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    Eia Clearance Process

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    THOMASKUTTY

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    ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT. ‘The environmental impact assessment (TIA) process Is an interdisciplinary and multistep mental considerations are included in decisions regarding procedure to ensure that en projects that may impact the en possible environmental eff 0 sible cavironmen ts of ay Fl ‘The purpose of the EIA process is to inforin decision-makers ahd the public of the | cavironmental consequences of implementing a proposed project, The ELA document lel is a technical tool that identifies, predicts, and analyses impacts on the physical environment, as cultural, and health impacts. If the ELA process is successful, it identifies well as soci: i ae) souls and mitigation measures to reduce the environmental impact of a proposed project. e EIA it | Process also serves an important procedural role in the overall decision-making process by promoting transparency and public involvement. Itis important to note that the BIA process does not guarantee that a project will be modified or rejected if the process reveals that there will be serious environmental impacts. In other ‘words, the ELA process ensures an informed decision, but not necessarily an environmentally y beneficial decision, ur SSeS : | Need Br eg al Sh Ss | BEI ‘S OF THE EIA PROCESS - Potentially screens out environmentally-unsound projects - Proposes modified designs to reduce environmental impacts ~ Identifies feasible alternatives - Predicts significant adverse impacts - Identifies mitigation measures to reduce, offset, or eliminate major impacts - Engages and informs potentially affected communities and individuals = Influences decision-making and the development of terms and conditions ‘The benefits to local communities from taking part in environmental assessments Include: «A. healthier focal environment (forests, water sources, agricultural potentia} recreational potential, aesthetic values, and clean living in urban areas). + Improved human health. * Maintenance of biodiversity. 16 Scanned with CamScanner » Fewer conflicts over natural resource use, : = Increased community skills, knowledge and jiride, Cee OF EIA Evolution of FIA worldwide mandatory status to BIA through its United States of America was the first country to asi 'A) of 1969. A host of industrialised countries National Environmental Protection Agt (NEI have since” Taplemented BIA procedures, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands and Japan adopted EIA legislation in 1973, 1974, 1981 and 1984, respectively. In July 1985,the RAPE ory for certain’ nvironmental assessments mand Community (EC) issued a directive n categories of projects (Wood, 1994). Latin American country to institute pines have long, Among the developing countries, Columbia wi system of EIA in 1974. In Asia and the Pacific region, established procedures for BIA, ELA was made mand: nber of nations including Rwanda, “Thailand and the Pb tory in Sri Lanka in 1984, The BUA process in Africa is sketchy, although a nun Botswana and Sudan have some experience of EIA (Wathern, 1988). Bilateral and multilateral agencies have also recognised mic tion and_Deve tool. The ‘Organisation for Economic Co-Operat pith : al Sates in 1974 and 1979, and for development aid _ the value of EIA as a decision-making opment (OECD) issued. recommendations on EIA to its s constif projects in 1986, OECD issued guidelines for good practices in EIA in 1992 (OECD, 1992). ment Programme (UNEP) in 1980 provided guidance on EIA of the United Nations Environ ping countries (UNEP, 1980) and supported research on ELA in develoy development proposals the member (Ahmad and Swamy, 1985, countries and provided guidance o: The World Conservation Strategy pinpointed the need to considerations with development in 1980 (IUCN, 1980). EIA became an integral part of World Bank policy in 1987 which states that environmental issues must be addressed as part of overall economic policy. In 1989, the World Bank issued the Operational Directive on Environmental Assessment (O.D. 4.00), which was revised and updated in October 1991 (0.D. 4.01). Asian Development Bank in 1990 published guidelines for ELA (ADB, 1990). Importance of EIA was echoed in the Brundtland Report (WCED, 1987), and at United Nations Earth Summit environment and development held at Rio de Janeiro in 1992 (UNCED, 1992). As foreseen by ). UNEP, in 1987, set out goals and principles of EIA for n basic procedures for ELA in 1988. integrate environmental ton Scanned with CamScanner -. some secre an i -over, Gamer‘and O'Riodan (1982) development of BIA, as a tool for decision-making world-ovel has emerged through the following stag: «No formal accounting, decisions made on interest-gioup lobbying and engineering feasibility; primary emphasis on economic development. ati Conventional cost-benefit analysis; emphasis on efficiency criterion and engineering feasibility; major concem still on cconomic development: + Innovative cost-benofit analysis, use of multiple ‘objectivés arid discount rates, imaginative proxy pricing mechanisms; economic development as one of the objectives. + EIA mainly concemed with describing the repercussions of the proposals on bio- physical processes; economic development still primary objective. + EIA with more attention paid to socio-cultural as well as bio- physical systems, economic development but not the sole objective. Evolution of EIA in India EIA in India was started in 1976-77, when the Planning Commission asked the"then Department of Science and’ Technology to examine the river-valley projects from the environmental angle. This was subsequently extended to cover those projects, which required approval of the Public Investment Board. These were