{"id":95695,"date":"2021-04-29T14:05:30","date_gmt":"2021-04-29T08:35:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?page_id=95695"},"modified":"2021-06-19T12:08:07","modified_gmt":"2021-06-19T06:38:07","slug":"eia","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/eia\/","title":{"rendered":"Environmental Impact Assessment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2><strong>What is Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>As\u00a0per United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP),<\/p>\n<p><em>Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)\u00a0is a tool used to identify the environmental, social and economic impacts of a project prior to decision-making. It aims to predict environmental impacts at an early stage in project planning and design, find ways and means to reduce adverse impacts, shape projects to suit the local environment and present the predictions and options to decision-makers.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) defines it as,<\/p>\n<p><em>a formal process to predict the environmental consequences of human development activities and to plan appropriate measures to eliminate or reduce adverse effects and to augment positive effects.<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Thus,\u00a0Environmental Impact\u00a0Assessment\u00a0(EIA) is an integral part of Environmental Management.\u00a0It investigates\u00a0likely\u00a0<u>impacts, both positive and negative<\/u>,\u00a0of development projects\u00a0<u>on the surrounding environment<\/u>.<\/li>\n<li>Simply put, EIA is a detailed study regarding the impacts\u00a0of any project on the environment. It serves as a decision-making tool which helps policy makers approve, reject or find an alternative to a project<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-103877 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/EIA-3.png?resize=304%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"EIA\" width=\"304\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/EIA-3.png?w=304&amp;ssl=1 304w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/EIA-3.png?resize=300%2C296&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 304px) 100vw, 304px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In India, Environment Impact Assessment (EIA)\u00a0is notified under the Environment (Protection) Act 1986.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Evolution of EIA\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The\u00a0origin of EIA lies in\u00a0the enactment of the\u00a0<u>National Environmental Policy Act<\/u>(NEPA) in the year 1969 in the USA.\u00a0It not only\u00a0introduced the concept of environmental impact assessment\u00a0but also\u00a0made it necessary for federal agencies to evaluate impact of environmental decisions.<\/li>\n<li>Environment Impact Assessment gained popularity after the introduction of the concept of\u00a0<u>sustainable development<\/u>via World Commission on Environment 1987 &amp;\u00a0United Nations Conference on Environment and Development\u00a0(Rio Summit) in\u00a01992. It led to\u00a0adoption\u00a0of EIA\u00a0in many countries as well.\u00a0Principle 17 of the Rio Summit states that,<\/li>\n<li><em><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answered-what-are-main-principles-of-environment-impact-assessment-discuss-the-significance-of-environment-impact-assessment-in-various-development-projects\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Environmental impact assessment<\/a>\u00a0(EIA), as a national instrument, shall be undertaken for proposed activities that are likely to have a significant adverse impact on the environment and are subject to a decision of a competent<\/span> national authority<\/em>.\u00a0<em>[<\/em><em>Given just for your info. No\u00a0need to remember this type of complex language.Instead,\u00a0you can mention that\u00a0<strong>EIA is mentioned\u00a0explicitly\u00a0under\u00a0Principle 17 of the Rio declaration\u00a0of 1992].<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<li>In 1976-77,\u00a0EIA\u00a0was started in India, when the Department of Science and\u00a0Technology was\u00a0asked\u00a0by Planning Commission to examine the river-valley projects from the environmental angle.<\/li>\n<li>Eventually\u00a0n 1994,\u00a0EIA was made mandatory in India under the Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986.\u00a0Until\u00a0then, environmental clearance from the Central Government was an administrative decision and\u00a0had no\u00a0legislative\u00a0backing.<\/li>\n<li>Since then, EIA has been amended several times. The most\u00a0significant\u00a0amendment\u00a0was made\u00a0in 2006<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4><strong>EIA Process<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) process can vary depending on a country\u2019s policy\u00a0and requirement.\u00a0However, EIA process in most countries, including India, have\u00a0the following steps:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Screening<\/li>\n<li>Scoping<\/li>\n<li>Collection of baseline data<\/li>\n<li>Impact Prediction<\/li>\n<li>Assessment of alternatives, mitigation measures &amp; Environmental, Impact Assessment Report<\/li>\n<li>Public Hearing<\/li>\n<li>Decision Making<\/li>\n<li>Monitoring the clearance\u00a0conditions<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Screening<\/strong>: This is the first step in\u00a0the EIA\u00a0process. At this stage it is decided whether the proposed project\u00a0needs an EIA and\u00a0if so to what detail.\u00a0Screening criteria are based upon:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Scales of investment<\/li>\n<li>Type of development<\/li>\n<li>Location of development<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Scoping<\/strong>:\u00a0It\u00a0is\u00a0the most significant step in the entire EIA process as\u00a0key environmental issues involved are identified\u00a0at this stage.