TEXT Flashcards

Question

EIA's can be quite ineffective and damaging if not used properly:6

Answer 1

1. if it is not applied to projects with the potential to cause significant environmental affects or to projects with minor effects that may be cumulatively significant over time 2. if proponents undertake an EIA late in the process 3. if significant issues of concern are not included in the assessment 4. if predictions of impacts are not accurate or not verifiable 5. if decision-makers fail to use EIA results in making development decisions 6. if the implementation of projects subject to EIA fails to follow through effectively with the sound environmental management plans developed through the EIA process

Answer 2

doing things right vs doing the right things

Answer 3

1. Need trust between government and other stakeholders 2. Disregarding Complexity: Need flexibility in standards of practice 3. Remove bias for economic efficiency 4. Less talk more action

Answer 4

.191 of the 193 member nations of the United Nations either have national legislation or have signed some form of international legal instrument that refers to the use of EIA .Unfortunately, and notwithstanding the above comments, not all countries have introduced planning or development control legislation to require the routine use of EIA for proposed projects that might have significant environmental impacts. This gap was partly addressed by the World Bank group, which developed Safeguard Policies, including environmental and social assessment procedures, to guide funding decisions with respect to major projects in developing countries .Equator Principles, which provide guidelines on the use of EIA in relation to major project funding decisions by the institutions .

Answer 5

Equator Principles, which provide guidelines on the use of EIA in relation to major project funding decisions by the institutions.

Answer 6

SIA, for example, developed strongly in the late 1970s and 1980s because EIA, especially in the USA, was considered to have a strong biophysical emphasis, often neglecting social impacts (Taylor et al. 2004).

Answer 7

HIA has emerged as a vigorous form of impact assessment, responding to a sense among many public health professionals that EIA did not adequately address project impacts on community and individual health (National Academy of Sciences 2011).

Answer 8

SEA has been vigorously promoted as a way to extend impact assessment to higher level decision-making at policy, programme and plan levels, a reaction to the project orientation of most EIA applications

Answer 9

. Very underdeveloped an underutilized in most countries: include the lack of clear understanding of what constitutes ‘cumulative’ effects, the lack of agreed approaches and methods for carrying out CEA, and the fact that most jurisdictions place the responsibility of addressing cumulative effects on project proponents

Answer 10

(1) Poor public knowledge of planning, legal and waste licensing issues. (2) Poor provision of information. (3) Poor access to legal advice. (4) Mistrust of the waste disposal industry. (5) ‘Not in my back yard’ (NIMBY) syndrome. (6) Failure to influence the decision-making process. (7) Poor execution of participation methods. (8) Regulatory constraints.

Answer 11

``` 1. Technical and scientific competence and political processes are equally important in impact assessment. If one aspect is stressed at the expense of the other, the entire enterprise is weakened. Environmental and social impact assessment is certainly intended to empower the marginalized and to promote inclusive planning and governance, but it is also required to be technically and scientifically accurate and robust and to be pragmatic with respect to costs. Impact assessments should contribute to debate and a search for optimum solutions based on holistic and integrated decisions mutually acceptable to all affected parties 2. In the modern world we all suffer from information overload. Impact assessments should not make this worse! Encyclopedic impact assessment reports should be taboo. Shorter focused studies and reports that deal with the issues that will affect the decision should be the aim. Sometimes predominantly social analyses will be needed, sometimes predominantly economic or technical analyses will be needed. Studying and reporting on issues that will have no bearing on the decision to be made serves only to inflate costs and to increase skepticism as to the value of impact assessments. Genuine scoping that involves all role players early in the decision-making cycle is essential. 3. Follow-up is an integral part of the impact assessment process, but it is the element that is most often being ignored. Impact assessment without follow-up creates the illusion of environmental responsibility, when in fact no one is defending the public interest or the environment. When this happens disillusionment with the IA process sets in. Adequate provision of personnel and budget for monitoring and follow-up of the terms and conditions set in EIAs or in Records of Decision is in urgent need of attention throughout the world. 4. If governments, at all levels, continue to regard impact assessments as a largely bureaucratic and administrative exercise that they can apply, rework or ignore as they deem fit, impact assessments will not contribute to sustainability or gain in credibility. All levels of government need to be reminded that they have a moral duty, as well as international obligations under numerous conventions, to safeguard the well being of their citizens and the environment. 5. Impact assessments are not “magic bullets” to solve all social and political problems. The benefits of impact assessment should not be over-stated and their limitations must be recognized. Linking the EIA process closely to urban and land-use planning so that the two disciplines interweave and complement each other is also highly desirable. Situations in which environmental impact assessment and landuse planning are uncoordinated or in which they compete with each other are counter-productive and must be avoided. ```

Answer 12

are often predictive tools to provide data that are then collated, arranged, interpreted, and presented according to the organizational principles of the methods used

Answer 13

provides information on some parameter such as the anticipated dispersion of air pollutants from a specific industrial development;those data are then organized and serve as input to a particular assessment method, such as a impact matrix, by which the practitioner evaluates, interprets, and presents the data to aid in decision-making.

Answer 14

is about knowing which tool is best for the moment

Answer 15

1. Organize information for the purpose of impact identification, interpretation, and communication 2. predict environmental impacts

Answer 16

.simplest tool .are comprehensive lists of environmental effects or indicators of environmental impacts designed to stimulate thinking about the possible consequences of a proposed action. .commonly used to development proponents in complying with EIA process .might be used to help determine whether an EIA is needed .

Answer 17

.similar to a questionnaire checklist and typically contains a series of questions to be answered .best suited for relatively routine undertakings .are typically not comprehensive of all potential impacts and as a result all impacts are considered .are often impractical to use if comprehensive .often too general and not tailored to specific project environments .do not evaluate effects either quantitatively or qualitatively .are subjective and qualitative, meaning that different assessors may reach different conclusions .do not consider underlying environmental systems or cause-and-effect relationships and hence provide no conceptual understanding of impacts

Answer 18

are essentially two-dimensional checklists that consist of project activities on one axis and potentially affected environmental components on the other .most commonly used tools for impact identification and communication and are particularly useful for identifying first-order relationships between specific activities and impacts, aswell as for providing a visual aid for impact summaries disadvantages: can often be large and difficult to complete, and the volume of information can make them difficult to understand two most basic types: magnitude and interaction matrices

Answer 19

.provide a summary of impacts according to their magnitude, importance, or time-frame .Best known and most comprehensive: Leopold Matrix .weighted magnitude matrices: assign some measure of importance to each of the affected environmental components -very subjective

Answer 20

.use multiplicative properties of simple matrices to generate a quantitative impact score of the proposed project on interacting environmental components 2 types: component and weighted impact(ex: peterson matrix) interaction matrices .Peterson matrix consits of three individual component matrices: one depicting impacts of project actions or casual factors on environmental components, a matrix depicting the impacts of the resultant environmental change on the human environment, and a vector of weights or relative importance of those human components

Answer 21

are based on the notion that links and pathways of interaction exist between individual components of the environment such that when on component is affected, the result will be an effect on other components that interact with it

Answer 22

refers to the study of phenomena based on their properties. | EX: GIS

Answer 23

.Analogue Approaches-present at the beginning of almost every project, examination of other projects Judgement:nature and quality of expert judgement -delphi technique Systems Modelling: models are simplifications of real-world environmental systems -Mechanistic, Deterministic, and Stochastic Models -Mechanistic: describe casuse-effect relationships in the project environmetn using flow diagrams or equations. Deterministic Models depend on fixed relationship between environmental components and provide a signle solution for the state variables.

Answer 24

the primary purpose of an EIA is to facilitate the consideration of environment in planning and decision-making and, ultimately to make it possible to arrive at decisions and subsequent actions that are more environmentally sustainable.

Answer 25

1960's-recognition of the conection of growing industries that are inherently connected to environment -brought about need for legislation

Answer 26

1000 40,000-50,000

Answer 27

International Association for Impact Assessment - created in 1980 - a way for global participants to interact and learn

Answer 28

In priciple an EIA should serve as an integrated planning tool for decision-making characterized by intergrating cumulative and global environmental effects, empowering the public, recognizing uncertainties, favouring a precautionary and adaptive approach, and makiing a positive contribution to sustainability. -Unfortunately, the role of the EIA is generally used to minimize adverse effects as opposed to ensuring overall, sustainability • EA has emerged as an ‘integrated planning tool’ • There is increased emphasis on assessing ‘cumulative environmental effects’ (we will look more closely at this in Module 11) • There are explicit attempts to integrate ‘traditional ecological knowledge’ into the assessment process • There is the emerging interest in conducting environmental assessment for policies, plans and programs (SEA) • There is emphasis on making a ‘positive contribution to sustainability’

Answer 29

the extent to which it identifies, assesses, and finds ways to mitigate or eliminate the potential negative impacts of development and, importantly, how well EIA helps to improve environmental management and ultimately the state of the environment

Answer 30

Local project environment; regional environmental system; national environment, multi- national environment • Past environmental conditions; current state of the environment; future trends

Answer 31

is the difference in the condition of a | particular environmental or socio-economic parameter (usually measurable) over a specified period of time

Answer 32

• Environmental impact is an effect that has a societal value placed on it.

Answer 33

Environmental effect is the change difference – the difference in the condition of an environmental parameter under projectinduced change vs what that condition might be in the absence of project-induced change

Answer 34

Environmental Site Assessment Phase I ESA: report prepared for a property identifying contamination liabilities or likelihood of contamination (e.g. hydrocarbons, heavy metals) Phase II ESA: site sample collection and analysis (e.g. soils, materials) to quantity contamination levels Phase III ESA: report prepared to detail clean-up or site remediation and monitoring

Answer 35

First NEPA case: U.S. Atomic Energy Commission 1972 • Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Station, Chesapeake Bay • Project denied permit because no independent environmental review and hearing had taken place

Answer 36

Broadening scope and techniques: Greater attention turned toward managing adverse project impacts and risks associated with particular actions, as apposed to creating large environmental inventories -project 'scoping' was first introduced in an attempt to identify the important issues and data requirements for project assessment -public review of projects emerged -Advanced beyond just the biophysical world and started to recognize broader social and regional impacts 1. Project ‘scoping’ was introduced. Scoping limited EAs to a select set of impacts and variables making them more manageable and useful for decision making. (We will look more closely at this in Module 5) 2. Public review of project proposals was implemented. 3. The importance of social impacts emerged

Answer 37

There was rapid growth in EA from the early 1980s to the turn of the 21st century. Some very important improvements emerged. • International support through such organizations as the World Commission on Environment and Development and the World Bank became important. • EA finally commenced prior to project development. • There also emerged a recognized need for monitoring actual environmental change after the project is developed, and to hold proponents accountable to their commitments to impact management!

Answer 38

• Managing the impacts of development • Improving project planning and design (i.e., good environmental planning starts very early in the development process) • Cost savings to proponents through the early identification of potential issues (e.g., another example of why environmental planning is so important) • Early compliance with environmental standards • Increased public understanding and acceptance through participation and demonstrated environmental and socioeconomic responsibility.

Answer 39

``` 1.). Technical and scientific competence and political processes are equally important in impact assessment 2.) In the modern world we all suffer from information overload. Impact assessments should not make this worse! 3.). Follow-up is an integral part of the impact assessment process, but it is the element that is most often being ignored. 4.)If governments, at all levels, continue to regard impact assessments as a largely bureaucratic and administrative exercise that they can apply, rework or ignore as they deem fit, impact assessments will not contribute to sustainability or gain in credibility. 5.)Impact assessments are not “magic bullets” to solve all social and political problems. ```

Answer 40

• Different stakeholders have many different expectations of what EA is and what it is supposed to deliver. • There is a struggle to develop frameworks to assess and effectively manage the effects of multiple projects within a single region. • Many environmental effects occur beyond the scope and scale of the individual project, at the regional scale. • Cultural, language, and local knowledge systems often do not mesh well with the current western science approach to EA. • There is limited monitoring and follow-up once projects are implemented. • Institutional support for EA is not consistent, limited in many regions, and often heavily influenced by politics.

