Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management

The paper describes major developments of environmental impact assessment (EIA) in China since 2003 when its EIA law became effective, with emphasis on those aspects not sufficiently touched upon by most researchers so far. These range from threshold-based categorization, evolution in scoping, expansion and upgrading of a series of technical guidelines for EIA, addition of water and soil conservation plan to EIA, public consultation and social impact assessment to interaction with other major means of environmental management in China (i.e. total pollution load control, discharge permit and cleaner production). Based on a literature review, exchanges with EIA practitioners and the author's daily work on EIA, it is found that EIA in China has evolved into a fairly comprehensive and technically adequate system. The biggest problem lies in its poor enforcement and implementation, which is the focus of this paper. By examining each practical step in reviewing, enforcing and implementing EIA, the paper evaluates EIA's role in optimizing decision-making (e.g. by alternative analysis), EIA implementation and its supervision piloted in China, underlying technical, procedural and institutional issues and concerns, and the disconnect between project EIA and plan/regional EIA, both with regards to theory and practice. The main reasons for weak EIA enforcement and implementation are discussed, which include the political system and incentive mechanisms, institutional arrangements, and regulatory and methodological shortcomings. Based on the analysis, recommendations are made for improving enforcement and implementation of EIA in China.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2007, 2012:11) warned that the mega deltas in South Asia (e.g. the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna River Basin) will be at great risk due to increased flooding, and the region's poverty would reduce the capacity of the inhabitants to adapt to change. This paper provides a "bottom up" impact approach which focuses on a methodological contribution for assessment of vulnerability and adaptation (V & A) in a riverine flood-prone area, "Islampur" in Bangladesh, where various impact assessment guidelines have been taken into consideration. In this study the evaluation of V & A assessments at community level has been accomplished mainly by a weighted matrix index value derived from two participatory rapid appraisals (PRAs). Based on the distribution pattern of various weighted value indices of V & A issues, the required adaptation techniques can be adopted for immediate policy-making, and appropriate actions should be undertaken through establishing community-based adaptation committees (CBAC).

This paper examines the barriers to the benefits, efficient and effective implementation of Environmental Financial Assurance (EFA) policy in developing countries with Ghana as case study. EFA is an international environmental regulatory policy and its implementation by a nation is thus perceived as integration into the international regulatory framework. It is an essential developmental regulatory policy that protects the public against the cost of mine clean up and loss of livelihoods, should a company refuse to complete its reclamation plan. However, evidence drawn from this study indicates that there are barriers and differences in approach to the efficient implementation of the policy in some developing countries as the zeal with which EFA policy was adopted as part of a policy reform to attract foreign investment to the mining sector has not been matched with the desired political will, expertise and economic growth to ensure the implementation of the policy.

In response to the establishment of universally-accepted principles about sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR), corporations are now producing Sustainability Reports (SRs). Corporations are expected to document their positive and negative impacts on society. However, the veracity of the information in these reports is being questioned. To what extent is it greenwashing? While the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) provides a framework for reporting, effective mechanisms to evaluate reports are lacking. We propose a Sustainability Reporting Assessment Checklist of 10 questions as a functional tool for use by stakeholders to evaluate the content of SRs. For a demonstration of the effectiveness of the checklist, it is applied to a real but anonymous company. The questions cover: accessibility; readability; the use of an established framework (e.g. GRI); incorporation of CSR and sustainability into long-term strategy; consideration of all relevant aspects of operations; use of evidence to support claims; documented stakeholder engagement; supply chain responsibility; documented impacts on all stakeholders (including vulnerable groups and negatively affected groups); and assurance assessment.

Explosives manufacture in South Africa is a major component of the chemical and mining industry, and as an important producer of hazardous chemicals it is also a potential contributor to significant environmental impacts. Environmental authorisation of explosives manufacturing activities is based primarily upon the quality of information made available in the Environmental Impact Report (EIR), but the quality of EIR for explosives manufacturing projects has never been investigated. A modified version of the Lee and Colley review package was used to determine the EIR quality of a sample of four explosives projects. The findings reveal that the EIRs were of a generally satisfactory quality, but with some areas of weakness that are readily linked to potentially significant environmental impacts, pointing to limitations in the EIA process regarding the production of explosives. Recommendations include improved training of EIA practitioners, the use of quality review checklists and external specialist review, development of guidelines and the use of risk assessment as additional tools to the EIA regulations.

This article examines two experiences with strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in Australia, one complete the other in progress. The first applied SEA to a plan for a liquefied natural gas hub precinct on the National Heritage listed Kimberley coast of Western Australia, and the second applies SEA to a coastal management, planning and development framework for the World Heritage listed Great Barrier Reef on the coast of Queensland. Both cases illustrate the approach of the Australian governments to SEA, highlighting the benefits of the approach yet certain flaws in application and process. The research consists of an extensive evaluation of the relevant legislation, its application and reform, together with a thorough literature review. Results highlight concerns in relation to the objective of SEA in Australia, its initiation and timing, consideration of alternatives, and governance. Conclusions are that SEA in Australia will be enhanced if the purpose is more explicitly focused on environmental protection, if SEA is applied early to a reasonable range of alternative sites, and if the Australian Government continues to play an active role in relation to matters of national environmental significance.

Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a knowledge intensive activity that benefits from a highly structured approach to knowledge management (KM). In a survey of KM initiatives in two Québec government agencies, the Environmental Assessment Department and the Environment Public Hearings Bureau, knowledge repositories were mapped and officers were invited to reply to a questionnaire enquiring about the knowledge repositories' usefulness. Their perception about knowledge creation within each agency was assessed. Three drivers were identified that have steered the implementation of KM initiatives: (i) successive managers' understandings that EIA does create knowledge; (ii) a concern with consistency and reproducibility of recommendations; (iii) improving agencies' efficiency, alongside one additional incentive: curbing the deleterious effects of staff turnover. So far an unmet challenge is making sense of a great deal of data and information obtained in the follow-up phase of the EIA process and transforming it into knowledge used to improve both efficiency and effectiveness of an agency's work.

This article focuses on public participation in Sweden during the planning of the Nord Stream gas pipeline. The pipeline runs from Russia to Germany, and passes close to the Swedish island of Gotland. Results from a survey study conducted among 990 Swedish citizens, where 200 respondents are residents on the island of Gotland, reveal that there are differences between men and women in how risks with this project were perceived. More women than men expressed a desire for more participatory processes, even if they stated that they would not participate themselves. Women on Gotland expressed a more negative view of the gas pipeline and also perceived greater risks. Results indicate that public participation could have been better at addressing gender and regional specific needs.