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Scoping has to be done by consultants in consultation with the project proponent and guidance, if needed, from Impact Assessment Agency<\/li>\n<li>The Ministry of Environment and Forests has published sector-wise guidelines which outline the significant issues which have to be addressed while conducting the EIA studies.<\/li>\n<li>At the end of scoping,\u00a0detailed\u00a0terms of reference\u00a0(TOR)\u00a0are prepared\u00a0of EIA.<\/li>\n<li>TOR is a written document containing written requirements governing EIA implementation, consultations to be held, data to be gathered, methodology to be used etc<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-103882 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Involved-in-Environmental-Impact-Assessment.png?resize=570%2C488&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Involved in Environmental Impact Assessment\" width=\"570\" height=\"488\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Involved-in-Environmental-Impact-Assessment.png?w=570&amp;ssl=1 570w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Involved-in-Environmental-Impact-Assessment.png?resize=300%2C257&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Collection of baseline data<\/strong>:\u00a0It describes the existing environmental status of the identified study area. The site-specific primary data is monitored and supplemented with secondary data<\/p>\n<p><strong>Impact prediction<\/strong>:\u00a0Under this,\u00a0possible effects on the physical, biological, social and economic conditions\u00a0are taken into consideration\u00a0and\u00a0measures\u00a0are suggested\u00a0to prevent, reduce or compensate for the impacts.<\/p>\n<p>For example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Impact of biological diversity in an area ex. EIA done by Gadgil panel on the western ghats regions.<\/li>\n<li>Impact on habitat because of deforestation and pollution- Impact on Himalayan ecosystem when hydropower projects are opened.<\/li>\n<li>Impact on endangered animals and migratory paths. For ex Great India hornbill\u2019s trail in India is evaluated so as to see that such developmental project is not affecting its pathway.<\/li>\n<li>The predictions of impact can never be absolute and certain and thus there is a need to comprehensively consider all factors and take all possible precautions for reducing the degree of uncertainty.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Assessment of alternatives, mitigation measures &amp; Environmental\u00a0Impact Assessment Report:\u00a0Identification of alternatives and their comparison<\/strong>: For every project, possible alternatives\u00a0are to be\u00a0identified and environmental impacts and benefits to be compared.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Alternatives should then be ranked for selection of the best environmental option for optimum economic benefits to the community at large.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Environment Management Plan (EMP)<\/strong>:\u00a0Once alternatives have been reviewed, an impact mitigation plan is drawn up\u00a0for the selected\u00a0option and is supplemented with an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) to guide the\u00a0proponent towards environmental improvements. EMP is a crucial input to monitoring the\u00a0clearance conditions and therefore details of monitoring should be included in\u00a0it.<\/li>\n<li>EMP\u202fis a site-specific plan developed to ensure that the project is implemented in an environmentally sustainable manner where all contractors and subcontractors, including consultants understand the potential environmental risks arising from the project and take appropriate actions to properly manage that risk.<\/li>\n<li>An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)\u00a0Report\u00a0prepared at this stage\u00a0should provide clear information to the decision maker on the different environmental scenarios without the project, with the project and with project alternatives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Public Hearing<\/strong>:\u00a0Public must be informed and consulted on a proposed development after the completion of EIA report<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gram Sabha must be consulted before the project starts. Gram\u00a0Sabha means the electorate (people eligible to vote) of the region<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Decision-making<\/strong>:\u00a0It involves consultations\u00a0between the project proponent\u00a0(assisted by a consultant)\u00a0and the impact assessment authority\u00a0(assisted by an expert group if necessary). Final decision\u00a0regarding the project is taken, keeping in mind EIA and EMP (Environment Management Plan).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Monitoring<\/strong>:\u00a0Monitoring should be done during both construction and operation phases of a project. This is not\u00a0only to ensure that the commitments made are complied with but also to observe whether the\u00a0predictions made in the EIA reports were correct or not.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Where the impacts exceed the predicted\u00a0levels, corrective action should be taken.<\/li>\n<li>Monitoring\u00a0enables\u00a0the regulatory agency to review\u00a0the validity of predictions and the conditions of implementation of the Environmental Management\u00a0Plan (EMP).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Objective of EIA<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>To bring out a national policy to encourage productive and enjoyable harmony between man and environment.<\/li>\n<li>To promote efforts to prevent or eliminate damage to the environment.<\/li>\n<li>To increase understanding of ecological systems and natural resources important to the nation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Why we need Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)?\u00a0\/ Significance of EIA \/ Benefits of EIA<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Facilitates\u00a0sustainable development<\/strong>:\u00a0In present times anthropogenic activities like rapid industrialization, mass production and clearing of forests have created immense pressure on the natural environment.