Answer 41

Ontario’s Environmental Assessment Act (1975) was the first provincial EIA system enacted in Canada

Answer 42

1. There are now only three responsible authorities (RA) for EIA: the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (the majority of the assessments), the National Energy Board, and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. The previous Act had many federal departments and agencies which could be designated as an RA. 2. Elimination of small projects: Three levels of assessment existed under the previous Act (Screening EIA, Comprehensive Study EIA, and Review Panel EIA). About 90% of the projects had been assessed using a federal screening EIA, but these are now excluded. The new Act focuses on designated projects – which are those deemed likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects on matters of direct federal responsibility. The new Act is much more restrictive in determining which projects may require assessment. 3. Delegation, substitution and equivalency: To reduce duplication of assessments under different jurisdictions, the new ACT has the ability to delegate another jurisdiction to carry out the EIA process and the ability to substitute a provincial or Aboriginal EIA process for federal assessment and to a provision for equivalency. 4. Established time limits: The new Act has time limits placed on the EIA process for both standard assessments and panel reviews. For example, a standard assessment now must adhere to a 365 day time limit and a panel review to a two-year time limit. These limits apply to the regulatory process (i.e., the involvement of the government) and does not include the time required by the proponent to complete the required studies and reporting. 5. Changes to the definition of “environmental effect”: To many, this is a very significant change. An environmental effect under the former Act included any change that the project could cause in the environment, as well as the social and economic effects of such change. Under the new Act, and environmental effect includes a change to a component of the environment that is under federal jurisdiction, such as fish or migratory birds; change that may be caused on federal lands or outside the province where the project is be carried out; and effects on Aboriginal peoples of a change to the environment. 6. Focus on “Interested Parties”: Under the new Act, participation in public hearings is restricted to interested parties, which comprise members of the public that are directly affected by the proposed project as well as those with relevant information or expertise that can support the panel in its assessment. 7. Enforcement: provisions under the new Act mean that the decision statement issued about the project by the Minister, including any conditions about impact mitigation or other commitments made by the proponent, are now enforceable.

Answer 43

Methods – are tools concerned with impact characterization  concerned with the various aspects of assessment such as the identification and description of impacts  primarily serve to organize, classify, and communicate information and support decision making

Answer 44

Techniques – are tools concerned with impact prediction  concerned with data collection and generation, which are then collated, arranged, analyzed, presented and sometimes interpreted according to the methods being used  e.g. a pollution dispersion model (technique) may generate data about potential project emissions, which are then used in an assessment matrix (method) to classify potential effects and make project decisions

Answer 45

1. Checklists • comprehensive lists of effects or indicators of environmental impacts • typically used to ‘screen’ project actions, ensure compliance, etc • systematically promote thinking about the range of potential issues and impacts • Box 3.1 in the text (next slide) provides an example of a “programmed-text checklist”. While this type of checklist is useful for relatively routine projects (e.g., bridge modification, municipal land development), they do have their disadvantages. ``` Disadvantages: • Often not comprehensive so miss some impacts • If comprehensive become difficult to use • Often too general • Don’t evaluate quantitatively or qualitatively Advantages: • Efficient, easy to use, and promotes thinking – good for screening. ```

Answer 46

2. Matrices • Are two-dimensional checklists • typically consist of affected environmental components on one axis, and project actions on the other axis Magnitude matrices: synthesize project impacts and based on their magnitude, importance, and other impact characteristics Interaction matrices: based on the multiplicative properties of matrices to calculate impacts based on impact interactions

Answer 47

3. Trends and Associations • Understanding trends and associations is an important part of EIS baseline assessment. It is important to identify sequential causeeffect linkages. • Impact network or system diagrams are based upon the idea that links and pathways of interaction exist between individual components of the environmnet such that when one component is affected there will result an effect on other components that interact with it (Cooper 2012).

Answer 48

4. Spatial Analysis • This refers to the study of phenomena based on their topological, geometric or geographic properties • In EIA the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is the practice most commonly used. • GIS is not only used to visually illustrate the study area, but provides tools to evaluate biophysical and socio-economic opportunities and constraints and make relevant comparisons between route alternatives, for example. • It can be particularly useful in the early environmental planning stages of a proposed project.  spatially-explicit approach to impact identification/ assessment  typically operationalized in a Geographic Information System  project activities or zones of disturbance are ‘overlain’ with areas of habitat sensitivity or zones of human settlement or land use  visually informative and allows spatial representation of impacts  particularly useful when assessing land-use projects to identify potentially conflicting land-use patterns or to identify optimal locations

Answer 49

Useful as systematic aids to the EIA process - most commonly used for synthesis of info 1. Checklists 2. Matrices 3. Trends & Associations 4. Spatial Analysis

Answer 50

1. Analogue approaches 2. Judgement 3. Systems Modelling 4. Scenario Analysis

Answer 51

• examination of similar projects • always a ‘starting point’ – learn from experiences • learning about project design, impacts, and management measures from one project to transfer to the project under consideration Limitation: • biophysical, and especially socioeconomic environments are not always directly comparable Advantage: • efficient and inexpensive method • can draw upon experience and lessons from similar projects

Answer 52

2. Judgment • The successful application of many EIA methods often relies heavily on the nature and quality of expert judgment. • Methods used vary from very unstructured and ad hoc (e.g., roundtable discussions) to highly structured and organized techniques such as the Delphi technique. Expert Judgement:most commonly used method (and technique) in EA practice  used either ‘stand alone’ or in combination with other methods (e.g. expert-based impact matrices) . Delphi Technique

Answer 53

An iterative survey-type questionnaire where individuals are asked to express a view, provide an assessment score, rank a set of options, etc. • the group’s ‘average’ response is then calculated and fed back to the individual participants, providing them with an opportunity to revise their response based on the group’s response • the Delphi can be used to find consensus on an issue, or to find areas of dissent • typically, only two survey rounds following the initial survey round are used as consent has been shown to change little beyond two iterations

Answer 54

3. Systems Modelling • Models are simplified representations of a system, including causal mechanisms. They are based on explicit assumptions about the behaviour of the system and they are very datademanding. • Mechanistic models: describe cause-effect relationships using flow diagrams or mathematical equations (e.g. Gaussian dispersion model for predicting rates and extents of pollution fallout from an emission stack; economic base multipliers) • Deterministic models: depend on a fixed relationship between components and provide a single solution for the state variables (e.g. gravity model of spatial interaction); uncertainty and variability are not explicitly modelled

Answer 55

4. Scenario Analysis • Scenarios are a hypothetical sequence of events about change in a set of conditions over a defined period of time, depicting what could be if particular trends and rates of change unfold • Scenarios are not predictions per se, but rather contingency statements about what ‘could’ happen under specified circumstances. • Refer to Box 3.8 of the text.

Answer 56

No clear relationship between expert use and quality consensus is not what is needed but, diverse groups of experts should debate the issue coming to conclusions and differing options emphasis placed on the consitency of expert judgements

Answer 57

ex of scenario-multi criteria analysis - structured approach to decision analysis, was used to evaluate alternative impact mitigation options based on the input of a panel of government and non-government experts in wetland conservation - 5 scenarios were examines

