Chapter 5

5. Environmental impact assessment

• Environmental Impact Assessment is a widely accepted tool for
Environment Management.
•It is being increasingly adopted in several countries.
•The aim of EIA is to identify and subsequently predict the impacts of
Commercial, Industrial and Legislative proposals, Policies and
Operational procedures and interpret and communicate information to
all stake holders about these impacts.
•Environmental engineering requires that the impact and interaction of
engineered structures on and with the natural environment be
considered in any project.
•Engineers ideally approach a problem in a sequence suggested to be
rational by the theories of public decision making:
problem definition
 generation of alternative solutions
evaluation of alternatives
implementation of a selected solution, and
 5. Environmental impact assessment
review and appropriate revision of the implemented solution.
•In other words each project funded by the federal government or
requiring a federal permit must be accompanied by an environmental
assessment.
•Any developmental activity in the form of new project proposals (e.g.
setting up of chemical/petrochemical complexes, Metallurgical plants
like Iron and Steel mills, Mining activities, Atomic and Conventional
Power Generating stations and research facilities, construction of a
dam/railway line, introduction new regulations etc.) is likely to affect
Environmental quality and hence calls for the carrying out of an EIA.
•In many countries EIA has become mandatory before allowing such
project activities to start.
•It is very important, therefore, to know the environmental impacts of
various types of developmental activities.
•The cause and effect relationships of the projects and their impact
analysis need to be done systematically.
 5. Environmental impact assessment
•Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a procedure to plan some
developmental activity with well defined environmental goals so that
damage due to the activity both during developmental stage and
production stage has minimum impact on the natural system and the
population in the area.

•The National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) U.S.A. in

1969 first of all provided the guidelines for environmental impact
assessment through Council for Environmental Quality(CEQ).

•The EIA process during the initial phases of introduction laid emphasis
on the study of the adverse/beneficial impacts of the proposals on
physical factors viz. Air, Water quality, Solid waste Disposal.

•With the passage of time the scope of EIA was widened to include
Biological ,Ecological and Socio Economic factors.
 5.1 Purpose of EIA
•The purpose of environmental assessments was not to justify or fault
projects, but to introduce environmental factors into the decision
making machinery and have them discussed in public before decisions
about a project are made:
 To fulfill the responsibilities towards the coming generations as
trustees of environment.
 To assure safe, healthy, productive, aesthetically as well as culturally
pleasing surroundings.
To provide widest range of beneficial uses of environment without
degradation or risk to health.
To preserve historical, cultural and natural heritage.
To achieve a balance between population and resource use for a good
standard of living.
To ensure sustainable development with minimal environmental
degradation.
 5.1 Purpose of EIA
•The following points are usually incorporated while preparing the
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS):
 Effect on land including land degradation and subsistence.
 Deforestation and compensatory afforestation.
 Air pollution and dispersion along with possible health
effects.
 Water pollution including surface water and ground water
pollution.
Noise pollution.
 Loss of flora and fauna.
Socio-economic impacts including human displacement,
cultural loss and health aspect.
 Risk analysis and disaster management.
 Recycling and reduction of waste.
 Efficient use of inputs including energy and matter.
 5.1 Purpose of EIA
•An environmental assessment must be comprehensive,
interdisciplinary, and as quantitative as possible.
•The writing of an environmental assessment involves four distinct
phases: scoping, inventory, assessment, and evaluation.
•The first phase defines the scope or extent of the assessment.
•For example, if the project involves transporting construction materials
to a site, the scope may or may not include the environmental impact of
that transportation.
•The second phase is a cataloging of environmentally susceptible areas
and activities, including socioeconomically impacted areas.
•The third phase is the process of estimating the impact of the
alternatives, including cumulative impacts, and the impacts of a “no
action” alternative.
•The last phase is the interpretation of these findings, which is often
done concurrently with estimating impacts.
 5.1 Purpose of EIA
•All federal agencies are currently required to assess the environmental
impacts of extended projects and programs as well as individual
projects under their jurisdiction.
•EIA is done with an aim to select the best alternative through which
adverse impact on the environment can be nullified or minimized
without compromising with the economic and social benefits of the
developmental project.

