Project justification and EIA: Anything goes?

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) incorporates environmental aspects into decision-making, but sometimes it is not effective in rejecting projects with dubious justification, significant impacts and little social utility, especially when they have political support. EIA is expected to achieve sustainable development, but without calling development into question; however, it should be able to ask the question of whether development is really necessary. Although EIA is political, as a part of the decision-making process, politicization must be limited to prevent it from becoming a mere instrument for giving an “environmental veneer” to development. Some measures thar can help avoid unjustified projects are: adopting administrative justice approach to EIA; minimising politicization of EIA agencies; improving transparency in decision-making and proportionality of EIA procedures; carrying out pre-feasibility studies; increasing the scope of SEA; allowing more than one SEA or EIA procedure for the same development throughout the planning process; strengthening the justification of the project in EIA documents; or making the scoping phase mandatory at least for major projects.     

项目EIA与区域环境规划的协调途径探讨

通过对项目ＥＩＡ与区域环境规划的概念,性质,内容,方法及在环境管理中作用的论述,指出了二者在实施中存在的问题,阐明了它们的特点与相互关系,同时结合我国当前的环境状况与面临的形势及对环境管理新的要求,提出了在今后的实施中应注意协调的原则和方法。     

中国环境监测总站五年(1998—2002)纲要(摘要)

１指导思想今后五年总站工作的指导思想是：高举邓小平理论的伟大旗帜，坚持实事求是的思想路线，以总局的五年工作纲要为指导，深化改革、夯实基础、健全功能、提高效能，站好四个中心的位置，当好环境监测队伍的“排头兵”，坚持为环境管理和各级监测站服务的方向，以说...     

电分析化学(续)

2.6溶出伏安法溶出伏安分析有较高的灵敏度,可达1×10~(-9)克/毫升。如果与差分脉冲极谱连用,测定下限可达1×10~(-12)克/毫升。2.6.1原理溶出伏安分析整个过程分为两个步骤.第一个步骤称为“电析”,即将欲测离子预先在一特定的恒电位下电解沉积,富集在静止汞滴(或悬汞滴)上或其它固体     

环境实验室(三)

工程师部队负责具有重要经济价值的可航行水道、支流、河渠、连接运河等水域的水生植物蔓延的控制.这个职责是在水生植物控制计划办公室的总工程师领导下进行的,而现场操作由工程师部队地区办公室领导.水路实验站是工程师部队水生植物控制研究的领导实验室.这个计划的操作部分是各种水生植物控制手段和技术的实际应用.这些技术包括喷射化学药剂、使用生物和机械控制技术.该研究计划负责研制和传送现场操作单位极需要     

电分析化学(续)

2.伏安法 伏安法是研究在各种条件下电解时的电压与电流的关系。1922年捷克海洛夫斯基教授在研究毛细管电现象时,发明了极谱分析法。经过几十年的发展,先后出现了示波、方波与脉冲极谱法。溶出伏安技术,一般是与各种极谱法连用,分别可以提高灵敏度达几个数量级。伏安法是电分     

环境监测新技术(评述) 电感耦合等离子发射光谱法(续)

人们关心ICP-AES技术的最新进展,据Barnes教授谈,环绕六个方面:(1)试样导入方法的改进,(2)分析方法的途径;(3)解决光谱干扰;(4)改善信噪比;(5)改善机械装置发展仪器;(6)仪器系统造型和规范化。其实这六个方面是互相联系的,根据实际情况谈以下几个问题。 1.试样导入方法的改进。 试样导入一直是该技术的薄弱环节。Barnes最近一篇评论中说ICP-AES目前在试样导入中有三个难题。a.粗试样导入;b.光谱干扰、尤其是Al、Ca,Mg产生的     

广佛公路(盐步段)两侧挥发性有机物(VOC)污染研究

选取广佛公路盐步路段作机动车尾气污染研究 ,结果表明 :污染物主要由烷烃、苯系物和氯代烃组成 ,主要是毒害性 VOC;污染随着与公路距离的增加而降低 ;污染源除机动车以外 ,还有大量的工业企业     

长三角珠三角PM_(2.5)和PM_(10)质量浓度均达二级标准

正环保部2016年7月8日向媒体发布了2016年6月全国和京津冀、长三角、珠三角区域及直辖市、省会城市、计划单列市空气质量状况。环境保护部环境监测司司长罗毅介绍,6月,74个城市中空气质量排名相对较差的后10位城市(从第74名到第65名)分别是:唐山、邢台、邯郸、济南、保定、郑州、太原、廊坊、衡水、北京和天津(北京、天津并列倒数第10位);空气质量排名相对较好的前10位城市依次是珠海、中山、海口、厦门、深圳、江门、舟山、惠州、南宁和丽水。     

氢化物发生—原子荧光法测定河水中硒(Ⅳ)硒(Ⅵ)