\u00a0Tools like EIA help in balancing the need for economic growth with equally important concept of sustainability.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mitigating negative impacts\u00a0&amp; informed decision-making<\/strong>&#8211;\u00a0Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) helps in minimizing the negative impact of various development projects. It\u00a0enables monitoring programmes to be established to assess future impacts and provide data on which managers can take informed decisions to avoid environmental damage.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Aids cost-effectiveness<\/strong>\u2013\u00a0EIA helps\u00a0in\u00a0selection\u00a0and design\u00a0of\u00a0projects, programmes or plans with long term viability and therefore improves\u00a0cost effectiveness.<\/li>\n<li>Advance assessments\u00a0also helps avoid future losses that may be incurred if the project is found environmentally unacceptable at a later stage.\u00a0Cost of adaptation when a project is already running is usually more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Thus, EIA as a tool aims to minimize the environmental impacts emanating out of any economic activity that have the potential to cause environmental degradation.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-103880 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Environmental-Components.png?resize=360%2C394&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Environmental Components\" width=\"360\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Environmental-Components.png?w=360&amp;ssl=1 360w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Environmental-Components.png?resize=274%2C300&amp;ssl=1 274w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Rapid EIA vs Comprehensive EIA<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The difference is in the time scale of the data supplied. But both types require complete coverage of all EIA procedures<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Rapid EIA<\/strong>: Under Rapid EIA data supplied is of\u00a0<strong>only one season<\/strong>(other than monsoon) to reduce the time required.\u00a0Rapid EIA is for speedier appraisal process.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Comprehensive EIA<\/strong>: It collects data from\u00a0<strong>all four seasons.<\/strong>Rapid EIA is acceptable if it does not compromise upon the quality of decision making. The review of Rapid EIA submissions will show whether a comprehensive EIA is warranted or not. Therefore, submission of comprehensive EIA in the first stance would generally be more efficient approach. Comprehensive EIA includes appraisal of those projects whose analysis in not to be done soon, here time is not the essential factor but the quality of the appraisal is.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>EIA notifications<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Central govt has the power to issue\u00a0EIA notifications\u00a0under\u00a0<strong>Section 3 of the Environment Protection Act, 1986<\/strong>,\u00a0wherein it can\u00a0impose restrictions on setting up new projects or expansion or modernisation of existing projects. The section stipulates that such measures must benefit the environment.<\/p>\n<p>Under the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986, first EIA notification was issued in 1994. Later, it was replaced by a modified draft in 2006<\/p>\n<p><strong>Salient Features of EIA rules Amendment done in 2006\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><a style=\"color: #000000;\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/environmental-impact-assessment\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Environmental Impact Assessment<\/a> Notification 2006 decentralized the environmental clearance projects by categorizing the developmental projects in two categories\u00a0i.e.,\u00a0<strong>Category A<\/strong>and\u00a0<strong>Category B<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-103886 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Salient-features-of-EIA.png?resize=486%2C326&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Salient features of EIA\" width=\"486\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Salient-features-of-EIA.png?w=486&amp;ssl=1 486w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Salient-features-of-EIA.png?resize=300%2C201&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 486px) 100vw, 486px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>After 2006 Amendment, EIA comprises of four cycles:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Screening<\/li>\n<li>Scoping<\/li>\n<li>Public Hearing<\/li>\n<li>Appraisal<\/li>\n<li>State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) and State Level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) are constituted to provide clearance to category B projects.<\/li>\n<li>Category A Projects require mandatory environmental clearance. Screening process is not required.<\/li>\n<li>Category B projects undergo screening process. They are classified in two types:<\/li>\n<li>Category B1 Projects: Mandatorily require EIA<\/li>\n<li>Category B2 Projects: Do not require EIA<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Thus,<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Category\u00a0<strong>A<\/strong>projects and category\u00a0<strong>B1<\/strong>\u00a0projects undergo the\u00a0<strong>complete EIA<\/strong>\u00a0process<\/li>\n<li>Category\u00a0<strong>B2<\/strong>projects are\u00a0<strong>excluded from complete EIA<\/strong>\u00a0process<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This 2006\u00a0EIA notification has undergone several amendments over last 14 years. A\u00a0new draft EIA Notification 2020\u00a0has been\u00a0floated\u00a0by the govt. It is\u00a0meant to incorporate the amendments and court orders issued since 2006.