Answer 58

working in reverse in order to ensure implementation of future positive movement

Answer 59

``` objectives time availability resource availability Data availability Robustness Nature of project Selectivity comparability transparency ```

Answer 60

Screening is a means to determine whether a proposed undertaking requires an EA and serves to establish the level of assessment to be undertaken.

Answer 61

In order for an EIA to be required, something must ‘trigger’ the process. • Triggers can be ‘discretionary’, whereby each action or decision is judged based on specified criteria or standards. Such criteria or standards may be identified in legislation or regulations. This is referred to as case-by-case screening. • Triggers are sometimes ‘prescriptive’, whereby actions or decisions that require an EA are listed in various regulations or legislation. This is referred to as list-based screening. • Threshold-based screening is a third approach that involves the use of thresholds (e.g., project size, level of emissions generated) to determine if an EIA is triggered. .Hybrid Screening approach • List-based and threshold-based approaches are efficient and widely used methods. However, list-based approaches, in particular, should be used cautiously. For example, this approach may not consider, among others: • Context • Out-of-date thresholds • Regional differences • A hydrid approach is a threshold-based screening system with allowances for case-by-case consideration.

Answer 62

Case-by-case Screening (discretionary screening) • Screening the need for EA based on the potential for significant adverse impacts • Each proposed activity evaluated for its potential to trigger certain regulations or guidelines, or to cause certain concerns. For example: • Will it affect a rare, endangered, or threatened species? • Will it affect wetland habitat? • Will the effect last for more than one generation? • There is no list of projects for which an EA is required • Each case is considered based on its own merit

Answer 63

Often includes: • legal definitions of proposals or undertakings to which EA does or does not apply. For example: • an exclusion list for which EAs are not required • an inclusion list of all projects for which an EA is required • Inclusion and exclusion lists were typically used in Canada under the former Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.

Answer 64

This approach is typically used in conjunction with list-based screening and involves placing proposed projectys into categories and setting thresholds for each type (e.g., project size, population effected, level of emissions generated, etc.). -can be misleading as a project may barely be under the threshold yet cause just as much damage as one just over the threshold

Answer 65

• List-based and threshold-based approaches are efficient and widely used methods. However, list-based approaches, in particular, should be used cautiously. For example, this approach may not consider, among others: • Context • Out-of-date thresholds • Regional differences • A hydrid approach is a threshold-based screening system with allowances for case-by-case consideration. 3 Threshold Types: Inclusive(EIA Always Required), Exclusive(EIA not Required unless in sensitive areas), Indicative(Case-By-Case)

Answer 66

Advantages: + Straight-forward, clear requirements + Widely used, easy to understand + Easily enforceable (not debatable in the legal sense) + Efficiency in screening + Consistency in application Disadvantages: - Can circumvent thresholds by proposing development slightly below the threshold; the effects are no different! - Does not provide for context specific considerations (e.g. compounding impacts, sensitivity of local environment) - Project lists quickly become outdated - Outdated (or incorrect) thresholds

Answer 67

Advantages: + Dynamic + Can be tailored to specific environments, contexts, and sensitivities + Can integrate impacts of past actions or developments, and consider proposal in light of future developments and cumulative impacts Disadvantages: - Each application is ‘start from scratch’ - Can be time consuming - Danger of inconsistencies - Can be difficult to defend (legally)

Answer 68

• A designated project means physical activities that are: • Carried out in Canada or on federal lands, • designated by the Regulations Designating Physical Activities, or designated in an order by the Minister of the Environment, AND • Linked to the same federal authority as specified in those regulations or that order.

Answer 69

• The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency is responsible for the majority of activities designated under the Act except: • The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission is the RA for activities regulated under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act. • The National Energy Board is the RA for activities under the National Energy Board Act and the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act.

Answer 70

Now: only environmental effects, expanded if involving Aboriginals -also if Federal government is proponent itself Past: Included environment, social, and economic effects

Answer 71

There are two main assessment options once an “EIA is required decision” is made under the Canadian system: 1. EIA by responsible authority 2. EIA by a review panel: A review panel is a group of experts appointed by the Minister of the Environment. This method is used only if the environmental effects are uncertain or potentially significant, or if the Minister determines that public concern warrants it. • Under both types the Agency and the Minister can apply substitution or equivalency, whereby another jurisdiction (e.g., a provincial EA process) can be delegated responsibility for the EIA.

Answer 72

• Will some component of the project reach a specified threshold? For example, will it exceed some air emissions standard? • Is the project site “environmentally sensitive” or is it adjacent to one that is? • Does the project involve known dangers or risks? • Will it contribute to cumulative effects? (for example, will it be another potentially polluting or noisy project in an environment that already have others?) • Are there other circumstances that might be of concern? E.g., requires a large labour force in an area that isn’t capable of supporting a huge influx of people)

Answer 73

• The screening stage is pivotal in EA as it ensures that activities that are ‘likely’ to cause significant environmental effects are assessed. However, the suggested approach is to err on the side of caution, and adopt a precautionary approach to screening: • precautionary principle: when scientific information is incomplete, but there is threat of adverse impact, lack of full certainty should not be used as a reason to preclude actions to prevent harm • A major challenge in screening based on precaution, however, is that avoiding harm in the absence of evidence does not always sit well with the ethos of EA, which advocates that decisions should be made only on the basis of sound information!

Answer 74

No EIA Yes EIA Limited EIA and Mitigation Further Study is needed

Answer 75

any project that has mandatory or discretionary requirements of an EIA any project that would generally require an EIA but are excluded/excused for varoius reasons This type of system was used under the last Environmental Assessment Act

Answer 76

Threshold--based screening

Answer 77

Inclusive(EIA Always Required),

Answer 78

Exclusive(EIA not Required unless in sensitive areas),

Answer 79

Indicative(Case-By-Case)

Answer 80

Navigable Waters Protection Act

Answer 81

systematically documents potential environmental effects of a proposed prject, identifies mitigation, and determines the need to modify the project plan or recommends further assessment to eliminate or minimize those effeccts - done under the old act - 99% of EIA's under old act were "screening EIA" - eliminated because some idiots believed it was a waste of time

Answer 82

screening out small prjects - Individual P&G rarely require a EIA because of the size of the project - 30,000 P&G wells operating in the prarie ecozone - when added up many small projects can have a lerge impact

Answer 83

• Scoping: • is determining the important issues and parameters that should be addressed in an EA; • is about focusing the EA on relevant issues and concerns; and • helps identify the components of the biophysical and human environment potentially affected by the project and for which there is scientific and public concern. • Closed scoping: the content and scope of the EIA are predetermined by law. Modifications are made between the proponent and the regulatory agency or responsible authority. • Open scoping: the content and scope of the EIA are determined by a transparent process based on consultation with various interests and publics.

Answer 84

• establish the spatial, temporal and other boundaries; • ensure input from potential stakeholders early in the process; • identify relevant public, scientific issues, concerns, and components; • reduce the volume of unnecessarily comprehensive data and information; • avoid a standard inventory format that may miss key elements or issues; and • ensure that the EIA is designated to maximize information quality for decision-making purposes.

Answer 85

Enbridge wants to bring supertankers into inner port - would expand the tar sands - many stakeholder and rightsholders groups against it - channels would be strongly affected by loud acoustics of supertankers - oil spill would be inevitable Example of Scoping

Answer 86

• Scope the project alternatives (alternative to; alternative means); • Identify valued environmental components (VECs); • Delineate the assessment spatial and temporal boundaries; • Establish the environmental baseline and trends (past; present; future; stressors); • Identify potential impacts and issues of concern.

Answer 87

“Alternatives to” the project • different ways of meeting the need and purpose of the described project • alternatives to a proposed project are typically limited in practice to the ‘no project’ alternative • The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012, unlike its predecessor, does not require the assessment of “alternatives to” the project. However, this can be considered by the Minister on a case-by- case basis. “Alternative means” for the project can be effectively addressed at the scoping stage. • different options for carrying out a project • typically include feasible alternative ways a project can be implemented, such as technical or engineering design or alternative locations -Location or design • Refer to Box 5.2 of the text for an “alternative means” example for the Mackenzie Gas Pipeline project.

Answer 88

Valued Environmental Components (VECs) are those aspects of the environment, physical and human, considered to be important from scientific or public perspectives and thus warrant detailed consideration in the impact assessment. • Rather than wasting time and resources on comprehensive baseline studies it is more effective to focus environmental baseline studies on the VECs most likely to be affected. - VECs are most often chosen based upon a proponents need to address eposure to liability(ex: fisheries act and species at risk act) - There are generally a greater variet of VECS when public consultation is used in the Scoping portion

Answer 89

Scoping and VECs • Understanding the baseline data for both the biophysical and human environments is important!! • Important to realize the EA is NOT about collecting baseline data for the purpose of a descriptive “environmental study” • Scoping is needed to establish clear boundaries for spatial and temporal assessment based upon the important components of the environmental baseline.

Answer 90

1. Is the VEC likely to be affected, directly or indirectly, by project activities? If no, then there is no need to compile a comprehensive baseline about that VEC. This is not to say that the VEC should be discarded, as it may still be of significant public concern and warrant some consideration in the impact assessment process. 2.Is it possible to predict impacts on the VEC, on indicators of that VEC, or to relate either quantitatively or qualitatively project induced change to VEC conditions? If no, the VEC should be given relatively low priority unless it is a VEC of significant public value

Answer 91

Indicators provide a sign or signal regarding change in VEC conditions and, more importantly, can provide an early warning of a potential adverse effect. Two broad types are: • Condition-based indicators: focus on a specific indicator (e.g.,species abundance) and provides direct, measurable information about the condition or state of the VEC. • Stress-based indicators: also referred to as disturbance-based indicators; focus on measurable stress that affects the VEC (e.g.,increased stream crossing density).

Answer 92

VEC indicators can be proxys or measurable parameters that provide an indication, quantitatively or qualitatively, of a VEC condition/ change. For example: • parameters of air quality, employment rates as an indicator of community health • roads/km2 as a proxy for development • impervious surfaces/km2 for water quality • They allow decision makers to gauge environmental change • They provide information about the functioning of a specific system, for a specific purpose

Answer 93

VEC objectives represent the specific parameters, guidelines, or standards that must be met. Establishing objectives is usually based on benchmarks or thresholds. It is important to have a standard or point of reference against which change may be compared or assessed. Thresholds are established limits of change and may include: • absolute thresholds: carrying capacity, limit of tolerance • acceptable limits of change: what is acceptable from a broader societal perspective • desired VEC conditions or objectives: desired outcomes or conditions • Salmo et al (2004) suggest a tiered approach (See Figure 5.3 in your text): • a cautionary threshold, • a target threshold, and • a critical threshold

Answer 94

• context specific and depend on the nature of the project activities, the distribution of the affected VECs, sensitivity of the receiving environment, political boundaries, and the extent of trans-boundary effects. • Generally speaking, however, spatial boundaries for assessment ideally are: • large enough to capture potential relationships between the project and other existing projects • reflect natural boundaries and natural systems • are large enough to capture the spatial extent of the actual environmental effects • capture multiple scales, from the local to the regional • are sensitive to the distribution of the affected VECs

Answer 95

Activity Information and Receptor Information. • Activity information characterizes the types of effects a project might generate. • Receptor information refers to the processes resulting from such effects.

Answer 96

The temporal scale includes the past, present and future. • previous and current activities in the project region affecting VEC conditions • potentially foreseeable activities • how far into the past and how far into the future will depend on the quality and quantity of data available, and the certainty associated with project environmental conditions • in Arctic environments, for example, longer-term data are frequently needed to understand the potential effects of development due to often large fluctuations in seasonal and year to year conditions

Answer 97

* While EIA, in principle, should be based on ecological units (what are some examples?), in practice, administrative boundaries play a very important role. * Many project-related impacts cross administrative boundaries and affect environments in adjacent jurisdictions. These are trans-boundary effects. (What are some examples?) * Consideration needs to be given to these other jurisdictions; the extent to which they are affected by the project; who has decision-making authority; and what jurisdiction(s) is responsible for managing project impacts.

Answer 98

• A profile of current and past natural, social, and economic environmental trends and conditions in the study area • Identification and descriptions of natural, social, economic variables and issues of concern and interrelationships • Identification of key stressors and driving forces of change in the project region, and associated with the project itself • Establishment of key questions and indicators to carry forward to impact prediction, mitigation and monitoring phases of assessment

Answer 99

Baseline information is available from a variety of sources including: • previously completed environmental assessments • regional land use plans • on-going monitoring programs • academic research • existing data banks However, field studies to collect new data specific to the project context are often necessary. This may include, for example: • scientific field sampling and pre-development baseline monitoring • interviews with indigenous and other local people and organizations The knowledge of local land users and indigenous people is often particularly important to understanding longer-term trends and fluctuations in baseline conditions.

Answer 100

• Scoping ensures that all of the necessary factors are considered in the assessment and at the same time sufficiently narrows the scope of the assessment to focus only on centrally important elements. • Scoping is an ongoing activity and should continue in the post-project and implementation and monitoring phases. • Good practice scoping is a process by which the environment is continuously scanned to detect signs of adverse environmental changes or variables of importance that may not have been considered during initial project planning.

Answer 101

Example of scoping through baseline info retrievael on caribou nnumbers from helicopter

Answer 102

about determining the important issues and parameters that should be addressed in an environmental assessment, establishing the spatial and temporal boundaries of the assessment, and focusing the assessment on relevent issues and concerns

Answer 103

closed: the content and scope of the EIA are predetermined by law - any modifications occur behind closed doors between proponent and competent authority or regulatory agency Open: the content and scope of the EIA are determined by a transparent process based on consultations with various interests and publics

Answer 104

an example of 'alternatives to' providing 5 options for moving forward

Answer 105

.Natural Gas reserves developed and piped down south .Example of "alternative means" as the pipeline had many different alternatives routes that could be discussed in reference to VEC's

Answer 106