在河水样品４ｍｏｌ／ＬＨＣｌ介质中硒生成氢化物，用氢化物发生法测定硒（Ⅳ）含量。将样品的４ｍｏｌ／ＬＨＣｌ溶液在沸水中加热还原硒（Ⅵ）至硒（Ⅳ）测定总量。总硒量减去硒（Ⅳ）量，分别求得硒（Ⅳ）和硒（Ⅵ）含量     

Assessment across borders: Stumbling blocks and options in the practical implementation of the Espoo Convention

In the 1990s, the obligation to assess transboundary environmental impacts has become part of international law. The UN/ECE Convention on environmental impact assessment (EIA) in a transboundary context, which entered into force in 1997, is one of the key documents. In this study, we show that difficulties with the practical implementation of the Convention arise partly from an incomplete sharing of the concept of EIA, and partly from different material interests on the part of the Parties to the Convention. Attempts to improve the practical implementation should recognize both aspects. Several approaches are thus needed for improving the implementation. Some will help in developing a mutual understanding of impact assessments, whereas others may help in overcoming differences in material interests.     

Evaluating public participation in Chinese EIA. An integrated Public Participation Index and its application to the case of the New Beijing Airport

In recent years, China's government authorities have devoted increasing attention to the role of public participation processes in Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The capacity of these processes to influence decision-making remains widely debated. This paper aims at appraising the institutional rationale informing the implementation of public participation in China's EIA, benchmarking it against three conceptualisations: (1) Normative, based on objectives of empowerment and democratisation; (2) Substantive, where participation is pursued mainly to improve quality of decisions; (3) Instrumental, seeking participation as an instrument to legitimise decision-making processes. The appraisal is carried out by means of a new integrated index (Public Participation Index, PPI), which is applied to a case study representative of latest advancements in EIA public participation practices in China, namely the “New Beijing Airport Project”. Located 46 km south of downtown Beijing, the project was approved in 2014 and it is currently under construction. Results of the PPI application to this case study indicate that, despite progress made in recent years, the implementation of public participation in Chinese EIA still largely responds to an instrumental rationale, with limited capacity for the public to affect decisions.     

Network and system diagrams revisited: Satisfying CEA requirements for causality analysis

Published guidelines for Cumulative Effects Assessment (CEA) have called for the identification of cause-and-effect relationships, or causality, challenging researchers to identify methods that can possibly meet CEA's specific requirements. Together with an outline of these requirements from CEA key literature, the various definitions of cumulative effects point to the direction of a method for causality analysis that is visually-oriented and qualitative. This article consequently revisits network and system diagrams, resolves their reported shortcomings, and extends their capabilities with causal loop diagramming methodology. The application of the resulting composite causality analysis method to three Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) case studies appears to satisfy the specific requirements of CEA regarding causality. Three “moments” are envisaged for the use of the proposed method: during the scoping stage, during the assessment process, and during the stakeholder participation process.     

完善环境影响评价公众参与的初步研究

环境影响评价制度是我国的一项基本环境保护法律制度，是环境管理体系的重要组成部分，完善公众参与体系有利于解决当前环境影响评价中公众参与存在的问题。在总结国内外公众参与发展进程的基础上，对完善公众参与体系进行了初步研究，提出了完善公众参与体系的内涵要点，提高公众参与体系研究力度，建立公众参与学相关内容。     

Environmental impact assessment system in Thailand and its comparison with those in China and Japan

This paper aims to find ways to streamline the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) system in Thailand to increase its effectiveness by comparative analysis with China and Japan. This study is mainly focused on review, update and comparison of EIA systems between these three countries. It is intended to clarify fundamental information of the EIA systems and characteristics of the key elements of EIA processes (screening, consideration of alternatives, prediction or evaluation of impact, and public participation). Moreover, the number of the EIA projects that have been implemented in all the provinces in Thailand are presented. The results identified the similarities and differences of the EIA processes among the three aforementioned countries. The type of EIA report used in Thailand, unlike those in China and Japan, is an Environmental and Health Impact Assessment (EHIA), which is concerned with the health and environmental impacts that could occur from the project. In addition, EIA reports in Thailand are made available to the public online and the shortcomings of the process have details of barriers resulting from the projects to help future projects with reconsideration and improvements. In this study, it is pointed out that Thai's EIA system still lacks local EIA authority which needs to be empowered by implementing a set of laws or ordinance.     

