Week 9: Follow-up & Monitoring and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Flashcards
What is EA follow-up?
The monitoring and evaluation of the impacts of a project or plan (that has been subject to EA) fro management of, and communication about, the environmental performance of that project or plan
What are the four elements of EA follow-up?
- monitoring
- evaluation
- management
- communication
What is the monitoring element?
- collection of project and enviro data
- done before and after project implementation
- done to know if predictions were correct
- variety of forms that are focused on key VECs (ex. air quality monitoring)
What is the evaluation element?
- appraisal of conformity and accuracy of predictions
- how well was the EA done?
- there can be 3rd party evals
What is the management element?
- taking action in response to monitoring and evaluation
- panels and boards are formed - who’s going to do the FU?
- monitor impact and benefit agreements created
What is the communication element?
- informing stakeholders and the public about the results of EA follow-up
- usually not done well
What are the objectives of EA FU?
- Control of projects and their enviro impacts
- Promote adaptive management approach
- Improve scientific and technical knowledge
- Improve public awareness and acceptance
Explain FU objective 1 (Control of projects and their enviro impacts)
EA FU provides both verifying and controlling functions for implemented projects.
- compliance audits: verifies if projects are implemented and are being operated in accordance with approval conditions
- prediction audits: compares predicted impacts with actual consequences of the project
Explain FU objective 2 (Promote adaptive management approach)
- need for adaptive management in EA of uncertainties and imprecision of impact predictions (ex. only 44-56% of testable predictions are considered accurate)
- impact predictions are scientific hypotheses that need to be tested
- feedback from FU is an opportunity to respond when changes in an activity or environment warrant adaptation
Explain FU objective 3 (Improve scientific and technical knowledge)
FU and its learning function:
- prediction accuracy audits improve methods and impact predictions for future projects
- monitoring programs improve understanding of cause-effect relationships
- improve quality of proposed mitigation measures
Explain FU objective 4 (Improve public awareness and acceptance)
- ongoing EA FU programs improve public awareness
- increased transparency allows for gained trust, credibility, and political support as well as a legitimized decision-making process
What is the definItion of FU programs under CEAA 2012?
- mandatory after all EAs
- programs are intended to verify the accuracy of the predictions regarding potential environmental effects
- to determine if mitigation measures are working as intended (effectiveness)
What is the difference b/w compliance monitoring and FU program?
Compliance:
- were mitigation measures implemented?
- on its own, does not satisfy requirements of a FU program
- ex. inspection monitoring, regulatory permit monitoring, monitoring agreements
FU program:
- determines accuracy of the conclusions of the EA and the effectiveness of mitigation measures
What is effective FU & monitoring?
- Objectives and priorities clearly identified
- Targeted approach to data collection (focus on most useful indicators)
- Hypothesis-based approach (specify significance and probability levels while utilizing baselines & thresholds)
- Combined stressor and effects-based monitoring (performance and magnitude of indicators)
- Control sites (reference monitoring)
- Continuity in data collection (ensures data is transferable and comparable)
- Ensuring adaptability, flexibility, and timelines
- Socioeconomic-inclusive monitoring (address wide range of factors)
- Participatory monitoring (active engagement of local community in process)
What were the FU requirements under CEAA 1995?
- screening: not mandatory (RA decided)
- comprehensive study: mandatory
- review panel: mandatroy
- stated that FU results may be used for implementing adaptive management measures or for improving the quality of future EAs
What are the FU requirements under CEAA 2012?
- specified factors that must be considered (created in terms of designated project - objectives are different for each EA but usually include impact prediction verification and ensuring compliance with approval conditions)
- review panel must prepare report with respect to EA that sets out their rationale, conclusions, and recommendations for mitigation & FU
Who are the stakeholders involved in FU?
3 main groups:
- proponent: private company or govt
- first part FU initiated and carried out by proponent - EA regulator: govt agency
- to ensure proponents comply with EA approval conditions
- second part FU carried out by regulators - community: involves publics
- pressure from public scrutiny a driving force for proponents/regulators to implement EA FU program
- third party FU carried out or initiated by community
What are challenges for EA FU?
- Deficiencies in EA reports
- vague and qualitative predictive statements (untestable - i.e. “slight reduction” or “minor effect”) - Lack of guidance
- little guidance on how to conduct EA FU - Legislative deficiencies
- few jurisdictions with formal legislative requirement for FU - Lack of financial and human resources
- FU requires considerable resources
- if an EA is done well, it transforms the EA from a static to dynamic process