Environmental Impact Assessments in Developing …

Environmental Impact Assessments in Developing Countries: An Opportunity for Greater Environmental Security? Jennifer C. Li 2008 Working Paper No. 4 1 Working Paper Introduction The Environmental Impact assessment (EIA) process, which originated in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s, has been adopted extensively in the rest of the world. The model and that of other developed countries share basic principles and reflects commonly agreed-upon approaches to similar problems. While EIAs in Developing countries are based on the same set of principles, their implementation often falls considerably short of international standards. They frequently suffer from insufficient consideration of impacts, alternatives, and public participation. In the worst case, they are not conducted at all. This is particularly troubling given that Environmental Impact Assessments often are the chief and most comprehensive means for assessing the potential Environmental and social impacts of large-scale development projects in countries where Environmental safeguards are weak due to deficiencies in regulation, enforcement, or both.

• Understates and insufficiently mitigates environmental impacts and loses credibility. Source: Sadler 1996; Glasson et al. 2005. One of the most important challenges for EIAs is the assessment of cumulative impacts. Cumulative impacts and changes to the environment are those that are “caused by an action in

Tags:

  Assessment, Developing, Impact, Environmental, Environmental impact, Environmental impact assessments in developing

Information

Related search queries