ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT REGULATIONS

Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations

(The provision and functionality of post-project monitoring)

Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations

(The provision and functionality of post-project monitoring)

Introduction

Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is the process of assessing the consequences that are likely to flow from a proposed development. It is a planning and management tool for sustainable development that seeks to identify the type, magnitude and probability of environmental and social changes likely to occur as direct or indirect result of a project or policy and to design the possible mitigation procedure. National Environmental Policy Act 1969 is the legislative basis for EIA, which was the result of wide spread recognition in the US in the 1960s that some major environmental problems were created by the government's actions. This legislation required that all federal agencies would consider the environmental consequences of their actions. Within a few years time, many developed and developing countries designed their EIA legislation. By 1990s, developing countries in Asia emerged at the forefront of EIA practice in the developing world. Today, EIA is firmly established in planning process in many of these countries. However, many authors suggest that despite the existence of good EIA guidelines and legislation, environmental degradation continues to be a major concern in these countries. EIAs have not been able to provide 'environmental sustainability assurance' (ESA) for these countries.

The consideration of cumulative effects in environmental impact assessment (EIA) has been required in the UK, though somewhat ambiguously, since the EC Directive (85/337/EEC) was implemented in 1988. This study describes the results of a review of cumulative effects considerations in 50 UK environmental impact statements (EISs) prepared for a variety of project types produced between 1989 and 2000. The results of the review suggest that cumulative effects are far from thoroughly addressed. Only 24 EISs (48%) mentioned the term 'cumulative effects/impacts' and only 9 EISs (18%) provided a discussion, which were mostly qualitative. The problems in addressing these issues are explored, and the main findings include the various interpretations of the concept of cumulative effects and the varied treatment of cumulative effects issues. Where cumulative effects are considered in the scoping stage, this led to a further discussion or analysis of these effects. The research concludes that for a better consideration of cumulative effects, an effective driving force would be the local planning authority (and other competent authorities) requiring developers during the scoping process to address cumulative effects and so help meet the most recent strengthened legal requirements of the EC EIA Amendment Directive 97/11/EC and UK Regulations. More tailored guidance for developers and authorities alike is needed for this to happen.

This study examines the extent that cumulative effects are considered in environmental impact statements (EISs) in the UK. The results of a review of a sample of 50 EISs are described, and deficiencies in the consideration of cumulative effects are identified. Some of the issues explored are: whether the lack of an accepted definition of cumulative effects has been a limiting factor in undertaking cumulative effects assessment (CEA); whether scoping ...