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Major Provisions of draft EIA notification 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Public Consultation\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Period of public consultation hearings is proposed to be reduced to a maximum of 40 days.<\/li>\n<li>Time provided for the public to submit their responses is proposed to be reduced from present 30 to 20 days.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rationale\u00a0by the govt<\/strong>:\u00a0the shorter window was \u201cin tune with the times\u201d, given the growth of internet and mobile telephony.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Concern<\/strong>:\u00a0Several environmental activists and organisations have instead argued that even the 30-day timeframe was inadequate as information failed to reach the stakeholders residing in remote and inaccessible terrains<\/li>\n<li><strong>More discretionary powers to government<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Central government can declare \u201ceconomically sensitive areas\u201d without public hearing or environmental clearance<\/li>\n<li>Government also gets to decide which projects are to be considered \u201cstrategic\u201d.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Post-facto clearance<\/strong>: Legalisation of projects that have commenced operations without obtaining necessary clearances; subject to a payment of penalty.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Supreme court\u2019s view on post<\/strong>&#8211;<strong>facto clearance<\/strong>\u00a0&#8211;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>In a judgment\u00a0in\u00a0early 2020, in the case of\u00a0<em>Alembic Pharmaceuticals Ltd vs Rohit Prajapati,<\/em>the Supreme Court by also referring to\u00a0<em>Common Cause vs. Union of India judgment<\/em>, struck down and\u00a0<strong>condemned<\/strong>\u00a0ex-post facto environmental clearance (a concept which\u00a0the new draft EIA proposes to regularise).<\/li>\n<li>In 2013, the Hon\u2019ble Supreme Court in the case of\u00a0<em>Association for Environmental Protection vs State of Kerala<\/em>, held that commencement of projects without obtaining prior EC (environmental clearance) is a\u00a0<strong>violation of the fundamental right to life<\/strong>guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Post-clearance compliance:\u00a0<\/strong>Post-clearance\u00a0compliance implies that once a project gets approved by the concerned authority, the proponent projects are required to adhere to certain rules laid down in the EIA report in order to ensure that no further environmental damages take place.<\/li>\n<li>The new draft EIA, contrary to the 2006 notification \u2014 which required submission of the compliance report every six months,\u00a0<strong>proposes annual reports.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Concern<\/strong>:\u00a0Environmental experts are of the view that allowing a longer period for filling the compliance report will give an opportunity to project proponents to hide disastrous consequences, which could go unnoticed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Exemption clause<\/strong>:\u00a0It identifies a long list of projects like roads and pipelines in border areas which have been exempted from public consultation and prior clearance.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Concern<\/strong>:\u00a0Analysts note that by this provision, the government shall have discretion to designate any project as being of strategic importance. Activists in states with crucial resources like uranium, as in Meghalaya, have also opposed this provision<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Baseline Data<\/strong>:\u00a0Does away with the need to carry out studies covering all seasons in a year<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In the 2019 \u2018Ease of Doing Business\u2019 report by the World Bank, India\u00a0rose steadily\u00a0from 142nd ranking in 2014 to 63rd ranking in 2019.\u00a0India, however, has steadily declined on Environment Performance Index, from 141st rank in 2016 to 168th rank out of 180 countries in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>The government has assured that it will strive to\u00a0<strong>strike a balance\u00a0<\/strong>between the environmental and developmental concerns. As and when the EIA is finalised, it is expected to incorporate the perspectives of multiple stakeholders in a balanced manner.<\/p>\n<h2><strong><u>Critical analysis<\/u><\/strong><strong>: &#8211;<\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3><strong>Shortcomings of the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) process<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Applicability<\/strong>:\u00a0There are several projects with environmental impacts that are exempted from the notifications. Ex. Low scale sand mining<\/p>\n<p><strong>Inadequate capacity of EIA approval authorities<\/strong>:\u00a0Lack of technical and environmental experts, anthropologists and social scientists among the members and involvement of crony capitalism and nexus between corporates and politicians leads to faulty decision making, where projects which severe harm the environment may also get approved.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Deficiencies in screening, scoping and impact analysis<\/strong>:\u00a0There are no independent bodies and no standardized formats for project evaluation.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Absence of standardized baseline data brings arbitrariness in impact prediction.<\/li>\n<li>It is allegedly done by those people which are on the payroll of company which creates a conflict of interest. They intentionally exclude negative impact on forests\/ environment and impact on tribes during the scoping process<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Poor quality EIA reports<\/strong>:\u00a0EIA is presently\u00a0used\u00a0as a project justification tool rather than as a project planning tool to contribute to achieving sustainable development.\u00a0Involvement of planning for future activities should also be focused upon along with the justification of the project itself.