``` Economics Housing Demographics Local Services Health Socio-Cultural ```

Answer 107

``` Air Water Soil Coastal Zone Terrestrial ```

Answer 108

VEC selection: .Known for its coal mining, 5 large coalmines .Looking to curb cumuative effects on VECS .example of collaborative, transparent approach to scoping -guided by agreed upon principles and developed values

Answer 109

Cautionary: monitoring efforts should be increased to more closely monitor VEC or indicator conditions and the effectiveness of best management practices verified to prevent any further adverse change Target: typically politically or socially defined-a margin of safety and a mandatory trigger for management action Critical: defines maximum acceptable change, socially, or ecologically, beyond which impacts may be long term

Answer 110

ex: point source, local, regional, national

Answer 111

is the combination of all spatial boundaries associated with a project

Answer 112

current conditions were adopted as the new 'normal' and were attempting to use it as a baseline -baseline needs to incudle the past

Answer 113

Sometimes a scenario analysis is better – rather than predicting an outcome with precision and accuracy, a scenario approach presents a range of possible outcomes • Project planning can then help to achieve the most desirable outcomes and impact management measures can be used to ensure the worst-case scenarios do not occur (what are some examples??)

Answer 114

.Need to consider predictions for both the biophysical and human environment • The underlying assumptions need to be explicit • A time frame for impact occurrence is needed • The probability of the impact occurrence needs to be explicit • Must openly acknowledge the uncertainty associated with the prediction Chellenges: Proponents may "openly-hide" unknowns

Answer 115

An impact prediction is a statement specifying, without direct measurement, the past, present, or future condition of a particular environmental system, given particular system characteristics (Duinker and Baskerville 1986) -it identifies potential changes in environmental conditions and supports decision making about development approvals and impact management  determining the initial or reference state (baseline), and baseline trends;  predicting the future state in absence of project development (future baseline);  predicting the future state with project development

Answer 116

. Biological change • Chemical change • Physical change • Ecosystem change

Answer 117

``` . Demographic change • Cultural change • Economic change • Health and social change • Institutional change ```

Answer 118

Environmental effects are changes in the conditions of a parameter (biophysical or socioeconomic) caused by a project as measured against conditions in absence of the project  effects are ‘measurable’  effects are often described in terms of a particular ‘process’, triggered by a project ‘action’ Environmental impact is often used interchangeably with environmental effect; however, some use ‘impact’ as the value judgment associated with an environmental effect. In this case, it is more important to manage effects –managing impacts may simply be damage control

Answer 119

• Not all effects are tied ‘directly’ to the project action or to a specific project causal factor • Direct Effects: those which occur in direct response to a project-related change. • Indirect Effects: those which occur indirectly as a result of the effects of project induced change.

Answer 120

1.Incremental effects  marginal changes, directly attributable to a specific action  ‘rate of change’ (e.g. annual additions of a contaminant)  incremental loss (e.g. annual loss of forest habitat over time) 2. Additive effects (Refer to Figure 6.2) • combination of separate or related actions on an environmental component or components • e.g. chemical ‘A’ = 10 % mortality in fish over 30- day exposure period; chemical ‘B’ = 10% mortality; if chemical ‘A’ and chemical ‘B’ were released together, the additive mortality = 20% 3. Synergistic effects (Refer to Figure 6.3)  interaction between environmental effects  total impact is greater than the sum of the individual effects  e.g. carbon tetrachloride and ethanol are both toxic, but together their combined toxicity is greater than the sum of individual effects 4. Antagonistic effects  one adverse effect partially counteracts another adverse impact  sum of the effects for each individual impact is less than the sum of effects for both e.g. chemical ‘X’ produces 25% mortality in fish chemical ‘Y’ produces 25% mortality in fish ∑ effect = 35% mortality

Answer 121

adding of exploratory wells over 100 years began as 1 and has spread to 1,000 wells

Answer 122

. Duration  length of time an impact occurs (e.g. short term less likely to be considered significant) -short term, medium term, long term, Far Future Continuity  continuous impacts likely to be considered more significant  e.g. energy fields from transmission lines vs. periodic power interruptions Immediacy  immediate (impact follows environmental change – e.g. airport noise)  delayed (impact occurs some time after change – e.g. health effects) Frequency  one-off versus reoccurring impacts Regularity  regular impacts are more ‘predictable’ (and often less significant)

Answer 123

• interior flight training area covering about 130,000 km² • 6,000 – 7,000 flights annually • as low as 100 feet above ground • only 1 community in the region (population 500) • several smaller aboriginal settlements Impact on hearing deemed insignificant (EA 1994) Concern – ‘regularity’ of impact (irregular) • ‘startle effect’ = noise onset of > 15 dbA/sec • military jet noise onset > 150 dbA/sec Effects on caribou (Georges River Herd) Effects on schools (Learning interruptions)

Answer 124

Magnitude  size or degree of an environmental change or impact  magnitude is NOT DIRECTLY associated with the significance of an impact  e.g. 5% reduction in plant cover per unit area in ‘core biodiversity area’ is ≠ 5% reduction in non core area, but, magnitude (% wise) is equivalent -No Affect, Low, Moderate, High Direction  refers to increase or decrease in environmental parameter relative to baseline condition  often expressed in terms of the ‘impact’ direction -Adverse, Neutral, Positive -can be multidirectional

Answer 125

 Geography of the effect (local, regional, national)  Sometimes spatial extent is characterized according to on-site impacts and off-site impacts.

Answer 126

. some environments can be restored to the ‘approximate’ baseline condition e.g. sanitary landfills  some environments can be restored to the ‘actual’ baseline condition e.g. restoring normal traffic flows following bridge replacement  some environments can be restored to a ‘predicted’ baseline condition e.g. ecological restoration programs

Answer 127

1. Accuracy: extent of system-wide bias in impact predictions 2. Precision: level of exactness associated with impact prediction  accuracy depends on the level of precision desired  an impact prediction can be consistently accurate when it is imprecise  as the desired level of precision increases, the probability of accuracy decreases  the fact that an impact prediction is accurate, does not make it useful if it is imprecise  if more precise impacts are desired, accuracy may be forfeit Accuracy example: “There will be a ‘slight increase’ in methyl mercury concentrations in the reservoir” “There will be only a minor effect on human health due to fish consumption from the reservoir  these predictions are very imprecise, but you are almost guaranteed to be right.  but how useful are these predictions for mitigation and management? Precision Example: “There will be a 0.28 ppm increase in methyl mercury concentrations above the baseline level for the first 6 months following reservoir flooding"  the above prediction is very precise, but there’s little chance of being right.

Answer 128

There are two dimensions to precision and predictive accuracy: i) logical validity of the impact prediction ii) relative severity of being wrong (i.e. actual outcomes vs. predicted impact) ex:“There will be no more than a 0.28ppm increase in methyl mercury concentrations above the baseline level for the first 6 months following reservoir flooding”

Answer 129

a) Hypotheses-based approach: based on rigorous and falsifiable null-impact hypotheses. The assumptions used for the impact prediction must be clearly stated and a range of probability and confidence intervals identified. The lower the confidence level, the greater the likelihood that effects monitoring will become important as the project proceeds. b) Threshold-based approach: The complexity of biophysical and socioeconomic environments can produce uncertainties that can contribute to inaccurate impact prediction. A threshold-based approach may be suitable in this case. This approach may rely on previous experience with similar projects, similar impacts in different environments, or regulatory standards.

Answer 130

There is a fundamental problem with impact prediction in current EA practice: vague, imprecise and ‘untestable’ statements about potential outcomes, including little indication of when impacts are likely to occur  non-existent, insufficient, inadequate or inaccessible monitoring data, both pre and post-project baseline and during project implementation to test impacts  obsolete impact predictions resulting from changes in environmental conditions between the time that the prediction was made and the monitoring activity, or changes in project design or scheduling, each of which affect the relevance of the prediction

Answer 131

When comparative examples or regulatory standards are not available, an alternative approach is to base impact predictions on a desirable level or maximum level of change. Maximum Allowable Effects Levels (MAEL) are an approach to impact prediction in which the impact is stated in the form of a hypothesis such as “project impact i will not exceed a particular threshold or desired effects level for a particular impact indicator j.”

Answer 132

 Scenarios are a hypothetical sequence of events about change in a set of conditions over a defined period of time, depicting what could be if particular trends and rates of change unfold  Scenarios are not predictions per se, but rather contingency statements about what ‘could’ happen under specified circumstances

Answer 133

scenario presentation | 4 different diagrams depicting distrubance patterns around potential development

Answer 134

a) Probability analysis quantifying the probability that an impact or range of impacts is likely to occur and under what conditions, as well as the confidence in the prediction. b) Sensitivity analysis examines the sensitivity of the prediction to minor variations in input data, environmental parameters, and assumptions. A Monte Carlo analysis, a mathematical technique, is a sophisticated method of evaluating sensitivity. c) Confirmatory analysis Used to test for uncertainty regarding the predictive technique itself. The objective is to determine the extent to which different techniques provide similar predicted outcomes. d) Uncertainty disclosure requires that practitioners disclose their assumptions and uncertainties about impact predictions and mitigation. Unfortunately, often poor practice is used, which systematically diminishes uncertainty disclosure, resulting in overconfidence in impact prediction.

Answer 135

 assumptions underlying predictions are clearly stated  the time frame to the anticipated impacts are identified  issues of probability and confidence in predictions must be explicit  there is an understanding that the prediction may be wrong

Answer 136

1. Sound understanding of the nature of the proposed undertaking 2. knowledge of the outcomes of simalar projects 3. knowledge of past, present, or approved projects whose impacts may interact with the proposed undertakings 4. predictions of the projects impacts on other environmental and socio-economic components that may interact with those directly affected by the project 5. Information about environmental and socio economic receptors and how they have in the past and might in the furure respond to change

Answer 137

Dispersion model based on environmental factors affects impact range

Answer 138

can be used to predict of indirect economic impacts during peak and trough periods of project construction or operation-best and worst case scenarios

Answer 139

1. Order of effect or impact - Direct or indirect 2. Nature of effect or impact - Incremental, Additive, Synergistic, Antagnostic 3. Temporal Characteristics - Duration, Continuity, Immediacy, Frequency, Regularity 4. Magnitude - Size, Degree, Concentration 5. Direction of change in the affected environmental parameter - Incresing, decreasing, positive, negative 6. Spatial Extent - on site, off site, regional 7. Reversability of change of the affected environmental parameter - reversible, irreversible 8. Probability of occurence - likelihood, risk OH NINA, TUNA MAKES DENZIE SMELL REALLY POOPY

Answer 140

hypothesis | -preffered approach

Answer 141

of more EIA proccesses including health impacts in project assessment -determinnts of health When comparative examples or regulatory standards are not available, an alternative approach is to base impact predictions on a desirable level or maximum level of change. Maximum Allowable Effects Levels (MAEL)

Answer 142

. Avoidance • Mitigation (damage control) • Remediation (fixing or restoring after the fact) . Compensation (a last resort – making up for the damage done)

Answer 143

* Environmental Protection Plans * Environmental Management Systems * Adaptive Environmental Management * Impact Benefit Agreements

Answer 144

Impact management: plans or strategies designed to avoid or alleviate potentially adverse effects and to enhance potentially positive ones

