ENVIRONMENTAL

IMPACT ASSESSMENT
TRAINING

27, 29, 31 March 2023

 OUTLINE

• Objectives:
 Understand the guidelines in conducting environmental
impact assessment (EIA) for dredging activities.
 Understand the recent regulations in the Philippines for
securing ECC or relevant permits for dredging.

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 BACKGROUND

• What is dredging?
 It refers to seabed excavation and dredge material
placement activities that introduce sediments to the
water column.

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 BACKGROUND

• Environmental considerations
 All dredging causes an environmental impact at
dredge and disposal sites.
• Potential impacts:
 Impact to benthic communities
 Direct loss
 Indirect impact

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 BACKGROUND

• Other types of impacts:

 changes to shorelines, bathymetry and habitats
 introduction of invasive pest species
 conflict with fisheries
 changes to coastal processes and water circulation
 impacts on the behavior and survival of marine
wildlife.

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 BACKGROUND

• Dredge-generated sediments and their effects:

 from the mechanical interaction of the dredging
equipment with the seabed substrates
 from overflow associated with loading of dredged
material and land reclamation
 from the disposal of dredge spoil.

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 BACKGROUND

• Hydraulic dredges produce slurries that comprise a fine

sediment-water mixture and dredged solids.
• The primary environmental effects relate to:
 decreased light transmission through the water
column reducing the amount of light available at the
seabed/riverbed
 abrasion of membranes or clogging of breathing or
filter feeding organs on some benthic invertebrates
 increased rates of sediment deposition beyond
natural levels.

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 BACKGROUND

• Predicting impacts of dredge-generated sediments

relies on understanding the key factors that influence
the generation, sources, physical characteristics and
release rates of fine sediments.

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 METHODOLOGY

• General considerations:
 There should be demonstrable consideration of
options to avoid impacts on benthic communities
due to dredging
 Where impacts cannot be avoided, then proposed
project design should aim to minimize impacts
 Best efforts should be made to demonstrate in EIA
documentation that all ‘ reasonable and practicable
measures’ have been taken to prevent or minimize
impact.

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 METHODOLOGY

• The level to which proponents demonstrate how they

have considered impact avoidance and minimization
and application of all reasonable and practicable
measures to prevent or minimize impacts in all aspects
of their proposals will be taken into account when
determining environmental acceptability of dredging
proposals.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Describing the benthic habitats:

 An adequately detailed benthic habitat map is a
critical piece of information for assessing the
impacts associated with dredging
 Technical reports that describe how benthic habitat
surveys and mapping were conducted and how
maps were produced must be supplied as part of
the EIA documentation.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Background environmental data:

 Acquisition and analysis of background data is an
integral part of any environmental impact
assessment
 Relevant background environmental data should be
used to inform, validate and enhance confidence in
predictions of environmental impacts.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Describing impacts:
 Environmental impact assessment is based on
predictions of the extent, severity and duration of
environmental impacts, taking into account
confidence around the predictions and the likely
effectiveness of proposed monitoring and
management strategies.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Generating predictions:
 General – predicting direct impacts of dredging is
relatively straightforward
 involves implementing three key types of predictive
modelling in a logical sequence:
 Hydrodynamic modelling
 Sediment transport modelling
 Ecological response modelling

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 METHODOLOGY

• Direct impacts are generally predicted based on a

combination of information about the areas to be
dredged and disposal areas.

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 METHODOLOGY

• EIA and modelling:

 Well-defined numerical models will assist the
related government agency in forming judgements
about the EIA
 The level of agreement between model outputs and
data measured in the field will vary from application
to application and depend on many factors.
 It is recommended to have a peer review of the EIA
before submission to relevant government agency.

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 METHODOLOGY

• EIA and modelling:

 Well-defined numerical models will assist the
related government agency in forming judgements
about the EIA
 The level of agreement between model outputs and
data measured in the field will vary from application
to application and depend on many factors.
 It is recommended to have a peer review of the EIA
before submission to relevant government agency.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Describing impact predictions:

 Impact zonation scheme
 Zone of high impact
 Zone of moderate impact
 Zone of influence

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 METHODOLOGY

• Accounting for predictive uncertainty:

 Uncertainty is a factor inherent in all predictions
and there is an array of sources of uncertainty
associated with dredging impact predictions.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Presenting realistic predicted impacts:

 Proponents will be expected to consider the range
of likely impacts when developing their proposed
environmental monitoring and management
strategies.
• Integrating predictions with monitoring

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 METHODOLOGY

• Environmental monitoring and management plans:

 Minimize impact and ensure that the environmental
protection outcomes established for a project are
not compromised.
• Environmental monitoring locations:
 Should be based on a number of considerations
including the locations of predicted zone
boundaries.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Risk-based environmental monitoring:

 Primary
 Secondary
 Tertiary

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 METHODOLOGY

• Environmental sensitivity
 When designing dredging proposals and making
predictions of environmental impacts, proponents
should consider critical windows of environmental
sensitivity.

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 METHODOLOGY

• Examples of measures to minimize dredging impacts:

 Dredge area design that aims to minimize direct and
indirect impacts on key benthic habitats
 Using site-specific geotechnical data and
understanding of dredge equipment-substrate
interactions
 Using validated hydrodynamic and sediment
transport models to assess the dynamics and likely
fate of sediment plumes.

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• In the Philippines, dredging activities in rivers are

conducted to properly manage the deposition of sand
and restore the natural state and water flow of heavily
silted rivers.
• It also aims to improve the hydraulic capacity of the
river thereby eliminating flooding.
• Large scale dredging must be based on a
comprehensive dredging plan.
• Covered by DAO 2019-13, 2019-14, and others. But a
general AO was published (DAO 2020-07).

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• River dredging is for the restoration of the hydraulic

capacity, and mainly not for quarrying.
• But special provisions can be given for dredging
clearance holders a reasonable return for its operation
of restoring the river to its original state.

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• Provisions include those who can apply as a “large-

scale” dredging operators
• Also, their financial capabilities and technical
competence are outlined.

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• Upon determining the river dredging zone (RDZ), the

Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) shall conduct a
survey of the metallic/non-metallic resources in the
RDZ.
• Proponents can receive the economic benefits from the
resources in the RDZ.
• Proponents will apply for dredging clearance.
• The policy also outlined the prescribed extraction and
dredging methods.

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• DAO 2022-02 was published to provide guidelines on

public participation for dredging projects covered by
the previous DAOs.
• It aimed to establish the specific requirements and
procedures for public participation of proposed
dredging projects.
• And identify the key stakeholders for public
participation activities.

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• DAO 2022-02 covers the public participation process

under the PEISS for the restoration of heavily silted
river channels through dredging activities pursuant of
the Joint Memorandum Circular 2019-01 of the DENR,
DPWH, DILG, and DOTR (Section 5.4).

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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KEY GUIDELINES

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• Monitoring stage:
 The Inter-agency committee (IAC) shall have an
option to create a multi-partite monitoring team
(MMT).
 The MMT shall prepare a monitoring report for
endorsement of IAC to the EMB Regional Office for
record of the project compliance and validation of
the MMT findings/observations.

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 KEY GUIDELINES

• Monitoring stage:
 The proponent shall provide the funds for the
monitoring activities of the MMT.
 The amount shall be based on the annual work and
financial plan to be prepared by the MMT in
consultation with EMB Regional Office.

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