Experts' perspective on the performance of Chinese technical guidelines for Plan Environmental Impact Assessment

This research was to evaluate the Technical Guideline (HJ/T130-2003) effectiveness based on data resource from a questionnaire survey and interviews on EIA experts. The result demonstrated that the guideline served mainly as a quality control measure for PEIA products, and only a small proportion of experts considered it effective due to its inconsistency with the newly released Chinese PEIA Regulation (2009) and poor practicability. Current status of SEA implementation in China was also studied in terms of application fields, effectiveness evaluation, and major issues to affect SEA, to conclude that SEA implementation in China is premature, and with limited effectiveness. The major problem was the lack of effective methodologies and technical tools. Recommendations for revising the PEIA Guideline and advices to improving SEA implementation in China were accordingly proposed.     

Integrating spatial support tools into strategic planning—SEA of the GMS North–South Economic Corridor Strategy and Action Plan

The GMS countries, supported by the Asian Development Bank, have adopted a holistic, multidimensional approach to strengthen infrastructural linkages and facilitate cross border trade through (i) the establishment of a trans-boundary road connecting two economic nodes across marginalised areas, followed by 2) facilitation of environmentally and socially sound investments in these newly connected areas as a means to develop livelihoods. The North–South Economic Corridor is currently in its second phase of development, with investment opportunities to be laid out in the NSEC Strategy and Action Plan (SAP). It targets the ecologically and culturally sensitive border area between PR China's Yunnan Province, Northern Lao PDR, and Thailand. A trans-boundary, cross-sectoral Strategic Environmental Assessment was conducted to support the respective governments in assessing potential environmental and social impacts, developing alternatives and mitigation options, and feeding the findings back into the SAP writing process. Given the spatial dimension of corridor development—both with regard to opportunities and risks—particular emphasis was put in the application of spatial modelling tools to help geographically locate and quantify impacts as a means to guide interventions and set priorities.     

Bringing flood resilience into practice: the FREEMAN project

The recent shift in flood risk management concedes that floods cannot be prevented but the impacts on and vulnerability of the risk prone communities can be reduced. Beyond mere structural defence, an integrated risk management approach deploys a diversified set of measures that moderate the economic and social drivers of risk and improve risk governance. In this context, the concept of resilience gains on importance despite the many challenges that obstruct its implementation in management practice. This paper contributes to tackling these challenges and elaborates on opportunities and bottlenecks to bring resilience into practice based on a review of the flood risk management in three case studies in Europe: Flanders (Belgium), Niedersachsen (Germany) and Calabria (Italy). The paper summarizes insights gained on three components of resilience being – institutional interplay, flood management tools and risk communication. The work that has lead to this paper is done under the FREEMAN project (flood resilience enhancement and management), funded under the 2nd CRUE ERA-Net Funding Initiative.