Answer 145

Avoidance Avoidance is the best approach to managing potentially adverse projects impacts is to avoid them, or to prevent them from occurring at the outset. Can include avoidance by location or avoidance by timing. Avoidance by location: where possible, locate projects and project activities in areas free of ecologically sensitive environments or species, human settlements, traditional hunting or cultural areas, and important water sources Examples:  routing pipelines to avoid ecologically sensitive areas  designing ice roads design to avoid currents, reefs, and sensitive coastal areas Avoidance by timing: not all projects have ‘location options’, but activities associated with a project can be ‘timed’ so as to avoid conflicts with other resource or land uses or natural processes

Answer 146

Avoidance by location - in order for this to avoidance to work it needs to be implemented early in the process - looks past individual projects to display location in relation to other projects - this example :to facilitate a broader, more regional approach to planning for oil and gas

Answer 147

Avoidance by timing: -The proponent recommended impact avoidance by timing - terminating winter shipping in early spring to facilitate ice use for seal hunting and other activities will allow time for the ice corridor to reconsolidate (refreeze) before the onset of melting in May

Answer 148

Unfortunately, not all potentially adverse impacts are recognized in advance mitigation means ‘to make less severe’ – a damage control approach  the application of project design, construction, operation, scheduling and management principles and practices to minimize (not necessarily prevent) potentially adverse environmental effects Example: Leaving buffer zones around streams and lakes in forest harvest areas does not ‘avoid’ or ‘prevent’ sedimentation due to runoff, but it does severe to make stream and lake sedimentation less severe than it would be in absence of the buffer zone

Answer 149

Regardless of mitigation efforts, environmental components may be temporarily damaged  restoring environmental quality, rehabilitating certain environmental features, or restoring environmental components to certain degrees Example: Tailings ponds after mine closure can be ‘reclaimed’ to return habitat conditions to a “usable state” for wildlife Restoring environmental conditions does not necessarily mean restoring the project environment to the initial ‘pre-project’ baseline condition.  this may not be feasible (economically, ecologically)  neither may it be desirable (environmental systems evolve over timeregardless of project disturbance)

Answer 150

example of remediation plan because of the huge ammount of leftover arsenic

Answer 151

Some effects cannot be avoided, mitigated, or rectified. In other cases, residual effects remain following impact management. In these cases, effects must be compensated.  compensation involves ‘making up’ for environmental effects, and should be a ‘last resort’ Example: Measures to restore or recreate environmental habitats elsewhere that cannot be restored in the project environment. Financial payments to affected communities to compensate for environmental, social, economic, or cultural disturbance Compensation is OFTEN used for situations that destroyed fish spawning habitat.

Answer 152

Begins with the aknoledgement that the EIA process should include finding and recognizing the positive effects projects may have The Mackenzie Panel’s report (Mackenzie Panel, 2009) represents the most detailed effort so far by an environmental assessment hearing body in Canada to adopt and apply a contribution to sustainability test, identifying a suite of key issue areas covering the general requirements for progress towards sustainability, and building these explicitly into an analytical framework for evaluating a range of project alternatives, including the null option Mr Justice Thomas Berger of the British Columbia Supreme Court to carry out a formal public inquiry into the social-economic and cultural as well as biophysical aspects of the proposed project and to recommend appropriate terms and conditions for approval. Berger’s mid-1970s inquiry stands as a benchmark example of broadly defined environmental assessment, devoted to full and open engagement of the potentially affected people as well as specialized experts His final report, centred on a recommendation to delay project approval for ten years to allow for negotiation of land claims agreements with the Aboriginal groups, was and is still widely credited or blamed for stopping the project. Cumulative impacts on the biophysical environment;  Cumulative impacts on the human environment;  Equity impacts (fair distribution of benefits and risks);  Legacy and bridging impacts; and  Cumulative impacts management and preparedness (capacities for managing the risks and opportunities). Listed as rquirements for proponent: Contribution to sustainability;  Use and respect for traditional knowledge;  Recognition of land claim agreements and treaties;  Recognition of diversity; and  The precautionary approach. Both positive and adverse effects were covered. Panel tried to implement but blocked by feds  Recognition that a comprehensive approach to complex and interrelated socio-economic and biophysical effects is needed for a realistic understanding of the short and long-term implications of proposals and alternative options.  Comparative evaluation of options with explicit emphasis on cumulative effects and implications for building desirable and resilient futures.  Adoption of an explicit set of evaluation and decision criteria, based on the generic requirements for progress towards sustainability but specified in light of the significant characteristics, concerns and opportunities of the case and context.  Explicit attention to interactive effects and tradeoffs.  A focus on the one-time opportunity character of non-renewable resource exploitation undertakings and the associated need to use these as a bridge to more lasting options.  Commitment to an open and credible public process.  Attention to broader strategic issues (e.g. concerning conservation planning, capacity building, legacy and transition funding, use of natural gas as a transition fuel, and requirements for effective national greenhouse gas emission reduction).

Answer 153

Mr Justice Thomas Berger of the British Columbia Supreme Court to carry out a formal public inquiry into the social-economic and cultural as well as biophysical aspects of the proposed project and to recommend appropriate terms and conditions for approval. Berger’s mid-1970s inquiry stands as a benchmark example of broadly defined environmental assessment, devoted to full and open engagement of the potentially affected people as well as specialized experts His final report, centred on a recommendation to delay project approval for ten years to allow for negotiation of land claims agreements with the Aboriginal groups, was and is still widely credited or blamed for stopping the project. SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT

Answer 154

If a project is approved, impact management measures are often articulated in the form of an overall ‘environmental protection plan’ (EPP). An EPP spells out the details of impact management actions and the manner in which they are to be implemented. -often mandatory EPPs are management tools, developed by the project proponent, that outline procedures and practices designed to:  protect the environment throughout the life of the project  provide direction on mitigation implementation  meet regulatory and other requirements  provide clear lines of communication for environmental concerns

Answer 155

* formally recognized industry-based management system whereby a company controls its activities that could cause environmental impacts * Environmental management systems emerged in response to industry’s realization of the need for an integrated and proactive approach to managing industry environmental issues and are a reflection of: * increasing privatization of environmental management * rise of corporate social and environmental responsibility - Voluntary industry initiative - Often certified projects actually are worse then uncertified by ISO - does NOT evaluate

Answer 156

A global federation of over 100 countries, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.  formed in 1947 to promote the development of international standards, primarily in product manufacturing  specifies requirements for an environmental management system  does not itself state specific environmental performance criteria It is not a ‘performance’ based measure – it does not measure a company’s actual environmental performance with regard to effects management or reduction of emissions.

Answer 157

A management system designed to address impact issues should be flexible enough to respond to unanticipated impacts as well as the differences between the actual and predicted nature, level, or severity of the impacts. An adaptive management strategy can help respond to the inherent unknowns and uncertainties in impact prediction. Important to the sound environmental management practices is the adoption of Adaptive Environmental Management (AEM) strategies. These strategies are:  structured, not haphazard  well planned  treats management prescriptions as experiments to test hypotheses, monitor the outcomes, and adapt management actions as new knowledge and understanding are gained

Answer 158

IBAs are privatized and legally binding agreement between a proponent and a community  means of minimizing negative projects effects and ensuring that communities and groups are able to take advantage of project benefits  IBAs often emerge from the EIA process, but they are typically separate and private agreements Early IBAs addressed a limited set of issues, particularly employment, training and business opportunities Current IBAs address a range of socio-economic benefits (e.g. cash payments and sharing of mining profits) and environmental issues (community-based environmental monitoring and restoration)

Answer 159

the focus of impact management is on plans or strategies designed to avoid or alleviate anticipated impacts generally percieved as undesireable and to generate or enhance effects seen as beneficial

Answer 160

first time a canadian EIA adopted an explicit sustainability mandate requiring the project proponent to enhance potentially positive impacts by commiting to community enfrastructure investment and worker training programs beyond the life of the project

Answer 161

Environmental Management Systems Environmental Protection Plans Adaptive Management Strategies Impact Benefit Agreements

Answer 162

Demonstrated how agreements can be made both before and after the EIA is performed, preferebly before - hinges on community involvement, trust - If done before, the communities have much more opportunity to be consulted on all issue

Answer 163

• Is an informed judgement • Depends, in part, on the characteristics of anticipated environmental impacts and the nature of the receiving environmental components • Is both biophysical and socio-economic in context • Involves some level of change, including cumulative change, which is perceived to be acceptable to the interested parties

Answer 164

Involves making some informed judgment about the importance of a project’s environmental effects in consideration of the spatial and temporal nature of those effects • Includes the effect’s reversibility and concentration; the sensitivity of the receiving environment (both socioeconomic and biophysical); and the public perceptions about the nature of the potential environmental effects or public values of the affected environmental components

Answer 165

• It can evolve over the life of the EIA process. It isn’t simply something done after the environmental effects are predicted and mitigation measures identified • Significance determination occurs throughout the EA process – from the early stages of screening or determining if an EA is required, through to the followup, post project development to determine if mitigation measures are working and if there are important residual effects

Answer 166

F- should be applied

Answer 167

• Whether an EIA is required • The scope of the assessment • Which impacts to focus on for further analysis • Whether management measures are necessary • Whether proposed project actions or activities are acceptable • What conditions should be attached to project approval • Whether and what to monitor . What agencies or parties are responsible for managing what impacts.

Answer 168

i) significance of predicted project effects | ii) significance of predicted effects assuming mitigation measures will be implemented and will be effective

Answer 169

- effects that remain after management and mitigation measures

Answer 170

Three basic outcomes of significance determination • The environmental effect is significant and cannot be mitigated • The environmental effect is significant but can be mitigated • The environmental effect is insignificant • In practice proponents often identify potential environmental effects as insignificant IF they can be managed by implementing certain mitigation measures