•The alternatives can be in three ways

(i)Alternative technologies providing options with maximum energy
efficiency and minimal wastage.
(ii)Alternative mitigating or controlling mechanisms through which
recycling of by products or reduction of emissions can take place.
(iii)Alternate phasing to work out if phasing of the project is possible
instead of one stroke development to avoid drastic impact.
 5.1 Purpose of EIA
•However, besides these alternatives, the most important alternative
taken into consideration in EIA is the impact assessment at alternative
sites i.e., which of the site I or II or III located indifferent natural area
would have the least impact of the development project, and that site is
selected for the development project.
•Thus, the main purpose of EIA is precisely to estimate the type and
level of damage caused to natural environment in a well defined time
scale so that remedial measures can be initiated on those aspects
requiring action at the right time.
Methodology of Environmental Impact Assessment
•The basic steps followed in EIA are screening, scoping, baseline data,
impact identification, prediction, evaluation, mitigation, EIS
preparation, review and environment audit.
(i) Screening is done to see whether the project needs an EIA for
clearance or not. Further, there are some prohibited areas where no
development project is allowed.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
(ii) Scoping involves determination of the extent of EIA required for
the project.
(iii) Baseline data gives a holistic picture of the overall environmental
setting of the project location showing any significant environmental
items prior to initiation of the action; any potentially critical
environmental changes and information about the site to the decision
makers and reviewers, who might be unfamiliar with the general
location of the project area.
•The following environmental parameters are usually considered while
preparing the baseline data:
 Site location and topography.
 Regional demography population distribution within 10 and 50
kilometer radius; land use and water use pattern.
 Regional landmarks like historical and cultural heritage in the
area. For this archaeological or state register can be checked.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
 Geology Groundwater and surface water resources are
quantified; water, quality, pollution sources etc are studied.
 Hydrology Groundwater and surface water resources are
quantified; water, quality, pollution sources etc are studied.
 Meteorology Temperature extremes, wind speed and direction,
dew point, atmospheric stability, rainfall, storms etc. are
recorded.
 Ecology The flora, fauna, endangered species, succession stage
etc. are enlisted.
•For a particular project, some of the parameters may be important
while for others, some other parameters could be important.
(iv) Impact Identification.
•It includes the details of project characterization and baseline
environmental characteristics to ensure the identification of full range
of environmental impacts.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
•During identification process, the positive and negative, direct and
indirect significant and insignificant impacts are considered.
•Various methods employed for impact identification are as follows:
(a)Checklists: These are based on enlisting of specific environmental,
social, biological and economic factors affecting the environment.
Checklists can be simple, descriptive or questionnaire based.
(b)Matrices: This is most common type of impact identification
method. Here the impacts are arranged in rows and columns i.e., like a
matrix.
A Simple Matrix is 2 dimensional in nature with environmental
component on one axis and developmental actions on the other axis. In
a time Dependent Matrix time scale of impacts is taken whereas in
Magnitude Matrix, the magnitude of impact is also denoted in the
matrix by putting symbols.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
•Leopold Matrix is a well known matrix which consists of a horizontal
list of 100 project actions and a vertical list of 88 environmental
components. Thus, theoretically
(c) Quantitative Method: It compares the relative importance of all
impacts by weighting, standardizing and aggregating the impacts.
•The best known method here is Battelle Environmental Evaluation
System (BEES) which consists of Environmental, Social and Economic
parameters.
(v) Impact Prediction: Here the magnitude and other dimensions of
changes associated with the project are identified in comparison with a
situation without the project.
•In other words, prediction involves identification of potential change
in the indicators of various environmental factors.
•The two important models of impact prediction are:
(a)Mathematical Model: The cause and effect relationships are
expressed in the form of a flow chart or mathematical function.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
(b) Mass Balance Model: This is usually adopted where physical
changes are involved. Here all inputs are balanced by the outputs.
(vi) Impact Evaluation: After prediction of the impacts, their relative
significance is assessed by evaluation.
• The methods of evaluation can be qualitative or quantitative to
determine magnitude of the impact, temporal and spatial extent of
the impact, recovery (resilience)of the affected environment, and
the value of the affected environment.
• One of the most important methods used to evaluate impact of a
project is cost benefit analysis.
• This method takes into consideration a long view of the project and
also the side effects. Net social benefit is considered including all
costs and benefits.
• It takes into account all tangible annual benefits and costs in
monetary terms.
• However, it is very difficult to identify the intangibles like
environmental parameters.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
• The intangible category includes loss of a rare species, urbanization
