will the effect be permanent rather than temporary?
14. Will the impact be continuous rather than intermittent?
15. If it is intermittent will it be frequent rather than rare?
16. Will the impact be irreversible?
17. Will it be difficult to avoid, or reduce or repair or compensate for the effect?
In these cases, proposals are screened based on preliminary assessments of the potential impacts (or on the type and
magnitude of activities) that the project is planning to undertake. These may include such planned activities as amount of
land cleared or water use, sewage and air emissions produced over certain thresholds. Here it is really important that
thresholds are set across the potential areas of impacts such as the extent of water withdrawal, air emission release to the
air, destruction of soils or changes to land cover. Specific projects such as oil refineries, thermal power stations, gas and oil
extraction and large agricultural operations would all require EIAs. Finally, most countries in the LAC region focus on
defining the types of projects, as well as their size and potential impacts to determine the need for an EIA.
TABLE 5. EXAMPLES OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF SCREENING CATEGORIES
Organization Types of screening Details on types of screening
Inter-American Project C – No EIA required, but some Category “C” operations may require specific safeguards
Development categories—A, B, C, or monitoring requirements to address environmental and other risks (social, disaster,
Bank (IDB) and Uncategorized cultural, health and safety etc.).
— According to the B – Projects require an environmental and/or social analysis, according to, and focusing
scale of the project, on, the specific issues identified in the screening process, and an environmental and
location, sensitivity social management plan (ESMP). Category B if its potential adverse environmental
and potential impact. impacts on humans or environmentally important areas— including wetlands, forests,
grasslands, and other natural habitats—are less adverse than those of Category A
projects.
A – Projects likely have significant adverse environmental impacts that are sensitive,
diverse, or unprecedented. These impacts may affect an area broader than the sites.
Potential impacts are considered “sensitive” if they may be irreversible (e.g., lead to loss
of a major natural habitat) or raise impacts on indigenous peoples; natural habitats;
physical and cultural resources; or/and involuntary resettlement.
World Bank Three categories, Category A: Projects likely to have significant adverse environmental impacts that
depending on the are sensitive, diverse, or unprecedented. These impacts may affect an area broader
type, location, than the sites or facilities subject to physical works. EIA examines the potential
sensitivity, and negative and positive environmental impacts, compares them with those of feasible
scale of the project alternatives (including the “without project” scenario), and recommends any measures
and the nature needed to prevent, minimize, mitigate, or compensate for adverse impacts and improve
and magnitude environmental performance. The proponent is responsible for preparing an EIA report.
of its potential B: Proposed project can have potential adverse environmental impacts on human
environmental populations or environmentally important areas, but less adverse than those of
impacts. Category A projects. These impacts are site-specific; few if any of them are irreversible;
and in most cases mitigating measures can be designed more readily than for Category
A projects. The scope of EA for a Category B project may vary from project to project,
but it is narrower than that of Category A EIA.
C: A proposed project is likely to have minimal or no adverse environmental impacts.
Beyond screening, no further EA action is required.
European Case-by-case Decided according to thresholds and/or criteria (for example size), location (sensitive
Union examination based on ecological areas in particular) and potential impact (surface affected, duration).
lists of sectors and Member States may set thresholds or criteria for the purpose of determining which of
types of activities such projects should be subject to assessment on the basis of the significance of their
that require an EIA environmental effects such as:
and a set of activities • For power stations: capacity in MW
that may require EIA
• For landfills: total volume, volume/day, tonnes/day, total capacity in tonnes
depending on their
location, activities, • For shopping centres: area in hectares or m2 (area, floor space)
and impacts. • For roads: length of road (in km)
Specific project are listed, including crude-oil refineries, thermal power stations and
other combustion installations, installations for the extraction of asbestos, chemical
installations, groundwater abstraction, works for the transfer of water resources
between river basins, dams, extraction of petroleum and natural gas, pipelines for the
transport of gas, intensive rearing of poultry or pigs, quarries and open-cast mining.
Source: IDB, 2011;World Bank, 1999; European Union, 2001.
Environmental Impact Assessment Training Manual
TABLE 6. APPROACHES TO SCREENING THE SELECTED COUNTRIES IN THE CAFTA AND
NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES
Country Project types Criteria Details
Belize Regulations list the types of projects that require, do not require, and may
require EIA, depending on size and location. Proponents should apply early to the
government agency to determine whether project requires an EIA or EMP.
Costa Rica X X Two-stage screening: (i) legislation lists the type of activities, projects, and works
that require EIA; and (ii) application of Form D1 or Form D2, depending on project
category.