The environmental impact assessment in Chile: Overview,improvements, and comparisons

In this study, we carried out a comparative analysis of the Chilean Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) system using evaluation criteria compared against three countries to allow for an objective evaluation within the growing demand of society for a more creditable and trustable EIA system.A total of 18 evaluation criteria were selected from the literature, and four new criteria for comparing EIA systems were proposed. The Chilean EIA system was compared to that of Brazil, Spain, and Canada using the following four evaluation criteria categories: EIA Legislation (four criteria), EIA Administration (four criteria), EIA Process (eleven criteria), and After EIA (three criteria). A Hierarchical Agglomerative Cluster Analysis for assessing similarity among the EIA systems of Chile, Canada, and Spain was performed: the similarity being 88%. A Principal Component Analysis shows that only 13 of the selected 22 criteria contribute to the variability of the selected EIA systems. The main strengths of the Chilean EIA system are the existence of Specialized Environmental Courts for the resolution of disputes and Appeal options before execution. The identified weaknesses are an EIA system with high centralization at the national level, the absence of consideration of project alternatives, no requirement for scoping, and that the process of Strategic Environmental Assessment is not binding.Modifications to the Environmental Impact Assessment System Regulation are proposed by authors as feasible improvements particularly in relation to, Decentralization of the EIA system, Alternatives for design, Scoping incorporation, Register of reviewers of baseline information, and the public information process and post-evaluation.The method used seeks out to serve as guidance for countries with similar environmental and social contexts, as well as environmental legislation improvement needs.     

Public participation in environmental impact assessment: why,who and how?

Even a cursory glance at the literature on environmental impact assessment (EIA) reveals that public participation is being considered as an integral part of the assessment procedure. Public participation in EIA is commonly deemed to foster democratic policy-making and to render EIA more effective. Yet a closer look at the literature unveils that, beyond this general assertion, opinions of the precise meaning, objectives and adequate representation of public participation in EIA considerably diverge. Against this background, in this article we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the academic debate on public participation in EIA concerning its meaning, objectives and adequate level of inclusiveness. In so doing, we hope to stimulate a more focused debate on the subject, which is key to advancing the research agenda. Furthermore, this paper may serve as a starting point for practitioners involved in defining the role of public participation in EIA practice.     

Public participation modes in China's environmental impact assessment process: An analytical framework based on participation extent and conflict level

Environmental impact assessment (EIA) serves as a gatekeeper to prevent environmental pollution, and public participation is a legal requirement in the EIA process that ensures people's awareness of activities that may jeopardize the environment. Recently, with the elevated awareness of environmental protection and increasing environmental sensitivity, EIA has evolved as a means for the public to show their attitudes towards environmental issues. More frequently, public protests against not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) facilities have become a significant challenge in the government's decision-making process. Government officials and EIA practitioners continue to look for a more effective way of public participation and aim to establish a platform that can involve related stakeholders. However, current research on public participation is limited to individual case studies or lacks a systematic approach to analysing diversified modes of public participation, which may differentiate levels of acceptance by the government in the EIA process and consequently lead to different effects. Therefore, from the perspectives of the participation extent and conflict level, this paper aims to establish an integrated framework to categorize different public participation patterns in EIA practices and to analyse their characteristics, such as preferences and the action logic arising from different stakeholders, including the government and public. The paper concludes that collaborative public participation is a possible way to strengthen the effectiveness of public involvement within the Chinese context.     

改进环境影响评价制度监督管理方法的几点考虑

改进环境影响评价制度监督管理方法的几点考虑罗崇富ＳＵＧＧＥＳＴＩＯＮＯＦＩＭＰＲＯＶＩＮＧＳＵＰＥＲＶＩＳＩＯＮＡＮＤＭＡＮＡＧＥＭＥＮＴＯＦＥＩＡＳＹＳＴＥＭ￥ＬｕｏＣｈｏｎｇｆｕ（ＸｉｎｊｉａｎｇＥｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔＭｏｎｉｔｏｒｉｎｇＣｅｎｔ...     

Promoting system-level learning from project-level lessons: An analysis of donor-driven ‘indirect’ learning about EIA systems in Ghana and the Maldives

A growing number of low and middle income nations (LMCs) have adopted some sort of system for environmental impact assessment (EIA). However, generally many of these EIA systems are characterised by a low performance in terms of timely information dissemination, monitoring and enforcement after licencing. Donor actors (such as the World Bank) have attempted to contribute to a higher performance of EIA systems in LMCs by intervening at two levels: the project level (e.g. by providing scoping advice or EIS quality review) and the system level (e.g. by advising on EIA legislation or by capacity building). The aims of these interventions are environmental protection in concrete cases and enforcing the institutionalisation of environmental protection, respectively. Learning by actors involved is an important condition for realising these aims. A relatively underexplored form of learning concerns learning at EIA system-level via project level donor interventions. This ‘indirect’ learning potentially results in system changes that better fit the specific context(s) and hence contribute to higher performances. Our exploratory research in Ghana and the Maldives shows that thus far, ‘indirect’ learning only occurs incidentally and that donors play a modest role in promoting it. Barriers to indirect learning are related to the institutional context rather than to individual characteristics. Moreover, ‘indirect’ learning seems to flourish best in large projects where donors achieved a position of influence that they can use to evoke reflection upon system malfunctions. In order to enhance learning at all levels donors should thereby present the outcomes of the intervention elaborately (i.e. discuss the outcomes with a large audience), include practical suggestions about post-EIS activities such as monitoring procedures and enforcement options and stimulate the use of their advisory reports to generate organisational memory and ensure a better information dissemination.