Answer 171

``` Impact characteristic for both effect and VEC ( duration, extent, etc.) X Impact Importance (value of receptor) ```

Answer 172

. Major • Moderate • Minor • Negligible

Answer 173

1. Direction: Adverse? 2. Magnitude: Moderate to High? 3. Probability: probability of occurence(None, low, moderate, high) and scientific certainty- high probability= significant - Important to define why one level is significant and another isn;t 4. Time, Duration, and Frequency: 5. Spatial Extent: important for cumulative effects 6.Mitigable effects: • If an effect can be effectively mitigated it is often considered less significant • However – important to make certain that the mitigation measures are actually implemented!! • Need to ensure that the mitigation measures proposed are effective • Important for a follow-up program to monitor both the implementation and effectiveness of the mitigation measures. 7. Standards and Regulations: 8. Cumulative Effects: DENZIE MADE PENIS TEA SO MIKELLE STARTED CUMMING

Answer 174

• Context is important in determining significance • Need to consider society, the affected region, the affected interests, and the locality Consider values: • Ecological value • Societal value • Desired threshold

Answer 175

• Potential effects on rare or threatened plants, animals, and their habitat, or on particularly vulnerable species or components of the natural environment that are essential to ecological functioning, are often deemed to be significant impacts. (e.g., See Figure 8.2 and Table 8.7) • However, the determination of this importance does need to be supported by good baseline data

Answer 176

• Project effects on the biophysical environment often affect factors of importance to society and human life, as well as those biophysical components that are valued for aesthetic or sentimental reasons • Human health and safety • Recreational value • Demands on public resources • Demands for infrastructure and services • Demographic effects • Potential loss of green space, etc.

Answer 177

• thresholds for adverse impacts can be stated as maximum allowable effects levels (MAELs) • where predicted effects exceed desired thresholds or MAELs, the effect is considered significant even though it may not exceed regulatory thresholds 5 types: legal thresholds: established by law or by regulatory limits functional thresholds: established for resource use so as to avoid disturbances that may disrupt ecological functioning normative thresholds: established by communities based on social norms controversial thresholds: effects that may have a high profile due to potential conflicts individual thresholds: based on the priorities of individuals, groups, ororganizations

Answer 178

1. Technical Model 2. Collaborative Approach 3. Reasoned Argumentation 4. Composite Approach Sustainability Approach

Answer 179

There are four basic approaches to significance determination in EA. Perhaps the most familiar approach is the ‘technical model’ a) Technical model  adopts standard scaling, rating, ranking and quantification methods  VECs are sometimes weighted as a measure of ‘relative significance’ or importance e.g., significance is a function of impact characteristics and VEC importance

Answer 180

Starts from the premise that subjective, value-based judgments about what is important should result from interactions among interested and affected parties  there are no predefined thresholds or criteria for judgment  judgments of what is important, what is acceptable, and what are the limits of allowable change emerge only through consultation with the publics  key role of EA practitioner is ensuring the involvement of the most directly affected communities or stakeholders and that all stakeholder concerns are assessed in significance determination Using a collaborative approach may include: • Open houses • Stakeholder meetings and community forums, etc. • Do need to recognize that public concerns about environmental effects are not always the same as actual environmental effects resulting from project actions.

Answer 181

c) Reasoned argumentation Views significance determination as based on reasoned judgments, supported by evidence  involves sifting through information, data, perspectives, and expressed values using structured methods (e.g., decision support aids, matrices, network diagrams) to focus on those matters of most importance to decision making and to build ‘reasoned’ arguments that support significance determination  importance of complete and clear documentation of the evaluation process and reasons for decision

Answer 182

d) Composite Approach Impact significance determination relies upon, at a minimum: • the use of a variety of technical methods and analytical techniques • a range of public consultation methods, including those that facilitate stakeholder interaction, to support collaborative significance determination. • the use of existing regional, community or land use plans or local social surveys to identify values and aspirations against which to compare the proposed development • literature analysis and case study reviews of previous, similar proposals and outcomes in comparable environments and situations • exploring the uncertainties and acceptable risks associated with the significance determination.

Answer 183

1. screening 2. scoping 3. baseline analysis 4. impact analysis 5. cumulative effects 6. decision-making 7. mitigation 8. monitoring and auditing SONIAS SEXY BUTT IS CUTE. DENZIE MIGHT MASTERBATE

Answer 184

first time in Canada that a joint review panel recommended outright rejection of a mining project based on potential for significant adverse impacts

Answer 185

. To improve project performance with respect to environmental outcomes • To verify predicted effects • To provide feedback for learning and adaptive management

Answer 186

• The proponent – who typically performs most of the monitoring activities • The regulator or government agency responsible for administering the EIA and ensuring monitoring compliance • The community potentially affected by the development activity.

Answer 187

Follow-up transforms EA from a static process to an adaptive process of mitigation evaluation, state of the environment monitoring, and ongoing review and revision of mitigation and impact management measures There is little benefit to EA unless we follow-up to verify actual impacts (outcomes) and the effectiveness of our mitigation measures  impacts are based on a static EIS  we rarely have good pre-project baseline data  many predictions are no longer relevant when the project is constructed  the environment is a moving target  cause-effect, and even correlations between project actions and environmental responses are difficult to determine

Answer 188

an umbrella term that encompasses a variety of activities, such as routine monitoring or quality assurance inspections, undertaken during the post-decision stages of the EA process monitoring: continuous or periodic measurement auditing: conformance to expectations/standards evaluation: judgment and feedback

Answer 189

• An activity designed to identify the nature and cause of change • Data collection to provide information on the characteristics and functioning of environmental and social indicators • Usually consists of repetitive observation, measurement and recording over a specific period and for a defined purpose • What is important is not only to determine change, but whether the changes are the consequence of the project

Answer 190

Alberta government constantly monitoring sites for contaminants in river -industry component of monitoring is a mandatory condition

Answer 191

• The objective examination or comparison of observations with predetermined criteria 1. Draft EIS Audit: review of project EIS according to its terms of reference 2. Project Impact Audit: Determination of whether the actual environmental impacts of the project were those that were predicted 3. Decision-point audit: examination of the role and affectiveness of the EIS based on whether the project is allowed to proceed and under what conditions 4. Performance Audit: determination of whether the reccomendations included in the EIS were actually implemented 5. Predictive technique audit: comparison between actual and predicted effects of projects

Answer 192

. The collection, structuring, analysis and appraisal of information concerning project impact • The making of value judgments, decisions and adjustments on remedial actions • Communication of the results

Answer 193

1. Compliance 2. Progress 3. Understanding

Answer 194

``` • to determine a project’s compliance with standards, regulations, mitigation commitments, and agreements; means to ensure that what a proponent committed to is actually done Types of compliance monitoring include:  inspection monitoring  regulatory permit monitoring  monitoring of agreements ```

Answer 195

• to verify anticipated project outcomes and to identify unanticipated outcomes; a watchdog function to measure project performance and to ensure that proponents and those responsible appropriately respond to environmental effects Types of progress monitoring include:  ambient environmental quality monitoring  monitoring for management-Possibly Independent Environmental Monitoring Agency  cumulative effects monitoring  project evaluation monitoring

Answer 196

• to better understand the complexities of project actions and environmental responses; a learning function to improve effects management and future impact assessment practices Types of monitoring for understanding include:  experimental monitoring -science driven over impact driven  monitoring for knowledge -after impacts for future projects

Answer 197

.Established in 1996, IEMA is a public watchdog for environmental monitoring of the Ekati Diamond Mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories .IEMA was created to ensure that the Ekati Diamond mine meets the conditions as set forth for its environmental approval

Answer 198

1. Objectives & Priorities Identified 2. Targeted Approach to Data Collection 3. Hypothesis-based or Threshold-based approaches 4. Combined stressor and effects-based monitoring 5. Establish Control sites for Monitoring 6. Continuity in Data Collection 7. Ensure Adaptability, Flexibility and Timelines 8. Socio-economic Inclusive Monitoring 9. Participatory Monitoring OLD TOM HAD CHOCOLATE EGGS, CHOCOLATE EQUALS SUPER PARTICIPATION

Answer 199

• if objectives and priorities are not established, it is not possible to know whether the program is effective or meeting its intended purposes • objectives and priorities for follow-up and monitoring vary from one project to the next • See Box 9.3 for an example

Answer 200

* not everything can be monitored and not all cause-effect relationships can be understood * monitoring should focus on those indicators that are useful for understanding or correlating change with regard to project actions Early warning indicators: measurable parameters that indicate stress or change in VEC conditions before the VEC is adversely affected - directly or indirectly related to the VEC of concern - physically possible to monitor - amenable to quantitative or qualitative analysis

Answer 201

* the best impact monitoring programs are those based on testable hypotheses, where testing can determine whether changes in a specific indicator exceed stated threshold levels Thresholds for hypotheses based approaches can be determined based on: * specified project goals or objectives * scientific or ecological thresholds * Range of natural variability * levels of ‘acceptable change’ (Maximum Allowable Effects Levels) * consultation with regulatory agencies

Answer 202

EIA focuses on predicting the project’s stress on specified VECs, including the nature and magnitude of changes in VEC conditions as a result of project  focusing monitoring programs solely on a VEC’s response from a single project stress may mask broader environmental changes caused by the projected, even if no measurable change is detected in the VEC itself  good follow-up is built on both project stressor-based monitoring and broader regional effect-based monitoring (i.e. state-of-the-environment)

Answer 203

• For simple projects and simple environments a stressor-based approach and the monitoring of the stressors may be appropriate means of assessing the actual effects of the development on the environment. • The nature and magnitude of change of a VEC or VEC indicator is predicted based upon the conditions imposed on the local environment by the project. Therefore monitoring the stressors may be an effective way of assessing the actual effects (e.g., # of stream crossings, or ha of habitat loss) • May be able to monitor using remote-sensing and other methods • However – there may be challenges to this approach: - Could mask more system based issues - relies on the idea that indicator and response have tight relationship without understanding other variables

Answer 204

• Focuses on the performance of biological indicators • Premise: measuring change in the biological indictors is the most direct and relevant means of assessing change. For example: exceedance of stress-based benchmarks (e.g., stream crossing density, habitat loss) are considered not important if there is no biological effects on the receiving environment. Challenges: Indicators must be responsive and act as early warning signal -hard to isolate for one project -have to demonstrate different levels of human induced stress -Historical data is generally not easy to find for specific areas that would act as baseline for indicators

Answer 205

* control sites help differentiate between project-induced change and change due to other, external factors * when control sites are not possible, gradient to background’ monitoring can provide an ‘artificial’ control site Gradient to background: • assumes that there is a well-defined, localized source of pollution; selected effects can be monitored at increasing distances from the point source • point source, pollution effects should decrease and eventually reach background or ambient conditions • the point on this gradient at which background levels are attained can be considered the ‘control site’

Answer 206

. monitoring data must be comparable over both space and time, throughout the life of the monitoring program

Answer 207

* discovered in 1968, northern Saskatchewan, Canada * the proponent had been collecting baseline data and monitoring the biophysical environment since production commenced in the mid 1970s * radionuclides and trace elements were a primary concern * monitoring and testing procedures had changed several times in the 1980s, and data collected between 1989 and 1990 were discarded due to problems with quality and comparability * after more than a decade of monitoring, comparable data concerning the effects of radionuclides on fish, a valuable resource base to nearby northern residents, were available

Answer 208

• It is important that as a project or environmental conditions change, data quality is consistent and comparable over time. • Project changes, unanticipated effects, emerging project concerns, and indicator choices may warrant changes in the monitoring activities. • Timely monitoring and reporting is required so that those making the changes can respond promptly.

Answer 209

* in practice, socio-economic effects receive considerably less attention in monitoring and follow-up programs than do biophysical ones * when socio-economic factors are considered in follow-up and monitoring, they tend to be treated with less rigour than biophysical components But, if sustainability is the objective of EA, the biophysical and socioeconomic components must be given equal consideration in post-decision monitoring. Challenges: From a proponent’s perspective, it is perhaps understandable why less attention has been paid to socio-economic impacts. The pathways that link project actions to socio-economic impacts are highly complex and often beyond the direct control of project proponents. 1.Geographic scope: many socio-economic effects are not experienced at the project site (e.g. effects in home communities for ‘fly-in, fly-out’ workforces’) 2.Indirect and induced effects: projects often generate employment but the resulting effects of increased employment or disposal income (e.g. how an individual chooses to manage newfound income) is difficult to monitor and the potential adverse effects of such is beyond the direct control of the proponent 3.Cause-effect: project effects are difficult to separate from other drivers of socioeconomic change 4.Interpretation: there are few established thresholds, indicators, or criteria for determining whether an observed socio-economic change is ‘significant

Answer 210

* Although it has been long recognized that there are many benefits of involving local communities in the EA process, in practice, meaning community involvement in monitoring has not frequently occurred. * Efforts have been made in the Saskatchewan uranium mining industry to address the need for community participation in the follow-up and monitoring process.