Dominican X X Law defines the types of projects, works, and activities that require EIA—and
Republic determines the type of study required for each category—according to the
potential environmental impact; for projects not included in the list, national agency
determines if an EIA is needed
Ecuador X Legislation defines the type of projects that require an EIA. Proponents must register
the project in the online Environmental System (SUIA), to request a certification of
the project’s location in relation to conservation areas and forest protected areas.
El Salvador X Legislation defines the type of projects that require an EIA. Group A: does not
require the presentation of any information Group B-1: EMP Group B-2: EIA.
Guatemala X Regulation lists different types of activities that require an EIA, including hotels
of a certain size, marinas, desalination plants, hydroelectric projects, and coastal
development.
Honduras X X Law and regulations list the types of projects and activities that require an
EIA; Category 1: SINEIA F-01 form and Category 2 or 3: SINEIA F-02 form and
Environmental Management Plan Category 4: EIA. Four categories (1, 2, 3, and
4) based on the characteristics of operation, nature of the actions, its potential
environmental impacts or risk.
Mexico X - Law and regulations list the types of works and activities that require an EIA; States
partially and Federal District can demand an EIA under certain conditions.
Nicaragua X - Law lists types of projects that require an EIA.
Panama X Law and regulations list the types of activities depending on the risks associated
with the project.
Source: Tiffer-Sotomayor et al., 2015.
How is screening conducted?
The screening is usually done by a self-assessment by the project/development proponents using guidance and
question forms provided by the designated authorities. These could range from open- ended questions—in which it
is up to the proponents to create the structure around the questions/areas provided—or the proponents are asked to
fill out a detailed form and present their activities and impacts.
Most countries in the LAC region focus on defining or specifying the types of projects, their size and potential
impacts to determine the need for an EIA.
In Honduras, Article 24 of Decree 189-2009 establishes that all projects, construction work or activity (both
public and private) need to obtain an environmental license prior to beginning construction and operation. Based
on the type of the planned projects, low-impact or low-risk projects (Category 1) shall not be compelled to
comply with the formality of an environmental license. However, these projects still need to comply with existing
environmental legislation and the Good Environmental Practice Code of Honduras (Article 30 of ED 189-2009).
Finally, exemptions from EIA application are provided to any (groups of) activities identified in the regulation as
not requiring an EIA (e.g., military or emergency activities). The actual screening is done using two forms: Form
SINEIA Form F-01 and F-02 SINEIA. The first it is for low-impact projects (Category 1) and the second for
moderate-impact projects (Categories 2 and 3).
Environmental Impact Assessment Training Manual
• The SINEIA Form F-01 environmental form is intended to carry out the impact assessment of environmental
activities, works or projects under Category 1 activities, i.e., those with low environmental impact or
potential environmental risk. The form must be completed by the holder or its legal representative, and is
intended to present the characteristics of the activity, work or project to be developed, and the basic
environmental conditions of the site where it is to be located. The review procedure SINEIA Form F-01 may
entail, according to the reviewing authority, the inspection of the project site, work or activity.
• SINEIA Form F-02 is an instrument of environmental assessment to be filed by the legal representative
of the holder or holders of projects, works or activities of moderate risk or potential environmental
impact environmental such as Categories 2 and 3. This form is an environmental self-assessment tool in
a digital format/spreadsheet by which, the holder, with the support of an environmental service provider
makes
a description of project or land area where the project is to be located and assess the significance of
the environmental impacts that will occur.
Currently, the screening is done using an online system that can be accessed at: [Link]
MiAmbiente
More details on Honduran EIA and EMP regulations and procedures are provided in section 3.7
TABLE 7. SUMMARY OF THE CATEGORIES OF PROJECTS, WORKS OR ACTIVITIES IN HONDURAS
CATEGORY EXPLANATION
Environmental Activities, works or projects are arranged in four different categories (1, 2, 3, and 4) taking into account the
Categorization relevant factors or conditions in terms of its dimensions and activities, known characteristics of operation,
nature of the actions developed, its potential environmental impacts or environmental risks.
Category 1 Activities, works or projects in Category 1 correspond to those human activities classified as Low-Impact
Potential environmental or Low Environmental Risk.
Category 2 Activities, works or projects in Category 2 correspond to those human activities classified as Moderate –
Low Potential Environmental Impact and Environmental Risk.
Category 3 Activities, works or projects in Category 3 correspond to those human activities classified as Moderate –
High Potential Environmental Impact and Environmental Risk.
Category 4 Activities, works or projects in Category 4 correspond to those human activities classified as High
Environmental Impact or Environmental Risk. Megaprojects, defined as large-scale project and those that
are national in scope, are included as this category. Identifying an activity as a Category 4 Megaproject
is done initially through the Categorization table. Verification is the responsibility of the Secretariat
Natural Resources and Environment through the Directorate of Evaluation and Environmental Control. This
identification includes indicating whether it is a megaproject of a strategic nature or not.