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>EIA\u00a0is not just a tool to describe YES or NO regarding a project but also about\u00a0how the harm,\u00a0if any,\u00a0to the environment can be minimized, so as to be pollution-neutral and environmentally sustainable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Initiated at a later stage<\/strong>:\u00a0Another flaw in the EIA process in India is\u00a0that it is undertaken at a much later stage, especially after the project has been designed, approved and almost ready for construction. Thus, by the time EIA starts huge costs are incurred and the project becomes too big to fall.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Inadequate public participation<\/strong>:\u00a0In many countries like Nepal, Argentina and Australia, public involvement is mandatory at various stages of the EIA process (i.e., screening, scoping, report preparation and decision making), but in India\u00a0public\u00a0consultation\u00a0<strong>occurs only once<\/strong>\u00a0during the entire process.\u00a0According to the EIA notification 2006, this public consultation is performed in two ways.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>First, written comments are sought on draft EIA report from stakeholders<\/li>\n<li>Second, public hearing is conducted at or near the proposed project site.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Drawbacks of this system:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Public consultation is done\u00a0<strong>after\u00a0the\u00a0preparation of draft EIA report<\/strong>and\u00a0when it is\u00a0ready for final submission to the expert committee.<\/li>\n<li>Also, the\u00a0notification issued for public hearing are\u00a0<strong>not published in local vernacular languages<\/strong>thus keeping it out of the scope of understanding of locals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Weak monitoring<\/strong>:\u00a0Monitoring is not done through an independent agency.\u00a0Environment management plans of strategic industries like nuclear energy are not put into the public domain.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>How can we strengthen the EIA process?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Independent Agency<\/strong>: Entire EIA process right from screening to monitoring should be done by independent agencies and establishing a National Accreditation Body for agencies carrying out EIA.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Creation of centralized baseline data bank<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Applying Precautionary Principle<\/strong>:\u00a0This principle states\u00a0that\u00a0if there is a threat of serious damage (in this case, to the environment) from a particular action then a lack of scientific certainty should not be used to avoid taking\u00a0steps\u00a0to prevent\u00a0that\u00a0damage.\u00a0Hence, the list of concerns raised by the public should be studied in detail to arrive at any conclusion. Ex. GM crops.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Clearances given to project that is not clearly justified becomes questionable as happened in\u00a0Sethusamudram\u00a0Project<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Strategic Environment Assessment (SEA)<\/strong>:\u00a0It helps in choosing a project and not just evaluate it. It offers alternatives and guides project financing. The directives of SEA are reflected in the National Environment Policy 2006. Similarly, Nepal also carries out SEA\u2019s.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a systematic process for evaluating the environmental implications of a proposed\u00a0<strong>policy<\/strong>,\u00a0<strong>plan<\/strong>or\u00a0<strong>programme<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Robust and Inclusive public hearing<\/strong>: A key role for local people through Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)\u00a0at every stage. Special focus on forests and tribal. The traditional knowledge of locals needs to be incorporated.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Transparency<\/strong>:\u00a0Greater transparency in the clearance process and dissemination of all documents for public scrutiny.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Capacity Building<\/strong>:\u00a0NGO\u2019s, civil society groups and local communities need to build their capacities to use the EIA notification towards better decision-making on projects that can impact their local environments and livelihoods. Capacities can be built to proactively and effectively use the notification rather than respond in a manner that is seen as negative or unproductive.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Way forward<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>In a world that is challenged by environmental degradation and social conflicts, scholars have upheld public and local participation to be a \u201cthreshold condition\u201d for development. EIA provides this necessary element in the economic development process. Therefore, EIA-based approvals for most projects should mandatorily and necessarily involve the process of conducting public hearings so that the views and opinions of people who are likely to be affected can be taken on board before a decision to approve the project is made so as to reduce future scope of resentment.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)? As\u00a0per United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)\u00a0is a tool used to identify the environmental, social and economic impacts of a project prior to decision-making. It aims to predict environmental impacts at an early stage in project planning and design, find ways and means to reduce adverse&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/eia\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Environmental Impact Assessment<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-95695","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/95695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/95695\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}