administrative decisions and lacked the legislative support. The Government of India enacted the Environment (Protection) Act on 23rd May 1986. To achieve the objectives of the Act, one of the decisions taken was to make BIA statutory. After following the legal procedure, a notification was issued on 27th January 1994 and subsequently amended on 4th May 1994, 10th April 1997 and 27th January 2000 making environmental impact assessment statutory for 30 activities. This is the principal piece of legislation governing EIA in India. Besides this, the Government of India under Environment (Protection) Act 1986 issued a number of notifications, which are related to environmental impact assessment. These are limited to specific geographical areas, and are summarised below: © Prohibiting location of industries except those related to Tourism in a belt of 1 km from high tide mark from the Revdanda Creck up to Devgath Point (near Shrivardhan’ as Scanned with CamScanner well as én Ekin belt along the banks of Rajpiri Civek in Muntd Janjiea area in the Raigath distict of Maharashtra (6th January 1989), tion of industries, mining operations and regulating other activities in Doon Valley (Ist Febiuary 1989). ating activi tretchea of the country by classifying them as. ies in the consti coastal regulation zone and prohibiting, certain activities (19th February 1991). + Restricting location of industries and regulating other activities in Dahanu Taluka in Maharashtra (6th Juno 91), «© Restricting certain activities in specified areas of Aravalli Range in the Gurgaon. district of Haryana and Alwar district of Rajasthan (7th May 1992). + Restricting industrial and other activities, which could lead to pollution and congestion in the north west of Numaligarh in Asstt (July 1996). 3 nw Ke" ELEMENTS OF ELA development actions, in advance. The emphasis of a BIA is on prevention and, therefore, is ‘more proactive than reactive in nature. The EIA process involves a number of steps, some of which are listed below: + Project screening: This entails the application of ELA to those projects that may have significant environmental impacts. It is quite likely, however, that screening is done parth pi 1 that screening is done partly _ by the EIA regulations, operating in a country at the time of assessment. << a 7 Scoping: This step seeks {0 identify, at an early stage, the key, significant environmental - issues from among a host of possible impacts of a project and all the available alternatives at een mee SEMAAVE Consideration of alternatives: This seeks to ensure that the proponent has considered ee SE ponent Aas con other feasible approaches, including alternative project locations, scales, processes, layouts, operating condition and the na-action opti ing condition and the no: Description of the project/developinent action: This step seeks to clarify the purpose and rationale of the project and understand its various characteristics, including the stages of development, location and processes. Scanned with CamScanner he entablishenens of both the mvenal baselines This felis tl I ature state of the environment, in the absence of the project taking, int hee henman a aman are i: This: brings together the previous steps. gnificant environmental impacts (ndverse and beneficial) are identified and taken into account in the process, The prediction of impacts: This step aims to identify the likely magnitude, ofthe change Ge., impact) in the environment when the project is implemented in comparison with the situation when the project is not carried out. pon wiven the project 1s not carrier out Evaluation and assessment of significance: This secks t assess the relative significance of the predicted impacts to allow a focus on key adverse ‘impacts. Formal definition of significance is the product of consequencé and likelihood as ‘Significance ~consequence X Likelihood Mitigation: This involves the introduction of measures to avoid, reduce, remedy or compensate for any significant adverse impacts. S Public consultation and. participation: This ais to assure the _quulity, ———— —<—$<$—" comprehensiveness and effectiveness ofthe BIA, as well as to ensure that the public's views are adequately taken into consideration inthe decision-making process. Tey ko —— OO _EIS presentation: This is a vitastep inthe process, If done badly, much good work in the EIA may be ‘BIA may be negated. Review: This involves a systematic appraisal of the quality of the BIS, as a contribution to the decision-making process._ ty of the BIS Decision-making: At this stage, decisions are made by the relevant author (including consultation responses) together with other, ‘material consideratians.astawhett to accept, defer or reject the project. Post-decision monitoring: This involves the recording of outcomes nssosiated_with ling of outcomes nssosiate” Wi development impacts, after the decision to proceed with the project, It can contribute to effective project management. Scanned with CamScanner Auditing: This follows monitori involves Anat ing and involy outcomes, and can be used to asse: ual outcomes with : the quality of pred L Beisgation It provides Vital step in the tions and the effect BIA leariting proces * Profect soreening ~la an EIA nended? + Seophng-which impacte and lesuee to canskter? * Description of tha profectidevelopment action © Desorietion of the environmental baseline +. Prediction of impacts Evaluation and assessment of s[gniticance of impacts « ‘® idantification of maltigating moasures + Post-decision monitoring Auditing and predictions of mitigation measire® Scanned with CamScanner re ENVIRONMENTAL CLEARANCE, pRoctotite IN INDIA As the utility of EIA became clear, there was need to establish project clearance procedure, ‘The first step in that direction to define the EIA proce ‘The EIA process in_India is made up of the following phases: + Screéning, ’ 2 Scoping and coy eration of