of a beautiful natural landscape, loss of human health etc.
vii) Mitigation: After assessing the possible impacts of the proposed
project, mitigation measures are to be suggested in order to avoid,
reduce and if possible, remedy the significant adverse change.
• Various mitigation measures could be as follows:
(a) Avoidance of Impacts. This could be achieved by control of
solid/liquid wastes by recycling them or by removing them from the
site for treatment elsewhere.
(b) Reduction of adverse effects. This is done by using sensitive
building designs, using color matching with the local environment
to reduce visual impact of the project, using silt-traps and planting
of crop covers.
(c) Repair or restoration. The agricultural land used for storage of
materials during construction may be fully rehabilitated. Land used
for gravel extraction may be restored for agricultural use. Any
diversion in stream flow during construction  
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
•by a road project must be reestablished.
(d) Compensation for adverse effect. If there is loss of a public
recreational space or wildlife habitat, then provision must be made for
creation of a spot with afforestation or plantation of the type of native
plants. If there is lot of noise produced during the project operation,
sound insulation must be done.
(viii) Decision Analysis: After going through the various steps of
impact identification, prediction and evaluation, decision analysis is
done.
•Individual decision or are used for arriving at a decision.
• In order to have minimum bias, group response is usually taken. The
most commonly used approach is the multi-step questionnaire based
Delphi approach.
(ix) Environmental Impact Statement (EIS): It should include the
following five major aspects
(a) The environmental impact of the proposed action.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
(b) The adverse impact that cannot be avoided if the development
occurs.
(c) Alternatives to the proposed action.
(d) Relation between the local short-term use of human environment
and maintenance of long-term production.
(e) Irreversible changes in resources.
(x) Environmental Audit: EIA must be followed by a suitable
environmental audit or environmental management system (EMS).
•Environmental impact auditing involves comparison of the impacts
predicted in the EIS with those actually occurring after implementation
to assess whether the impact prediction performs satisfactorily.
•In order to maximize optimal utilization of natural resources and
minimization of emission/discharge of pollutants/waste products in
environment and reuse/recycling measures, environmental auditing has
been introduced by Ministry of Environment & Forests and the
Pollution Control Boards.
 5.2 Scope of environmental issues and impacts
•An annual statement is required to be submitted by Project Authorities
to the Pollution Control Board reflecting their achievements made
during the year on abovementioned aspects.
•In industries like chemical industries, raw materials are used in excess,
quite often due to operational deficiencies.
•The excess usage of raw materials is to be checked. If these excess
materials are not recycled or recovered, they find their way to
environment causing pollution.
•Environmental auditing thus helps to safeguard the environment and
assists in complying with local, regional and national laws and
regulations, with the company’s policy and with the environmental
standards.
•Projects that are being assessed for environmental impact by the
Ministry include Industry and mining, Irrigation and power, Transport
& communication.
 5.3 Key elements of the EIA process
•Thus EIA is a methodology through which efforts are being made to
provide suitable site from the point of view of environment for locating
a project through formulation of guidelines and rules.
•EIA is usually organized into the following sections / contents of EIA
I Introduction
•The introduction provides an overview of the proposed project,
alternative actions, and the assessment methods that will be used.
•It includes a statement of purpose: why the assessment is being done.
It often includes a summary of the most critical and important results of
the assessment.
•The introduction can often serve as an executive summary of the EA
or EIS.
II. Description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives
•This section describes the proposed project and all of the alternatives
that need to be considered, including the “no action” alternative.
 5.3 Key elements of the EIA process
•The last is a description of projections of future scenarios if the
proposed project is not done. All possible alternatives need not be
included; inclusion depends on the project being undertaken.
•For example, the EIS for the proposed high level radioactive waste
repository at Yucca Mountain, NV, was not required to consider
alternate waste repository sites.
III. Description of the Environment Affected by the Proposed Action
•This description is best organized by listing environmental parameters
that could be impacted by the proposed alternative, grouping them into
logical sets.
•One listing might be:
(i)Ecology (a) Species and populations (b) Habitats and communities
(c) Ecosystems and (d) Wetlands.
(ii)Aesthetics (a)Land(b)Air (c) Water (d) Biota (e) Human-made
objects (f) Objects of historical or cultural significance
 5.3 Key elements of the EIA process
(iii) Environmental Pollution and Human Health (a)Water (b)Air
(c)Land (d)Noise
(iv) Economics: (a)Jobs created or lost (b)Property values (c) Jobs
IV. Evaluation
• The final part of the environmental impact assessment, which is
reflected in the record of decision, is the evaluation of the results
of the preceding studies.
• Optically the evaluation phase is out of the hands of the engineers
and scientists responsible for the inventory and assessment
phases.
• The responsible governmental agency ultimately uses the
environmental assessment to justify the record of decision.