Answer 211

Good follow-up and monitoring are essential to successful EIA and effects mitigation, but monitoring itself can require considerable time and financial investment. This is particularly the case in Arctic environments where the greater year-to-year variability in biological resources, in comparison to non-Arctic resources, and the high degree of uncertainty in measurement and in the prediction of project effects on the Arctic environment, requires a longer period of time to establish baseline conditions for good monitoring programs. Many project assessments do not establish this longer-term baseline condition. As such, in regions where no previous baseline monitoring or assessment programs have existed, baselines for impact assessment and monitoring are limited – often to a single field season. The costs of monitoring in the Arctic is also significant simply due to the remoteness of many areas, and the extreme environmental conditions. Further, monitoring programs should take into account not only direct project effects but also that the Arctic is particularly vulnerable to disturbance and is a natural sink for the long range transport of pollutants.

Answer 212

1. verifying the accuracy of the environmental assessment of a designated project - is there much value in verifying the accuracy of impact predictions when environmental conditions are consantly changing? 2. determining the effectiveness of any mitigation measures - greater value then first

Answer 213

The first uses the ministers decision statement to enforce measures= small scope VS. second has larger scop to follow up and mitigation

Answer 214

refers to the collection, structuring, analysis, and appraisal of info concerning project impacts and making decisions on remedial actions and communication of the results of this process.

Answer 215

Ekati- much more focused on project specific issues and following mandatory regulations Voisey Bay- You can see the sustaiability factor, moving past just project specific impacts

Answer 216

- industry funded environmental monitoring program initiated in 1997 - example of effects-based monitoring - established to achieve better understanding of the potential effects of oil sans development on aquatic systems so that long-term trends and issues related to oil sand and other developments in the Athabasca River basin would be identified and addressed

Answer 217

parties other then the proponent | ex: community, gov

Answer 218

example of community based monitoring -using the regular coarse of hunting and trapping to test -good example of mixing traditional and western knowledge -gives communities way more opportunity to be involved . known as "comfort monitoring" that eases the worry of communities

