Environmental impact assessments and statements
Environmental impact assessments (EIAs) are systematic evaluations of the potential effects that proposed or existing human activities may have on the environment. These assessments are often legally required and aim to inform the public and decision-makers about the potential environmental impacts of development projects, such as construction, resource extraction, and land use changes. The process typically includes an initial scoping phase to determine if a full EIA is necessary, followed by the creation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) that documents the findings and is made available for public review.
The establishment of EIAs has been driven by increasing public demand for accountability and sustainable resource management, with significant influence from early environmental movements and legislation like the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The EIA process encourages the consideration of various environmental impacts, including social, economic, and aesthetic factors, thus reflecting the interconnectedness of these issues. Ultimately, EIAs facilitate informed decision-making and help ensure that potential impacts are addressed before projects are approved, promoting a balance between development and environmental conservation. In many countries, EIAs also enhance participation in global trade and funding opportunities, underscoring the international appreciation for environmental quality.
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Environmental impact assessments and statements
DEFINITION: Evaluations of the likely impacts of proposed or existing human activities on given environments, and the reports of the findings in documents for public review
Implementation of legal requirements that environmental impact assessments be performed and statements of the results be made public have resulted in changes in construction, resource extraction, and land-use planning that take into account the larger environment.
Various kinds of human activities may trigger environmental impact assessments (EIAs); these include construction, resource extraction, and land-management policy implementation. An entity planning a development can choose to do an EIA, but formal EIAs are mandated responses to specific legislation. Under some legislation, an initial scoping process is done to determine whether a more lengthy process, the EIA, is required. The results of a legally mandated or regulatory EIA are documented in an environmental impact statement (EIS).
The mandating of EIAs has become increasingly common in the United States and in other nations because of intensified public pressure on legislators and policymakers to improve resource management and conservation. The US National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) helped usher in the era of environmental assessment for government decision-making. By 1998, more than one hundred countries had established EIA processes. Ideally, administration of an EIA program promotes government and corporate accountability for environmental alterations and institutionalizes systematic, science-based policy analysis.
The environmental movement, spurred by Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring (1962), influenced US legislators to reconsider the lack of a national policy for the environment. NEPA, signed into law on January 1, 1970, heralded a new role for citizens to participate in reviews of government decisions. The EIA process produces a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) and a final environmental impact statement (FEIS) for public comment. While, once the FEIS has been accepted, NEPA has been satisfied, this in itself does not constitute approval or denial of a proposed project. By focusing on the process rather than the end result (as most environmental permit programs do), the EIA reflects a compromise between environmental and political interests. The goal is to ensure that a suitable EIS or “finding of no significant impact” (FONSI) is prepared. A well-planned project should be able to withstand the public scrutiny. Other laws and permitting processes may be required before a proponent can actually go ahead with a proposed development or action, but these processes can build upon or use the data gathered in the EIA.
In the United States, NEPA marked a change for federal agencies because it added environmental accountability to every agency’s mission, along with a specific method to carry out environmental reviews. NEPA not only provided a common thread among agencies but also comprehensively linked various categories or media in which environmental impacts occur. In the EIA process, impacts ranging from archaeological resource depletion to air are examined. Social impacts resulting from proposed actions are as much a part of the EIA as are issues related to water resources, noise, disposal, and other common types of environmental impacts. Aesthetics has also proved an important, if initially nebulous, category of impact; although a significant body of literature has arisen to treat the need to quantify impacts normally considered subjective. Socioeconomic values of environmental resources (for life support, amenities, and raw materials) are also used in evaluating trade-offs among alternatives. In most countries, formal EIAs generally include consideration of similar wide arrays of environmental impacts.
The broad categories of impacts are intended to reflect the interconnectedness of environmental settings and allow the interplay of social, economic, political, and environmental issues. The breadth also extends to the type of projects that require environmental assessment. In the United States, projects that are subject to the EIA process include any undertaken by a federal agency; any involving a federal license, permit, or funding; and any taking place on federal property. Nations that use the EIA process are more readily able to participate in global trade, qualify for funding, and meet the increasing international demand for and appreciation of environmental quality.
An EIA assesses more than the proposed action; it also looks at the impacts of legitimate alternatives to the action, as well as the impacts of not doing the project. The EIA process includes comparing the costs and benefits of the alternatives and the various impacts. The EIS documents the impacts, costs, and benefits for the project and its alternatives. Under NEPA-type legislation, a DEIS is circulated, and public comments are solicited either in writing or at hearings. The FEIS is issued after consideration of public and other agency input. The courts provide a forum for class-action suits and other assessment-related disputes. The majority of challenges have been based on allegations of either failure to prepare an EIS or failure to consider fully the proper alternatives. From a public policy perspective, as well as from the perspective of peer-reviewed science, it is the public nature of the EIS that determines the success of the EIA process.
The EIA is, ideally, part of the planning process rather than an afterthought for a project that has already commenced; however, the EIA must be conducted late enough in the planning stages that a sufficient description of the project exists to allow assessment of the impacts. One response to this problem is the strategic environmental assessment (SEA). The forecasting of impacts, especially for SEAs, cannot simply be done through direct observation. In conducting SEAs, teams of professionals use physical models, mathematical models, qualitative models, checklists, and expert opinions.
Starting with a project description, an EIS proceeds to identification of associated or expected direct and indirect impacts. Next, the existing environmental conditions are described. Then relevant laws and regulations are examined for standards and applicability. Specific environmental impacts are predicted, and their significance is evaluated. The final step is description of the incorporation of the EIA’s results into the project to reduce or mitigate the impacts; this includes information on monitoring, reporting, and responding to postconstruction impacts. EIA and EIS notifications appear in legal sections of major newspapers, on government and corporate internet sites, and at agency offices. An EIS is generally available from the preparers upon request or can be viewed by concerned citizens at various public locations.
Bibliography
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