alternatives, . + Baseline data collection, + Impact prediction, +. Assessment i i 5 > Of altematives, delineation of mitigation measures and environmental impact statement, +_-Public hearing, Environment management plan (EMP), , + Decision-making, * Monitoring the clearance coniditions, ‘The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) has published guidelines for different —e—e sectors, which outline the significant issues to be addressed in the BIA studies. In 1 general, the following impacts of the project ntéd to be assessed: Air: The changes in ambient levels and ground level concentrations due to total emissions from point, line and area sources, effects on soils, materials, vegetation and human health are m point, line a poo aM MCTLEE Dea BSE “to be assessed. Noise: The changes in ambient levels, due to noise generated from equipment and movement Nolse: 8 in amblent leve of vehicles, and their impact on fauna and human health are to be assessed. Water: The availability to competing users, changes in quality, sediment transport and ingress of saline water are to be assessed. ae Land: The Ghanges in land use and drainage pattern, land quality including effects of waste I disposal, shoreline/riverbank and their stability are to be assessed, Biological: The level of deforestation/tree-cutting and shrinkage of animal habitat, the impact on fauna and flora (including aquatic species, if any) due to contaminants/ pollutants ahd the impact on rare and endangered species, endemic species, and migratory path/route of animals are to be assessed, as also the impact on breeding and nesting grounds. Scanned with CamScanner ee Sesl-eonomie The inpaee On the local community Inchiding ses de, [ céonomic status, human health and inoreaged fe aoto be asessed / {For every ean rope ae oe weal ‘i Be Katie and environmental stitutes — f including the n-project option and the cake nies on i ec oe Baar ortimun ee ives need to be ranked for wet on the + —ae ae -Denofits to the community at large, Qneé the altematives have been reviewed, a mitigation plan supplemented sith en environmental management plan (EMP) needs to be drawn up for the selected option to guide the proponent towards environmental improvements. Note that the EMP Is a crucial input to monitoring the learance conditions, and therefore it must contain the deals of monitoring. A BIA, LA report, thu thus; needs to provide clear information to the deeiston-maker on the different © Filled in application form (as, paisa Il of EIA Notification). « A-summary of the project/feasibility report (I copy). | EIA (EISYEMP report (20 copies). «Risk analysis on on-site emergency preparedness plan (20 copies) in case of projects involving hazardous substances. Site clearance from MOEF for site-specific projects mentioned in the ELA notification. Consent to establish from SPCB. (e.g.. District Collector), NOC from the local authorities availability of water and electricity from the appropriate Commitment regarding the «Approval of the Chief Controller of Explosives under the Petroleum Act and Rules for layout and storage of hazardous substances and from the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health under the Factories Act and Rules. agencies. Scanned with CamScanner + Comments/Observations/Recommendations pf the Chief Wildlife Warden in case a within 25 km of project site, wildlife habitaUmigration path exists = Comprehensive summary rehabilitation plan, where displacement of more than 1,000 people is anticipated in case of diversion of © Copy'of the application forwarded to the state government, forest land. nn forwarded to the state government in case the CRZ * Copy of the applica notification applies. Clearance from the Airport Authority of India, if applicable. Details of the public hearing conducted by SPCB and copies of the, advertisements issued for public hearing. nnaireg issued by MOEF, along with the + Filled-in environmental appraisal. que: attactiments (mentioned in the questiosinaire). MOEF has issued different questionnaires for diferent projects, and the law requires that the a proposed development after the completion of ess to the executive summary of the EIA, end the | associations, environmental groups public must be informed and consulted on EIA report. Any one is entitled to have-ace affected persons such as bona fide local residents, local active in the area and any other person located at the project sitelsites of displacement must be given an opportunity to make oral/written suggestions t9 the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB). ess involves consultation between the project proponent (assisted pact assessment authority (assisted by an expert group, if ronmental clearance is arrived at through a number of steps the The decision-making pro by a consultant) and the imi necessary). The decision on envi including evaluation of EIA and the environmental management plan (EMP). In India, planning stage decides the type of projects, ic, new sation, Later, the project proponent prepares a detailed ive project proponent during the project establishment, expansion or moderni project repdrt/feasibility report and summary containing the project details an available to the concemed public. at is required to obtain environmental clear In this process, the project proponent is: submits to the authorities concemed the execut dd findings of the BIA study, which is to be made ‘Where a proponei ance, the Impact Assessment Agency (IAA) evaluates and assesses the EIA report. Scanned with CamScanner Biven a chance 10 present his or her proposal Ifa project ts accepted, the IAA. prepares a act ATR, Of recommendations and conditions for its implementation baced on this » Savironmental clearance conditions andl recommendations of IAA are made available to the Public en request through SPCD and through a web site

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