Introduction to Environmental Impact Assessment Flashcards
What is an EIA?
EIA is defined as a systematic process of determining and managing the potential (or real) impacts of proposed (or existing) human actions and their alternatives on the environment.
What does an EIA do?
- An EIA is undertaken to identify the potential risks of a proposed project to the environment (with human related impacts included).
- Identifies the impacts associated with the risks.
- Potentially identify measures to address the impacts of the project
Important dates to remember: 1960’s, 1987, 1991, 2015, 2021
1960 - EIA is introduced as a component of U.S environmental policy.
1987 - United Nations Environment program promotes EIA
1991 - NZ introduced resource management app.
2015 - UN SDGs setup
2021 - NZ RMA reform
Who conducts an EIA?
planners, engineers, developers, collaboration with wider community.
Who approves/accepts EIA’s?
This varies country to country but usually national and/or regional legislative bodies.
Why conduct a EIA?
- growing population globally
- finite resources
- sustainability of environment
- irreversible impacts of development
What factors in a EIA are important?
- society
- laws policies and development approvals
- access to information
- environment
- historic perspective
Society as a important factor
- population density, growth, mortality, health
- quality of life
- access to education
- culture, language, class structure, religion
- level of commitment to democratic principles, common good, individual and collective. rights. and responsibilities
- degree of development, level of infrastructure
- land tenure/ownership
- institutional, machinery of government, local and regional issues
- legal system
- policy - sectoral and environmental
- political - processes, levels, systems
- financial - level of debt, privatisation, restructuring
- development needs
Laws, policies and development approvals as a important factor
- international conventions
- pollution control standards
- capacity to enforce regulatory mechanisms
- water resources
- energy generation and transmission
- waste management
- flora and fauna, endangered species
- natural resource management
- resource allocation
- land management
- land use planning/regional development
- transportation
- process of jurisdictional cooperation and coordination
Access to information as a important factor (types, sources, and availability of environmental information)
- local (professional and traditional) knowledge
- mapping - geological, land use, planning, zoning etc.
- EIA reports (and documentation)
- registers of hazardous sites and materials
- scientific research by universities, industry, government
- inventory and baseline studies
- environmental monitoring and trend data
- geographic information systems (GIS)
- State of Environment Reporting
Environment as an important factor
- climate change
- water supply and quality
- biodiversity and habitat loss
- soil erosion, land degradation
- solid/hazardous waste management
- energy production/consumption
- urban development and infrastructure
- transportation and communications
