Written Report on Environmental Impact Assessment
Prepared by:
Reyes, Marwin
Termulo, Jessmark
Umali, Joshua
November 10, 2021
Environmental Impact Assessment: Definition, Roles and
Classification!
Definition:
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) can be defined as the systematic identification and
evaluation of the potential impacts (effects) of proposed projects, plans, programs or legislative
actions relative to the physical, chemical, biological, cultural and socio-economic components of
the total environment.
The primary purpose of the EIA process is to encourage the consideration of the environmental
issues in planning and decision making and to ultimately arrive at actions which are more
environmentally compatible (L. Canty, 1996).
The potential scope of a comprehensive EIA system is considerable and could include the
appraisal of policies, plans, programmes and specific projects.
EIA, as it has developed in many countries, involves a number of procedures and stages:
a. Screening to determine which projects or developments require a full or partial
impact assessment study;
b. Scoping to identify which potential impacts are relevant to assess (based on
legislative requirements, international conventions, expert knowledge and public
involvement), to identify alternative solutions that avoid, mitigate or compensate
adverse impacts on biodiversity (including the option of not proceeding with the
development, finding alternative designs or sites which avoid the impacts,
incorporating safeguards in the design of the project, or providing compensation for
adverse impacts), and finally to derive terms of reference for the impact assessment;
c. Assessment and evaluation of impacts and development of alternatives , to
predict and identify the likely environmental impacts of a proposed project or
development, including the detailed elaboration of alternatives;
d. Reporting the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) or EIA report , including
an environmental management plan (EMP), and a non-technical summary for the
general audience.
e. Review of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), based on the terms of
reference (scoping) and public (including authority) participation.
f. Decision-making on whether to approve the project or not, and under what
conditions; and
g. Monitoring, compliance, enforcement and environmental auditing. Monitor
whether the predicted impacts and proposed mitigation measures occur as defined in
the EMP. Verify the compliance of proponent with the EMP, to ensure that
unpredicted impacts or failed mitigation measures are identified and addressed in a
timely fashion.
The result of an EIA is assembled in a document known as an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) which looks at all the positive and negative effects of a particular project on the
environment. This report is just one component of the information required to aid decision
makers in making their ultimate decision about a project.
EIA can be considered as a mechanism which maximizes the efficient use of natural and human
resources. It can also reduce costs and time taken to reach a decision by ensuring that
subjectivity and duplication of effort are minimized, as well as identifying and attempting to
evaluate the primary and secondary consequences which might require the introduction of
expensive pollution control equipment or compensation and other costs at a later date.
“Environment” in EIA context mainly focuses physical, chemical, biological, geological, social,
economic, and aesthetic dimensions along with .their complex interactions, which affects
individuals, communities and ultimately determines their forms, character, relationship, and
survival.
Sustainable development is built on three basic pillars: economic growth, ecological balance and
social progress. Economic growth achieved in a way that does not consider, the environmental
concerns, will not be sustainable in the long run.
However, sustainable development needs careful integration of three constituents—
environmental, economic, and social needs in order to achieve both an increased standard of
living in the short term, and a net gain or equilibrium among human, natural, and economic
resources to support future generations in the long term. “It is necessary to understand the links
between environment and development in order to make development choices that will be
economically efficient, socially equitable and responsible, and environmentally sound.”
EIA have two Roles: legal and educational:
1. The legal one is quite straight forward to ensure that development projects such as a housing
estate, a road/bridge or some such construction project has a minimal impact on the environment
in its entire ‘lifecycle’ – i.e. during design, construction, use, maintenance, and demolition. Many
countries now have laws stipulating that unless an EIA study is carried out particularly for large
infrastructure projects, permission for construction will not be granted by the local authority.
2. The educational role is equally important to educate everyone involved both professionals and
users. We need to look at all our daily actions as eventually and cumulatively affecting the
environment. This includes our daily choices, where a delicate balance between financial and
environmental considerations needs to be made automatically without thinking.
There is a need to emphasize and to promote the new paradigm of preventive the management to
protect the environment in the process of development of the nation. Various tools of preventive
management be classified into following three groups.
Management based tools Process based tools Product based tools
Environmental management Environmental technology Industrial ecology
system Assessment
Environmental performance Toxic use reduction Extended producers
evaluation Responsibility
Environmental audits Best operating practices Eco-labeling
Environmental reporting and Environmentally best practice Design for environment
communication
Total cost accounting Best available technology Life cycle assessment
Law and policy Pollution prevention
Trade and environment Cleaner production
Environmental economics Cleaner technology
Eco-efficiency
Indicators can be classified in to environmental performance indicators and environmental
condition indicators. The environmental performance indicators can be further divided into two
categories namely, operational performance indicators and management performance indicators.
The operational performance indicators are related to the process and other operational activities
of the organization, and would typically address the issue of raw material consumption, energy
consumption, water consumption in the organization, the quantities of waste water generated,
other solid wastes generated, emission from the organization.
Classification of EIA:
EIA can be classified based on the purpose and the theme of development. EIA can be climate
impact assessment, demographic impact assessment, development impact assessment, ecological
impact assessment, economic and fiscal impact assessment, health impact assessment, risk
assessment, social impact assessment, strategic impact assessment, technology assessment.
In addition to this list, EIA is also categorised based on systematic analysis of environmental
parameters, geographical region, carrying capacity limitations and sectoral planning. They are
strategic EIA, regional EIA, sectoral EIA, project level EIA and life cycle assessment.
Strategic EIA (SEIA):
Strategic EIA refers to systematic analysis of the environmental effects of development policies,
plans, programs and other proposed strategic actions. This process extends the aims and
principles of EIA upstream in the decision- making process, beyond the project level and when
major alternatives are still open. Strategic EIA represents a proactive approach to integrate
environmental considerations into the higher level of decision-making.
Regional EIA:
EIA in the context of regional planning integrates environmental concerns into development
planning for a geographic region, normally at the sub- country level. Such an approach is
referred to as the economic-cum- environmental (EcE) development planning. This approach
facilitates adequate integration of economic development with management of renewable natural
resources within the carrying capacity limitation to achieve sustainable development.
It fulfills the need for macro-level environmental integration, which the project-oriented EIA is
unable to address effectively. Regional EIA addresses the environmental impacts of regional
development plans and thus, the context for project-level EIA of the subsequent projects, within
the region. In addition, if environmental effects are considered at regional level, then cumulative
environmental effects of all the projects within the region can be accounted.
Sectoral EIA:
Instead of project-level-EIA, an EIA should take place in the context of regional and sectoral
level planning. Once sectoral level development plans have the integrated sectoral environmental
concerns addressed, the scope of project-level EIA will be quite narrow. Sectoral EIA will help
to address specific environmental problems that may be encountered in planning and
implementing sectoral development projects.
Project Level EIA:
Project level EIA refers to the developmental activity in isolation and the impacts that it exerts
on the receiving environment. Thus, it may not effectively integrate the cumulative effects of the
development in a region.
Life Cycle Assessment:
A broader approach to deal with environmental impacts in manufacturing is called life cycle
analysis. This approach recognizes that environmental concerns enter into every step of the
process with respect to the manufacturing, of the products and thus examines environmental
impacts of the product at all stages of the product life cycle.
This includes the product design, development, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, usage
and disposal. LCA is concerned with reducing environmental impacts at all these stages and
looking at the total picture rather than just one stage of the production process. Through utilizing
this concept, firms minimize the life cycle environmental costs of their total product system.
LCA gives sufficient scope to think about the. alternatives which are lower at cost.
