EIA is an acronym for Environmental Impact Assessment. This refers to a systematic analysis of projects, policies, plans, and programmes to determine their potential environmental and social impacts, the significance of such effects, and propose measures to mitigate the negative ones.
It is the anchor of sustainable development, guided by important principles that we discussed in an earlier post on this blog.
An environmental impactis any environmental change, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partially resulting from an organization’s activities, products, or services.
When we construct buildings, we do so on land, which forms part of an existing environment and ecosystem. Our construction works change the very nature of that environment, both during construction and in the occupation stages. These changes are part of the environmental impacts of that construction project.
Based on the purpose and the theme of the proposed development, EIA can be seen as a general combination of climate impact assessment, demographic impact assessment, development impact assessment, ecological impact assessment, economic and fiscal impact assessment, health impact assessment, risk assessment, social impact assessment, strategic impact assessment, and technology assessment. The details of these are the subject of another post.
However, based on the systematic analysis of environmental parameters, the extent of the geographic region being covered, carrying-capacity limitations, sectoral planning, and line of activity, we have the following categories of EIA:
1. Strategic EIA
The Strategic EIA is the systematic analysis of the environmental effects of development policies, plans, programs, and other proposed strategic actions.
This process extends the aims and principles of EIA upstream in the decision-making process, beyond the project level and when major alternatives are still open.
It is a proactive approach to integrate environmental considerations into the higher level of decision-making.
2. Regional EIA
This refers to EIA in the context of regional planning. It integrates environmental concerns into the development planning for a geographic region, normally at the sub-country level.
Such an approach is referred to as the economic/environmental development planning. This approach facilitates adequate integration of economic development with management of renewable natural resources within the carrying-capacity limitation to achieve sustainable development.
It fulfils the need for macro level environmental integration.
Regional EIA addresses the environmental impacts of regional development plans and forms the context for project-level EIA of the subsequent projects, within the region. This way, the cumulative environmental effects of all the projects within the region can be accounted.
3. Sectoral EIA
This type of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) takes place in the context of individual sector-level planning. The sectoral level development plans must integrate and address the sectoral environmental concerns.
It helps to address specific environmental problems that may be encountered in planning and implementing sector-specific development projects.
4. Project Level EIA
Project-level EIA refers to the developmental activity in isolation and the impacts it exerts on the receiving environment. It does not look at the cumulative effects of the development in a region or a concerned sector.
This EIA mainly depends on the line of activity proposed in the project. In our construction projects, this is the level at which our environmental impact assessments operate.
We look at the specific proposed construction project and its associated impacts on the immediate environment (economic, social, environmental, and legal aspects).
Conclusion
The environmental impact assessment (EIA) is an important input into real estate development. It can be integrated in various levels, with these levels forming the main types of EIA. These are strategic, regional, sectoral and project-level classifications.
The project level EIA is the most relevant in the context of a specific development, say a proposed construction project. As part of the development control and permitting process, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) requires a project owner to submit an EIA report to them for review before a project license is issued to proceed with construction works.
Therefore, it is important to understand these types and their context for compliance with these regulatory requirements by the government.