Answer 219

``` Public participation refers to the involvement of individuals and groups that are positively or negatively affected by a proposed intervention subject to a decision-making process or are interested in it ``` …a process of engagement, where people are enlisted into the decision process to contribute to it…provide for exchange of information, predictions, opinions, interests, and values…[and] those initiating the process are open to the potential need for change and are prepared to work with different interests to develop plans or amend or even drop existing proposals. (Petts 1999)

Answer 220

1. Help define the issues more effectively  identifies uncertainty, meta-problems (complexity), multi-dimensional problems  identify a broader range of options and solutions that otherwise considered 2. Enables access to a wider range of information for baseline development and impact assessment  knowledge gaps in environmental and socioeconomic baseline  ‘public’ may have valuable information/knowledge  community, industry, government, ENGOs, etc.  local knowledge can facilitate understanding of past events or trends 3. Identify socially acceptable solutions  what is environmentally and economically feasible is not necessarily socially feasible Consultation - more sharing of experiences and information - ensure that many experiences are considered to make the management process seem more fair and efficient Negotiation - two or more groups meet voluntarily in order to explore jointly an issue causing conflict - goal is to reach an acceptable agreement by consensus 4. Facilitate implementation  minimize delays due to ‘surprise’ issues and interest  facilitate challenge to illegal or unacceptable decision before implementation  help avoid costly mitigation  furnishes access to a broader range of financial and political resources 5. Empower the public  public collection of baseline data and interpretation  real involvement in decision making (e.g. identifying mitigation options)  community monitoring programs and tracking early warning indicators

Answer 221

any group of people, organized or unorganized, who share a common interest or stake in a particular issue or system (Grimble and Wellaed, 1997) - any agency with pertinent management responsibilities - all interests significantly affected by a decision - all parties who might intervene in the decision-making process It is important not to ‘over represent’ the active publics (involved) and to ensure adequate representation of the inactive publics (affected by project)  particular attention should thus be given to those who reside in the area where the project will be developed and who may be directly affected by the project.

Answer 222

Players: shape outcomes and are affected by them Context-setters: highly influential, but low stake in project or outcome Victims: low power and influence but high stake in project outcome By-standers: low power, influence, and stake

Answer 223

The provisions for public involvement in EA vary considerably. But, generally speaking, the following minimum provisions can be identified: 1. Adequate notice  public must be informed as soon as an application for development is submitted 2. Access to information  registry or repository system must be available where the public can access information on the project, plans, and regulations 3. Participant assistance (intervener funding)  participant funding should be available to provide resources for interest groups in large EAs (RA’s have funding programs) 4. Public comment  must be opportunity to comment on proposal and respond project actions or decisions 5. Public hearings  must be opportunity to commission public hearings should they be necessary

Answer 224

NON PARTICIPATION 1. Manipulation- Rubberstamo 2. Therapy- Power holders educate citizens DEGREES OF TOKENISM 3. Informing- citizen rights and options identified 4. Consultation- citezens heard but not heeded DEGREES OF CITIZEN POWER 5. Placation- advice recieved but not used 6. Partnership- Trade offs negotiated 7. Delegated power- citizens given management power 8. Citizen Control

Answer 225

informing(3) and consultation(4)

Answer 226

Two obligations are important to this process – the Duty to Consult, - the integration of Traditional Ecological knowledge(TEK) into the EIA process.

Answer 227

This reading introduces you to a variety of topics relevant to this course and module. For example, note the discussions on TEK, meaningful consultation, and restrictive scoping, amongst others. . scope broadening icluding more issues .not just collecting TEK but including groups in implemenetation .CEAA PROPONENT DRIVEN, needs more participation options . consultation was done . scoping was broad . Aboriginal engagement was fair, influential, empowering and led to social learning, and included the collection and use of TEK and complementary negotiation of impact benefit agreements

Answer 228

• This is a formal, legal obligation for government to consult with Aboriginal peoples and are separate from and in addition to any requirements for public participation. -Refer to Box 10.4 of your text. The Haida Case Ruling was an important decision regarding the concept of Duty to Consult.

Answer 229

TEK is often used interchangeably with ‘local knowledge’ or ‘indigenous knowledge’:  a cumulative knowledge, practice, and belief, evolving by adaptive processes and handed down through generations by cultural transmission, about the relationship of living beings (including humans) with one another and with their environment’ (Berkes 1999)  associated with societies with historical continuity in resource use in a particular region  knowledge of the land, animals, and the local environment; knowledge of management systems, values, social institutions; a particular world view.

Answer 230

Basic Principles apply to all stages of PP in IA processes from strategic to operational levels • Adapted to the context – Understanding and appreciating the social institutions, values, and culture of the communities in the project area; and respecting the historical, cultural, environmental, political and social backgrounds of the communities which are affected by a proposal. • Informative and proactive – Recognizing that the public has a right to be informed early and in a meaningful way in proposals which may affect their lives or livelihoods. Increased interest and motivation to participate occur by diffusing simple and understandable information to the affected and interested public. • Adaptive and communicative – Recognizing that the public is heterogeneous according to their demographics, knowledge, power, values and interests. The rules of effective communication among people, in the respect of all individuals and parties, should be followed. • Inclusive and equitable – Ensuring that all interests, including those non-represented or underrepresented are respected regarding the distribution of impacts, compensation and benefi ts. The participation or defence of the interests of less represented groups including indigenous peoples, women, children, elderly and poor people should be encouraged. Equity between present and future generations in a perspective of sustainability should be promoted. • Educative – Contributing to a mutual respect and understanding of all IA stakeholders with respect to their values, interests, rights and obligations. • Cooperative – Promoting cooperation, convergence and consensus-building rather than confrontation. Engaging confl icting perspectives and values as well as trying to reach a general acceptance of the proposal toward a decision that promotes and supports sustainable development should be pursued. • Imputable – Improving the proposal under study, taking into account the results of the PP process; including reporting and feedback to stakeholders about the results of the PP process, especially how their inputs have contributed to decision-making.

Answer 231

Operating Principles describe how the Basic Principles should be applied to the main steps and activities of the IA processes • Initiated early and sustained – The public should be involved early (before major decisions are made) and regularly in the IA process. This builds trust among participants, gives more time for PP, improves community analysis, improves screening and scoping of the IA, increases opportunities to modify the proposal in regards to the comments and opinions gathered during the PP process, reduces the risk of rumors, and improves the public image of the proponent. It can also give the regulator more confi dence in the approval decision they must make. • Well planned and focused on negotiable issues – All IA stakeholders should know the aims, rules, organization, procedure and expected outcomes of the PP process undertaken. This will improve the credibility of the process for all involved. Because consensus is not always feasible, PP should emphasise understanding and respect for the values and interests of participants, and focus on negotiable issues relevant to decisionmaking. • Supportive to participants – The public should be supported in their will to participate through an adequate diffusion of information on the proposal and on the PP process, and a just and equitable access to funding or fi nancial assistance. Capacity-building, facilitation and assistance should also be provided particularly for groups who don’t have the capacity to partici-pate, and in regions where there is no culture of PP, or where local culture may inhibit PP. • Tiered and optimized – A PP program should occur at the most appropriate level of decision-making (e.g., at the policy, plan, program or project level) for a proposal. The public should be invited to participate regularly, with emphasis on appropriate time for involvement. Because PP is resource consuming (human, financial, time) for all the IA stakeholders, PP optimization in time and space will ensure more willing participation. • Open and transparent – People who are affected by a proposal and are interested in participating, whatever their ethnic origin, gender and income, should have access to all relevant information.This information should be accessible to laypersons required for the evaluation of a proposal (e.g., terms of reference,report and summary). Laypersons should be able to participate in relevant workshops, meetings and hearings related to the IA process. Information and facilitation for such participation should be provided. • Context-oriented – Because many communities have their own formal and informal rules for public access to resources,confl ict resolution and governance, PP should be adapted to the social organization of the impacted communities, including the cultural, social, economic and political dimensions. This shows respect for the affected community and may improve public confidence of the process and its outcomes. • Credible and rigorous – PP should adhere to established ethics, professional behavior and moral obligations. Facilitation of PP by a neutral facilitator in its formal or traditional sense improves impartiality of the process as well as justice and equity in the right to information. It also increases the confi dence of the public to express their opinions and also to reduce tensions, the risk of confl icts among participants, and opportunities for corruption. In a formal context, the adoption of a code of ethics is encouraged.

Answer 232

A. Did the proponent actually do what was required of them based on the project terms of reference? B. Is the baseline description adequate? C. How are the impacts identified? D. How are the impacts evaluated and mitigation prescribed? E. What are the commitments post-implementation?

Answer 233

Early identification of efffected interests and values | -identification of values relevent to site selection for conflict minimization

Answer 234

public review of decisions concerning EIA requirements | .Early notification of affected interests of potential dvelopment

Answer 235

Further identification of active and inactive publics learning about public interests and values elicitation of local knowledge for baseline assessment identification of potentially significant impacts identification of other areas of public concern and suggestions for management identification of alternativrs establishment of credibility and trust between proponent and publics

Answer 236

elicitation of values and knowledge to assist impact predictions identification of criteria for evaluation of project impacs development of publics technical understanding of project impacts

Answer 237

informing public of project details, baseline conditions, likely impacts, and proposed management measures obtaining public feedback on key concerns, outstanding issues, and suggestions for improoved management identification of errors or emmisions in EIS providing public an opportunity to challenge EIS assumptions and predictions

Answer 238

resolution of potential conflicts final integration of responces from eis review in project approvals or conditions

Answer 239

Maintenance of trust and credibility identification of management effectiveness elicitation of local knowledge in data collection and ongoing monitoring or environmental change

Answer 240

1. Initial Project design 2. screening 3. scoping 4. impact prediction and evaluation 5. reporting and review 6. decision-making 7. follow up

Answer 241

case concluded with the courts deciding that the crown and proponent had the legally enforcable duty to consult with Haida first nation - rules are now that the government is resposible for consulting with aboriginals if any connection can be found

Answer 242

TEK -developer has one belief -aboriginals have another - made for greater consultation and interaction -environmental assessment was enhanced by TEK .completley refusing western science in some instances, is that wise? -is there a good enough balance between TEK and western science to satisfy all stakeholders?

Answer 243

Cumulative effects are simply the total effects of development, which may be an additive, interactive, or synergistic natural that accumulate over space and time and affect the sustainability of a VEC. • From a sustainability perspective, these are the effects that matter the most – the cumulative effects of everything! The effect of all of these activities on a single VEC, such as water quality, is a cumulative environmental effect. The problem is that not all of these point and nonpoint sources are subject to EA, and no single EA would consider all sources of stress in the watershed

Answer 244

environmental effects take place so frequently in time or so densely in space that they cannot be assimilated; or • effects emerging from one activity combine with the activities of another in an additive or synergistic manner.

Answer 245

* multiple actions representing impact-causing activities * multiple linkages and pathways of change * additive, antagonistic and synergistic relationships

Answer 246

1• Linear additive effects. Incremental additions to, or deletions from, a fixed storage where each increment or deletion has the same individual effect. 2• Amplifying or exponential effects. Incremental additions to, or deletions from, an apparently limitless storage or resource base where each increment or deletion has a larger effect than the one preceding. 3• Discontinuous effects. Incremental additions that have no apparent effect until a certain threshold is reached, at which time components change rapidly with very different types of behaviour and responses. 4• Structural surprises. Changes that occur as a result of multiple developments or activities in a defined region. They are often the least understood and most difficult to assess.

Answer 247

Pathways are the means or the routes by which cumulative effects occur over space and time 1. Slowly Dissapitive 2. Magnification 3. Multiple Impaccts 4. Synergistic relations

Answer 248

Additive 1. Persistent effects of a single project on a particular environmental component, such as repeated changes in water temperature in a hydroelectric reservoir.

Answer 249

Interactive A single activity causing effects that accumulate synergistically, such as creation of a hydroelectric reservoir causing change water temperature; standing water has lower dissolved oxygen content; vegetation flooding caused an increase in MeHg concentrations; effects of MeHg on fish increases in high water temperatures and low dissolved oxygen levels.

Answer 250

Additive 3. The environmental effects of multiple actions accumulate in an additive manner, such as multiple water withdrawals from a single river.

Answer 251

Interactive 4. Multiple effects interact in a synergistic manner, such that each project may alter water temperatures, change dissolved oxygen content and introduce heavy metals thereby contaminating aquatic life, but the impacts due to the interaction of these effects across multiple projects is greater that the sum of the individual project effects.

Answer 252

Good CEA • While effects-based and stressor-based approaches are each useful, they offer different types of understanding. Effects-based is from the perspective of change in the receiving environment. Stressor-based is from the perspective of change in human disturbance or stress to the environment. Good CEA requires both effects and stressor-based approaches. • Good CEA must focus on both understanding the accumulated environmental state and human stressors – past, present and future. 1.Stressor Based CEA • A prospective design `What might or could happen`` • single project and assessment of cumulative stress • combination of stress with other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable activities in the project area 2.Effects Based CEA • A retrospective design `What has happened`` • how effects of activities in a region combine to cause cumulative effects • not focused on any particular project

Answer 253

is the most common approach to CEA and is prospective in design (what might or could happen)  involves a description of the baseline and predictive modeling to determine how project-related stressors may interact to cause cumulative change  the assumption is that all stressor-VEC interactions and cause-effect linkages are known within the spatial and temporal bounds of the project  the nibbling effects, or combinations of effects from activities outside the project’s control, that may or may not have been subject to assessment, are rarely considered directly in stressor-based CEA Typical proponent: Single project proponent or developer Trigger: Project proposal subject to EIA regulation or law Scope: Inward focused on project activities and stressors Temporal bounds: Project life cycle Spatial bounds: Site specific, defined by the reach of project activities Sources and pathways of effects: Individual, predicted direct project actions Typical CEA questions: What are the key stressors and the additive effects of project activities?

Answer 254

typically occurs outside the project-based EIA process (more retrospective – what has happened)  concerns assessing actual environmental responses and VEC conditions,regardless of the course of the stress  emphasis is on trying to understand the total effects of all stressors in a region, project and non-project, on a particular VEC or set of VECs  cannot operate effectively under the current project-based EA model Typical proponent: Government agency; science or management organization Trigger: Noticed decline in environmental conditions; preparation for a major development strategy; land use planning Scope: Outward focused on VECs and VEC indicators Temporal bounds: Past, present, future possibilities Spatial bounds: Region, ecosystem, or watershed Sources and pathways of effects: Multiple project and non-project stressors Typical CEA questions: What are the current VEC conditions? Are cumulative stressors in the region threatening VEC sustainability?

Answer 255

1. Scoping and CEA: Good CEA adopts ecosystem health and functioning as a core determinant of VEC selection. Effective CEA must be spatially and temporally bound based on the distribution of the VEC’s affected by both the project(s) in question and the effects of other projects and disturbances – past, present and future. Spatial Boundaries for CEA • Spatial boundaries for CEA need to encompass the potential environmental effects on VECs of the project being assessed in combination with other physical activities that have been or will be carried out. (CEAA Operational Policy Statement 2012) • Selecting the size of the boundary can lead to problems – either too large or too small – which can be to the proponent’s advantage or disadvantage. • Refer to Figure 11.4 for an example of “ambitious bounding” and “restrictive bounding”. Importance of Scale • Spatial Scale: actual geographic extent; usually based on natural or administrative boundaries (or both). • Analysis Scale: used to examine VECs and impacts across space; can be influenced by available data (current, historic) and the extent of air photo coverage. • Phenomenon Scale: the spatial units within which the various processes operate or function; perhaps the most important type of scale in CEA. Temporal Boundaries for CEA • Temporal bounding needs to consider future activities and the degree to which the environmental effects of these activities will overlap those predicted from the proposed project. • Temporal bounding also needs to ask how far into the past should cumulative environmental change resulting from other activities be considered in the assessment.

Answer 256

Retrospective Analysis • Retrospective analysis involves assessing past VEC conditions and analyzing trends and changes in conditions over time and against thresholds. You were first introduced to this concept in Module 5 and our discussion of baseline assessment. • Good CEA requires an understanding of how VEC conditions have changed over time and whether that change is significant in terms of the sustainability of the VEC. An attempt should be made to identify relationships between indicators of change in VEC conditions and measures of human or natural disturbance so as to determine trends and associations that can be used to predict and monitor VEC conditions or responses to futurecumulative change.

Answer 257

Prospective Analysis • Prospective analysis is about predicting and evaluating how VECs or their indicators might respond to additional stress in the future (i.e., stress caused by the project and by other projects and actions in the regional environment). • The focus of analysis is on the VEC conditions and understanding potential VEC response to cumulative disturbance. • The problem is that predicting future conditions is often uncertain and data are often incomplete.

Answer 258

Management • While not always feasible, the best way to manage cumulative effects is to avoid them. • The management phase of CEA involves the identification of potentially significant cumulative effects, identifying project management measures, and developing follow-up and monitoring programs for cumulative effects. • It is particularly important to determine whether the incremental or cumulative effects caused by the project are significant. This requires an evaluation of the total effects of each VEC of concern, including the effects of the project plus the effects caused by other sources. • The management objective is to minimize or eliminate the cumulative contribution of the project to an adverse effect on VEC conditions.

Answer 259

Scoping Retrospective Analysis Prospective Analysis Management

Answer 260

largely ignored cumulative effects on VECs of past actions and changing VEC conditions over time - lack of baseline information - lacked prospective view that was inclusive of project lifetime - the fact that there was little to no cumulative effects listed in arguable the most important part of the EIS was inconcievable Was STILL APPROVED (step backward, "good enough") - recognized limites of CEA as currently practiced and established need for higher standards - established need for regional view of cumulative effects

Answer 261

1. Current EIA promotes an isolated project centered ideal for CEA 2. concerned only with minimizing project stress over looking to move forward with sustainable ideal 3. Often reluctance to set thresholds or to limit development when our understanding of natural variability and adaptability within a system is poor 4. Looking far enough into the future has extremely large variables that are difficult to predict - need more scenario development 5. our assumptions about cumulative effects are not always correct - need to think about limits of environmental systems in terms of types, ammounts and rates of development that can be accomodated. 6. CEAs beyond projects short time length are needed

Answer 262

so many of them have cumulatively had an effect | - only 5 out of the thousands have had an EIA

Answer 263

SEA integrates environment into higher-order policy, plan and program (PPP) development and decision making processes – It is the environmental assessment of strategic initiatives. • A strategic approach to assessment provides an opportunity to consider a range of PPP options at an early stage. This is important because at these earlier stages there is usually greater flexibility with respect to future actions and the decisions that will be taken.

Answer 264

1. Policy SEA: this is the most significant type of SEA as it involves large-scale government policies, which can have more far reaching effects than PPP. A Canadian example includes the SEA funded by the Biosphere Canada Action Program to assess policy options for greenhouse gas mitigation in prairie agriculture. 2• Sector SEA: applies to sector-based initiatives, plans and programs. Emphasis is place on the initiatives of, and alternatives to, particular sector development plans or programs that may lead to environmental change. Sector SEAs are usually defined by the boundaries of a specific resource sector (e.g., forest harvesting, or oil and gas lease sites) 3• Regional SEA: focuses on regional plans or programs (e.g., land use plans), which may include multiple sectors. The CCME (2009) defines regional SEA as: a process designed to systematically assess the potential environmental effects, including cumulative effects, of alternative strategic initiatives, policies, plans, or programs for a particular region. * Regional SEA is intended to: * Improve the management of cumulative environmental effects; * Increase the effectiveness of project-level EIA; and * Identify preferred directions, strategies and priorities for the future use, management and development of a region.

Answer 265

There are three broad components: • Pre-assessment or context-setting phase: focused on developing a reference framework, scoping the baseline and key issues of concern, and identifying trends and stressors of concern; • Impact assessment phase: often technical in nature and used to identify strategic options and assess their potential effects, opportunities and risk; and • Post-assessment phase: focused on developing planning and management measures and moving the SEA output forward to PPP implementation and following up on the results.

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